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ilutzer's review
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.5
Personally, I did not enjoy People We Meet on Vacation as much as I thought I did.
Alex and Poppy are fun characters, with an "opposites attract" friendship (turned relationship) that is quite sweet. The book itself is fun, carefree, and very nostalgic for trips I've taken with friends, yet it missed some of the complexity I was hoping for. Sure, there were themes of how Poppy's adolescenceand being bullied and accused of being a "sl*t" that seemed to shape how she trusted and interacted with others, but I felt like she was written to be an "I'm not like other girls" girl, then the childhood wounds were sprinkled in to help her become more likeable/complex. I did appreciate Alex's character arc, and how his own childhood and relationship with his dad and brothers played into his relationship with Poppy.
I also completely missed why the book was titled the way it was, since there are mentions of people they meet on their trips, but it isn't the central theme of the book; the story is about Alex and Poppy and their vacations together. I think the concept of meeting people on vacations is super fascinating and wished that Henry either leaned more into that or hadn't titled it the way she did.
Another gripe I had with the book was the ending. I know it's supposed to be a friends-to-lovers rom-com, so it's expected for the two protagonists to fall in love, but I thought that Alex and Poppy's futures just didn't line upuntil the VERY end when suddenly Poppy realizes she doesn't like her career after all and wants to do something else, which is totally fine, but there wasn't really any indication throughout the story that she was unsatisfied with her job. It seemed like her dissatisfaction with the job that was her dream job at one point had been written in just to help Alex and Poppy get together in the end. In my opinion, I kind of wished that it went for the La La Land or The Light We Lost type of ending . The chemistry just felt kind of off to me and 12 years is a LONG time, even for a slow burn and how they get together, in the end, is very anti-climactic for 12 years of secret pining. Plus, their fallout is not as "explosive" as I expected it to be. A kiss doesn't seem to make much sense for not talking for 2 years. I would have expected people in the late twenties to early thirties to be able to talk about it, instead of cutting ties and ignoring what's bothering them .
Alex and Poppy are fun characters, with an "opposites attract" friendship (turned relationship) that is quite sweet. The book itself is fun, carefree, and very nostalgic for trips I've taken with friends, yet it missed some of the complexity I was hoping for. Sure, there were themes of how Poppy's adolescence
I also completely missed why the book was titled the way it was, since there are mentions of people they meet on their trips, but it isn't the central theme of the book; the story is about Alex and Poppy and their vacations together. I think the concept of meeting people on vacations is super fascinating and wished that Henry either leaned more into that or hadn't titled it the way she did.
Another gripe I had with the book was the ending. I know it's supposed to be a friends-to-lovers rom-com, so it's expected for the two protagonists to fall in love, but I thought that Alex and Poppy's futures just didn't line up
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Sexual content
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death of parent
savvylit's review
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
People We Meet on Vacation may be the perfect heterosexual romance novel. Poppy and Alex are very loveable characters. This book is a quintessential friends to lovers story but Henry does it so well! Poppy and Alex's strong friendship is developed in a very realistic way that perfectly creates a slow burn love story. Honestly, my only complaint would be that the burn was almost too slow. I liked Poppy and Alex so much that I got frustrated waiting for them to just kiss already.
This was an incredibly readable and compelling contemporary romance. During a stressful week, I appreciated joining Poppy and Alex on multiple vacays for a reading day of much-needed escape.
This was an incredibly readable and compelling contemporary romance. During a stressful week, I appreciated joining Poppy and Alex on multiple vacays for a reading day of much-needed escape.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Animal death
chelseafrieske's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Death of parent
Moderate: Bullying and Grief
Minor: Drug use
cassielaj's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The characters. The banter. The slow burn. The depth. I liked Beach Read, but I loved this. The romance was ever-present, but at the same time it took a secondary role to Poppy and Alexβs personal growth. I also loved the countdown of trip flashbacks throughout β they gave the perfect amount of context gradually without detracting from the present timeline.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal death, Sexual content, and Death of parent
jbabbm's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is the superior Emily Henry book
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Sexual content, and Death of parent
charliebell's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Bullying
toofondofbooks_'s review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
... "πͺππ π―π¦π·π¦π³ π£π¦ππ°π―π¨ π’π―πΊπΈπ©π¦π³π¦ ππͺπ¬π¦ πͺ π£π¦ππ°π―π¨ πΈπͺπ΅π© πΊπ°πΆ."
I never expected to like "People We Meet On Vacation," a book that, if you've spent any time at all in the #bookstagram or #booktube community, you know all about. I thought I knew all about it, too, and then I finally read it, and lo and behold, it became a five star read. I loved Alex and Poppy's dynamic; their banter, the tension between them, but also they both were so compelling as characters to me. I thought that their separate stories only strengthened the believability of their relationship. They each had family baggage, but still LOVE their family beyond words, and I love that detail so much. Their banter had me cracking up from the prologue all the way to the epilogue, and if I wasn't laughing, I was crying - and not just a little tear here and there. You know the kind of tears where you're hiccuping and you can't even see? Yeah, those kind. I don't remember the last time a book genuinely had me hugging a pillow and weeping, but somehow Emily Henry got it out of me. This chemistry just made me want to scream my head off and highlight on almost every page. Side note, at one point, Alex is reading a book by one of my favorite authors, Sarah Waters. This was destiny.
What else? Every time Poppy was sad, it felt like I was personally being stabbed and then having the knife twisted, so there's that, too!
I know that there are criticisms around this book because of its lack of diversity, and those are valid concerns, and concerns that I have, as well. I don't want anyone to walk away from this review thinking that I don't care about this issue: I do. Although I did give this book 5 stars for how strongly it effected me, I do think the book could've benefitted from a MAIN character who was queer or a person of color. Or both!
I never expected to like "People We Meet On Vacation," a book that, if you've spent any time at all in the #bookstagram or #booktube community, you know all about. I thought I knew all about it, too, and then I finally read it, and lo and behold, it became a five star read. I loved Alex and Poppy's dynamic; their banter, the tension between them, but also they both were so compelling as characters to me. I thought that their separate stories only strengthened the believability of their relationship. They each had family baggage, but still LOVE their family beyond words, and I love that detail so much. Their banter had me cracking up from the prologue all the way to the epilogue, and if I wasn't laughing, I was crying - and not just a little tear here and there. You know the kind of tears where you're hiccuping and you can't even see? Yeah, those kind. I don't remember the last time a book genuinely had me hugging a pillow and weeping, but somehow Emily Henry got it out of me. This chemistry just made me want to scream my head off and highlight on almost every page. Side note, at one point, Alex is reading a book by one of my favorite authors, Sarah Waters. This was destiny.
What else? Every time Poppy was sad, it felt like I was personally being stabbed and then having the knife twisted, so there's that, too!
I know that there are criticisms around this book because of its lack of diversity, and those are valid concerns, and concerns that I have, as well. I don't want anyone to walk away from this review thinking that I don't care about this issue: I do. Although I did give this book 5 stars for how strongly it effected me, I do think the book could've benefitted from a MAIN character who was queer or a person of color. Or both!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal death, Drug use, Pregnancy, and Classism
Minor: Excrement
the_book_nook's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
Moderate: Chronic illness, Infidelity, and Death of parent
Minor: Animal death
charlottef00's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Bullying
libbyhb's review
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I had heard soooo much about this on booktube over the last year, and figured it was worth trying since I liked Beach Read so much. This was just as enjoyable, and I'm glad I gave it a shot! I liked the back and forth between the present and key moments from their previous trips - the flashbacks made their story so much more compelling. I liked both Poppy and Alex and felt like their choices made sense for the most part. And they had a really good rapport. I was kind of confused by the way the final quarter or so unfolded, but ultimately was fine with it. I'm going to keep Emily Henry on my radar for sure (well, I'm sure she'll stay on my radar regardless of what I decide).
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Bullying