By Melissa Barbuzzi
People We Meet On Vacation follows two unlikely best friends, Poppy, a travel blogger, and Alex, a high school teacher, on their annual best friend “summer trips.” They met in university and quickly bonded during a drive home one summer (very When Harry Met Sally style). After years of memories and travelling together, an argument put a pause to their fun travels, and the pair hasn’t had any contact in two years. Until one day, Poppy contemplates what truly makes her happy in life. Is it her job? Living in New York City? She quickly realizes that Alex was the key to her happiness and decides to reach out to him. The pair ultimately end up on another trip together, in the hopes that their friendship can be rebuilt. But has too much happened between the two of them for that to be possible?
This was not your average friends-to-lovers trope. Emily Henry put her own spin on it which made the story feel fresh, exciting, and not like your regular rom-com. The travel aspect of the book also made me super nostalgic and want to travel, as the pair visited some really exciting places that have been on my bucket list for years.
The relationship between Poppy and Alex is a unique one. They have incredible banter, yet they are complete opposites. Poppy is an outgoing travel blogger who always wanted to get away, and Alex, a quiet high school teacher who wanted to settle down and grow roots. I think the pair always had more than just a friendship connection, but both were always too afraid that their differences would result in a failed romantic relationship.
I had two main gripes with People We Meet on Vacation, the first being that the plot was entirely predictable. From the beginning, the main question the reader has is, “what was the argument that caused Poppy and Alex to stop being friends?” As you continue reading, it quickly becomes obvious what that reason was. Generally, rom-coms are pretty predictable but I thought Emily Henry could have thrown a couple of curveballs in there.
The second gripe was Poppy’s indecisiveness and unpredictability. Poppy herself had said that having Alex in her life was what made her happy, but I felt that she was all over the place when it actually came down to it. She said she would sacrifice anything to be with him, but then followed it up with “I won’t move out of New York City.” She didn’t give off the vibe that she wanted to settle down, and that is entirely what Alex wanted. She also seemed to fully live in the past and continually brought up how much she disliked Alex’s ex-girlfriend.
Overall, I think Emily Henry did a great job with People We Meet On Vacation. I enjoyed it more than her previous book Beach Read (which most people may not agree with me on!) and thought the storyline flowed well. It was a light, fun read that made me want to book a trip immediately, and I would definitely recommend it to any rom-com lover!