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The Vacation Rental
A summer getaway triggers a psychological game of cat and mouse in a novel about the frightening damages of love, family, and obsession by the bestselling author of Open House and We Were Mothers . When Georgia rents her country home for the month of August, it’s off to the relaxing Connecticut shore for her; her husband, Tom; and their young daughter. It’s just what they need to ease family tensions and reconnect. All that’s left to do is leave behind their house keys—to a stranger. For Anna, Georgia and Tom’s house in the cool woodlands is a dream break from the oppressive heat of a New York City summer—and from an increasingly ill-fated relationship with her lover. A month apart and Anna can clear her head and reassess her future. She’s found the perfect place to do it. As the weeks wear on, Georgia and Anna discover that the pleasures of escape are as difficult to trust in as the comforts of home. And neither one can shake the feeling that something is about to go terribly wrong.
284 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 7, 2024
5927 people are currently reading
13652 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 827 reviews
April 1, 2024
DNF at 30%… this book is absolutely nothing like the description. There was absolutely no suspense, I was bored to death. It was so much repeating of their background of their life & I am sure eventually it would have gotten to the suspenseful parts but goodness I could not keep going…
It is absolutely fine for authors to give background about their lives, but please give me some action and suspense too. Give me something to keep me reading.
I have a feeling I know where this book was headed & it might have actually been good, but I am not gonna wait around for half the book to finally get to a good part. Sorry, not sorry.
Read for free from Amazon First Reads.
It is absolutely fine for authors to give background about their lives, but please give me some action and suspense too. Give me something to keep me reading.
I have a feeling I know where this book was headed & it might have actually been good, but I am not gonna wait around for half the book to finally get to a good part. Sorry, not sorry.
Read for free from Amazon First Reads.
April 12, 2024
Oh I’m so glad I didn’t let the negative reviews of this book stop me from reading it. They almost did. Almost.
Instead, I decided to give it a try and listen to my own reactions and opinions. I recommend you do the same if you’re reading this review.
I agree that it’s not a classic, nor written to be admired in high-brow literature circles. Rather, it’s a wonderful escape filled with twists and complex characters who aren’t always as they seem on the surface.
The settings and background history of the characters are beautifully described by the author. I enjoyed reading the prose which transported me into a world very different from my own. I’ve read some reviews saying the back stories were protracted and boring. I didn’t find this to be true at all. The layers written by the author filled out and complimented the fast-moving story. These narratives helped me know the people and places in the novel even better.
Sometimes we all need a fun, quick, entertaining read to shuttle us between our more complex pursuits. This intriguing book was that to perfection. Enjoy!
Instead, I decided to give it a try and listen to my own reactions and opinions. I recommend you do the same if you’re reading this review.
I agree that it’s not a classic, nor written to be admired in high-brow literature circles. Rather, it’s a wonderful escape filled with twists and complex characters who aren’t always as they seem on the surface.
The settings and background history of the characters are beautifully described by the author. I enjoyed reading the prose which transported me into a world very different from my own. I’ve read some reviews saying the back stories were protracted and boring. I didn’t find this to be true at all. The layers written by the author filled out and complimented the fast-moving story. These narratives helped me know the people and places in the novel even better.
Sometimes we all need a fun, quick, entertaining read to shuttle us between our more complex pursuits. This intriguing book was that to perfection. Enjoy!
April 3, 2024
I’m not the target audience for this book. The writing is okay. The characters are okay. But I don’t care about either.
April 24, 2024
A great thriller
I received this as a First Reads from Amazon.
The backdrop of the characters in this novel were written throughout and for me, it really added to the twists and turns.
I'd start to get bored and then bam the story started running. Similar to watching a series and saying just one more and you have trouble tearing yourself away.
A thrilling read to say the least. An affair, three deaths, and mysteries galore. Who wouldn't want to read a thriller with this combination.
I received this as a First Reads from Amazon.
The backdrop of the characters in this novel were written throughout and for me, it really added to the twists and turns.
I'd start to get bored and then bam the story started running. Similar to watching a series and saying just one more and you have trouble tearing yourself away.
A thrilling read to say the least. An affair, three deaths, and mysteries galore. Who wouldn't want to read a thriller with this combination.
April 5, 2024
Slow burn. Too slow.
I almost gave up about 1/3 in but stuck it out. It definitely got more interesting but not so much that I can forgive that first 1/3 😂
I almost gave up about 1/3 in but stuck it out. It definitely got more interesting but not so much that I can forgive that first 1/3 😂
May 6, 2024
I really didn’t like this book and I can’t say why without giving away a massive spoiler but it was absolutely nothing like I expected and it wasn’t for me!
September 4, 2024
I had high hopes when I started this book. As the story progressed, I started forming a rating in my head in a rather "clinical” way, based on the means, motive (or trigger), and opportunity described. It was a decent mystery, but not enough suspense and surprise.
April 9, 2024
good thriller
Gloria rents out her house to a woman from New York who is looking for a place out of the city. Anna is a young photographer and looking to take a break from her boyfriend, who seems to be pushing her for more. But, Anna is on a mission and Gloria has troubling secrets. I certainly didn’t envision how this book would turn out. Not all the good guys are good.
My opinion about this book changed dramatically as I read it. At first I was disappointed that this seemed to be about revenge. The haunted nightmares were a bit over the top for me and I almost stopped reading. But the book did get better in the last quarter. I began to understand the motivations of Anna a bit better. Millie has a crucial role in this book.
Gloria rents out her house to a woman from New York who is looking for a place out of the city. Anna is a young photographer and looking to take a break from her boyfriend, who seems to be pushing her for more. But, Anna is on a mission and Gloria has troubling secrets. I certainly didn’t envision how this book would turn out. Not all the good guys are good.
My opinion about this book changed dramatically as I read it. At first I was disappointed that this seemed to be about revenge. The haunted nightmares were a bit over the top for me and I almost stopped reading. But the book did get better in the last quarter. I began to understand the motivations of Anna a bit better. Millie has a crucial role in this book.
April 4, 2024
This one is a wild ride that will have you re-thinking renting a home for vacation! Anna works for Culture Magazine and is dating Carter, her editor. She finds a beautiful short-term rental on the beach and tells him she needs to clear her head, photograph the lovely scenery, and get away for a while. The woman who is renting the beach house is Georgia who has her own issues to explore as she experienced a traumatic experience earlier in life. How these two women are connected is a great convoluted story of deception, mistaken identity, and murder. I loved it!
April 9, 2024
Not the suspense I expected
I had a hard time getting through this book. It wasn't like the description when I chose it as a First Reads selection. I was expecting it to suspenseful but it was very repetitive of the description of the characters and their backgrounds. The only suspense was when one of the characters was almost killed. Also didn't like the foul language.
I had a hard time getting through this book. It wasn't like the description when I chose it as a First Reads selection. I was expecting it to suspenseful but it was very repetitive of the description of the characters and their backgrounds. The only suspense was when one of the characters was almost killed. Also didn't like the foul language.
April 30, 2024
I agree with other reviewers that this book started a little slow, but I ended up really liking it. It centers on Anna and Georgia, with the former renting out the latter's house in rural New York for a month in the summer. I really liked Anna from the beginning- though she was a flawed character, I found her to be funny, tough, and overall relatable. I didn't feel that way about Georgia at all, though she did grow on me as the book continued.
There was a bit of a haunted house vibe in this one, which I enjoyed- there were definitely some very creepy parts when reading about the house, and it was very atmospheric. The real story is around the dynamics between characters, though, and those are very complicated as more info is revealed. I thought the twists in the book were well-done; some of them completely caught me off guard. I really liked the way the book ended, as well, and felt that the loose ends were tied up nicely.
Overall, this is a bit of a slow burn to start but I would recommend continuing on, even if you aren't feeling it at the start. I thought it was a great read, and the storyline unique in a string of often similar psychological thrillers that I have read recently. Thanks to Amazon for providing me with this book as part of the First Reads program.
There was a bit of a haunted house vibe in this one, which I enjoyed- there were definitely some very creepy parts when reading about the house, and it was very atmospheric. The real story is around the dynamics between characters, though, and those are very complicated as more info is revealed. I thought the twists in the book were well-done; some of them completely caught me off guard. I really liked the way the book ended, as well, and felt that the loose ends were tied up nicely.
Overall, this is a bit of a slow burn to start but I would recommend continuing on, even if you aren't feeling it at the start. I thought it was a great read, and the storyline unique in a string of often similar psychological thrillers that I have read recently. Thanks to Amazon for providing me with this book as part of the First Reads program.
April 16, 2024
This was my Amazon First Reads pick for the month of April.
I am on a roll! Sadly, not a good one. This is….let’s see, I’ve lost count, how many First Reads picks that have been either just barely ok or a complete bust? Not sure. The only thing I do know right now is that I am glad these books are free because I wouldn’t pay to read most of them.
So, I did something out of the ordinary with The Vacation Rental. I peeked at some of the reviews before indulging. Why? I don’t know. I prefer to go into a novel with a clean slate. I don’t want to have any preconceived ideas before I dig in. For some reason though, I went ahead and skimmed a few. They were glowing. It made me excited to read it. Let the disappointment begin! Oy! I was expecting twists and turns at every corner. What I got instead was boredom and predictability. Only a handful of chapters in and I had most of it figured out. It wasn’t hard. To be fair, I do read a lot of psychological thrillers so maybe that’s it. Not that I would characterize this book as that. It’s actually more of a family drama that has a basic revenge plot and is filled with your standard unlikeable characters. Fun.
As far as the pacing, wow. I’ve seen snails move faster than this story did. Seriously. Nothing happens for the majority of the book. It’s just a bunch of bouncing between characters and time until finally, someone goes somewhere, and people start finding out stuff. By that point, we are almost at the end of the tale. You don’t really care what happens anymore, but you’ve gotten this far, so you might as well finish reading it. Honestly, there’s really nothing else to say about it, so I won’t.
In conclusion, April dire brings May fire? April boring brings May adoring? I don’t know. I’ll have to work on that. I’m not a poet. Let’s just hope that May brings us some better free reading choices from Amazon because I think we are long overdue.
I am on a roll! Sadly, not a good one. This is….let’s see, I’ve lost count, how many First Reads picks that have been either just barely ok or a complete bust? Not sure. The only thing I do know right now is that I am glad these books are free because I wouldn’t pay to read most of them.
So, I did something out of the ordinary with The Vacation Rental. I peeked at some of the reviews before indulging. Why? I don’t know. I prefer to go into a novel with a clean slate. I don’t want to have any preconceived ideas before I dig in. For some reason though, I went ahead and skimmed a few. They were glowing. It made me excited to read it. Let the disappointment begin! Oy! I was expecting twists and turns at every corner. What I got instead was boredom and predictability. Only a handful of chapters in and I had most of it figured out. It wasn’t hard. To be fair, I do read a lot of psychological thrillers so maybe that’s it. Not that I would characterize this book as that. It’s actually more of a family drama that has a basic revenge plot and is filled with your standard unlikeable characters. Fun.
As far as the pacing, wow. I’ve seen snails move faster than this story did. Seriously. Nothing happens for the majority of the book. It’s just a bunch of bouncing between characters and time until finally, someone goes somewhere, and people start finding out stuff. By that point, we are almost at the end of the tale. You don’t really care what happens anymore, but you’ve gotten this far, so you might as well finish reading it. Honestly, there’s really nothing else to say about it, so I won’t.
In conclusion, April dire brings May fire? April boring brings May adoring? I don’t know. I’ll have to work on that. I’m not a poet. Let’s just hope that May brings us some better free reading choices from Amazon because I think we are long overdue.
August 10, 2024
While I’ve really enjoyed this author’s previous work this one just didn’t work for me. I liked the characters and the overall plot but the progression was way too slow for my liking. If you don’t mind slower-paced thrillers then you’ll probably enjoy this one much more than I did. Recommend to those who enjoy a more slow burn read.
Will def still be reading this author.
Will def still be reading this author.
April 6, 2024
This is a hard book to review. I want to give this 4 stars because the plot post 60% of the book was enjoyable! I couldn’t put it down and I just had to know where everything was going. But, I feel that ultimately there was too much that I have issues with. The beginning struggled and even within the section I liked, too much was left unresolved or was straight up confusing.
So much of The Vacation Rental was spent setting up the characters and background completely separate from the plot instead of being woven in. Anna didn’t even arrive at the house she rented until 35%. Even then, things simply seemed like more set up. It wasn’t until 60% that I was invested in the book. Why was Anna there? What was she looking to accomplish? I needed to keep reading to find out!
Some people have categorized this book as a slow burn. I don’t really agree because I feel like the book didn’t really start until it was halfway over. But once it got going, there was momentum. Slow burn books seem to be slow throughout. The Vacation Rental felt more like author Kate Sise was struggling to get the plot started when there was so much background information needed. I do applaud her though or trying to do so on one timeline instead of falling back to the lazy then/now chapter formatting.
I was looking forward to The Vacation Rental being a ghost story since there was so much paranormal set up. Millie’s dreams, poems, and drawings were so creepy. The poems never amounted to anything and left me wondering why they were even part of the story. In fact the whole paranormal element of the book was a bit of a letdown. The set up promised haunted house elements but really there was only Millie’s dream. Even those weren’t really explained. The only resolution given was “whether that’s because some pearl of truth was set free, or because we threw the doll over the cliffs the next day, I’ll never know.” I’ll never know was sort of the theme of the book’s resolution.
The fake reveal of Georgia killing Eliza was a let down. Everything was set up for Anna to hate Georgia so it seemed pretty straightforward for this eventual fake or real reveal.
The twist that Carter is actually Tom was really the craziest part of this whole book. I absolutely didn’t see it coming. But then, that was sort of the problem. I couldn’t wrap my head around Carter and Tom being the same person. My brain kept picturing two completely different people because the personalities and behaviors didn’t seem to have any overlap.
What was the point of Ethan’s character? He was only in a couple scenes and never served a purpose. The book would be completely the same if he was simply deleted.
My biggest issue with The Vacation Rental was why Anna wanted to rent the house in the first place. Anna placed blame on Georgia for her mother’s death. Initially she wanted revenge and had the affair with Tom to ruin his marriage with Georgia. If revenge was the purpose of renting the house, what was she looking to achieve by doing so? Trying to figure this out was one of the reasons I was interested in the plot but it never seemed like Anna had any plan for revenge once actually in the house. She didn’t *do* anything. The other reason for her to stay there was closure which made sense especially after learning that Tom had told her that the house was haunted by the deaths. She wanted to see her mother or hear her while in the house and be at peace with her mother’s death. While this made more sense, it didn’t match Anna’s vengeful attitude and continual rants about how she was going to ruin Georgia’s life. To me, Anna renting the house was the foundation for the plot but then nothing really happened because of it. Everything could have happened in a different setting. What set everything in motion was Max telling Georgia who Anna really was. But, since he knew from the very beginning, it could have happened without the whole vacation rental aspect of the book.
The other thing that confused me was everyone treating Anna like a felon for renting the house. Going on about her stalking Georgia and ruining her life didn’t make any sense to me. It wasn’t cool for her to sleep with a man she knew was married but it was Tom’s fault too. He ruined his marriage with Georgia (and thank freaking goodness that was always known to Georgia). The stalking claims though? Yes Anna rented the house while hiding her true identity but that’s just more weird than criminal. If someone I knew from my childhood stayed in my Airbnb, knowing it was mine, but never said anything about it, it would be really weird but I wouldn’t accuse them of stalking.
This would be one of those 3 star books that’s a positive 3 star. There were parts that were good and I might recommend it if someone needed something to read. I could see the plot of renting a vacation house from someone a character knows and wants revenge on to have potential for being an interesting, new, and not overused thriller plot line. But, there were so many problems that left me feeling a little frustrated.
So much of The Vacation Rental was spent setting up the characters and background completely separate from the plot instead of being woven in. Anna didn’t even arrive at the house she rented until 35%. Even then, things simply seemed like more set up. It wasn’t until 60% that I was invested in the book. Why was Anna there? What was she looking to accomplish? I needed to keep reading to find out!
Some people have categorized this book as a slow burn. I don’t really agree because I feel like the book didn’t really start until it was halfway over. But once it got going, there was momentum. Slow burn books seem to be slow throughout. The Vacation Rental felt more like author Kate Sise was struggling to get the plot started when there was so much background information needed. I do applaud her though or trying to do so on one timeline instead of falling back to the lazy then/now chapter formatting.
I was looking forward to The Vacation Rental being a ghost story since there was so much paranormal set up. Millie’s dreams, poems, and drawings were so creepy. The poems never amounted to anything and left me wondering why they were even part of the story. In fact the whole paranormal element of the book was a bit of a letdown. The set up promised haunted house elements but really there was only Millie’s dream. Even those weren’t really explained. The only resolution given was “whether that’s because some pearl of truth was set free, or because we threw the doll over the cliffs the next day, I’ll never know.” I’ll never know was sort of the theme of the book’s resolution.
The fake reveal of Georgia killing Eliza was a let down. Everything was set up for Anna to hate Georgia so it seemed pretty straightforward for this eventual fake or real reveal.
The twist that Carter is actually Tom was really the craziest part of this whole book. I absolutely didn’t see it coming. But then, that was sort of the problem. I couldn’t wrap my head around Carter and Tom being the same person. My brain kept picturing two completely different people because the personalities and behaviors didn’t seem to have any overlap.
What was the point of Ethan’s character? He was only in a couple scenes and never served a purpose. The book would be completely the same if he was simply deleted.
My biggest issue with The Vacation Rental was why Anna wanted to rent the house in the first place. Anna placed blame on Georgia for her mother’s death. Initially she wanted revenge and had the affair with Tom to ruin his marriage with Georgia. If revenge was the purpose of renting the house, what was she looking to achieve by doing so? Trying to figure this out was one of the reasons I was interested in the plot but it never seemed like Anna had any plan for revenge once actually in the house. She didn’t *do* anything. The other reason for her to stay there was closure which made sense especially after learning that Tom had told her that the house was haunted by the deaths. She wanted to see her mother or hear her while in the house and be at peace with her mother’s death. While this made more sense, it didn’t match Anna’s vengeful attitude and continual rants about how she was going to ruin Georgia’s life. To me, Anna renting the house was the foundation for the plot but then nothing really happened because of it. Everything could have happened in a different setting. What set everything in motion was Max telling Georgia who Anna really was. But, since he knew from the very beginning, it could have happened without the whole vacation rental aspect of the book.
The other thing that confused me was everyone treating Anna like a felon for renting the house. Going on about her stalking Georgia and ruining her life didn’t make any sense to me. It wasn’t cool for her to sleep with a man she knew was married but it was Tom’s fault too. He ruined his marriage with Georgia (and thank freaking goodness that was always known to Georgia). The stalking claims though? Yes Anna rented the house while hiding her true identity but that’s just more weird than criminal. If someone I knew from my childhood stayed in my Airbnb, knowing it was mine, but never said anything about it, it would be really weird but I wouldn’t accuse them of stalking.
This would be one of those 3 star books that’s a positive 3 star. There were parts that were good and I might recommend it if someone needed something to read. I could see the plot of renting a vacation house from someone a character knows and wants revenge on to have potential for being an interesting, new, and not overused thriller plot line. But, there were so many problems that left me feeling a little frustrated.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 9, 2024
This book was incredibly slow to get into. I think there were several scenes and details that didn’t need to be in the book (t-Rex / museum photo shoot is one). I was very close to DNF-ing it. It did get better after Anna goes to stay the house in Waring Ridge, but wow… it took FOREVER to get there! Not sure I will be trying anything else by this author.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 15, 2024
This book, I had high hopes for. The synopsis was better than the actual book. There some chapters at the beginning I can honestly say were pointless.
I understand that it is fiction and it’s supposed to be suspense, but the connections were so far fetch. Then we throw in some supernatural right at the end… joy
I understand that it is fiction and it’s supposed to be suspense, but the connections were so far fetch. Then we throw in some supernatural right at the end… joy
September 6, 2024
I can’t tell if this book was actually great or just extremely twisty, but all I know is I could not put it down and that counts for a lot! The prose is not mind-blowing, but the dialogue is strong and kept me guessing until the very last page. What a whirlwind!!
December 15, 2025
A bit far fetched, some surprises but so much repetitive musing to get to those.
November 26, 2024
DNF pretty darn quick because this was all kinds of ick for me.
April 24, 2024
Slow to start, this is a novel that makes the ride worthwhile. The characters, while not entirely likable, were realistic. It was like peeling back an onion. The layers of character development within this story ran deep. Once the twists started coming, things got crazy real fast! With a clever and unique premise, this thriller contains some jaw dropping surprises that really bring the book full circle. Definitely worth a read for those who enjoy a well thought out book with deeply developed characters.
🎧 Audiobook review: The narrators were clear and concise, easy to follow and fitting to the characters they were portraying.
Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Audio for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. All opinions expressed are my own.
🎧 Audiobook review: The narrators were clear and concise, easy to follow and fitting to the characters they were portraying.
Thank you to NetGalley and Brilliance Audio for the opportunity to listen to this ALC. All opinions expressed are my own.
April 5, 2024
Vacation Rental was an excellent read because it told a story with a real plot complete with backstory, fully developed characters and some twists and turns. I appreciated this book for the immersive event it was—it wasn’t just get in throw some non-sensical story around, add some twists and call it a day. It was thoughtful and thought provoking. Katie Sise’s style of writing is beautiful and flowing, at times mournful and painful. I enjoyed this book immensely.
September 5, 2025
The Vacation Rental by Katie Sise (2024)
vii+309-page Kindle Ebook story pages 1-306
Genre: Domestic Thriller, Mystery Thriller
Featuring: Praise, Bibliography for Katie Sise, Multiple POVs, Locations, New York City, New York, Sex, Fictional Small-Town in Upstate New York - One Hour North of NYC, Photographer, Summer Vacation, Mothers, Neighbors, Siblings, Grief, Stalker, Southport, Connecticut; Family Secrets, Paranormal Interests, Loss of Loved Ones, Magazine, Neighbors, Author's Links
Rating as a movie: R for adult content
Songs for the soundtrack: Radiohead, Pearl Jam, Natasha Bedingfield, “Madre Creator” by Heidi Rojas, SZA
Books and Authors mentioned: What Remains by Wendy Walker, Open House by Katie Sise, We Were Mothers by Katie Sise, 12 to 22: POV You Wake Up in the Future! by Jen Calonita, Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton, Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
My rating: ⭐️⭐️½🪆🏠
My thoughts: 🔖45 of 309 [Chapter] SEVEN Anna. New York City, New York. - This story is taking way too long to get started.
🔖[Chapter]SIXTEEN Georgia. Southport, Connecticut. - Interesting, but slow.
🔖173 [Chapter] TWENTY-SEVEN Anna. Waring Ridge, New York. - Such a letdown. I suspected this about Carter since the beginning, but now I feel like I have the entire story figured out.
🔖205 [Chapter] THIRTY-FOUR Georgia. Southport, Connecticut. - Today is today I finished this book unfortunately it has been like watching paint dry. I am very glad I read You Must Be New here first because if this were my first book by this author it would probably be my last. Now that I have a plot I feel like the story is just being drug out as slowly as possible.
🔖301 [Middle of Epilogue] - Almost made it. Prayer and book a meeting.
Okay, this story had a decent plot but it was dull, and disappointing. It felt more drama than mystery and it wasn't very juicy. I'm glad I didn't start with this one as it would have been a one-and-done. I'm going to give Open House a chance because You Must Be New Here was so good.
Recommend to others: Not likely
Memorable Quotes: It’s a world where many people take time off in the summer because they can, because they’re soaking waist deep inside a trust fund or they make their own money. Or maybe they’re barely making enough, but their family always vacationed while they were growing up, so they scrape everything together so they can live that way, too, because it means something to them. And I can visit this new elite world—I can move among the players and even rearrange them and create consequences—but it’s not mine. Being able to move fluidly within the upper echelons shows all the advantages in the way I grew up, and I’m grateful for that, but there’s still a sense I have of not quite fully belonging, like I’m not really a card-carrying member. I don’t like that feeling, but I’m also afraid of losing the feeling if I stay and play the part for too long.
Carter touches my forehead, the tip of my nose. “That’s a good way to do it,” he says. “And it’ll be good for your headspace. Getting out of the city always is. Change of scenery. And you’ll photograph for fun instead of money.” “Those two things don’t feel different to me.” “Really?” he asks. “It must be nice to feel that way about your work.” “It’s not because I don’t need the money,” I say. “I do. It’s just the actual photographing itself, in the moment, doesn’t feel different whether I’ve been hired to take the photo or I sell it after the fact, or I don’t sell it at all. Do you not feel that way about Culture?” I ask. “I mean, about the actual work. The editing?”
“Yeah, probably the same as for everyone else in Waring Ridge,” I say with a wave, because that’s the truth of any New York City commuter town. Many people work long days and bear huge commutes to be able to live somewhere charming and bucolic. Tom leaves on a six a.m. train and usually doesn’t get home until nine or ten. And, of course, I can’t really complain about Tom’s hours, because I was the one who begged to move up here. Him getting home early enough to go to dinner tonight was an aberration, and he still has work to do. That’s why he’s still in the car on a call.
But it’s Tom, not me, who suspects the worst in everyone. His paranoia swings from overly trusting and assuming nothing bad will come of any situation—even precarious ones—to full-blown suspicion over things that seem innocuous. It’s like his inner barometer for who and what to trust is just slightly off-kilter. It has made for some big disasters—a few work partnerships gone sour that nearly ended his career—and then smaller disasters like this thing that happened with Ethan last year.
vii+309-page Kindle Ebook story pages 1-306
Genre: Domestic Thriller, Mystery Thriller
Featuring: Praise, Bibliography for Katie Sise, Multiple POVs, Locations, New York City, New York, Sex, Fictional Small-Town in Upstate New York - One Hour North of NYC, Photographer, Summer Vacation, Mothers, Neighbors, Siblings, Grief, Stalker, Southport, Connecticut; Family Secrets, Paranormal Interests, Loss of Loved Ones, Magazine, Neighbors, Author's Links
Rating as a movie: R for adult content
Songs for the soundtrack: Radiohead, Pearl Jam, Natasha Bedingfield, “Madre Creator” by Heidi Rojas, SZA
Books and Authors mentioned: What Remains by Wendy Walker, Open House by Katie Sise, We Were Mothers by Katie Sise, 12 to 22: POV You Wake Up in the Future! by Jen Calonita, Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton, Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
My rating: ⭐️⭐️½🪆🏠
My thoughts: 🔖45 of 309 [Chapter] SEVEN Anna. New York City, New York. - This story is taking way too long to get started.
🔖[Chapter]SIXTEEN Georgia. Southport, Connecticut. - Interesting, but slow.
🔖173 [Chapter] TWENTY-SEVEN Anna. Waring Ridge, New York. - Such a letdown. I suspected this about Carter since the beginning, but now I feel like I have the entire story figured out.
🔖205 [Chapter] THIRTY-FOUR Georgia. Southport, Connecticut. - Today is today I finished this book unfortunately it has been like watching paint dry. I am very glad I read You Must Be New here first because if this were my first book by this author it would probably be my last. Now that I have a plot I feel like the story is just being drug out as slowly as possible.
🔖301 [Middle of Epilogue] - Almost made it. Prayer and book a meeting.
Okay, this story had a decent plot but it was dull, and disappointing. It felt more drama than mystery and it wasn't very juicy. I'm glad I didn't start with this one as it would have been a one-and-done. I'm going to give Open House a chance because You Must Be New Here was so good.
Recommend to others: Not likely
Memorable Quotes: It’s a world where many people take time off in the summer because they can, because they’re soaking waist deep inside a trust fund or they make their own money. Or maybe they’re barely making enough, but their family always vacationed while they were growing up, so they scrape everything together so they can live that way, too, because it means something to them. And I can visit this new elite world—I can move among the players and even rearrange them and create consequences—but it’s not mine. Being able to move fluidly within the upper echelons shows all the advantages in the way I grew up, and I’m grateful for that, but there’s still a sense I have of not quite fully belonging, like I’m not really a card-carrying member. I don’t like that feeling, but I’m also afraid of losing the feeling if I stay and play the part for too long.
Carter touches my forehead, the tip of my nose. “That’s a good way to do it,” he says. “And it’ll be good for your headspace. Getting out of the city always is. Change of scenery. And you’ll photograph for fun instead of money.” “Those two things don’t feel different to me.” “Really?” he asks. “It must be nice to feel that way about your work.” “It’s not because I don’t need the money,” I say. “I do. It’s just the actual photographing itself, in the moment, doesn’t feel different whether I’ve been hired to take the photo or I sell it after the fact, or I don’t sell it at all. Do you not feel that way about Culture?” I ask. “I mean, about the actual work. The editing?”
“Yeah, probably the same as for everyone else in Waring Ridge,” I say with a wave, because that’s the truth of any New York City commuter town. Many people work long days and bear huge commutes to be able to live somewhere charming and bucolic. Tom leaves on a six a.m. train and usually doesn’t get home until nine or ten. And, of course, I can’t really complain about Tom’s hours, because I was the one who begged to move up here. Him getting home early enough to go to dinner tonight was an aberration, and he still has work to do. That’s why he’s still in the car on a call.
But it’s Tom, not me, who suspects the worst in everyone. His paranoia swings from overly trusting and assuming nothing bad will come of any situation—even precarious ones—to full-blown suspicion over things that seem innocuous. It’s like his inner barometer for who and what to trust is just slightly off-kilter. It has made for some big disasters—a few work partnerships gone sour that nearly ended his career—and then smaller disasters like this thing that happened with Ethan last year.
February 9, 2025
Decent book
Not amazing but decent
Maybe 2.5
Not amazing but decent
Maybe 2.5
April 19, 2024
This book was a really slow burn for me. The writing is good, but I kept wanting more excitement to keep me interested. It isn’t a bad book, but I felt like it was more of a drama than any mystery. It does have some twists, but they weren’t that surprising. I feel like my review is sounding more negative than I intend. I guess I was hoping for more of a “thriller”!
July 3, 2024
3.5 rounded down
May 29, 2025
I loved this book. The writing was so beautiful, the words felt like liquid dripping off the page and I literally gasped out loud multiple times at the twists and turns. This is more of a slow burn domestic drama, but I ate it up with a spoon.
The story is told from the pov of two women--Georgia who is a wife and mother and is living in her family's ancestral home in a small town outside of Manhattan, and Anna who is a young up and coming photographer. Their lives intersect when Georgia puts their house on a vacation rental site so her family can escape to the Connecticut shore, and Anna rents the house to get away from the city and work on the photography book she has received an advance for.
I can't say much about this one for fear of giving things away, but this was delightful and I never for one second saw the twists coming. I'm sorry this is my first book by Sise but hopefully I will be diving into her backlist soon.
The story is told from the pov of two women--Georgia who is a wife and mother and is living in her family's ancestral home in a small town outside of Manhattan, and Anna who is a young up and coming photographer. Their lives intersect when Georgia puts their house on a vacation rental site so her family can escape to the Connecticut shore, and Anna rents the house to get away from the city and work on the photography book she has received an advance for.
I can't say much about this one for fear of giving things away, but this was delightful and I never for one second saw the twists coming. I'm sorry this is my first book by Sise but hopefully I will be diving into her backlist soon.
June 3, 2024
"There are some things in our past that we need clarity on, real answers. And then there are other things we'd rather leave buried in cavernous graves."
I have rented many a “vacation rentals by owner” and have never been disappointed. As a rule, they have provided much more than I expected. I have not, however, ever rented an owner’s actual home (where they leave their personal items in the home, including clothing, full drawers of underwear, etc.). That just seems a bit creepy.
There was lots of creepiness surrounding the two rentals in this book. A family of three have moved from the busy streets of New York to the suburbs – a two-hour commute away. The house was the family home of the wife (Georgia) when she was a child. The house was also the location of many sad recollections and 2 untimely deaths. Georgia’s husband, Tom, has a strong dislike of the home and their daughter, Millie, has a strong attraction to a childhood doll of her mother’s that holds bad memories. The family is experiencing great stress and Georgia decides to rent a house for a month not far away, but on the beach, to give their family a chance to reconnect.
Anna works in New York City as a photographer. She loves her work and is currently in a secret affair with one of her clients (the owner of Culture Magazine). She feels the need to get away by herself and contemplate her life, her direction and her romantic choices. She finds a house for rent for a month that is just outside New York. Situated in a wooded area with a small community nearby, it sounds like the perfect place. That all sounds quite convenient and cozy, doesn’t it? Well, looks can be deceiving. Nothing is as it seems; no one is who they seem and before the month is over, the truth will be revealed.
This was a fun read that left me guessing what was really behind the written words on the page. About halfway through, a knot appeared that I had not expected (love that when it happens). Because of health conditions with my husband, traveling is not an option for us for a while (possibly forever) but rest assured that if or when the time arises, I’ll be booking at a Holiday Inn.
I have rented many a “vacation rentals by owner” and have never been disappointed. As a rule, they have provided much more than I expected. I have not, however, ever rented an owner’s actual home (where they leave their personal items in the home, including clothing, full drawers of underwear, etc.). That just seems a bit creepy.
There was lots of creepiness surrounding the two rentals in this book. A family of three have moved from the busy streets of New York to the suburbs – a two-hour commute away. The house was the family home of the wife (Georgia) when she was a child. The house was also the location of many sad recollections and 2 untimely deaths. Georgia’s husband, Tom, has a strong dislike of the home and their daughter, Millie, has a strong attraction to a childhood doll of her mother’s that holds bad memories. The family is experiencing great stress and Georgia decides to rent a house for a month not far away, but on the beach, to give their family a chance to reconnect.
Anna works in New York City as a photographer. She loves her work and is currently in a secret affair with one of her clients (the owner of Culture Magazine). She feels the need to get away by herself and contemplate her life, her direction and her romantic choices. She finds a house for rent for a month that is just outside New York. Situated in a wooded area with a small community nearby, it sounds like the perfect place. That all sounds quite convenient and cozy, doesn’t it? Well, looks can be deceiving. Nothing is as it seems; no one is who they seem and before the month is over, the truth will be revealed.
This was a fun read that left me guessing what was really behind the written words on the page. About halfway through, a knot appeared that I had not expected (love that when it happens). Because of health conditions with my husband, traveling is not an option for us for a while (possibly forever) but rest assured that if or when the time arises, I’ll be booking at a Holiday Inn.
April 11, 2024
Don’t give up
I’ll admit this book didn’t grab me in the first few chapters. I was ready to stop reading it and find something else. But while waiting for a doctors appointment, it was the only thing downloaded on my Kindle app, so I decided to plod on and I’m so glad I did. I remember a quote from Monica in Friends and thought to myself “this just got interesting!!” From that point on, I couldn’t put it down. So many twists and turns you don’t see coming keeps the pages turning. So glad I stuck with it.
I’ll admit this book didn’t grab me in the first few chapters. I was ready to stop reading it and find something else. But while waiting for a doctors appointment, it was the only thing downloaded on my Kindle app, so I decided to plod on and I’m so glad I did. I remember a quote from Monica in Friends and thought to myself “this just got interesting!!” From that point on, I couldn’t put it down. So many twists and turns you don’t see coming keeps the pages turning. So glad I stuck with it.
September 28, 2024
When I started reading The Vacation Rental I almost abandoned it. I'm glad I didn't because, once the story got moving, I was completely surprised by the twists and turns. Well written and a suspenseful story that made it hard to put down.
December 5, 2025
I picked The Vacation Rental expecting a tight psychological thriller and in some ways, it delivers. The premise is strong: a family rents out their rural home for the summer & their daughter sleeps peacefully, their marriage seems stable, and then a stranger moves in. Anna, a photographer from New York, rents the house to escape her chaotic life and a complicated romantic entanglement. 
The slow burn is real: for the first third of the book you get a lot of backstory, character background, and setting-the-scene…sometimes to a fault. It felt drawn out, and admittedly I almost gave up before things really started clicking. 
But when the stories of the two women Anna and Georgia begin to intertwine, the jacket pitch really starts to work. Secrets, past trauma, mistaken identity and a sense of unease build gradually. The atmosphere is moody and the author does a good job of making the house itself feel like a character, haunted by memory and guilt. 
As for the ending: major truths about past deaths and hidden connections emerge, several secrets are revealed, and there’s a semblance of closure. The no-longer-buried past forces characters to confront painful realities. and this is why I’m only giving three stars the resolution felt somewhat predictable. Some of the twists had been telegraphed enough that once the pieces started falling together, the surprise factor dropped. 
Also: the pacing never fully recovers for me. There are chapters I enjoyed, especially toward the end, but the uneven rhythm languid at the beginning, frantic near the end made the book feel unbalanced. And while the core mystery works, a few secondary threads (relationships, motivations) felt underdeveloped or confusing.
The slow burn is real: for the first third of the book you get a lot of backstory, character background, and setting-the-scene…sometimes to a fault. It felt drawn out, and admittedly I almost gave up before things really started clicking. 
But when the stories of the two women Anna and Georgia begin to intertwine, the jacket pitch really starts to work. Secrets, past trauma, mistaken identity and a sense of unease build gradually. The atmosphere is moody and the author does a good job of making the house itself feel like a character, haunted by memory and guilt. 
As for the ending: major truths about past deaths and hidden connections emerge, several secrets are revealed, and there’s a semblance of closure. The no-longer-buried past forces characters to confront painful realities. and this is why I’m only giving three stars the resolution felt somewhat predictable. Some of the twists had been telegraphed enough that once the pieces started falling together, the surprise factor dropped. 
Also: the pacing never fully recovers for me. There are chapters I enjoyed, especially toward the end, but the uneven rhythm languid at the beginning, frantic near the end made the book feel unbalanced. And while the core mystery works, a few secondary threads (relationships, motivations) felt underdeveloped or confusing.
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