An entertaining and uplifting read that made me smile and kept me hooked.
The story is engrossing and enjoyable, the characters are likable and interesting, the plot flows.
It's the first book I read by this author and won't surely be the last.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

This book was so much fun, I really, really enjoyed it. It was jam packed with humour, It kept me engaged and turning the pages. The characters were relatable and interesting. Will recommend.

This is the perfect book to read given the current circumstances. An easy read that was light hearted and very entertaining. Would definitely recommend. Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

Such a fun book! Friendship, family, house swap-- the perfect summer read! "Staycation" is extremely timely during the current state of the world, and this book was fun to read in the midst of it all! Thanks to Michele Gorman for the the ARC!

Really enjoyable and perfect for this time! Fun and easy. A great summer read--perfect for the beach, vacation, or a weekend at home.

Unfortunately, for me I felt that the character stereotypes in this book were too much. The author tried to highlight gaslighting and mental abuse, I felt that this needed to be a bit more subtle..it actually ended up being quite cheesy.
The idea for the story was good, and the overall plot was great. The characters just did not work for me. Thank you for the opportunity to rate and review.

I have mixed feelings about this book. While it is well written, easy to read, I really was not feeling it with the main characters. Harriet was too Type A, Dan was an arsehole, and Sophie was too timid. However, I think that maybe this was the key to why I kept reading. I wanted to see how these characters evolved, when the situation forced them to rethink their vacation and make alternative last minute plans. Did they reevaluate their relationships, learn from mistakes and move forward, loosen up, or realize their worth? To some extent, by the end of the book, there was some realization that things needed to change.
As I said at the beginning, this is well written descriptive book, that kept me engaged - I wanted to know how it ended. However, my lack of connection with the characters and the fact that I felt there was no real conclusion to the issues that developed in the story left me unsatisfied. While this book wasn’t for me, this story is a pleasant read for anyone looking for something nice and easy on a calm summer evening. Advanced copy provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.3.75⭐️s

Harriet is a working mum who gets through the stresses of life by being super-organised. She loves her labelmaker, possibly a little bit too much, but struggles to relate to her teenage daughter and is infuriated by her husband James. Their 20 year old marriage is on the rocks, and she’s hoping to re-kindle the flames, but she might have left it too late.

Meanwhile Sophie gave up work when she married Dan. And although she loves motherhood and volunteering for charities, she’s starting to feel that she lost herself somewhere along the way. Dan’s obsession with his work and throwaway snide remarks have chipped away at her self-confidence. But is two weeks in the countryside enough to show her that she’s not just the ‘silly bean’ that Dan tells her she is?

I really liked Sophie, her energy and enthusiasm for life are very appealing and I really hoped that she would be able to shake off the chains of her marriage to Dan. It was harder to warm to Harriet, but I suspect that was the author’s intent. She’s abrupt, direct and always looking for the solution to every problem when sometimes people don’t want to be organised. But Harriet also reaches something of an epiphany and it’s good to see how her character grows.

Michele Gorman is very skilled at weaving the two strands of the story together, and adds touches of humour that bring levity to the situation. I laughed out loud at a scenario involving a snail that meets an unfortunate end, not to mention the sudden reappearance of a missing snake.

And the supporting cast in The Staycation are just as important. Harriet’s husband James seems to be very tolerant and laid back, but he’s clearly keeping some kind of secret. Is that why their marriage is so rocky? Sophie’s husband Dan is less likeable than James. He has a secret of his own but this one could be far more serious.

I really enjoyed this book – the characters are believable, the story moves along at a good pace, and there’s one little twist that is resolved right at the end to keep you hooked!

When she sat down to write The Staycation, Michele Gorman couldn’t possibly have known overseas travel would be off the agenda for summer 2020. But if your 2020 holiday is going to be a staycation in your own back garden, this is certainly a read that will keep you entertained!

After reading the curvy girls club by the author I was really excited to read this book but unfortunately I let me down. This book had so much potential but just fell flat. When Sophie and Harriet met at the airport when there flights were cancelled during the ash cloud, they decide to swap houses. This was sold to me as similar to the holiday (one of my favourite films) but it has none of the magic unfortunately. There were so many parts of this book that were ingredients I would usually love in a book but unfortunately for me it just didn't work. It felt like it dragged on and at the end nothing seemed to have been sorted.

The Staycation is the perfect book for your summer... staycation 😂 let's face it, not many of us are going anywhere anytime soon!


This book is light hearted, fun and easy to read, perfect to pick up and put down. I read it over 3 days and found myself really looking forward to picking it up everytime I wasn't reading it! However despite being light hearted, some of the issues it deals with actually run a lot deeper. I felt like Michele did a good job writing about these and bringing them to the forefront of the story, without making it too serious or depressing.


The plot is a bit mad. 2 women briefly meet at an airport and since their holidays are now cancelled due to an ash cloud, they decided to swap houses for two weeks! All I could think about is how I would never do that! Ever!!


But I loved the female characters in this story. Harriet and Sophie are polar opposites yet still build a beautiful friendship. I liked both of them and was rooting for them the whole way through. I won't say too much but I loved the ending for Sophie, it might have all been wrapped up a bit too easily but I personally wouldn't have it any other way. I liked the way both women grew throughout the story and became more aware of themselves and other aspects of their lives.



If you're looking for a bit of escapism in a time where we can't escape, this is a great read. It doesn't require tons of concentration and it's writing style allows you to easily get lost in other people's worlds for a few hours! In a world where everything feels a bit heavy right now this is a nice break from that! Will definitely be looking out for some of Michele's other books!


Ooh and if you don't like snakes, be warned, there is one small passage that may end up giving you nightmares

Two families in desperate need of a vacation learn that it might not happen. Then a plan is formed to switch houses for a vacation. The story switches back and forth between each family’s adventure and the lessons they learned from the experience. I loved the idea of this book. Unfortunately, for me the booked dragged in certain parts.

I was excited to read The Staycation by @michelegorman. A volcano cancels flights and vacations for two families so they decide to swap houses to have #staycations. I don’t know about you, but I miss vacationing and would kill for a staycation right about now. 😅 I really enjoyed this one and will definitely read more from this author. Just a fun, happy, escape which I think we could all use right now! It came out June 1st so go check it out!

3.5 stars
The Staycation is the first book I have read by the author and from the blurb I was really looking forward to reading it. It started out well as I could really empathize with how the characters were feeling but then when they swap their own houses for their different “holiday” things took a decidedly different turn. I struggled to connect with the characters as they seemed a bit strange to me. Harriett with her OCD and Sophie seemed to be a weak woman who was under the thumb. Then their husbands, they both just seemed to be very secretive! Something about them both rubbed me the wrong way.
This whole storyline seemed strange and I perservered to see what would happen. If you are after a book that is different then this may be right up your alley.

This was more than just a fun read, and I enjoyed how more serious topics were covered.

The title is more than a little fitting for our current lockdown situation however!!

The characters were great, but Dan... ugh!

This is one that I would recommend to a friend, definitely not my usual genre, but it was a highly enjoyable read.

I loved this book. It really reminded me of the film the holiday. I loved watching Harriet and Sophie grow and develop throughout, and also loved how it showed you that sometimes not everything is as perfect as it seems.

Ahhh I loved the ironic title! Perfect read for our current situation 😂

The Staycation is an adorable little book about two families who house swap after their holidays are cancelled. What follows is an array of comical encounters for both Sophie and Harriet and personal growth for both families.

I really enjoyed this story, and was hooked start to finish. Its funny, lighthearted and yet covers some hard topics like abusive control and infidelity.

Sophie and Harriet are both completely different types of characters and yet are the types of women you would want as adult friends. Brutally honest but loyal 🥰

I do feel sorry for them both in this book as their relationships are far from perfect. Both of them find themselves in a rut and their husbands are doing nothing to fix this (Dan is an utter dick btw).

Kudos to Michelle for her excellent storytelling and entertaining sense of humour 🤣 had me sniggering throughout! This is such a great summer read and I highly recommend it to everyone!

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Really good read. Would recommend to friends and family. I could sympathise with characters (important for any fiction novel!) and looked forward to picking it up and reading the next few chapters! Interesting plot line and a good ending. Will look out for more novels by the author. Thank you.

3.5⭐️
Things get desperate for strangers Harriet and Sophie when all flights are cancelled due to a volcanic ash cloud. After a chance meeting in the airport, the women find a way to make their very anticipated holidays happen by agreeing to swap houses. It turns out the unexpected staycation might be exactly what each family needed. ⁣
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This book is very relatable for all of us right now and I really enjoyed it! The author did a great job of including serious topics in the plot, so it was much more than just a fun and easy read (although it was that too)! I really liked the contrast between the settings and the characters. Harriet and Sophie were both quirky but strong, and I enjoyed reading along as their character’s developed and their friendship blossomed. I recommend this to anyone looking for an entertaining summer read!⁣
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Thank you @michelegormanuk @orionbooks & @trapeze_books for the gifted copy in exchange for my review! This book is available now as an ebook and the paperback version publishes on 7/23/20!⁣
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Read if you like:⁣
🎥 The Holiday⁣
📖 The Sister in Law⁣
📖 The House on Fripp Island ⁣

🏖BOOK REVIEW🏖⁣
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So many thanks to @michelegorman, @netgalley, @orionbooks & @trapeze_books for this copy of The Staycation! This book was released June 1st, just in time for summer! I think it’s eerily coincidental that most people are spending their summers ‘staycation-ing’ so is there a more perfect book right now? 😄⁣
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Sophia’s family & Harriett’s family are supposed to go on holiday (not together mind you but they meet at the airport). An ash cloud object to this, as all flight are canceled. So these families decide to make the best of it and switch houses for two weeks- a home in central London and a country cottage. What could go wrong?!⁣
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More like, what could go right! From light hearted events such as wacky spa treatments, a lost snake and ruined cupcakes to more deep of issues (infidelity, emotionally abusive relationships, family relationships, mental illness) this book had it all. I will say that I couldn’t connect with the characters very well, everyone’s personality was really irritating to me. That kind of changed towards the end when the women became stronger and less annoying. Also, I sure hated Dan!! I would have given him the boot a LONG time ago!!⁣
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I’d like to mention, since my husband works in insurance, all I could think of was the liability issues in switching homes. Haha! 🤭⁣
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In conclusion, this book was good but moved a bit slow. I wish it would have been a bit funnier and less serious! This book would make a good Lifetime movie. All in all, a solid summer read. ☀️⁣
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3/5 🌟🌟🌟⁣
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#bookreview #igbookreview #thestaycation #michelegorman #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #erinescapingreality #alwaysreading #summerreads #beachreads #bookfriends #bookish #bookaesthetic

Remember the ash cloud from Iceland’s volcano? All those people stranded at Heathrow T5? Harriet and Sophie, with their respective families are there, hoping to fly off for their much-needed holidays but the ash cloud puts paid to that. The two women get chatting and formulate a plan – why not have a staycation, but make it more like a holiday by swapping homes?

Sophie, Dan, and their children head off to Harriet’s home in the countryside, while Harriet, James, and their daughter travel to Sophie’s home in London. Harriet is a neat freak who can’t help herself tidying up Sophie’s house. Dan is a control freak who books lots of spa treatments for Sophie – which is lovely, but is he up to something?

I really enjoyed this story, it’s all totally believable and the characters’ dialogue flows well. Highly recommended!

Thank you to NetGalley and Orion for an advance reader copy in return for an honest review.