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alienslime's review
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
A detestable book full of pitiable characters and an author who clearly hates women. The misogyny drips from every line about women/girls. I kept reading only because it was assigned for a book club. I held out hope for a single redemptive sentence, to no avail.
aliwhitley's review against another edition
2.0
Really not worth all the hype - lots of family dysfunction barely tied together with very little plot.
bookreader_a's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
linseymtaylor's review against another edition
3.0
This was a light read. I never really felt like a knew the characters, I just knew their stories.
rebeccasfantasyworld's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
kimreadz's review against another edition
2.0
This one was a disappointment to me. I received a copy from the Penguin First To Read program, and picked it because it appeared to be a good summer read, complete with a family vacationing on a beautiful island. Unfortunately, the book got off to a slow start and never really picked up. The highlight of this book was the description of the scenery.
The Post family is incredibly dysfunctional. Jim has recently lost his job due to a very poor decision he made. He is married to Franny, who is ready to leave him because of his mistake. She is justifiably angry, and normally I would be in her corner, but within the first few pages, I began to wonder why Jim was even worried about her staying. He should have been out of there long ago! She is self-centered, loud, and controlling. Their son Bobby is a needy, 20-something, who brings his 40 year old live-in girlfriend, Carmen, along on the vacation. They have been together for quite some time, but Carmen is still treated like an unwanted outsider, tolerated but not welcomed. Daughter Sylvia has just graduated high school, dislikes everyone from her school and can’t wait to move on from them, and seems to have the sole goal of losing her virginity on vacation. Accompanying them on vacation are Franny’s gay friend, Charles, and his husband, Lawrence, who is about the only semi-likeable character in the book! This is about as dislikeable a cast of characters as I’ve come across.
While there is some resolution of the problems at the end of the book, it comes just a bit too neatly.
This book did not work for me, but if you take a look at Goodreads, you will see ratings are all over the place. Just because I didn’t like the book does not mean you will not like it. Read through some of the reviews on Goodreads and at First To Read to help you decide if this book is for you!
I received an advanced review copy of this book through the Penguin First To Read program in return for an honest review.
The Post family is incredibly dysfunctional. Jim has recently lost his job due to a very poor decision he made. He is married to Franny, who is ready to leave him because of his mistake. She is justifiably angry, and normally I would be in her corner, but within the first few pages, I began to wonder why Jim was even worried about her staying. He should have been out of there long ago! She is self-centered, loud, and controlling. Their son Bobby is a needy, 20-something, who brings his 40 year old live-in girlfriend, Carmen, along on the vacation. They have been together for quite some time, but Carmen is still treated like an unwanted outsider, tolerated but not welcomed. Daughter Sylvia has just graduated high school, dislikes everyone from her school and can’t wait to move on from them, and seems to have the sole goal of losing her virginity on vacation. Accompanying them on vacation are Franny’s gay friend, Charles, and his husband, Lawrence, who is about the only semi-likeable character in the book! This is about as dislikeable a cast of characters as I’ve come across.
While there is some resolution of the problems at the end of the book, it comes just a bit too neatly.
Spoiler
Just one example, Lawrence really wants to adopt a child but Charles is not sure he is on board with that, and neither of them really hold out much hope that as a gay couple, they will be chosen as adoptive parents anyway. Miraculously, by the end of the two weeks, a baby has become available to them and Charles is completely ready for this baby to come into their lives. I don’t remember him ever even discussing his hesitation with Lawrence!This book did not work for me, but if you take a look at Goodreads, you will see ratings are all over the place. Just because I didn’t like the book does not mean you will not like it. Read through some of the reviews on Goodreads and at First To Read to help you decide if this book is for you!
I received an advanced review copy of this book through the Penguin First To Read program in return for an honest review.
rerosenthal85's review against another edition
4.0
Every good book is improved upon by reading it on the beach. I loved this! Great everyone-in-the-family-has-secrets, no-perfect-people type of story
anniboonni's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-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? It's complicated
2.75
I think that the Vacationers was a fun book to read and it was something easy. The book did a really great job of bringing this family who had all these individual problems on a vacation and making them new people leaving it. It was kinda like a before and after type thing and so when you really think about it, it’s a lot more reflective of a book than it seems.