“T.M. Logan’s latest nail-biter…THE VACATION is a virtual holiday.”–Washington Post In The Vacation, a captivating thriller from T. M. Logan, the bestselling author of Lies and 29 Seconds, four best friends on a dream vacation come face-to-face with an explosive secret. It was supposed to be the perfect getaway: Kate and her three best friends, spending a week with their families in a … best friends, spending a week with their families in a luxurious villa in the south of France. Through the decades they’ve stayed closer than ever, and seven days of drinking crisp French wine and laying out under the dazzling Mediterranean sun is the perfect celebration of their friendship. But soon after arriving, Kate discovers an incriminating text on her husband’s cell phone.
A text revealing that he’s having an affair.
And that the other woman is one of her best friends.
But which one?
Trapped in paradise with no one to trust, Kate is determined to find out who has put her marriage–and a lifelong friendship–in jeopardy. But as she closes in on the truth, she realizes that the stakes are higher than she ever imagined. Everyone on the trip has secrets…and someone may be prepared to kill to keep theirs hidden.
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My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
When I received this book I was excited. It looked like it would be a real page turner. Four college friends rent a villa in France for a week’s vacation with their families to celebrate their turning 40.
Twelve people together at a reclusive villa, 7 adults and 5 children. I found it hard to get into until about three quarters into it when the pieces finally came together. The plot wound up being more complex and interwoven than the reader was initially led to believe.
When I finally finished it, despite my initial misgivings, I felt satisfied with the plot and how it all wrapped up.
Four best friend and their families housed together for a week in a beautiful place that includes a pool. Sounds like the perfect vacation, right? What could go wrong?
Well, just about everything, it seems. Combine a bunch of secrets and lies, plenty of tension, squabbling adults, a few bratty kids, some teenage angst for good measure and you have a week that is anything but the perfect vacation.
It starts out relaxing and peaceful enough and then things start to ratchet up. With each turn of the page, the reader gets drawn into the drama. This story took twists and turns that I wasn’t anticipating—but then, that’s to be expected with books by this amazing and creative author.
The Vacation is an exciting thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. And an ending that I thought about long after I closed the cover.
I have never read any of this author’s books before, but Wow this one I really had wrong from the start I didn’t see it coming until close to the end of the book. This book was so well written, and I basically didn’t like any of the characters yet the author kept me reading with the storyline. I would recommend this book to others.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and the publisher St. Martin’s Press, and all opinions expressed here are my own.
This is not a book that you would want to start late at night because you won’t want to put it down. It all starts with secrets. The trip that Kate so looked forward to with her family is no longer a dream vacation. I received a free copy of this ebook from the publisher through Netgallery. This is my honest and voluntarily given review. I love that this book is told from multiple points of view, but it only gives you glimpses of what is really going on. This book starts with a secret and turns into a thriller. The story was so gripping that I read almost the entire book in one day.
So it took me forever to finish reading this book. When I got half way through I just couldn’t read anymore. I didn’t like the people in the story or why they were acting the way they were. I finally finished this book and the ending was better than I thought it was going to be. I won’t say more but it’s not what I expected. So if you get to the halfway point and don’t want to finish take it from me and finish it.
*I received a copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.*
I wasn’t a big fan of this book. The story was okay. It took a while to get used to the switch of narrator in the book. The author tried to give us an insight into every character, but I found it awkward. I tend to like books that I can identify or like the main characters. I didn’t like the characters in this book. I didn’t dislike them either, but I didn’t feel connected. The book did have lots of twists and turns before we get to the conclusion. I received a copy of the book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Kate, Izzy, Rowan, and Jennifer lived together all through college and took annual girls’ weekend trips each year. Having missed these weekends for the last five years Rowan invited them to bring their families and spend a week in an amazing villa in France owned by a rich client of hers. There are indications before even leaving home that things may not go well, when Kate looks at her husband’s messages and finds indications that he is having an affair–with one of her best friends. This sets the tone for the vacation from hell. Kate is suspicious and preoccupied and can’t sleep, Rowan is antsy waiting for the deal of a lifetime to go through, teenagers Lucy, Jake, and Ethan can’t stay off their phones, and Odette is being a brat trying to be the center of attention. The husbands are drinking a lot and wondering what they are doing there. Author T.M. Logan did such a good job building the atmosphere that I wanted to go home and I wasn’t even there! His characters were very realistic and well developed through some back stories related by Kate. The tension and suspense ramps up as Kate sees indications that first one then another of her friends could be the secret lover. There are some lessons to be learned here. First, don’t look at your spouse’s messages. Don’t assume you know everything about another person. Think about how far you would go to protect your child, And by all means, think twice before you go on vacation with a group of friends and their families.
My first introduction to this author was Lies. Loved it. Then came 29 seconds. Another winner. Now we have The Vacation, and I think it might be his best yet. Logan is the King of Misdirection. Just when you think you know what’s going on, you don’t. I absolutely love how he relates his stories. In this book, there is a slow build that follows one main character, with sporadic chapters from other characters’ points of view. There is no set “back and forth” switching; instead, the action moves seamlessly between the different perspectives. The story belongs to Kate, who is vacationing with three college friends (and their families) at a villa in France. But secrets abound, and not even the youngest (5-year-old Odette) is immune. By the way, she’s also one of the brattiest kids I’ve ever read in a book. A lot is going on, but the author handles it all deftly. I felt Kate’s uncertainty, Rowan’s stress, and Jennifer’s worry (she’s quite the helicopter parent). As with his other books, everything is laid out nicely, like place settings. But then, like a magician, he pulls the tablecloth out from under them. Everything is still standing, but maybe slightly moved or altered. The last quarter of this book flew by. All of the revelations started to come to light, and the truth emerged shockingly. I honestly gasped a few times. Do yourself a favor and grab this one as soon as it’s released (July 21). It’s the perfect summer thriller.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
4 college friends go on vacation in France with their families. Kate & Sean with 2 children, teenager Lucy and 9 year old Daniel. Rowan, and her husband Russ with 5 year old Odette. Jennifer and Alistair and their 2 teenage boys Jake and Ethan. And Izzy is single woman with no kids. Kate discovers that Sean is having an affair, and it is one of her 3 best friends that she spending the week with in France. Jennifer and Sean dated back in college for a couple of months before Kate and Sean got together. Izzy and Sean are from the same town in Ireland. Rowan is a successful business woman.
I love books that have groups of friends reuniting after a period of time, however this was very slow for me. Everyone appears to have secrets – adults and kids alike. What kept me reading is wanting to know which of the women Sean is having an affair with. I would not classify this as a thriller. This is more like a general fiction novel. With a tad bit of thriller mixed in. From the description of the book, I really believed there would be a tad bit more sabotage or violence or attempted murder. Overall, if reading this a straight up adult fiction, then this is a good book; however, if you go into this as a “thriller”, you will be disappointed.
Kate, Rowan, Jennifer, and Izzy met at college years ago and became fast friends, so much so, that they have remained friends through their ever-changing lives. It has been some time since their last vacation together, and feel like they all need to re-connect, so Kate plans a vacation for all of them and their families in France.
As they all look forward to a blissful stay in south France, Kate has an ulterior motive… she thinks her husband is having an affair and suspects it’s with one of her friends. So what better way to test out her theory, than throw them all together and see what happens?
The Vacation is a suspenseful little domestic thriller chocked full of twists and turns you will never see coming. Just when I thought I had a handle on things, Mr. Logan would throw me for a loop and have me stumped all over again. Following Kate on her quest for the truth was not only exciting, but a little emotional too… you couldn’t help but feel for her. This one will have you questioning everything and everyone from the first page to the last, it’s downright puzzling… and thrilling too! Highly recommend!
I requested an advanced copy of this title from the publisher, and I am voluntarily leaving my honest and unbiased opinion.
Secrets can be deadly! Reading the synopsis had me so intrigued that I could not wait to dive in! Unfortunately, I was a little disappointed that the story was slow-paced and that the “thriller” tension just wasn’t their for me. On the other hand, the book did hold my interest in a different way as a drama between friends. The book had me angry and shaking my head because some of these friends had such rotten, spoiled children making it almost unbelievable.
Imagine a vacation in a beautiful villa in France with long-time friends. Sounds like a fun break but turns out to be the worst nightmare ever. A week of tension, trouble and mistrust among these long-time friends then escalating into the unthinkable is just shattering. What will happen that makes the time-of-your-life vacation turn into a time-to-forget?
This was my first novel by T.M. Logan. Tim’s novel was well written, but the story felt like it needed something. The book was far from a bad read, though. I think the story needed a little more of a twist to hold my interest even better. I have heard such great things about this author’s other novels and will definitely check those out.
~I am so grateful to receive an advance reader’s copy in a giveaway from the author in exchange for a honest and fair review.~
I enjoyed the unravelling of a mystery in this story. You start off with a discovery, and go through most of the book trying to figure out which one of her friends could have betrayed her. But then everyone has a secret.
In the end, I couldn’t have anticipated the truth. Or the actions of some of the characters. This had a slightly ominous undertone throughout and a good flow. I also liked getting multiple view points.
OMG what a wonderful read!!! While I rarely give 5-star reviews, this book earned every one of them! This is a delicious read that you won’t want to put down.
Four women, friends since their college days, have stayed in close contact through the years but have not all been together in ten years. They decide to remedy that with a vacation (including spouses and children) at a large, luxurious villa in the French countryside that will celebrate their friendships as well as their 40th birthdays.
One of the women discovers texts on her husband’s phone that lead her to believe he is having an affair and it appears that the other woman is one of her best friends vacationing with them. While she tries to collect evidence as to which of the women has betrayed their friendship before confronting her husband and his lover, the others are dealing with secrets and tensions as well. Each relationship seems near the tipping point, and soon everything is spiraling out of control.
As the Goodreads book blurb says “Seven days. Three families. One killer.” This is certainly not the vacation they hoped for, but it is one they will remember for the rest of their lives.
My sincere thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an ARC of this book which will be published 7/21/20. All opinions expressed here are my own.
That was excellent. Told from multiple perspectives, The Vacation begins as a long overdue get together between four friends (Kate, Rowan, Jennifer & Izzy) and their families. Set in France (I’d love to go), the week progresses slowly revealing a truth that may or may not want to be acknowledged. I made notes going along trying to put the pieces together. Additionally the descriptions of the villa and location where they stayed are vivid and places you amongst the group in their every day interactions.
Starting a new book and author always makes me a bit nervous. I’m worried that I won’t catch the twist or take too long figuring something out, especially in a suspense or thriller. But I definitely got this one if the intention, at the very least, was to dislike and distrust Sean, Kate’s husband. Really most of the characters were hard to like or trust. They were hypocrites and self-centered. Four friends that had secrets and betrayals and lies between them.
They all had flaws and very little redeeming qualities. I no doubt disliked them and questioned their motives constantly. It kept me in the story. The intrigue and suspense, wanting to know why and whom definitely kept me reading quickly. I wanted answers and to understand what was happening. Everything seemed concrete and circumstantial all at once.
In the end, I figured a few things out and was surprised by others. An excellent read on the whole.
A holiday with friends…what could go wrong? In this story…everything.
The stakes keep getting raised as trust issues crept in between a group of friends that once trusted each other.
The past that intertwined between the friends was heavy in secrets, betrayals and assumptions and they all played out in a deadly cat and mouse game.
The slow pace of the story revs up to an ending you don’t see coming.
What can possibly go wrong when 4 women, who have been friends since school days and are turning 40 year year, decide to spend a week at a ritzy villa in France with their husbands and children?? Lots of things can and do happen bringing about lots of twists and turns with an ending I did not see coming. The husbands did not particularly get along well and out of 4 children, 3 were totally unlikeable. This is a fast-paced read and I really loved it. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC of this page-turner that kept me on the edge of my seat from start to finish. Highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a great read.
In all the reviews I’ve read, people really dislike the characters. For me, Kate would move to the top of the list. Logan has gone out of his way to show us that Kate had an ideal marriage. While they had tough times, it was a good marriage. Yet she immediately jumps to conclusions and can’t be bothered to just ask her husband. When she finally confronts him, he’s blase and blows her off, end of convo. Listen, if I suspected my s/o of infidelity, we’re going to hash it out. It wouldn’t matter if we were on vacation. Kate’s with her best friends. If they aren’t prepared for their best friend to sort her marriage, then they’re probably not the best friends they’re supposed to be. It made for a long, drawn-out, unnecessary drama because you can’t paint an ideal marriage, but then have it closed up from the start. It doesn’t work.
The characters are all fantastically flawed, and Logan has written great, unlikable characters (outside of Kate, she doesn’t count anymore for me). Jennifer’s children are just flat out monsters, and I’m a huge fan of well-written characters that you love to hate. I hadn’t read anything by Logan before, so I don’t know if the screenplay-esque style of a character finding something “shocking” (which really isn’t) and then tucking it away to reveal the “shocking” bit later, is typical of his writing. It’s read more like a movie every time that happened.
But I’m giving this four stars, so obviously I enjoyed the book. When I look past all the Kate silliness that drives me nuts, there is a fun story here. Especially once the secrets of everyone else in the house come to light. The constant drama made this highly enjoyable and I think this one will be hit or miss for readers. Thank you, St. Martin’s, for sending this along!
THE VACATION is a book that, for me, started well, slowed down in the middle and had a predictable ending. Having read the author’s book THE LIES, I was totally excited to be able to read this one, but parts of it fell flat for me. A week’s vacation at a beautiful villa in France seems perfect for three families plus single Izzy. The four women involved have been friends forever and are celebrating their fortieth birthday here in style. Kate, the narrator, discovers at the beginning of the vacation that her husband Sean is having an affair, and she Intuits that the other woman is one of her friends on vacation with them. The main point of the book is Kate’s determination to find out who Sean is sneaking around with. But someone is not happy about Kate’s sleuthing and may kill to keep the secrets hidden. This book was like a daytime drama, complete with deceit, twists and a lot of the aforementioned drama. The second storyline of the teen children of two of the families fell totally flat for me and I think that part could have been omitted without losing anything except pages. All in all, however, I did enjoy the book but I did not find it fast-paced suspense as I expected. Instead, it was a slow build-up with a lot of character development and deception. Fans of Logan and suspense will not want to miss this book that is worth reading just for entertainment. (Kind of like watching backstage at a Judge Judy show).
Disclaimer
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255, “Guides Concerning the Use of Testimonials and Endorsements in Advertising.”
Four college friends, who haven’t seen each other in years, plan to vacation together with their families in France for their upcoming 40th birthdays.
Kate, Rowan, Jennifer and Izzy all met the first day of college and after graduating used to go away every ten years for a weekend, until one year they missed and it turned into five years.
This was vacation was a reunion of sorts. Izzy is the only friend that isn’t married, the others are married with young children, and teens. The beginning of the story, there is the feeling that Kate feels Sean is being distant, something has been off, but she can’t really put her finger on it. It’s not until Kate is finishing putting belongings away, that before she can question her actions after hearing chirp, she looks at her husband’s phone messages. Messages that rock Kate’s world. It’s obvious from the texts, that the one conspiring with Sean has to be one of her friends.
A vacation that is supposed to bring friends back together, will bring to the surface that each friend is hiding something, and each friend appears to be the guilty party of carrying on with Sean. The more Kate attempts to unravel who her husband’s mistress is, the more secrets emerge.
Wow, this was a fascinating read! Although, if asked who my favorite character would be, I’d go with the nine year old, Daniel. It was difficult to really like any one character, because below the surface each one, had specific issues that were very unbecoming. The ending was not what I expected at all!
I received an ARC from NetGalley via St. Martin’s Press and I have voluntarily reviewed this book.
Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martins press and the Author, T.M. Logan for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I got this book under the title “The Vacation”
WOW!!! What a fast paced thrilling page turner.
I couldn’t read it fast enough.
Twists and turns that I never saw coming!
Interesting and not so likeable characters but it all worked!
I LOVED this book!