A review by nixbix_reads
My Killer Vacation by Tessa Bailey

2.0

I had reasonably high expectations for this book, but they were not met. The mystery aspect was OK - I wasn’t expecting Agatha Christie, so I was pleasantly surprised and I never guessed who the killer was or what their motive was. However, the romance aspect killed it for me. I loathe insta-love stories, and this was super insta-love. I already had reservations about Taylor, a timid people pleaser, but meeting Myles was the last nail in the coffin. When he stole her underwear the first time he met Taylor, I just couldn’t see how she would be attracted to him. I see the attraction in the grump in a sunshine/grump pairing, or the strong, silent brooder, but an actual red flag & reason to get police involved is where I draw the line. His possessive behaviour that follows - literally “I licked her so she’s mine, but she’s so pure & I’m beating myself up about my past, so I won’t, but no other guy can breathe in her direction” - was unappealing. There’s a fine line with romance tropes, and maintaining a balance between dialling it back or amping it up too much is an art, but I feel that this was dialled up to 15/10 for most of the book, and it just did not work for me at all.