I had to switch to the audio of this book because I found the footnotes really took me out of the story. a unique way to tell a story but they worked much better on audio and I found them distracting in print.

Overall this was just ok for me. I couldn’t get fully invested - I was along for the ride but didn’t really care about the reveal or conclusion.

Thank you so much to Minotaur books and @netgalley for the ARC!

🍋 𝙈𝙮 𝙏𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩𝙨 🍋
I love books featuring authors as the main character and this cozy murder mystery hits the spot! It is the first book in the Vacation Mysteries series, and I look forward to the next one!

Eleanor Dash is going on an Italian book tour for the 10th anniversary of her first book. She has to deal with Connor Smith, who she got involved with 10 years ago when they solved a crime together… leading her to base her main character off of him. He has been irritating her since then! She also has crazy fans, an ex boyfriend, and other shenanigans happening. In the midst of chaos, there is murder and Eleanor is trying to stay safe and solve it!

I enjoyed the breaking the fourth wall perspective in the book. Eleanor literally called herself an unreliable narrator, which was amusing! Her main character Connor was annoying and comical at the same time. I liked how we were taken in circles as to who could have the motive and means to the murders that happen on this trip. It kept me guessing until the end!

I look forward to reading the next one in this series! I enjoy a cozy mystery with humor blended in!
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𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙞𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚:
🍋 Cozy Murder Mysteries
📘 Books featuring Authors
📗 Breaking the Fourth Wall
🍋 Italian Book Tour
📙 Blackmail and Funny Characters

Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies by Catherine Mack is a hilarious and heartwarming mystery series that follows the misadventures of travel writer Alexia "Alex" Hawthorne. After a series of unfortunate events, Alex discovers that whenever she goes on vacation, someone always seems to die. Determined to solve the mystery, she sets out on a series of hilarious and heartwarming adventures.

Mack's writing is witty and engaging, keeping readers hooked from the very beginning. The characters are well-developed and likable, and the setting of each vacation destination is unique and interesting. The mystery itself is cleverly constructed, with plenty of twists and turns to keep readers guessing.

This was a fun romp through all the delicacies of Rome, with a hint of distrust. The FMC is an author, talking through some concepts for her next book alongside an actual suspected murder, I high felt confusing at times. The relationships between the characters have very little depth, and there are a ton of footnotes. The audio does read them as part of the story, which adds character. Overall it wasn’t what I thought it would be, but I appreciated how beautiful Rome is depicted.

I received an advance review copy for free from the publisher via Netgalley and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

When author Eleanor ends up on a tour of Italy in July that’s been organized by her publisher, she has two goals in mind: survive and drink all the aperol spritzes. Unfortunately, blackmail, murder attempts, and interpersonal relationships get in the way. Who will make it out alive?

While this took me a bit to get into, I found Eleanor quirky and funny. Her footnotes made for comical insights into the narrator’s mind. A lighthearted who dun it for anyone looking for a fun, quick read.

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for a fair review.

very fun plot lots of fourth wall breaks, i enjoyed it, was very fun although slightly predictable. would say the arc format was rlly bad and the amount of footnotes did get kind of annoying

A book about a book is always fun to read, this one unique with the annotations as part of the story. A cute cozy-ish mystery with a lot of characters to keep track of. It’s told in a single, first person POV of the main character who speaks directly to reader at times and is also an unreliable narrator.
3.5 stars

Unfortunately I didn’t remember to write a review for this work soon enough after reading and I don’t have a clear idea about how I felt about this book. I wish it was more memorable.

This book is written very uniquely with an exuberant amount of footnotes, but once I started getting the rhythm, I really enjoyed the storytelling device and its use to add to the story.
Our FMC, Eleanor, is an author of a popular mystery series, who’s male protagonist is based on her former boyfriend, and their own tale. Connor sucks and blackmailed her, and now he’s along for the ride with everything she does, as her come-to-life fiction character.
While on an exclusive tour in Italy for winners of her contest, it becomes obvious that someone is trying to murder not just Connor, but her too. The mystery writer becomes the subject of her own mystery. I loved the fourth wall breaks and how while following the mystery formula, she also points it out. Its like pausing a movie and saying “see what I did there?”
Even with her guidance, I still failed to figure out who the antagonist was until it was revealed.

Thank you NetGalley and Minotaur Books for the arc!

"Every Time I Go on Vacation Someone Dies" has an intriguing premise, but the execution fell flat for me. The writing style felt disjointed, making it hard to get immersed in the story. Despite the potential for dark humor, the pacing seemed off, and I struggled to connect with the characters—they felt more like caricatures than real people. While some parts were entertaining and had a unique flair, I found myself skimming through sections that seemed overly drawn out or lacking depth. It’s a decent read for those who enjoy quirky mysteries, but it didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

Every time I Go On Vacation, Someone Dies, was such a fun read!

I love the way the main character was an authour and was writing the book and talking to the audience, the reader, at the same time. I loved the footnotes. The writing style reminded me a bit of Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone.

The story was so unique, and I couldn't solve the mystery, even though our authour main character kept saying she was leaving us clues. I was onto one character, but I definitely didn't figure out the why.

I enjoyed all the characters in this story, well, maybe except Connor. But, I especially liked how our main character was quite open and honest about herself. She'd be considered an unreliable narrator, I think, except she kind of told the reader she was. Her ability to recognize her faults at least made her more likable to me.

And the setting, all the beautiful descriptions of the places they visited, and the food and drink, there was one scene where the group was at a wine tasting that was particularly humorous.

I also laughed out loud at the authours references to Goodreads.

"If Agatha were alive today, she'd be duking it out with one-star reviewers on Goodreads, I just know it." As I said, this book was just so fun.

I definitely recommend this one for fans of a cozy mystery with a little edge to it.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the advanced digital copy of this book. My opinions are my own.

3.5: Fun, light mystery. Eleanor, the main character speaks to the reader throughout the book. You are sort of supposed to solve it as you go. The footnotes were kind of fun. I would continue to read this series.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read and review an advanced copy of this novel. I highly enjoyed it and will be recommending it to others.

A light-hearted mystery. We join Eleanor Dash as she embarks on an Italian book tour that is literally to die for. A book that will inspire you to fall in love with travel as well as the characters. The storyline and writing made for a fun, quick read.

With a title like that, I knew I had to read this one! I did this as an audio book and I found the story entertaining. The mc, Eleanor, is a bit frustrating. She doesn't seem to realize the amazing gig she has of being an author and to travel around with her highly organized sister. She can't read her itinerary or seem to manage any relationships - but she slowly grew on me as the story continued.

I found Conner and the antics of each attempt funny at times. I think the humor and silly moments translated well on the audio and carried me along in the story and kept me engaged. The audio also helps seamlessly add in the footnotes that other readers seemed to find distracting.

It's a cozy mystery, one that I had guesses but enjoyed the journey to find out. It looks like it will be the start to a series but the mystery is wrapped up in one, so no cliffhangers. I highly recommend the audiobook!

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

As always, Catherine absolutely SLAYS anything she writes. I devoured Every Time I go on Vacation, Someone Dies. It had every element that I love in a book, with characters that I loved. Also, adding in the travel element was just *chefs kiss*. If you love mystery, romance, and humour... this is a MUST READ. I can't wait for the rest of the series!!!

I thought this books sounded really intriguing, so I was happy to read it early. I loved that this book has footnotes, especially because they make you laugh. The whole premise of this book was captivating. It was hard to put down.

Elenor was an absolutely hilarious main character. I loved following her on vacation and her misadventures. I loved how she slowly becomes a very unreliable narrator.

I loved the way the author threw in wrap up chapters to help you solve the crimes being committed. I got Finlay Donovan vibes the who time reading, in the best possible way. I will definitely be reading more from this author.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.

Destination, deception, and death, yes please! Every Time I Go On Vacation Someone Dies by Catherine Mack is perfect for those looking for a bit of vacation with their murder mystery. Mack delights with fun characters, a gorgeous Italian setting, and intrigue. Author Eleanor Dash has been writing best-selling mysteries set in vacation destinations all with a real-life main character Connor Smith, who happens to be Eleanor’s ex…well sort of, if he hadn’t been married (a minor detail he failed to share). Eleanor has decided to write one last book before killing off her main character, in her books of course. Unfortunately, others have similar plans, in real life. Eleanor is enlisted to help solve the mystery of who wants Connor dead while on an Italian book tour and it turns out, there are plenty of suspects thanks to Connor’s less-than savoury life. This book absolutely flew by as every character was a suspect and Mack entertained with witty banter and with author insights including footnotes all leading to a conclusion that could have been predictable if only every character wasn’t a suspect. This story would definitely would appeal to cozy mystery lovers and definitely fans of The White Lotus and Knives Out as suggested. I am looking forward to reading more books in this series. Thank you to NetGalley and Minotaur St. Martin’s Press for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 4 ⭐️
Pub Date: August 13, 2024
How I Read It: 📱

Synopsis

Bestselling author Eleanor Dash is on her book tour in Italy, but will this be her last book? Maybe, because she has one problem, she wants to kill off her main character, Connor Smith, because Connor is a real person in her life who is getting royalties from her book, and she’s sick of him.

Things start getting interesting when somebody actually tries to kill Connor in Italy, and he pleads with Eleanor to help him find out who’s doing this, but Eleanor doesn’t quite believe him. Who would want to kill Connor…other than her?

My Thoughts
This was a laugh out loud cozy mystery that will have you wanting more of Eleanor and the rest of the quirky cast of characters. This mystery has many suspects and it’s hard to pinpoint who the culprit is; I didn’t see it coming! The banter is great and the location setting, Italy, was also a wonderful addition to the story. It’s a light, quick, easy, and entertaining read, and I like that they left the book open for a sequel.

Themes
🫣 Suspense
🏃‍♂️ Fast-Paced
🌪️ Twists

Ratings
Characters: 4 ⭐️
Pace: 4 ⭐️
Enjoyability: 4 ⭐️

Thank you to St. Martin's Press | Minotaur Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!