Reviewed: 08 February 2026

This Weekend Doesn't End Well for Anyone

by: Catherin Mack

The Vacation Mysteries, Book 3

Rating: (4.0/5)

Someone is trying to kill Eleanor...again!

Eleanor is tempting fate again, leaving LA for the Bahamas and a writer’s conference. This fourth-wall-breaking, chatty, footnote-y book is a head-spin with a murder-mystery how-to conference within a murder mystery.

I have a few elements I am still working through. Did I miss how they fit? Were they just red herrings? Are they foreshadowing the next adventure?

If you have not read the first book, I suggest you do so. And maybe crack open the second one while you’re at it. Not required to enjoy this book, but so much fun. The fourth wall is smashed as Eleanor talks to the reader. The footnotes are back, but not as many as in the other books. Is that a bad thing? I’m not sure. After finishing, what stuck with me was Eleanor’s strength and capacity for forgiveness, along with Oliver’s hidden skills and depth.

I can’t say that I figured out the culprit. I think I just landed on a couple of names just because. I didn’t have a reason, mostly just pulling names out of the proverbial hat. There was so much going on, luckily Eleanor kept me in the loop. There was the bonus of being at the writing conference with the participants, with all of the writing tips.

I mentioned Eleanor’s capacity for forgiveness. There were several places where Eleanor’s strength held her upright. With all that hit her in the first quarter of the book and continued to, I am shocked she didn’t have to lean more on her support system (and alcohol). So far, Oliver has been second to Eleanor, Eleanor-Connor, Eleanor-Harper, and … you get the idea. This time, we see more of why Eleanor is stuck on him.

Some of the pop culture references didn’t land probably like the author would have hoped, but didn’t take away from my enjoyment. A lot of the time, you want to like the story hero. I don’t know if that matters in this story. I don’t know if I had time to assess my feelings about each character; there was so much happening. A fast start out of the gate, and things just kept going.

Last tip, would not suggest reading before bed, you may find yourself sleep deprived until you finish.

Thank you, #NetGalley and #MinotaurBooks, for the early read and opportunity to share my thoughts.

Happy Reading!

Release Date: 28-April-2026

Cozy Mystery, NetGalley, Mystery, Female-Led, Thriller

Plot Summary

The third in the witty and captivating series following bestselling author Eleanor Dash, who once again has to swap her sun hat for her detective hat, when a body is found at a murder mystery writing conference in the Bahamas.

Eleanor Dash can never catch a break. Not only has she had to solve two real-life murder plots in the past year, but both times it was when she was meant to be on vacation. Now she’s finally got a ticket to a relaxing weekend—an all-inclusive resort at the Bahamas where she’s speaking at a conference for murder mystery writers—but she arrives to find a body on the floor of her hotel room. Because of course she does.

With plenty of familiar faces at the resort, any one of them could have been the intended target or the culprit behind it all. Was it Oliver Forrest, Eleanor’s dashing boyfriend who’s in danger of getting dropped by his publisher because his sales are dwindling? Or Connor Smith, Eleanor’s infuriating ex-lover-turned-bestselling-rom-com-author with a sordid past of his own? Or her sister Harper, whose own stilted writing career has been a sore point for years as Eleanor’s has soared? Perhaps it’s one of the other writers also in attendance, as friends, frenemies and foes from Eleanor’s past all seem to be invited to the island.

Surrounded by mystery writers who know all too well the many ways to craft the perfect crime, Eleanor is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery and do whatever it takes to get out of this weekend alive.