Cover Image: Vacation Wars

Vacation Wars

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I was excited to kick off the summer reading season with this one but unfortunately it wasn't a hit for me.

I was so uncomfortable with several of the relationships portrayed here. I understand they had to be extreme in order to make a point but the level of toxicity was too much for me. I think it was supposed to be funny at times but I never found the humor.

The romantic relationship was sweet at times and the setting described was beautiful.

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[Thanks Netgalley and the publisher for the ebook. This review is my honest opinion but just another opinion, you should read this book and judge it by yourself]

I usually like Meghan Quinn's stories, but this one is not for me. Although the love story is sweet, hot and cute, the war between the sisters was awful to read, it made me angry every single time and spoiled the whole book for me. Even the funny moments weren't funny to me at all.
Miles is a sweetheart, a really great MC, but Tessa is not up to his standards.
Sometimes you can't connect with the characters or the story and that's what happened to me.

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Un pequeño chasquito.
Las novelas de Meghan Quinn son de esas que uso para desconectar el cerebro, unos nadismos de mono con platillos donde lo importante es pasar un buen rato y no pensar. No es que esta novela me haya hecho pensar, obviamente, pero sí tiene una parte que me ha resultado muy molesta de leer y que me ha estropeado toda la lectura.
En esta novela hay dos tramas, una amorosa, con una pareja que se lleva viendo todos los veranos desde que eran pequeños pero que nunca se han atrevido a cruzar dos palabras, y otra fraternoamistosa donde tres chicas se dedican a manejar la vida amorosa de la protagonista basándose en un contrato chorra que hicieron de adolescentes. Vamos a ver, que ya tenéis canas en el xirri! No os da vergüenza hacer esas mierdas? Se supone que esa parte de graciosa y sirve de excusa para que los protagonistas se acerquen pero ha sido algo extremadamente molesto que casi me hace abandonar la lectura.
Si hay una cosa que aprecio de los pocos libros que he leído de esta escritora es que sus diálogos suenan muy naturales y en general son lecturas muy cómodas pero esta casi me ha parecido el ascenso al Everest.
Menos mal que el maromo es FA-BU-LO-SO y con eso me quedo. Bueno, y con los meneos que se meten, que la Quinn nos los cuenta y eso es BIEN.

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Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one... wasn't for me. A friend also got an ARC of this one and while other Meghan Quinn books have been instant five stars, this one just fell flat. Tessa was irritating, her family was the worst, and it was just missing SOMETHING.

The setting was beautiful though. I need to read more romance set in Santorini because that place is utterly gorgeous.

If you're looking to pick up a MQ book, I wouldn't suggest this one. Come ask me for some recommendations if you're interested on what to read, though.

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This was my first Meghan Quinn book, after seeing her titles all over Bookstagram. Based in Santorini, Tessa comes across her crush, Myles, who is working at the resort that she is staying at. With her sister pushing her into meeting a man and trying to set her up with others, Myles helps her out by saving her from a few situations. While the book was romance focused, there was also a strong theme of family relationships, with both main characters also having their own family issues. I enjoyed this one and hope to read more by the author.

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The story of twin sisters who are so very different and a long time crush that has possibilities many years later becomes a laugh a minute rom-com as well as a clash of wills and some eye opening moments for several in the characters in the book. Tessa has always stood in the shadow of her twin sister Roxane and has been okay with it for the most part-until a teenage contract between friends begins to unravel their bonds and illuminate their differences. Myles has his own issues to deal with within his own family and the reality of these two becoming true to themselves and coming together seems impossible. Overall 4 stars.

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The prologue? Right away adorable! Can you say early 2000s rom com? Because that’s totally the vibe and I am here for it.

Tessa drove me nuts with the word vomit. I wanted her to stop talking because I was cringing on her behalf every time she revealed an unnecessary detail about herself that only made her feel worse.

I switched to audio about 40% in because I was struggling to get reading time. This did allow me to progress through the book faster but it did not help me like the book better. There were so many times I found myself cringing at the main characters’ interactions that I didn’t end up enjoying their relationship development.

I absolutely adore Meghan Quinn but this one was just not it for me.

Rating: 2.5/5

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Thanks to Montlake Publishing, Netgalley and the author for an ARC of this book. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Meghan Quinn never lets me down - whenever I need to laugh out loud I pick up one of her books and I am instantly in a happy place. This book gave me the same feeling.
Yes - there are complex and, at times, toxic relationships that this author explores very well. But at the centre are two remarkable people,. Myles and Tessa, who carve out something for themselves despite adversity.
I loved Tessa's nervous babble, her love for her sister and her friends and her awkwardness in just about every situation. Myles (the bulge - aptly named btw) is an absolute cream puff.
The setting of the beautiful island of Santorini just makes the whole thing even more beautiful.
You want to escape to a beautiful Greek island where you can finally find what you have been looking for your whole life? Pick up this book.

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I actually read this one while listening to Secretly Yours by Tessa and both books' main characters are very naive and immature. For me reading about a woman or man in their late 20s or early 30s being so immature is a pet peeve.

So this book had an immaturity to the characters that made me think they were 18. The toxic relationship between the sisters and their two friends also made me dislike the characters and story.

However, I think Quinn's descriptive writing set the scene of Greece perfectly and made me want to go back.

I did love the way the relationship formed from knowing each other for so long to a romantic relationship. I just wish both characters were more mature about it.

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I could not finish enough of this book to be able to leave a comprehensive review, but I hope it finds its audience and I am grateful to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

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This is a cute love story with lots of funny scenes. Tessa, her twin sister Roxane, and their two friends go to Santorini for Roxane’s when party. Tessa’s having a wonderful time until the others decide she needs a romance, and they do a terrible job picking out potential dates. For Tessa, this means war and she pranks them in return.
What Roxane etc don’t know is that Tessa finally met Myles, the cute guy she’s had a crush on since she was young. The family went to Santorini every year, and every year her crush grew stronger. She doesn’t want to share him with her family and friends just yet.
I love the descriptions of Santorini, the pranks are hysterical, and the romance with Myles feels very real. I recommend this one, 4.5 stars.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed as in this review are completely my own.

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I just adore this author so much! I don’t know another author that can make me laugh a lot as well as feel so much emotions for the characters. She never disappoints and I am always so excited when I see she has a new book in the works.

This was such a fun fast paced read that takes place in such a pretty place. Tessa and her family always go to the same place every year for vacation and she has always seen this boy. As the years went on said boy became cuter and her crush grew stronger. Now as an adult she is back with her twin sister and their friends and he’s there. Myles is back and ready to work with his dad. He didn’t expect Tessa and all they would get up to. They have such great chemistry. I really enjoyed this book and all the characters.

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“Why aren’t we?” I ask. “We’ve spent almost our entire lives crossing paths, creating small moments in our timeline together, building up to this point where we finally collided. Are you telling me that this bump in the road is supposed to throw away all of that history? All of that longing? All of those moments of fantasizing and dreaming?” I shake my head.

What happens when two people who've had crushes on each other since they were children finally get the chance to act on their feelings? Sparks fly and the relationship they've both always wanted begins to form-they just have to be brave enough to go all in.

I really enjoyed this book! It was cute and the banter was witty and fun. Tessa is shy and can't string a sentence together and Myles is confident but struggling under his father's expectations. I really felt that these two personalities meshed well together. They each brought out the confidence in each other.

Tessa's sister though? Man I wanted to punch her in the face! The relationship between all of the girls is one that has been forged through a lifetime of bonding and love, but I kept getting angry at how the girls wanted Tessa to find love and kept pushing her to do things she really wasn't comfortable doing. I guess that means the writing was good!

All in all, I really enjoyed this book!

*Thank you to Meghan Quinn, Netgalley, and Montlake for the ARC!

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Vacation Wars follows identical twin Tessa. She is awkward, shy and has always tried to do what her twin said. She's on a trip to Greece for her twin's wedding. With a week before the wedding the girls along with two other best friends are having one big girls trip. The trio of best friends have made it their mission to find Tessa her one true love. Now that she's 30 they have the right to find her a man, since they had a pact notarized when they were teens. This is where the chaos starts. Read for the secret dating, bad dates the girls force Tessa to go on and personal empowerment.

This book has some laugh out loud lines and those were what kept me reading. This book deals with some toxic relationships and the cringe was high. I thought the ending was drawn out as well. Vacation Wars just didn't hit me well.

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A fab read with some brilliant characters that all add up to make an amusing and entertaining read that left me with a smile on my face.

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Rating 3.75/5

Thank you Meghan Quinn and Montlake for an ARC of this fun novel via NetGalley.

I won't lie, the basis of the wars between Tessa and her sister and friends felt a little silly but I was willing to roll with it bc it sounded like it could create some fun moments. I won't say it didn't but they got aggressive... fast. Honestly a little *too* aggressive for me personally but I really appreciated that it wasn't for naught. It ultimately led to hard conversations between the friends which in turn gave everyone a chance for some self-reflection and growth.

But to focus on our main characters for a sec. Tessa is quirky, with a capital Q. She gives off a bit of that not-like-other-girls vibes which isn't bad but it did take me a sec to adjust to her. And it did set up a great evolution for her relationship with Myles. From awkward to intimate, I loved watching them get to know each other better. In fact, my favorite parts were when they were together bc there was just something so right and natural (minus their initial run-ins) that really made me root for them. I loved how vulnerable they were with each other and how understanding and nonjudgmental they were while also gently pointing out things that they could have done better. They just accepted each other so completely despite seeing the ugly parts and that was the highlight of the novel for me.

CN: open-door romance, controlling behavior

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I liked this book. Not the best I’ve read from Meghan Quinn though. Tessa started out so dang annoying with her embarrassing nervous chatter. She did grow on me and I ended up related to her a lot but dang I almost wanted to just skim the first few chapters it was so bad. Miles was amazing. Absolutely loved him as MMC and as a perfect compliment for Tessa. Their crushes from years past coming to light, then texting to dating was wonderful to read about.

While I got the vacation war pranks and why they happened, I did not appreciate Roxane, Clea and Lois and how they handled trying to set Tessa up. They picked awful guys and gave no thought to her as a person. I have no clue how they could even be friends they were so bad and humiliated Tessa on multiple occasions. Roxane being the instigator all the time. Frankly she was mean and demeaning and it got old real fast. If we had had the major fight earlier in the book it would have helped a lot the story a lot.

Pains me to not give this more stars as I love MQ but this was sadly a miss for me.

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It’s been a while since I’ve read a MQ book, I missed her writing! I loved the humor in this book, the awkward FMC who rambles when nervous (I identify with this so much!), and the Greek hottie! I really hated her twin though, and her “friends”. It would be one thing If Tessa were going along with their antics and secretly hating it but she was very verbal about not wanting the attention from the men. I was so annoyed with her sister trying to control her life, and little at Tessa for letting her. I mean whole follows “rules” they made up as teenagers when they are almost 30?? I do feel like the book circled around and was able to tie things up nicely in a way that made sense. Over all I really enjoyed it!

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Tessa & Myles

"Vacation Wars is my third novel by Meghan Quinn and probably my last for now.
I had a lot of trouble getting into the story, and honestly, I didn't make it to the end one hundred percent.

My biggest problem is that the humor is way too over the top for me to find situation funny. Most was in my eyes unfortunately often cringe 🙈 In a romcom this is of course the super-GAU.

But also Tessa, the protagonist, did not make it into my heart. For that I liked Myles, quite a bit.

What I really liked about "Vacation Wars" was the description of the setting. I would love to get on a plane to Santorini!

Nevertheless, the story could not convince me and gets from me unfortunately only 2.5-3 of 5 stars.

Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

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Vacation Wars by Meghan Quinn was wonderful! I love this author as she always delivers. The plot of the book was engaging and kept me turning the pages. Overall, "Vacation Wars" is a must-read for fans of romantic comedies. With its lovable characters, engaging plot, and hilarious humor, this book is sure to put a smile on your face.

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I love MQ but this was NOT like her others. I needed more steam - I wanted to love this one but it's just not my favorite of hers.

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