Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime and start saving today with fast, free delivery

Kindle
$9.99

Available instantly

Audiobook
$0.00
with membership trial

Hardcover
$28.00

Paperback
$8.24

$8.24 with 49 percent savings

List Price: $16.00

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns

FREE delivery Monday, March 17 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35

Or Prime members get FREE delivery Tomorrow, March 13. Order within 4 hrs 19 mins.

In Stock

$$8.24 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Ships from

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Returns

30-day refund/replacement

Payment

Secure transaction

Add a gift receipt for easy returns

$6.19

Former library book; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less Former library book; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less See less

FREE delivery March 19 - 24. Details

In stock

$$8.24 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Enhancements you chose aren't available for this seller. Details

${cardName} not available for the seller you chose

${cardName} unavailable for quantities greater than ${maxQuantity}.

Ships from and sold by ThriftBooks-Phoenix.

Other sellers on Amazon

New & Used (209) from $1.70

People We Meet on Vacation Review

Image Unavailable

Image not available for
Color:

To view this video download Flash Player

5 VIDEOS

Follow the author

Emily Henry

Follow

People We Meet on Vacation Paperback – May 11, 2021

by Emily Henry (Author)

4.3 74,352 ratings

Editors' pick Best Romance

See all formats and editions

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$8.24","priceAmount":8.24,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"8","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"24","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"%2BhCqnHKrtZTXMKuQ5FiCHa0vUEvCEqzeJvD%2FxHIz0mPZ3QCbb6TZQRGOP8myYwy83HaZQLiTF%2FvyYMrTlTaLI%2F%2Fq96X7marMHQdwPp3T4Rl%2F5JSVshjKG94ji7InBquu9xGnnCZaj5%2FXvmuTTxoUGg%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$6.19","priceAmount":6.19,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"6","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"19","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"%2BhCqnHKrtZTXMKuQ5FiCHa0vUEvCEqzeTFri5HpdxQIRXYtG9hDjyVb78sRlyDw%2FJBmTYqBABLDCF57Djg%2BXqJlKEqUGqBP7ZEa3iM7wd3x4aX7PkGDUh%2FmAdz6sl7jRend2jBVszhHmWYN5%2FEU9lqzh2EoP3rxPqUIxZSlcNgSG94SLwcpGtVLR3ThZM%2F2P","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Funny Story comes a sparkling novel that will leave you with the warm, hazy afterglow usually reserved for the best vacations.

Two best friends. Ten summer trips. One last chance to fall in love.

Poppy and Alex. Alex and Poppy. They have nothing in common. She’s a wild child; he wears khakis. She has insatiable wanderlust; he prefers to stay home with a book. And somehow, ever since a fateful car share home from college many years ago, they are the very best of friends. For most of the year they live far apart—she’s in New York City, and he’s in their small hometown—but every summer, for a decade, they have taken one glorious week of vacation together.

Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven't spoken since.

Poppy has everything she should want, but she’s stuck in a rut. When someone asks when she was last truly happy, she knows, without a doubt, it was on that ill-fated, final trip with Alex. And so, she decides to convince her best friend to take one more vacation together—lay everything on the table, make it all right. Miraculously, he agrees.

Now she has a week to fix everything. If only she can get around the one big truth that has always stood quietly in the middle of their seemingly perfect relationship. What could possibly go wrong?

From the Publisher

	Funny Story	Happy Place	Book Lovers	Beach Read

Price	$15.99	$12.18	$9.69	$9.33
More from Emily Henry	First they were heartbroken strangers. Then they were roommates. Now, their summer adventures could lead to something more... It’s a funny story.	From the perfect couple to exes, they're now pretending to be together for one last vacation with their best friends. Faking it for one week can’t be that hard, right?	Nora and Charlie are rivals, but this summer, their carefully crafted stories might just unravel when a series of coincidences push them together.	Two polar opposite authors, one summer, a genre swap challenge. They'll finish their books and definitely won't fall in love...

WARNING: California’s Proposition 65

Editorial Reviews

Review

“What Henry is especially skilled at is writing dialogue. The banter between Poppy and Alex is so natural, quick and witty that it would make Shonda Rhimes do a slow clap.”—The Associated Press

“Beach Read fans, assemble. Emily Henry is back with another smart, steamy romance….Warning: you will feel all the feels. And probably shed a few tears.”—The Skimm

“The strength of People We Meet on Vacation [is] the clever observations, the dialogue (which is laugh-out-loud funny) and, most particularly, the characters. Funny and fumbling and lovable, they’re most decidedly worth the trip."—The Wall Street Journal

“A delightful love story full of hilarious one-liners and winking asides, making it the perfect poolside companion.”—Real Simple

“Emily Henry is my newest automatic-buy author, and People We Meet on Vacation is the perfect getaway: a heartfelt, funny, tender escape that you wish could last forever.”—Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Two Ways

“People We Meet on Vacation is a gorgeous slow-burn romance, full of sexual tension and tantalizing possibility. I fell head over heels for Alex and Poppy, and loved travelling all over the world with them both.”—Beth O'Leary, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Flatshare

“This is a perfect rom com, and I completely adored it. I think Emily Henry might be our generation's answer to Nora Ephron. A witty, warm page turner.”—Sophie Cousens, New York Times bestselling author of GMA book club pick This Time Next Year

“Emily Henry is a STAR! Deeply emotional and starkly funny, People We Meet on Vacation cements Emily Henry as the Queen of Banter. Rom-com fans will swoon over this slow burn friends-to-lovers romance. Poppy and Alex are real and flawed and ultra-lovable, and their Summer Trips will scratch an itch for those of us who’ve missed traveling. A perfect summer read!”—Alexis Daria, bestselling author of You Had Me at Hola

“A compulsively readable book full of sparkling wit, dazzling prose and a romance that grabbed me by the heart and wouldn't let me go.”—Abby Jimenez, USA Today bestselling author of Life’s Too Short

“An absolute delight: swoony, legitimately moving, and packed with witty banter that makes Alex and Poppy jump off the page. We are already waiting impatiently for whatever Emily writes next.”—Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan, USA Today bestselling authors of The Royal We and The Heir Affair

“Henry’s biggest strength is in the sparkling, often laugh-out-loud-funny dialogue, particularly the banter-filled conversations between Poppy and Alex. The end result is a story that pays homage to classic romantic comedies while having a point of view all its own. A warm and winning When Harry Met Sally update that hits all the perfect notes.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Henry’s skills with sensory detail and lovable characters shine through. This is a strong choice for readers looking for a vicarious summer vacation of their own.”—Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Emily Henry is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Great Big Beautiful Life, Funny Story, Happy Place, Book Lovers, People We Meet on Vacation, and Beach Read. She studied creative writing at Hope College, and now spends most of her time in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the part of Kentucky just beneath it. Find her on Instagram @emilyhenrywrites.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

PROLOGUE

Five Summers Ago

On vacation, you can be anyone you want.

Like a good book or an incredible outfit, being on vacation transports you into another version of yourself.

In your day-to-day life, maybe you can’t even bob your head to the radio without being embarrassed, but on the right twinkly-light-strung patio, with the right steel drum band, you’ll find yourself whirling and twirling with the best of them.

On vacation, your hair changes. The water is different, maybe the shampoo. Maybe you don’t bother to wash your hair at all, or brush it, because the salty ocean water curls it up in a way you love. You think, Maybe I could do this at home too. Maybe I could be this person who doesn’t brush her hair, who doesn’t mind being sweaty or having sand in all her crevices.

On vacation, you strike up conversations with strangers, and forget that there are any stakes. If it turns out impossibly awkward, who cares? You’ll never see them again!

You’re whoever you want to be. You can do whatever you want.

Okay, so maybe not whatever you want. Sometimes the weather forces you into a particular situation, such as the one I’m in now, and you have to find second-rate ways to entertain yourself as you wait out the rain. On my way out of the bathroom, I pause. Partly, this is because I’m still working on my game plan. Mostly, though, it’s because the floor is so sticky that I lose my sandal and have to hobble back for it. I love everything about this place in theory, but in practice, I think letting my bare foot touch the anonymous filth on the laminate might be a good way to contract one of those rare diseases kept in the refrigerated vials of a secret CDC facility.

I dance-hop back to my shoe, slip my toes through the thin orange straps, and turn to survey the bar: the press of sticky bodies; the lazy whorl of thatched fans overhead; the door propped open so that, occasionally, a burst of rain rips in off the black night to cool the sweating crowd. In the corner, a jukebox haloed in neon light plays the Flamingos’ “I Only Have Eyes for You.”

It’s a resort town but a locals’ bar, free of printed sundresses and Tommy Bahama shirts, though also sadly lacking in cocktails garnished with spears of tropical fruit.

If not for the storm, I would’ve chosen somewhere else for my last night in town. All week long the rain has been so bad, the thunder so constant, that my dreams of sandy white beaches and glossy speedboats were dashed, and I along with the rest of the disappointed vacationers have spent my days pounding piña coladas in any crammed tourist trap I could find.

Tonight, though, I couldn’t take any more dense crowds, long wait times, or gray-haired men in wedding rings drunkenly winking at me over their wives’ shoulders. Thus I found myself here.

In a sticky-floored bar called only BAR, scouring the meager crowd for my target.

He’s sitting at the corner of BAR’s bar itself. A man about my age, twenty-five, sandy haired and tall with broad shoulders, though so hunched you might not notice either of these last two facts on first glance. His head is bent over his phone, a look of quiet concentration visible in his profile. His teeth worry at his full bottom lip as his finger slowly swipes across the screen.

Though not Disney World–level packed, this place is loud. Halfway between the jukebox crooning creepy late-fifties tunes and the mounted TV opposite it, from which a weatherman shouts about record-breaking rain, there’s a gaggle of men with identical hacking laughs that keep bursting out all at once. At the far end of the bar, the bartender keeps smacking the counter for emphasis as she chats up a yellow-haired woman.

The storm’s got the whole island feeling restless, and the cheap beer has everyone feeling rowdy.

But the sandy-haired man sitting at the corner stool has a stillness that makes him stick out. Actually, everything about him screams that he doesn’t belong here. Despite the eighty-something-degree weather and one-million-percent humidity, he’s dressed in a rumpled long-sleeve button-up and navy blue trousers. He’s also suspiciously devoid of a tan, as well as any laughter, mirth, levity, etc.

Bingo.

I push a fistful of blond waves out of my face and set off toward him. As I approach, his eyes stay fixed on his phone, his finger slowly dragging whatever he’s reading up the screen. I catch the bolded words CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE.

He’s fully reading a book at a bar.

I swing my hip into the bar and slide my elbow over it as I face him. “Hey, tiger.”

His hazel eyes slowly lift to my face, blink. “Hi?”

“Do you come here often?”

He studies me for a minute, visibly weighing potential replies. “No,” he says finally. “I don’t live here.”

“Oh,” I say, but before I can get out any more, he goes on.

“And even if I did, I have a cat with a lot of medical needs that require specialized care. Makes it hard to get out.”

I frown at just about every part of that sentence. “I’m so sorry,” I recover. “It must be awful to be dealing with all that while also coping with a death.”

His brow crinkles. “A death?”

I wave a hand in a tight circle, gesturing to his getup. “Aren’t you in town for a funeral?”

His mouth presses tight. “I am not.”

“Then what brings you to town?”

“A friend.” His eyes drop to his phone.

“Lives here?” I guess.

“Dragged me,” he corrects. “For vacation.” He says this last word with some disdain.

I roll my eyes. “No way! Away from your cat? With no good excuse except for enjoyment and merrymaking? Are you sure this person can really be called a friend?”

“Less sure every second,” he says without looking up.

He’s not giving me much to work with, but I’m not giving up. “So,” I forge ahead. “What’s this friend like? Hot? Smart? Loaded?”

“Short,” he says, still reading. “Loud. Never shuts up. Spills on every single article of clothing either of us wears, has horrible romantic taste, sobs through those commercials for community college—the ones where the single mom is staying up late at her computer and then, when she falls asleep, her kid drapes a blanket over her shoulders and smiles because he’s so proud of her? What else? Oh, she’s obsessed with shitty dive bars that smell like salmonella. I’m afraid to even drink the bottled beer here—have you seen the Yelp reviews for this place?”

“Are you kidding right now?” I ask, crossing my arms over my chest.

“Well,” he says, “salmonella doesn’t have a smell, but yes, Poppy, you are short.”

“Alex!” I swat his bicep, breaking character. “I’m trying to help you!”

He rubs his arm. “Help me how?”

“I know Sarah broke your heart, but you need to get back out there. And when a hot babe approaches you at a bar, the number one thing you should not bring up is your codependent relationship with your asshole cat.”

“First of all, Flannery O’Connor is not an asshole,” he says. “She’s shy.”

“She’s evil.”

“She just doesn’t like you,” he insists. “You have strong dog energy.”

“All I’ve ever done is try to pet her,” I say. “Why have a pet who doesn’t want to be petted?”

“She wants to be petted,” Alex says. “You just always approach her with this, like, wolfish gleam in your eye.”

“I do not.”

“Poppy,” he says. “You approach everything with a wolfish gleam in your eye.”

Just then the bartender approaches with the drink I ordered before I ducked into the bathroom. “Miss?” she says. “Your margarita.” She spins the frosted glass down the bar toward me, and a ping of excited thirst hits the back of my throat as I catch it. I swipe it up so quickly that a fair amount of tequila sloshes over the lip, and with a preternatural and highly practiced speed, Alex jerks my other arm off the bar before it can get liquor splattered on it.

“See? Wolfish gleam,” Alex says quietly, seriously, the way he delivers pretty much every word he ever says to me except on those rare and sacred nights when Weirdo Alex comes out and I get to watch him, like, lie on the floor fake-sobbing into a microphone at karaoke, his sandy hair sticking up in every direction and wrinkly dress shirt coming untucked. Just one hypothetical example. Of something that has exactly happened before.

Alex Nilsen is a study in control. In that tall, broad, permanently slouched and/or pretzel-folded body of his, there’s a surplus of stoicism (the result of being the oldest child of a widower with the most vocal anxiety of anyone I’ve ever met) and a stockpile of repression (the result of a strict religious upbringing in direct opposition to most of his passions; namely, academia), alongside the most truly strange, secretly silly, and intensely softhearted goofball I’ve had the pleasure to know.

I take a sip of the margarita, and a hum of pleasure works its way out of me.

“Dog in a human’s body,” Alex says to himself, then goes back to scrolling on his phone.

I snort my disapproval of his comment and take another sip. “By the way, this margarita is, like, ninety percent tequila. I hope you’re telling those unappeasable Yelp reviewers to shove it. And that this place smells nothing like salmonella.” I chug a little more of my drink as I slide up onto the stool beside him, turning so our knees touch. I like how he always sits like this when we’re out together: his upper body facing the bar, his long legs facing me, like he’s keeping some secret door to himself open just for me. And not a door only to the reserved, never-fully-quite-smiling Alex Nilsen that the rest of the world gets, but a path straight to the weirdo. The Alex who takes these trips with me, year after year, even though he despises flying and change and using any pillow other than the one he sleeps with at home.

I like how, when we go out, he always beelines toward the bar, because he knows I like to sit there, even though he once admitted that every time we do, he stresses out over whether he’s making too much or not enough eye contact with the bartenders.

Truthfully, I like and/or love nearly everything about my best friend, Alex Nilsen, and I want him to be happy, so even if I’ve never particularly liked any of his past love interests—and especially didn’t care for his ex, Sarah—I know it’s up to me to make sure he doesn’t let this most recent heartbreak force him into full hermit status. He’d do—and has done—the same for me, after all.

“So,” I say. “Should we take it from the top again? I’ll be the sexy stranger at the bar and you be your charming self, minus the cat stuff. We’ll get you back in the dating pool in no time.”

He looks up from his phone, nearly smirking. I’ll just call it smirking, because for Alex, this is as close as it gets. “You mean the stranger who kicks things off with a well-timed ‘Hey, tiger’? I think we might have different ideas of what ‘sexy’ is.”

I spin on my stool, our knees bump-bumping as I turn away from him and then back, resetting my face into a flirtatious smile. “Did it hurt . . .” I say, “. . . when you fell from heaven?”

He shakes his head. “Poppy, it’s important to me that you know,” he says slowly, “that if I ever do manage to go on another date, it will have absolutely nothing to do with your so-called help.”

I stand, throw back the rest of my drink dramatically, and slap the glass onto the bar. “So what do you say we get out of here?”

“How are you more successful at dating than me,” he says, awed by the mystery of it all.

“Easy,” I say. “I have lower standards. And no Flannery O’Connor to get in the way. And when I go out to bars, I don’t spend the whole time scowling at Yelp reviews and forcefully projecting DON’T TALK TO ME. Also, I am, arguably, gorgeous from certain angles.”

He stands, setting a twenty on the bar before tucking his wallet back into his pocket. Alex always carries cash. I don’t know why. I’ve asked at least three times. He’s answered. I still don’t know why, either because his answer was too boring or too intellectually complex for my brain to even bother retaining the memory.

“Doesn’t change the fact that you’re an absolute freak,” he says.

“You love me,” I point out, the tiniest bit defensive.

He loops an arm around my shoulders and looks down at me, another small, contained smile on his full lips. His face is a sieve, only letting out the smallest amount of expression at a time. “I know that,” he says.

I grin up at him. “I love you back.”

He fights the widening of his smile, keeps it small and faint. “I know that too.”

The tequila has me feeling sleepy, lazy, and I let myself lean into him as we start toward the open door. “This was a good trip,” I say.

“Best yet,” he agrees, the cool rain gusting in around us like confetti from a cannon. His arm curls in a little closer, warm and heavy around me, his clean cedarwood smell folding over my shoulders like a cape.

“I haven’t even minded the rain much,” I say as we step into the thick, wet night, all buzzing mosquitoes and palm trees shivering from the distant thunder.

“I’ve preferred it.” Alex lifts his arm from my shoulder to curl over my head, transforming himself into a makeshift human umbrella as we sprint across the flooding road toward our little red rental car. When we reach it, he breaks away and opens my door first—we scored a discount by taking a car without automatic locks or windows—then runs around the hood and hurls himself into the driver’s seat.

Alex flicks the car into gear, the full-tilt AC hissing its arctic blast against our wet clothes as he pulls out of our parking space and turns toward our rental house.

“I just realized,” he says, “we didn’t take any pictures at the bar for your blog.”

I start to laugh, then realize he’s not kidding. “Alex, none of my readers want to see pictures of BAR. They don’t even want to read about BAR.”

He shrugs. “I didn’t think BAR was that bad.”

“You said it smelled like salmonella.”

“Other than that.” He ticks the turn signal on and guides the car down our narrow, palm-tree-lined street.

“Actually, I haven’t really gotten any usable pictures this week.”

Alex frowns and rubs at his eyebrow as he slows toward the gravel driveway ahead.

“Other than the ones you took,” I add quickly. The pictures Alex volunteered to take for my social media are truly terrible. But I love him so much for being willing to take them that I already picked out the least atrocious one and posted it. I’m making one of those awful midword faces, shriek-laughing something at him as he tries—badly—to give me direction, and the storm clouds are visibly forming over me, as if I’m summoning the apocalypse to Sanibel Island myself. But at least you can tell I’m happy in it.

When I look at that photo, I don’t remember what Alex said to me to elicit that face, or what I yelled back at him. But I feel that same rush of warmth I get when I think about any of our past summer trips.

That crush of happiness, that feeling that this is what life’s about: being somewhere beautiful, with someone you love.

I tried to write something about that in the caption, but it was hard to explain.

Usually my posts are all about how to travel on a budget, make the most of the least, but when you’ve got a hundred thousand people following your beach vacation, it’s ideal to show them . . . a beach vacation.

In the past week, we’ve had approximately forty minutes total on the shore of Sanibel Island. The rest has been spent holed up in bars and restaurants, bookstores and vintage shops, plus a whole lot of time in the shabby bungalow we’re renting, eating popcorn and counting lightning streaks. We’ve gotten no tans, seen no tropical fish, done no snorkeling or sunbathing on catamarans, or much of anything aside from falling in and out of sleep on the squashy sofa with a Twilight Zone marathon humming its way into our dreams.

There are places you can see in their full glory, with or without sunshine, but this isn’t one of them.

“Hey,” Alex says as he puts the car in park.

“Hey, what?”

“Let’s take a picture,” he says. “Together.”

“You hate having your picture taken,” I point out. Which has always been weird to me, because on a technical level, Alex is extremely handsome.

“I know,” Alex says, “but it’s dark and I want to remember this.”

“Okay,” I say. “Yeah. Let’s take one.”

I reach for my phone, but he already has his out. Only instead of holding it up with the screen facing us so we can see ourselves, he has it flipped around, the regular camera fixed on us rather than the front-facing one. “What are you doing?” I say, reaching for his phone. “That’s what selfie mode’s for, you grandpa.”

“No!” he laughs, jerking it out of reach. “It’s not for your blog— we don’t have to look good. We just have to look like ourselves. If we have it on selfie mode I won’t even want to take one.”

“You need help for your face dysmorphia,” I tell him.

“How many thousands of pictures have I taken for you, Poppy?” he says. “Let’s just do this one how I want to.”

“Okay, fine.” I lean across the console, settling in against his damp chest, his head ducking a little to compensate for our height difference.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Berkley (May 11, 2021)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1984806750
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1984806758
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.31 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.45 x 1.03 x 8.23 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #595 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #34 in Contemporary Women Fiction
- #111 in Romantic Comedy (Books)
- #344 in Contemporary Romance (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.3 74,352 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Upload your video

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Emily Henry

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Emily Henry is the #1 New York Times and #1 Sunday Times bestselling author of Happy Place, Book Lovers, People We Meet on Vacation, and Beach Read. She studied creative writing at Hope College, and now spends most of her time in Cincinnati, Ohio, and the part of Kentucky just beneath it. Find her on Instagram @EmilyHenryWrites.

Customer reviews

74,352 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Review this product

Write a customer review

Customers say

Customers find the book easy to read and enjoyable. They appreciate the well-developed characters and their witty banter. The friendship between the main characters is portrayed as deep and realistic. Many readers describe the story as heartfelt and honest. However, some felt the book was boring and frustrating at times.

AI-generated from the text of customer reviews

Select to learn more

Readability Character development Humor Friendship Emotion level Story quality Pacing Boredom

798 customers mention "Readability"740 positive58 negative

Customers enjoy the book's readability. They find it sweet, fun, and a good summer read with humor throughout. Readers also mention that the story is charming and emotionally resonant, making it great for reading on vacation.

"...Nonetheless, "People We Meet on Vacation" is a delightful romantic comedy that celebrates the power of friendship, the magic of summer adventures..." Read more

"...This book was as incredibly sweet as Beach Read, it moved me, filled me with the same warmth these characters brought to each other, and reminded me..." Read more

"...the witty banter between the main characters and it kept me entertained for the most part, but I never felt like I couldn’t put the book down..." Read more

"...That being said, it was a good read. I've already pulled Book Lovers off the shelf to start next." Read more

247 customers mention "Character development"188 positive59 negative

Customers enjoy the character development. They praise the well-developed Alex as a young man who takes care of his family, and the love, friendship, and feeling between the two main characters.

"...Her character is vibrant and relatable, driving the narrative with wit and charm...." Read more

"I gave this 3 stars because I liked the witty banter between the main characters and it kept me entertained for the most part, but I never felt like..." Read more

"...This was such a sweet book, and I genuinely loved Poppy’s character. Even though, we’re different many ways, I related to her...." Read more

"...only criticism is that the book was too long, the tension between the characters went on & on and could have been better trimmed a bit shorter...." Read more

212 customers mention "Humor"191 positive21 negative

Customers enjoy the humor and witty writing style of the book. They find it a cute, lighthearted read with wonderful quotes. The characters are endearing and the writing is engaging.

"...The chemistry between Poppy and Alex crackles with energy, their witty exchanges and unspoken longing drawing me into their emotional..." Read more

"...It's wonderful and Emily Henry has fabulous humor throughout. It's fabuloulous!" Read more

"...As always Emily has a few wonderful quotes...." Read more

"...She’s great!! Really love her work. This one was also funnier, even though the personal struggles in Beach Read was better executed imo, but it..." Read more

124 customers mention "Friendship"120 positive4 negative

Customers enjoy the friendship in the book. They find it realistic and enjoyable, with a realistic take on a friendship to lovers relationship. They appreciate how the characters are able to be themselves with one another and expect each other's quirks. The romantic tension between Alex and Poppy is also appreciated.

"...Meet on Vacation" is a delightful romantic comedy that celebrates the power of friendship, the magic of summer adventures and loving someone "all..." Read more

"...As someone who married their best friend I feel these are the best relationships- it just took Poppy and Alex a DECADE to figure it out." Read more

"...and forth .kept me entertained the whole time and also funny Oder the friendship develop. Highly recommend" Read more

"A great romance about “best friends” who fall in love but don’t want to ruin the friendship by taking it further...." Read more

114 customers mention "Emotion level"106 positive8 negative

Customers find the story relatable and emotional. They find the struggles real and heartfelt. The book makes them laugh and cry at times, making it an enjoyable read.

"...Poppy and Alex crackles with energy, their witty exchanges and unspoken longing drawing me into their emotional rollercoaster...." Read more

"Heart warming, a patient story and great for reading on vacation. Like any Emily Henry, I'm afraid is a story I will remember forever" Read more

"...So a great force to push the story forward, and some very great chapters (Norway/Sweden vacation looking at you👀), but often it felt like something..." Read more

"...We Meet on Vacation," Emily Henry crafts a charming and emotionally resonant story about two best friends, Poppy and Alex, whose dynamic has shifted..." Read more

175 customers mention "Story quality"103 positive72 negative

Customers have different views on the story. Some find it engaging with nice moments and believable characters. They appreciate how the story is told through flashbacks of trips. However, others feel that there is no clear storyline, long-winded narration, and lack of suspense. The look back chapters are also criticized for being repetitive.

"...The story unfolds through dual timelines, alternating between their carefree adventures and the aftermath of a falling out that fractures their..." Read more

"...but I never felt like I couldn’t put the book down because the plot a bit dull to me...." Read more

"Loved the back and forth .kept me entertained the whole time and also funny Oder the friendship develop. Highly recommend" Read more

"...The nuance and freshness that I enjoyed so much from Happy Place was just not speaking to me here, to use Poppy and Alex’s own phrase." Read more

121 customers mention "Pacing"63 positive58 negative

Customers have different views on the pacing of the book. Some find it fast-paced with great dialogue, while others feel it's slow and boring with a lot of buildup and waiting.

"...There’s not a lot of plot or much happening but the pacing is still pretty fast and even due to Henry’s incredible use of flashbacks which I will..." Read more

"I loved the book. At the beginning is a bit slow but once you're past the first chapters you're trapped in the story" Read more

"The pace is much different from Beach Read. Must faster, but without giving everything away before the end...." Read more

"...Otherwise, it was a fast and furious rush to the end of this very wordy book...." Read more

137 customers mention "Boredom"13 positive124 negative

Customers find the book boring and frustrating. They feel it doesn't get to the point, is repetitive, and slow to read. Some readers also mention it's disappointing and not their type of book.

"the story didn't start off too great but improved as I got further into the story; eventually, I reached a point where I couldn't put the book down" Read more

"...and the big reveal of what went south on the last summer trip was anticlimactic. This book wasn’t for me." Read more

"The pacing of this book felt so slow and it was hard to keep myself interested because of the way the flashbacks were written...." Read more

"Very cute story—possibly too cute, but a nice little romantic story that felt like a palate cleanser after reading an incredibly long and heavy..." Read more

Reviews with images

See all photos

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

D
What are bff to lovers if not a little messy
Reviewed in the United States on July 11, 2024
Verified Purchase

In Emily Henry’s "People We Meet on Vacation," opposites collide in a decade-long saga of friendship, love, and second chances. Poppy and Alex, despite their wildly different personalities—she’s the adventurous New Yorker, he’s the reserved hometown guy—forge a deep bond through annual summer vacations.

The story unfolds through dual timelines, alternating between their carefree adventures and the aftermath of a falling out that fractures their friendship. Poppy, with her irrepressible wanderlust and infectious spontaneity, contrasts sharply with Alex’s quiet, bookish demeanor. Yet their banter and deep understanding of each other’s quirks make them inseparable—until a pivotal moment changes everything.

Henry deftly navigates the friends-to-lovers trope, infusing humor and heart into their journey. Poppy’s quest to revive their tradition becomes a voyage of self-discovery as she confronts her own stagnation and yearning for happiness with Alex. Her character is vibrant and relatable, driving the narrative with wit and charm.

Alex, seen through Poppy’s eyes, is portrayed as lovable yet mysterious—a man of routines and hidden depths. While the single point of view intensifies the story’s tension, glimpses into Alex’s perspective during critical moments could have enriched their evolving relationship.

The novel thrives on Henry’s sharp dialogue and evocative settings. The chemistry between Poppy and Alex crackles with energy, their witty exchanges and unspoken longing drawing me into their emotional rollercoaster.

While the conclusion offers closure and hope, I craved more insight into Alex’s thoughts, particularly in the airport scene near the end. Nonetheless, "People We Meet on Vacation" is a delightful romantic comedy that celebrates the power of friendship, the magic of summer adventures and loving someone "all the way."

Read more

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

Report
Amazon Customer
it gets better as you read the story
Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2025
Verified Purchase
the story didn't start off too great but improved as I got further into the story; eventually, I reached a point where I couldn't put the book down

Read more

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Report
Gabrielle Grosbety
Swoon-worthy, sweet, heartwarming...a summery delight
Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2021
Verified Purchase
4.5 Stars ☆

“Like a good book or an incredible outfit, being on vacation transports you to another version of yourself.”

This book was as incredibly sweet as Beach Read, it moved me, filled me with the same warmth these characters brought to each other, and reminded me of the importance of finding people that feel like home. I felt the emotions, rise and fall tremulously, that being together, even sharing the same communal space, brings as our journeys connect us to people that we may not initially have felt we have anything in common with.

“That crush of happiness, that feeling that this is what life’s about: being somewhere beautiful, with someone you love.”

Alex and Poppy, Alex being more quiet, bookish, and reserved initially with a penchant for becoming himself once you get to know him, and Poppy, the more wildly spontaneous, bubbly firecracker, have been friends since they met at the University of Chicago and both bring out the inner weirdness and wonder of the other as their chemistry builds with a fervor matched by the electricity and lasting, poignant fulfillment of a beach sunset. My only hesitation in giving this book a full five stars comes from points in the novel where the banter between them was a bit over the top and felt too witty or manufactured to be true to life, which has moments of equivocating, unsureness, and dialogue that isn’t overly beautiful, scripted, or exciting. I did think that the seriousness and rich profoundness of their connection was more well-drawn out in the latter parts of the book, though, which won me over through and through and mostly balanced out my frustrations with being drowned in calculating wittiness.

“I’m crying because I’m relieved. Because I will never again feel as alone as I did during those long nights as a kid. As long as I have him, I will never be alone again.”

I could feel the swallowing pain they felt at being apart and failing to communicate, as life events happen to both that the other isn’t around to be a part of. I could also feel the want pulsing between them even when things were more strictly platonic and how much it hurts to want when you can’t read the other’s mind and know they feel the same. I desperately, urgently vied for the truth behind their love to triumph in the end and could feel on each vacation they took together, as they are famously known to vacation together to exciting, mouth-watering destinations, how they were there for each other, but also messily would say one thing while meaning another. They would end up with infuriating miscommunications that felt real and catastrophic as the unrelenting heat burning on their latest vacation. I could, however, see past the gaps in their communication and recognize all the love there that existed miraculously even when everything else in life felt wrong and irrational.

“He would or he wouldn’t, but in the end, there would be someone, and I didn’t think my heart could take it.”

I entered my own journey through reading this book, as I traveled into a whole new dimension with the reverberant, titillating intoxication of flavors, sights, smells, touches, and feelings. Alex and Poppy will stay best kept in a safe, eternal place in my heart.

Read more

13 people found this helpful

Helpful

Report
Nettie L. Powell
Witty dialogue, but I didn’t care for the main characters
Reviewed in the United States on January 4, 2025
Verified Purchase
I gave this 3 stars because I liked the witty banter between the main characters and it kept me entertained for the most part, but I never felt like I couldn’t put the book down because the plot a bit dull to me. It bounces back and forth between the past and present day and most plot elements are mainly to develop the characters and their relationship. The characters would probably appeal to a younger audience (I’m 47). They both have hang-ups and need therapy in the end (like most books by this author…not sure why every one of her books’ characters needs therapy). However, it did make me chuckle in several parts. It’s not a bad book, but many of this author’s books are better. I recommend “Funny Story” over this one.

Read more

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Report
StellarMe
The most will they won't they book I've ever read.
Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2025
Verified Purchase
Without giving away too much, the whole time I was reading this book I was fighting the urge to skip towards the end to find out what happened 2 summers ago. There is a lot of back and forth and the will they won't/they will almost drive you mad. That being said, it was a good read. I've already pulled Book Lovers off the shelf to start next.

Read more

Helpful

Report
cat
ahhhh!!!
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2025
Verified Purchase
My first Emily Henry book and it was so stinking cute.

Friends to lovers is a trope I can always and will always get behind.

I’m trying to write down how it made me feel now that I just finished it.

My heart aches for Alex, so much.
Taking care of your family, emotionally , has to be the hardest things and I loved that Poppy realized, a little too late if you ask me but she did.

Poppy I have mixed feelings about but overall she spoke out about it in the end. Thankfully it wasn’t too late.

Great book !!
Made me swoon in several parts!!

Read more

Helpful

Report
Andrea Hurley
Easy read
Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2025
Verified Purchase
Loved the back and forth .kept me entertained the whole time and also funny Oder the friendship develop. Highly recommend

Read more

Helpful

Report

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English

Paula JD
Comédia Romântica Viciante
Reviewed in Brazil on November 8, 2023
Verified Purchase

Li o livro em 6 dias, pegando a cada oportunidade que tinha, pois a leitura é muito fluida, os personagens são imperfeitos e cativantes, e apesar de sabermos o que vai acontecer no final, como praticamente qualquer comédia romântica, o desenrolar da história é o mais interessante mesmo. Super bem escrito, despojado e viciante.

Read more
Report
Translate review to English
Heather
Love
Reviewed in Canada on April 18, 2022
Verified Purchase
This book was the April addition to a book club I’m apart of. I haven’t read anything from Emily Henry before and I absolutely devoured this book. I love the friendship and building sexual tension between Poppy and Alex. It made me laugh and cry; simply couldn’t put it down. Maybe I’m a sucker for romance, but this gave me all the feels. Ordering Emily Henry’s ‘Beach Read’ today. Also wanted to mention that the book came without any defects .

Read more
Report
Andrea Ferreira
Te engancha y no puedes dejar de leerlo.
Reviewed in Mexico on October 4, 2021
Verified Purchase
Relajado y romántico pero con suficiente suspenso para querer seguir leyendo y saber que fue lo qué pasó y que pasará entre Alex y Poppy.

Read more
Report
Translate review to English
Hadar
Great book
Reviewed in Italy on June 14, 2024
Verified Purchase
Great book

Read more
Report
etit 011
parfait
Reviewed in France on April 9, 2024
Verified Purchase
parfait

Read more
Report
Translate review to English

See more reviews

Amazon Prime includes:

Follow the author

People We Meet on Vacation Paperback – May 11, 2021

Purchase options and add-ons

Frequently bought together

Related Climate Pledge Friendly items

Sustainability features

Carbonfree Certified

Sustainability features

The Forest Stewardship Council

Sustainability features

Carbonfree Certified

Sustainability features

OEKO-TEX MADE IN GREEN

OEKO-TEX MADE IN GREEN

OEKO-TEX MADE IN GREEN

Product Certification (1)

Sustainability features

Recycled Claim Standard Blended

From the Publisher

Editorial Reviews

Review

About the Author

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Product details

Videos

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

Videos for this product

About the author

Emily Henry

Customer reviews

Review this product

Customers say

Select to learn more

Images in this review

Reviews with images

Great book for vacation, fast shipping

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

5.0 out of 5 stars What are bff to lovers if not a little messy

4.0 out of 5 stars it gets better as you read the story

5.0 out of 5 stars Swoon-worthy, sweet, heartwarming...a summery delight

3.0 out of 5 stars Witty dialogue, but I didn’t care for the main characters

4.0 out of 5 stars The most will they won't they book I've ever read.

5.0 out of 5 stars ahhhh!!!

5.0 out of 5 stars Easy read

Top reviews from other countries

5.0 out of 5 stars Comédia Romântica Viciante

5.0 out of 5 stars Love

5.0 out of 5 stars Te engancha y no puedes dejar de leerlo.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book

5.0 out of 5 stars parfait

What are bff to lovers if not a little messy

it gets better as you read the story

Swoon-worthy, sweet, heartwarming...a summery delight

Witty dialogue, but I didn’t care for the main characters

The most will they won't they book I've ever read.

ahhhh!!!

Easy read

Comédia Romântica Viciante

Love

Te engancha y no puedes dejar de leerlo.

Great book

parfait