breakups are a beach

Grace had things planned out. She was going to be an actress, her boyfriend Josh was going to be a director. They had planned a trip to L.A. to meet Josh’s father, a producer, and she was hoping that would give her professional career the kickstart she needed. She had one more year of college, but she was focused on what she wanted.

And then Josh broke up with her.

Her relationship was gone. Her plans were gone. Her trip to L.A. was gone. Instead, Josh was going with Caity to Cancun, to meet Caity’s father, a director, and shadow him on set. Of all the people in their film program, it had to be Caity. She was the one who got the lead in the play, even through everyone said Grace’s audition was better.

But Grace is having trouble walking away from Josh. He was her first real boyfriend. And they’d still been hooking up. So when her two best friends suggested a girls trip to help Grace get over Josh, she was all in. She offered to plan the whole thing, which is how they ended up in Cancun.

Again, Grace had it all planned out. But what she couldn’t plan for was the soccer player named Daniel who was half-Taiwanese, just like Grace, and who took her breath away just looking her in the eyes. And she couldn’t plan that Daniel was not only smoking hot but also kind, thoughtful, and respectful. And she couldn’t plan how that made her rethink her entire relationship with Josh.

And when all her plans blow up and she’s faced with all her lies, and her friends knowing all her lies, then Grace will have to be the one to decide what the plans for her future really are, and with whom.

The Breakup Vacation is the perfect beach read for fans of Hollywood’s rom coms. It has humor and spice and some mild stalking and good friends and the kind of self-discovery that helps people take responsibility for putting themselves in bad situations and moving on to something better. It’s smart and savvy and fun, with too much alcohol and not quite enough yoga on the beach.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s all about the mistakes you make in your 20s and how to grow through them to be better people by your 30s. It’s about the power of good friends to lift you to higher ground and taking your power back in order to get to that higher ground. Grace makes a lot of bad decisions at first, but, just like a classic ‘90s rom com lead, she figures things out and turns things around in the end. The Breakup Vacation is a fun read, perfect for spring break or a time when you’re craving a few days in Cancun yourself.

Egalleys for The Breakup Vacation were provided by Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing through NetGalley, with many thanks.