I had the pleasure of both reading and listening to this book. I really liked the foot notes and thought the audio did a great job of incorporating the humor into the main story line. It’s a bit cheesy, but it is a great summer mystery that you can fly through quickly! It was also fun to see bookstagrammers as side characters.

I loved the Italian setting, having been to Rome and Naples myself 3 years ago I can easily picture some of the locations. The meta aspect of the story is fun, and I liked the relationship between the two sisters, at least once they cleared the air. I didn't like all the footnotes, which were cute at first and then annoying, and there were too many characters too keep track of.

This one unfortunately wasn’t for me, I DNF at about 25% of the way through. I struggled with the footnotes, and the additional grammar Marks in the arc just made it too hard to get into.

For fans of the fury, you will enjoy this take on a who done It murder mystery set.

Eleanor Dash, best selling author, is invited on a book tour in Italy with her sister, both of her ex boyfriends, her exes ex, her stalker, and a few other people who have grudges against her. What can go wrong?

What’s unique about this story is told with lots of cliff notes and annotations at the bottom of the page. While i was reading, It really threw off the flow of the sentences for me. I did listen via audiobook to some of It and the narrator did a great job making them sound so natural. The overall story itself is just pretty basic. Kind of cheesy. A few parts made me chuckle. Nothing to knock your socks off, but still good!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this reading copy! These opinions are entirely my own.

"Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies" had an interesting concept: a mystery centered around a writer on a book tour in Italy. Unfortunately, the characters and the execution of the humor detracted from the story's potential.

The protagonist, Eleanor, was difficult to root for. The author's portrayal of her relationship with her sister, Harper, fell flat. Eleanor was too dependent on her sister and Connor wasn’t that great either.

The author's attempt at humor through footnotes felt forced and disruptive to the
narrative flow. While some readers might enjoy this style, it fell flat for me.

Overall, "Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies" wasn't a satisfying read. The characters were unlikable, and the humor felt out of place. The mystery itself failed to hold my attention." Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to review this ARC.

“Ten days, eight suspects, six cities, five authors, and three bodies.”

This book was fun.

I loved the Italian setting, the backdrop of the publishing world, and bookish media.

I really liked the flawed nature of the main character, as it gave her real depth.

I didn’t love how shallow the secondary characters were, the also-ran nature of the romance, and how many plot points were just glossed over. We’re to believe that Connor has the brains to mastermind multiple, modern-day bank heists, but given zero indicators to back it up.

I also don’t think it helped that the book gave me serious “Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone” vibes, a book I really enjoyed, but wasn’t as well executed.

Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin, and Macmillan Audio for this romp of an ARC.

This book is so fun! Mack bobs and weaves a tale so funny, so mysterious that it will keep you glued to the page until the bitter end. Every Time I go on Vacation, Someone Dies is a book lovers dream. Our main character is a mystery author on a book tour in Italy. While she struggles to plot out her next murder on the page, it seems someone is trying to make one happen in real life. With twists and turns and laugh-out-loud moments around every bend, Mack delights in this Emily Henry turned murder mystery. I loved every single character in this book and cannot wait for the next one in this series. Seriously, so good. The mystery book of the summer!

Some people might say they chose this book despite the title. Mystery lover that I am - I chose it because of the title. I wasn't familiar with Catherine Mack, but the title intrigued me, and the publisher's description intrigued me even more. I love authors writing about authors, and (when it's well-done) especially love when they break that fourth wall and speak directly to the reader. And Mack handled it very well indeed with this book about an author who's accidentally fallen into writing a best-selling mystery series that was initially based on an incident from her life. But now she's struggling to write book #10 in the series, where her plan is to write out (more accurately kill off) the male lead in the books so that she can get the real-life guy out of her life. On an authors' tour in Italy with other mystery writers, she and Connor (the real life former lover and current thorn in her side) find themselves in some dicey situations and bodies begin to drop. It's all fun, and the narration by Elizabeth Evans just adds to the experience - she does a great job with different accents and with giving characters their own voices. It was an entertaining read/listen - and it made me want to go back to Italy, both for the scenery and for the food. I started out reading this one, but ended up mostly listening to the audiobook. I'm looking forward to the next book in this planned series.
Thanks to Netgalley, St. Martin's Press, and Macmillan Audio for providing copies for an unbiased review.

A wonderful humorous cozy mystery that I expect to see everywhere this summer season. Simply a must have summer or any time vacation escape read.

LOVE LOVE LOVE. I think i found my new favorite summer read (or anytime read, let's be honest). This book was a great combination of mystery and humor. I could not put it down!.....is book two out yet? (asking for a friend, its me. I'm the friend)

THE. FOOTNOTES. I absolutely loved the footnotes through out the book. They were witty, funny, ADHD thoughts that were a fantastic addition. I loved how Catherine Mack broke the fourth wall with these. More books need to have these.

I really enjoyed the authors writing style of this book. It was fresh and easy to read. It feels like she breaks down her own process for writing books in the book through Eleanor. The plot was attention-holding and honestly, I thought I knew who did it (I did not). 10/10 would read again.

What a fun murder mystery from an authors POV. I thought it was pretty funny and I enjoyed reading from Els POV and trying to figure out who is trying to kill who. It wasnt a binge read for me and some parts did seem like it was going in circles but overall it was one I was able to read from start to finish.

El is an author who became one because she wrote fiction book in a real experience she had on vacation with her at the time boyfriend Conner. The truth of what happened is not in the book but it was a way for her to get the experience out. This murder left some people very upset as well as close friends and family surrounding El and Conner. So when El is summoned to go on a book tour and another murder surrounds her who is it? And is she next?

This was a fun mystery/women’s fiction the style was cheeky and somewhat reminded me of Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone but in sunnier locations.

I really love footnotes in books. I know it’s niche, but it’s such a fun way for the author or character to talk directly to the audience and break the fourth wall. I had to switch from my eARC to my physical copy so I could enjoy the footnotes in all their comedic splendor.

Books set on vacations and cozy mysteries are my JAM so I really enjoyed this book! I was hooked from the start and the “but wait, there’s more” vibe of introducing the side characters was hilarious.

This is such a clever book and had similar vibes to Finlay Donovan. I cannot wait to continue reading this series!

Thank you to Minotaur for a gifted copy. All thoughts are my own.

“Every time I Go On Vacation Someone Dies” is the first book in a cozy mystery series, set in Italy my favorite location. The writing style is very unique and the footnotes are funny, something different which is fun. This book is going to be one that you either love or you dislike. I feel bad saying this one was a miss for me disputing the uniqueness. There were far too many characters for my liking I couldn’t keep up with their itineraries or their whereabouts. It was a little overwhelming for me I almost DNF but I was invested and wanted to see where the story went. There were some good elements and I really think a lot of people will love it because again the style is something different.
Thank you St. Martins Press/Minatour Books for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review.

Enjoyed this twisty book filled with great laughs as well. Great way to shift into summer reads with a fun, light hearted read. I look forward to reading more.

This was fun! I liked the concept (the footnotes were delightful) and the mystery was solid. A fun summer / vacation read!

<i>ARC Provided by NetGalley<i>

I absolutely loved this. Eleanor’s trip to Italy was a disaster in the most entertaining way possible.

I absolutely adored the premise of an unintentional writer who makes her way to literary fame through solving a series of bank robberies and writing a fictional book about them…and then keeps it going. The blackmail, the terrible ex who screws everyone over and is barnacle-esque in his holding tight to the mouths that feed him, the references to failed duolingo classes, the love-hate relationship with the other authors on the trip, the murder attempts…all of it made for a completely entertaining read.

This book was so fun! I really enjoyed the book within a book concept/4th wall breaking. There were tons of pop culture references which I understood but might be annoying for those who don't. I'm looking forward to more books in this series!

If you want to read a hysterically, funny story I would highly recommend the book Every Time I Go on Vacation Someone Dies by best known author Catherine McKenzie whose books are thrillers but is writing this series? one can only hope and pray, other the name Catherine Mack! Yes, it's a mystery but more important it is a comedy of errors and sentence after sentence of laughter, most of which are in the funniest footnotes I have ever read!

Eleanor Dash is a famous mystery author (she tells the story and also give the reader the footnotes) who has decided to end her very beloved The Vacation Mystery series. But what nobody knows just yet, not even her publisher is she plans on killing off her main character Connor Smith who is a real-life person who she actually dated and solved a real crime with which included a real-life Mafia family and took place in Italy many years ago. Everyone knows the character is based on someone she knew, intimately, but what they don't know is he has been blackmailing her for years. I will let Eleanor through her footnotes tell you how that came to be.

Now Eleanor finds herself back in Italy doing research for the last book with not only Connor, but her assistant who is her sister Harper, a group of other authors and a group of her rabid...I mean loyal fans to accompany her on this book tour, something her publisher for some reason put together.

So, when Connor tells them all he was almost killed and thinks someone is trying to kill him, Eleanor is quite taken aback. Yes, she plans to kill him but not THAT way! Then to her surprise she discovers that Oliver, her one true love? is here as well and oh yes, someone seems to want her dead too! Is this real? Sure, maybe someone would want to kill Connor, but her? No way!

And then of course, someone really does get killed, no one they expected to get killed and oh by the way one of the book tour fans is actually her stalker from back home. The Italian police become involved, and the head officer is the spitting image of Stanley Tucci. Please keep that memory in your head for when you read the book. He was the officer who assisted in the crime Eleanor and Connor solved years ago.

Now, Eleanor feels she must figure out what is going on before 1. she is killed, 2. she makes a mistake with Oliver or 3. Connor is killed (that certainly wouldn't bode well for her book).

Every Time I Go on Vacation Somone Dies is the funniest book I have read in a very long time. It has such an imaginable plot and footnotes which will make you laugh out loud. I am serious! Please, please Catherine Mack, make this a series!

Thank you #NetGalley #MinotourBooks #CatherineMack #EveryTimeIGoonVacationSomeoneDies for the advanced copy.

I loved this book! This cozy mystery really kept me interested (I stayed up late to finish it!) and I loved the footnotes and the breaking the fourth wall. Will definitely read the sequel :)