My Killer Vacation
Charming
Witty
Sweet

My Killer Vacation

Tessa Bailey2022
An all-new, spicy murder mystery from Tessa Bailey, New York Times bestselling author of It Happened One Summer... It was supposed to be a relaxing vacation in sweet, sunny Cape Cod-just me and my beloved brother-but discovering a corpse in our rental house really throws a wrench into our tanning schedule. Now a rude, crude bounty hunter has arrived on the back of his motorcycle to catch the killer and refuses to believe I can be helpful, despite countless hours of true crime podcast listening. Not to mention a fulfilling teaching career of wrangling second graders. A brash bounty hunter and an energetic elementary schoolteacher: the murder-solving team no one asked for, but thanks to these pesky attempts on my life, we're stuck together, come hell or high tide. I'm just here to do a job, not babysit an amateur sleuth. Although...it is becoming less and less of a hardship to have her around. Sure, she's stubborn, distracting and can't stay out of harm's way. She's also brave and beautiful and reminds me of the home I left behind three years ago. In other words, the insatiable hunger and protectiveness she is waking up in me is a threat to my peace of mind. Before I sink any deeper into this dangerous attraction, I need to solve this murder and get back on the road. But will fate take her from me before I realize the road has been leading to her all along?
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Reviews

Photo of Sarah Campbell
Sarah Campbell@wiltedsarah
2 stars
May 2, 2023

This is hard to like, because the love interest gives me the ick. Every time he opened his mouth, I was icked out.

I considered quitting after the first intimate scene.

I tried to imagine him as a bearded Matthew Daddario, but then they’d describe his long hair blowing in the wind or other descriptions like that and I’d lose the image. He’s just greasy and gross. Also older and weirdly obsessed with her boobs.

That’s others cup of tea, but not mine. I hated every time it was his perspective because he talked so gross. Talking about her “buns” and constant p-words. I’d just rather not. I’m not a prude with spiciness in novels, but his words were just gross and annoying.

I’ve read a lot of spicy novels, but this was my 13th reason.

I skipped the actual sex scenes because I physically couldn’t. Especially the church thing. Like why do they constantly do sexytimes in public spaces? I’m okay with it, but A CHURCH?!

I’m not going to lie, I skimmed through the last 50 pages. I just wanted to see how the investigation concluded, but I didn’t care about the romance.

Photo of Jess LeBlanc
Jess LeBlanc@readingwithjesss
3 stars
Feb 6, 2023

2.5 ⭐️ rounded up. I felt like everything moved to quickly once Taylor and Myles met and because of that it because unbelievable and a bit rushed.

Photo of Jess Griffin
Jess Griffin@jessgriffin
1 star
Jan 22, 2023

this just didn’t meet my expectations?? tessa bailey is an insta-buy for me but this just didn’t have the same tessa baileyness as her other books.. if that makes any sense. it was honestly quite predictable — i guessed it at the very beginning & there really just wasn’t enough murder mystery for me. any time i was getting into the mystery element, they started going at it again lol i feel like it was the instant attraction that initially put me off & the fact there was no real build up of chemistry between the characters ?? i’m not sure but the chemistry between the 2 main characters of this book doesn’t even compare to the chemistry of any of the couples in the hot & hammered series or the bellinger sisters duology :( i really wanted to love this but unfortunately this is my lowest rated tessa bailey book so far. HOWEVER, some positives: • quick & easy to read. • fun, adorable fmc. • brother-sister duo with a great relationship.

Photo of brooke lynn
brooke lynn@brooke1997
4 stars
Sep 22, 2022

hot hot hot 🌶🌶🌶 love tessa bailey and love the new thriller smutty romance take in killer vacation.

Photo of Olivia
Olivia@romancebooks
5 stars
Aug 11, 2022

Nothing I love more than a broody hero and a heroine who loves to be thrown around by said hero. Taylor and Myles were just what I needed to kick off the summer. A cute romance with a murder mystery to solve? I’m all in! This was a quick read and Tessa always knows how to write delicious dirty talk. If you want a good, light read for the summer (I know murder doesn’t sound light but I laughed quite a bit in this book) then this is it! Also fingers crossed, I really want a book focused on Taylors brother!!!

Photo of Sarah Crouse
Sarah Crouse@sarahanne444
5 stars
Aug 11, 2022

Okay listen. Did this book have some issues? Yes. Am I a fan of insta-love and insta-lust? No I'm not. Do I almost always judge a book for that? Yes. Did I guess who did it the second they showed up? Yes. Do I usually prefer much more realistic relationships? Yes. But this... I'll give this book a pass. It's somehow my first Tessa Bailey book, too... I have no idea how. I started this book while at a church-league softball game for my boyfriend. I thought I was safe. Most of the books I read don't start to get wild right off the bat, so it was harmless, right? Absolutely the F*CK not. The second Myles shows up I became ALL TOO AWARE of how close an older gentleman was sitting behind me. Definitely close enough to pick out some choice words used, or call me out for reading smut at a softball game, despite my efforts to keep the book cover face down. To be honest, I do not care, in THIS CASE, that it was insta-lust. Do not care. It was hot. I had some issues with it here or there, sure. But it was enjoyable and that's what matters. I had FUN reading it. I will say, I wish there were more rougher scenes. The first one in the bedroom with the underwear? Hot. I do wish they kept that energy up for the rest of the book, and I wish there were a few choice words said more than just once... if you know what I'm saying. But it was so fun.

Photo of Tatyana elwess
Tatyana elwess @tatyana_xo
2 stars
Aug 3, 2022

Enjoyed the storyline….however the verbiage is so cringe that it made it hard to get through.

Photo of Jovana Gjekanovikj
Jovana Gjekanovikj @jovana
5 stars
Aug 1, 2022

Perfect for lovers of romance and murder mysteries alike. We have the grumpy/sunshine pair, witty banter that only Tessa can write so effortlessly, and drooling spice that will curl your toes. I almost forgot, age gap. That's it. What more should I say.

+5
Photo of Preye
Preye@ayebaipreye
4 stars
Jun 19, 2022

Tessa Bailey writes books that flow smoothly from beginning till the end—which makes for an amazing reading experience. In all her books, she manages to strike a balance between the smut sequence, character mutation and the plot development, and, as expected, she delivered on this one yet again. My Killer Vacation starts off with a dead body—literally. Taylor, on vacation with her younger brother (Jude), discovers a dead body in one of the rooms in their rental. The male protagonist, Myles, is a bounty hunter and is hired by the boyfriend of the deceased's sister—who is also a friend—and what follows is fast-paced investigation to find the real killer. Taylor is determined to assist with the investigation and Myles, battling an insane case of insta-lust and sudden possessiveness, wants her as far away from the murder scene as possible. They dance around their mutual attraction, but the flames are there and they know it. The characters in this book are layered and with decidedly distinct narrative voices. If you like possessive alpha-heroes, I think you'll like Myles because he has enough grunts, growls, scowls, and roars to spare. Taylor was also an amazing babe with her refusal to be daunted by any of the obstacles—Myles' chest for example whenever he tried to prevent her from doing what she wanted to do—and how she took charge of her life. I haven't read any suspense/mystery/thrillers by this the author, so my guess is that this is a first (???). In that case, this was nicely-done. Not predictable per se, but there were enough hints along the way that I had a fair guess of who the killer was. I also liked that the plots were balanced nicely and it never felt like one over-powered the other. I loved My Killer Vacation and I'm excited for other readers to meet Myles and Taylor. There's also a host of other accompanying side-characters and my senses tell me that one or two of them might get their own stories.

Photo of Lyndsy Argento
Lyndsy Argento@lyndsyc32
2.5 stars
Jun 12, 2022

So far, this is my least fav Tessa Bailey so far. The redemption was in the lovable, fun, Hopper and Joyce like main characters. I like the idea of adding the murder mystery plot, but I just wish the book would have been longer to actually have a murder mystery (and the love story) be fleshed out. However, I really liked the banter between all of the characters in this one. I also liked the main character’s arc of finding her own bravery throughout the story. Overall, definitely a cute, quick read, but it’s not my fav by her

+3
Photo of Emily Wood
Emily Wood@emwood95
4 stars
Oct 7, 2024
Photo of Jennifer Forrester
Jennifer Forrester@jen_f88
4 stars
Aug 21, 2022
Photo of Hannah Alexander
Hannah Alexander @reviews_a_latte
5 stars
Aug 20, 2022
Photo of Josie Middleton
Josie Middleton @josiepf
3 stars
Jul 29, 2022
Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04
5 stars
Jul 10, 2022
+7
Photo of Emma ryan
Emma ryan@emmaacatharinee
3.5 stars
Jun 8, 2022
Photo of Marcy Pursell
Marcy Pursell @mpursell21
3 stars
Feb 12, 2024
Photo of Maria Schindler
Maria Schindler@mariaxschindler
3 stars
Oct 5, 2023
Photo of Nicola Faulkner
Nicola Faulkner@littlefaulkner
4 stars
Jul 7, 2023
Photo of nyera
nyera@nyera
4 stars
May 14, 2023
Photo of Jean Linehan
Jean Linehan@birds_bookshelf
4 stars
Feb 6, 2023
Photo of Erica Huculak
Erica Huculak@ericahuculak
3 stars
Feb 6, 2023
Photo of Yami
Yami@lmao_im_done
4 stars
Jan 23, 2023
Photo of Shannon Haufler
Shannon Haufler@shannonhaufler
3 stars
Dec 28, 2022

Highlights

Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04

I don't want to try, though. I've gone down the path of attempting to be good and noble and heroic and it turned out I was meant to be the villain.

Page 170
Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04

"I would rather you didn't answer. You'll ruin..." She waves her hand in the general direction of my torso. "This. That.”

Page 124
Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04

"Are you worried about me, Myles? Not only am I out here alone and defenseles. But I should mention that my emergency stash of panties has been mysteriously depleted. I'm worried we might have two criminals on our hands. A murderer and a panty thief. This has to be some kind of record for Cane Cod"

Page 79
This highlight contains a spoiler
Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04

And that's when I realize the red panties are gone. Myles's business card sits in their place.

Page 53
Photo of Emma Wolfe
Emma Wolfe@lilwolfey04

We end up toe to toe, only I’m a good ten inches taller, so her face is tipped up to the sky and blanketed by sunshine.

Page 28