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Tomorrow There Will Be Sun
“This novel is a ray of light in the canon of vacation lit—in Reinhardt’s hands, paradise gone wrong feels very right.” —People
A private Mexican villa is the backdrop to this smart, absorbing story of a milestone vacation in a tropical paradise gone wrong, wrong, wrong
Two families arrive in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, for a once-in-a-lifetime vacation. Jenna has organized the trip to celebrate her husband's fiftieth birthday--she's been looking forward to it for months. She's sure everything is going to be just perfect--and the margarita refills delivered by the house staff certainly don't hurt, either. What could go wrong?
Yet as the families settle into their vacation routines, their best friends suddenly seem like annoying strangers, and even Jenna's reliable husband, Peter, is sharing clandestine phone calls with someone--but who? Jenna's teenage daughter, Clem, is spending an awful lot of time with Malcolm, whose questionable rep got him expelled from school. Jenna's dream of the ultimate celebration begins to crack and eventually crumbles completely, leaving her wondering whom she can trust, and whether her privileged life is about to be changed forever.
Readers of Emma Straub, Meg Wolitzer and Delia Ephron will love this sharply funny novel. Whether you're putting it in your carry-on to read on the beach or looking to escape the dead-of-winter blues, Tomorrow There Will Be Sun is the perfect companion.
A private Mexican villa is the backdrop to this smart, absorbing story of a milestone vacation in a tropical paradise gone wrong, wrong, wrong
Two families arrive in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, for a once-in-a-lifetime vacation. Jenna has organized the trip to celebrate her husband's fiftieth birthday--she's been looking forward to it for months. She's sure everything is going to be just perfect--and the margarita refills delivered by the house staff certainly don't hurt, either. What could go wrong?
Yet as the families settle into their vacation routines, their best friends suddenly seem like annoying strangers, and even Jenna's reliable husband, Peter, is sharing clandestine phone calls with someone--but who? Jenna's teenage daughter, Clem, is spending an awful lot of time with Malcolm, whose questionable rep got him expelled from school. Jenna's dream of the ultimate celebration begins to crack and eventually crumbles completely, leaving her wondering whom she can trust, and whether her privileged life is about to be changed forever.
Readers of Emma Straub, Meg Wolitzer and Delia Ephron will love this sharply funny novel. Whether you're putting it in your carry-on to read on the beach or looking to escape the dead-of-winter blues, Tomorrow There Will Be Sun is the perfect companion.
288 pages, Paperback
First published March 12, 2019
148 people are currently reading
5916 people want to read
About the author
Dana Reinhardt
17 books230 followersWhy don't you have a bio section?
Because I hate writing about myself.
But wouldn't that be easier than answering a whole bunch of FAQs?
Maybe. Probably. Go on...
So where are you from?
I'm from Los Angeles, but now I live in San Francisco. Except for the summers where I go back to Los Angeles in search of the sun.
What are you doing when you aren't writing?
Laundry, usually. Sometimes dishes. And I really like to walk near the Golden Gate Bridge.
Why don't you run instead of walk?
Running is hard. And I'm sort of lazy.
Have you ever had a real job?
Yes. Of course I have. I've waited tables, worked with adolescents in foster care, read the slush pile at a publishing house, and fact checked for a movie magazine. I also worked for FRONTLINE on PBS and Peter Jennings at ABC. I went to law school, which I know doesn't count as a job, but hey, that was a lot of work.
What's your writing day like? Do you stick to a routine?
I like to write in the mornings. Sometimes that means I have to get up really early. I try to write 700 words a day -- about three pages. I know there are lots of writers out there who can write way more than that. I know this because writers like to tell you about how many words they've written on FACEBOOK. So I try not to look at FACEBOOK when I'm writing. And anyway, I've learned that 700 words are about all I'm good for on any given day, and if I write more than that I usually end up getting rid of most of it later.
What, are you lazy or something?
I already told you I'm lazy. But seriously, 700 words are a lot of words. 700 of them, to be precise.
Where do you get your ideas?
From someplace inside my head.
That's not really an answer.
Yes, it is. And it's as honest an answer as I can give.
Are your books autobiographical?
Not really. I'm not adopted, I've never told a lie that sent someone to jail, I've never built a house or had a brother go to war. But there are always things in my books that come from my life or from the lives of the people around me. It would be impossible to make up everything.
Why do you write young adult fiction?
Because I was a young adult when I fell in love with reading and I can remember how books made me feel back then. How they provided both comfort and escape. That might make me sound like a shut-in, but I wasn't. I was just open to the experience books offered, probably more open than I am now as an adult. And I like writing for that sort of audience.
What exactly is young adult fiction?
Lots of people have thought long and hard about this question and have had many intelligent things to say about voice and how YA books can't spend too much time on adult characters, etc. I don't have anything to add to the debate except to say that YA should be a place to go in the bookstore or library if you are looking for a coming of age story, no matter how old you are.
Do you have a favorite book?
Yes.
Don't be coy, what is it?
To Kill a Mockingbird.
How come there aren't any vampires or wizards in your books?
Hmmmm... good question. Maybe I should write about vampires and wizards.
No, you shouldn't. You wouldn't be very good at that.
Thanks for the vote of confidence.
Did you wear a Soupy Sales sweatshirt when you were seven?
Does anybody even know who Soupy Sales is?
That's what the Internet is for. Don't avoid the question.
I'm sorry, is this really a Frequently Asked Question?
No. But, c'mon, tell us anyway.
Yes, I did. But I'm trying to portray myself as someone who wasn't a total loser. So maybe you shouldn't bring that up. And it also makes me sound ancient, which I'm not. Yet I had a Soupy Sales sweatshirt. And I loved it. It was yellow. And really soft.
You're right. It does make you sound like a loser.
Because I hate writing about myself.
But wouldn't that be easier than answering a whole bunch of FAQs?
Maybe. Probably. Go on...
So where are you from?
I'm from Los Angeles, but now I live in San Francisco. Except for the summers where I go back to Los Angeles in search of the sun.
What are you doing when you aren't writing?
Laundry, usually. Sometimes dishes. And I really like to walk near the Golden Gate Bridge.
Why don't you run instead of walk?
Running is hard. And I'm sort of lazy.
Have you ever had a real job?
Yes. Of course I have. I've waited tables, worked with adolescents in foster care, read the slush pile at a publishing house, and fact checked for a movie magazine. I also worked for FRONTLINE on PBS and Peter Jennings at ABC. I went to law school, which I know doesn't count as a job, but hey, that was a lot of work.
What's your writing day like? Do you stick to a routine?
I like to write in the mornings. Sometimes that means I have to get up really early. I try to write 700 words a day -- about three pages. I know there are lots of writers out there who can write way more than that. I know this because writers like to tell you about how many words they've written on FACEBOOK. So I try not to look at FACEBOOK when I'm writing. And anyway, I've learned that 700 words are about all I'm good for on any given day, and if I write more than that I usually end up getting rid of most of it later.
What, are you lazy or something?
I already told you I'm lazy. But seriously, 700 words are a lot of words. 700 of them, to be precise.
Where do you get your ideas?
From someplace inside my head.
That's not really an answer.
Yes, it is. And it's as honest an answer as I can give.
Are your books autobiographical?
Not really. I'm not adopted, I've never told a lie that sent someone to jail, I've never built a house or had a brother go to war. But there are always things in my books that come from my life or from the lives of the people around me. It would be impossible to make up everything.
Why do you write young adult fiction?
Because I was a young adult when I fell in love with reading and I can remember how books made me feel back then. How they provided both comfort and escape. That might make me sound like a shut-in, but I wasn't. I was just open to the experience books offered, probably more open than I am now as an adult. And I like writing for that sort of audience.
What exactly is young adult fiction?
Lots of people have thought long and hard about this question and have had many intelligent things to say about voice and how YA books can't spend too much time on adult characters, etc. I don't have anything to add to the debate except to say that YA should be a place to go in the bookstore or library if you are looking for a coming of age story, no matter how old you are.
Do you have a favorite book?
Yes.
Don't be coy, what is it?
To Kill a Mockingbird.
How come there aren't any vampires or wizards in your books?
Hmmmm... good question. Maybe I should write about vampires and wizards.
No, you shouldn't. You wouldn't be very good at that.
Thanks for the vote of confidence.
Did you wear a Soupy Sales sweatshirt when you were seven?
Does anybody even know who Soupy Sales is?
That's what the Internet is for. Don't avoid the question.
I'm sorry, is this really a Frequently Asked Question?
No. But, c'mon, tell us anyway.
Yes, I did. But I'm trying to portray myself as someone who wasn't a total loser. So maybe you shouldn't bring that up. And it also makes me sound ancient, which I'm not. Yet I had a Soupy Sales sweatshirt. And I loved it. It was yellow. And really soft.
You're right. It does make you sound like a loser.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 230 reviews
March 27, 2019
It is an undeniable truth that there is nothing duller than someone else’s travel mishaps. But when those mishaps are encountered to escape the worst vacation in the history of vacations, perhaps they deserve to be heard.
In my eyes, Jenna—the sole narrator of this novel—puts her foot in her mouth with those sentiments. In no way, shape or form is her vacation what I would consider the worst of the worst. Not even close. So, referencing her words, does that make Tomorrow There Will Be Sun underserved of an audience? I wouldn't quite go that far, but I'm willing to bet the anticlimactic plot won't bode well for all readers.
Jenna's right, there’s nothing duller than listening to travel mishaps; especially those that come across as boring and hum-drum as this storyline. The hard truth is, this book could and should have been so much more. Based on the synopsis, which touts this as a “sharply funny novel” (who and where this came from I’d like to know), I expected something with some punch. An edge. Some wit.
Nope. Instead, the author lets her readers tag along on a mild milestone trip. Jenna’s husband, Peter, is turning the big 5-0 and what better way to celebrate than in a luxury beachside villa in Puerto Vallarta with their teenage daughter. And naturally, who better to invite along than her husband’s lifelong best friend and his family.
Told entirely from Jenna’s point of view, the storyline is a battle between her insecurities and unwavering need to control every situation. Her inner monologues are filled with cynicism but far from what I would call humorous. Don’t get me wrong, she's likable, and even somewhat relatable, but as the story progresses the monotony of being in her head starts to suck the air out of the room.
The picturesque setting and the relationship dynamics offer some intrigue initially, but the storyline never elevates. It’s slow, riddled with middle-age clichés and the one aspect that does intend to add life falls flat on its face. Are readers expected to feign surprise or awe when deep down the person already knew?
Truth be told, when I picked up this book, I envisioned something along the lines of Siracusa; a storyline with actual mishaps that scared me away from ever vacationing with another couple. That particular book had the wow factor this one was so blatantly missing. Even with all that said, I still wouldn't categorize this novel as horrible. Dana Reinhardt's writing is engaging for the most part, it's the lifeless plot that could have used some tweaking.
Like a broken record, I have to mention again that reading is subjective. What you enjoy, might not be what I enjoy. So, if a family trip to Puerto Vallarta sparks your fancy like it did mine, give it a go. Who knows, Tomorrow There Will Be Sun might provide travel inspiration or introduce you to an author whose voice and vision you appreciate.
*Thank you to Pamela Dorman/Viking Books and Goodreads for the giveaway win! Woohoo! Is there anything more exciting than a win?
January 29, 2019
This one left me feeling a bit conflicted about how much I truly enjoyed the book. I can't say I really liked any of the characters but yet I did have an interest in finding out what was going to happen in their lives. I guess I can file this one under the category of it was an okay way to pass the time but I probably won't remember much about this book within a couple months.
Jenna arrives in Puerto Vallarta to celebrate her husband's 50th birthday with her family. They will be sharing a house with her husband's business partner Solly, and his wife and kids. But this dream vacation isn't going to be a ton of fun for everyone, especially Jenna.
This is one of those stories in which it really seems like nothing much happens but yet everything changes. There's some build up to the big drama that happens near the end of the book but in some ways I felt the ending needed more work. I don't need everything to be wrapped up in an ending but in this case it felt rushed. The book is a quick read and I definitely think the author could have devoted some more pages to the last few chapters.
There's nothing significantly wrong with the book but in my opinion there's nothing that really stands out about it either. Maybe if you have more in common with the main character it will be a more meaningful read. One thing is for certain, if these characters were real, you couldn't pay me enough to go on vacation with them!
I won a free copy of this book in a giveaway but was under no obligation to post a review. All views expressed are my honest opinion.
Jenna arrives in Puerto Vallarta to celebrate her husband's 50th birthday with her family. They will be sharing a house with her husband's business partner Solly, and his wife and kids. But this dream vacation isn't going to be a ton of fun for everyone, especially Jenna.
This is one of those stories in which it really seems like nothing much happens but yet everything changes. There's some build up to the big drama that happens near the end of the book but in some ways I felt the ending needed more work. I don't need everything to be wrapped up in an ending but in this case it felt rushed. The book is a quick read and I definitely think the author could have devoted some more pages to the last few chapters.
There's nothing significantly wrong with the book but in my opinion there's nothing that really stands out about it either. Maybe if you have more in common with the main character it will be a more meaningful read. One thing is for certain, if these characters were real, you couldn't pay me enough to go on vacation with them!
I won a free copy of this book in a giveaway but was under no obligation to post a review. All views expressed are my honest opinion.
September 3, 2019
If you care to read about someone else’s boring and annoying vacation in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, comprised of 2 couples/friends, with their kids, celebrating the two guys’ big 5-0, then go for it. Don’t say I didn’t warn you, though...
Add in two teenagers (one sullen and spoiled, the other with a criminal delinquency having to do with drugs) and a 5 year old that says “ding dong.” Yeah, it’s still not very exciting sounding, is it?
This is supposed to be the luxurious vacation of a lifetime, a major milestone. Jenna put it together and is very proud of herself for it. She looks for admiration from others for it, and pretty well for everything in her life. She also is somewhat of a control freak. She has high expectations for everyone and everything. She may or may not be having a mid-life crisis, as the two men in the group are having.
Everyone in this little group has something going on in their lives, and various personality quirks. Put them all together in a luxury villa, stir continually for at least 24 hours and viola! Here we go.
There are problems that came along with them on the trip and then there are problems that rise up to the surface while in Mexico.
As Benjamin Franklin once said, “Guests, like fish, smell after three days.” Well, these folks all started smelling from the get go and their comments, idiosyncrasies and habits start to wear on one another’s nerves more and more. It also wore on this readers’ nerves.
No one gets killed or murdered. No one gets abducted or drowned. No one falls off a Mexican historical site or into a cenote. No one got robbed. No one got Montezuma’s revenge (traveler’s diarrhea). No one got ripped off on their purchases in the market square. No one got a spa treatment. No one went deep sea fishing. No one went parasailing. No one got attacked by a shark. No one got a bad case of sunburn. No one got hounded by the timeshare salespeople at the airport. 😂
The trio that is their cook, butler and whatever else, a server? that came with the villa booking for the week, are a bit questionable at first. They don’t speak a lot of English but talk amongst themselves in their own language in front of their vacationers. Not that they are a threat, per se, but I think the writer wanted to put that possible element out there. Imagine having to deal with serving and waiting on yet another group of privileged Vacationers and their dysfunctions and have to treat them / wait on them like royalty. In the long run, in this story, these people actually are helpful to them in a time of need. Only to have to do their stint all over again when the next “new” group of vacationers come rolling in. It must be exhausting! They certainly don’t get paid enough for this kind of work.
There is a section involving a possible hurricane and drug cartel terrorism in the area, but it really does not affect our vacationers on any kind of a grand scale. However, being from out of the country in an unfamiliar area, fearing what could happen, airport/road closures, power outages, not knowing much of the language, would be a fearful situation. But the way the book is written, I just did not feel the fear. These vacationers were just very stupid and ignorant. Obviously they didn’t do their vacation homework and check out the travel advisories for that area.
There’s an infidelity in the story and the way THAT particularly played out was really rather lame.
I didn’t like the dullness and plodding of the book. I didn’t like how it ended. I didn’t like the characters. Whether they went to a luxurious resort in Mexico or went backpack/tent camping in a national park, these people would not have any kind of fun and would still have some kind of issues. Because that’s just the way they are. And so I didn’t like this book - AT ALL.
My recommendation: Go on separate vacations and let your spirit fly free, unemcumbered by everyone else’s baggage and expectations ✈️🛳🚂🚘 maybe then, there will be a great five star story to tell. If so, I’ll definitely read it.
Add in two teenagers (one sullen and spoiled, the other with a criminal delinquency having to do with drugs) and a 5 year old that says “ding dong.” Yeah, it’s still not very exciting sounding, is it?
This is supposed to be the luxurious vacation of a lifetime, a major milestone. Jenna put it together and is very proud of herself for it. She looks for admiration from others for it, and pretty well for everything in her life. She also is somewhat of a control freak. She has high expectations for everyone and everything. She may or may not be having a mid-life crisis, as the two men in the group are having.
Everyone in this little group has something going on in their lives, and various personality quirks. Put them all together in a luxury villa, stir continually for at least 24 hours and viola! Here we go.
There are problems that came along with them on the trip and then there are problems that rise up to the surface while in Mexico.
As Benjamin Franklin once said, “Guests, like fish, smell after three days.” Well, these folks all started smelling from the get go and their comments, idiosyncrasies and habits start to wear on one another’s nerves more and more. It also wore on this readers’ nerves.
No one gets killed or murdered. No one gets abducted or drowned. No one falls off a Mexican historical site or into a cenote. No one got robbed. No one got Montezuma’s revenge (traveler’s diarrhea). No one got ripped off on their purchases in the market square. No one got a spa treatment. No one went deep sea fishing. No one went parasailing. No one got attacked by a shark. No one got a bad case of sunburn. No one got hounded by the timeshare salespeople at the airport. 😂
The trio that is their cook, butler and whatever else, a server? that came with the villa booking for the week, are a bit questionable at first. They don’t speak a lot of English but talk amongst themselves in their own language in front of their vacationers. Not that they are a threat, per se, but I think the writer wanted to put that possible element out there. Imagine having to deal with serving and waiting on yet another group of privileged Vacationers and their dysfunctions and have to treat them / wait on them like royalty. In the long run, in this story, these people actually are helpful to them in a time of need. Only to have to do their stint all over again when the next “new” group of vacationers come rolling in. It must be exhausting! They certainly don’t get paid enough for this kind of work.
There is a section involving a possible hurricane and drug cartel terrorism in the area, but it really does not affect our vacationers on any kind of a grand scale. However, being from out of the country in an unfamiliar area, fearing what could happen, airport/road closures, power outages, not knowing much of the language, would be a fearful situation. But the way the book is written, I just did not feel the fear. These vacationers were just very stupid and ignorant. Obviously they didn’t do their vacation homework and check out the travel advisories for that area.
There’s an infidelity in the story and the way THAT particularly played out was really rather lame.
I didn’t like the dullness and plodding of the book. I didn’t like how it ended. I didn’t like the characters. Whether they went to a luxurious resort in Mexico or went backpack/tent camping in a national park, these people would not have any kind of fun and would still have some kind of issues. Because that’s just the way they are. And so I didn’t like this book - AT ALL.
My recommendation: Go on separate vacations and let your spirit fly free, unemcumbered by everyone else’s baggage and expectations ✈️🛳🚂🚘 maybe then, there will be a great five star story to tell. If so, I’ll definitely read it.
July 21, 2019
I enjoyed this even though it's no page turner. It was a slow burn that kept me reading it. A family vacation that goes wrong. A writer with a cancer diagnosis. Teens and all that goes with it and them some. I'll be looking for more from this author.
April 28, 2020
A very good read. Two families take a vacation to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico with great expectations and enjoyment. Everything is going pretty good until a family secret is revealed and a uproar begins in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico between the cartel. Exciting. A must read.
July 2, 2019
Tomorrow There Will Be Sun is a marvelously written piece of women’s fiction that humorously explores a woman’s life as she realizes that she has reached “middle age,” and her life is not as perfect as she had planned.
Jenna Carlson has planned the perfect birthday party for her husband, Peter. Each year Peter and his best friend, Solly, celebrate their birthdays together but this year, their 50th, has to be the best ever! Jenna has been planning for more than a year for the couples, she and Peter; Solly and his second wife Ingrid, to vacation for a week at a luxurious villa in Puerto Vallarta. Joining them will be Jenna and Peter’s daughter, Clementine, Solly and Ingrid’s out-of-control 5-year-old son and Solly’s teenage son, Malcolm from his first marriage. Malcolm has recently has been expelled from school but we don’t talk about that. It sounds like a real delight, doesn’t it? The bottomless, perfect margaritas do help, really, just keeping drinking those. What doesn’t help is that Peter insists on taking “work calls” from his gorgeous assistant back in the states, Solly is incredibly overbearing and Clem is glued to her phone the entire trip – except when she’s trying to seduce Malcom. At the point that a drug cartel disrupts the local town and the villa loses both internet and phone connectivity, the nerves of everyone are frayed. An emotional explosion is inevitable; what the fall out will be may surprise you.
I admit that I, in my 50s, obviously am the target demographic for Tomorrow There Will Be Sun. I found Jenna to be so completely relatable. Her fears, her worries, the things that annoy her – even the words that she makes “off-limits” – all are things that I completely understand and do and say. Okay, there is a lot of Jenna in me. I found the other characters reprehensible and it almost got to the point that I couldn’t finish the book because I, quite literally, despised Solly so much. I’m also very VERY glad that I no longer have teenagers in my world because the more that I read about them in fiction, the less I like them as a whole. When the book finally reaches its crescendo, I am right there with Jenna. I get it! But then, I also totally understand what she does next. Why? Because I’ve been there and done that. Not that my husband did what Peter did, but when you get to be my age and your entire life has been committed to raising your children, your career was set aside for them and them alone, you wake up and realize that the comfortable life you enjoy is very much wedded to the income of the partner that you have. Would you dissolve a business partnership over something like this? It’s questionable. Would you learn to make compromises so that you each had what you wanted in the end? Maybe. Every person involved makes the decisions that are right for them and that is exactly what Jenna does in the end. My gosh, the author does an amazing job conveying the emotions, the fears and worries of every woman who ever has found herself in Jenna’s circumstances.
I loved the book, I loved Jenna and most of all I LOVE that women are writing books about real, live women, warts and all, who are not in their twenties , rather, those who are faced with the ugly parts of life! This was a stellar read for me and I hope it will be for you as well.
Much gratitude to #Edelweiss, #PamelaDormanBks, @PenguinBooks and #dsreinhardt for this incredible read!
Jenna Carlson has planned the perfect birthday party for her husband, Peter. Each year Peter and his best friend, Solly, celebrate their birthdays together but this year, their 50th, has to be the best ever! Jenna has been planning for more than a year for the couples, she and Peter; Solly and his second wife Ingrid, to vacation for a week at a luxurious villa in Puerto Vallarta. Joining them will be Jenna and Peter’s daughter, Clementine, Solly and Ingrid’s out-of-control 5-year-old son and Solly’s teenage son, Malcolm from his first marriage. Malcolm has recently has been expelled from school but we don’t talk about that. It sounds like a real delight, doesn’t it? The bottomless, perfect margaritas do help, really, just keeping drinking those. What doesn’t help is that Peter insists on taking “work calls” from his gorgeous assistant back in the states, Solly is incredibly overbearing and Clem is glued to her phone the entire trip – except when she’s trying to seduce Malcom. At the point that a drug cartel disrupts the local town and the villa loses both internet and phone connectivity, the nerves of everyone are frayed. An emotional explosion is inevitable; what the fall out will be may surprise you.
I admit that I, in my 50s, obviously am the target demographic for Tomorrow There Will Be Sun. I found Jenna to be so completely relatable. Her fears, her worries, the things that annoy her – even the words that she makes “off-limits” – all are things that I completely understand and do and say. Okay, there is a lot of Jenna in me. I found the other characters reprehensible and it almost got to the point that I couldn’t finish the book because I, quite literally, despised Solly so much. I’m also very VERY glad that I no longer have teenagers in my world because the more that I read about them in fiction, the less I like them as a whole. When the book finally reaches its crescendo, I am right there with Jenna. I get it! But then, I also totally understand what she does next. Why? Because I’ve been there and done that. Not that my husband did what Peter did, but when you get to be my age and your entire life has been committed to raising your children, your career was set aside for them and them alone, you wake up and realize that the comfortable life you enjoy is very much wedded to the income of the partner that you have. Would you dissolve a business partnership over something like this? It’s questionable. Would you learn to make compromises so that you each had what you wanted in the end? Maybe. Every person involved makes the decisions that are right for them and that is exactly what Jenna does in the end. My gosh, the author does an amazing job conveying the emotions, the fears and worries of every woman who ever has found herself in Jenna’s circumstances.
I loved the book, I loved Jenna and most of all I LOVE that women are writing books about real, live women, warts and all, who are not in their twenties , rather, those who are faced with the ugly parts of life! This was a stellar read for me and I hope it will be for you as well.
Much gratitude to #Edelweiss, #PamelaDormanBks, @PenguinBooks and #dsreinhardt for this incredible read!
March 12, 2019
Once in a while, I get in the mood for something far outside my usual reading habits. This general fiction piece about two families of friends sharing a vacation villa in Puerta Vallarta and showcases that a truly horrid vacation story might be the one you never tell and never leaves you the same.
Jenna is the narrator of this story and she turns out to be an everyday, average middle-aged woman who has a penchant for needing control over everything, lots of worrying, and a confidence of being settled and satisfied in her life. Okay, so she wished her husband, Peter, would be a little more assertive when it came to Solly getting his way and she wished she had a closer relationship with her daughter in the form of friendship, but nothing really beyond what she could handle in all that. Unlike one of her good friend's, Solly's first wife, her husband isn't planning to leave her for a younger model and her daughter wasn't caught dealing drugs in school.
Yep, anyone can tell that poor Jenna, who has her faults though not dastardly ones, is being set up and this vacation trip is when it all starts to unravel.
The blurb might make this sound like a thriller or that it might be a humorous comedy of vacation errors. Um, no, not even. Don't get me wrong, there are a couple funny bits and there some real excitement happening that reminds me why I've shied away from this sort of vacation. The exciting stuff comes late and ends up in the background of what starts to happen in Jenna's personal life. That, my friends, is where the tension and crisis hits.
The reader goes through a long set up, getting to know the characters as the vacation gets rolling, and a lot of a middle-aged woman's introspection to get there. I won't say its boring since the author writes in a way that kept me reading. I wasn't exactly bored, but I wasn't riveted, either, and I did get impatient. I was only so-so about Jenna or any of the characters for that matter. They're just... people. Nothing extraordinary. That is their appeal, but also not something that will keep ones interest indefinitely, as a result.
I think the part that struck me and probably will make this story stay in my mind longer than I thought when I was reading it, was the choice for the ending. After all that came before it, the ending is open-ended though the reader can make an educated guess what will come after. Jenna has to decide what she wants to do with what she now knows about herself and about the others.
So, this was gently-paced, mostly introspective story of a middle-aged woman who goes on vacation thinking one thing about her life and comes back quite different. An easy read with sunny setting turned out to be an engaging fiction that I can recommend to those who reach for slow and easy character-driven books.
My thanks to Pamela Dorman/Viking for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Jenna is the narrator of this story and she turns out to be an everyday, average middle-aged woman who has a penchant for needing control over everything, lots of worrying, and a confidence of being settled and satisfied in her life. Okay, so she wished her husband, Peter, would be a little more assertive when it came to Solly getting his way and she wished she had a closer relationship with her daughter in the form of friendship, but nothing really beyond what she could handle in all that. Unlike one of her good friend's, Solly's first wife, her husband isn't planning to leave her for a younger model and her daughter wasn't caught dealing drugs in school.
Yep, anyone can tell that poor Jenna, who has her faults though not dastardly ones, is being set up and this vacation trip is when it all starts to unravel.
The blurb might make this sound like a thriller or that it might be a humorous comedy of vacation errors. Um, no, not even. Don't get me wrong, there are a couple funny bits and there some real excitement happening that reminds me why I've shied away from this sort of vacation. The exciting stuff comes late and ends up in the background of what starts to happen in Jenna's personal life. That, my friends, is where the tension and crisis hits.
The reader goes through a long set up, getting to know the characters as the vacation gets rolling, and a lot of a middle-aged woman's introspection to get there. I won't say its boring since the author writes in a way that kept me reading. I wasn't exactly bored, but I wasn't riveted, either, and I did get impatient. I was only so-so about Jenna or any of the characters for that matter. They're just... people. Nothing extraordinary. That is their appeal, but also not something that will keep ones interest indefinitely, as a result.
I think the part that struck me and probably will make this story stay in my mind longer than I thought when I was reading it, was the choice for the ending. After all that came before it, the ending is open-ended though the reader can make an educated guess what will come after. Jenna has to decide what she wants to do with what she now knows about herself and about the others.
So, this was gently-paced, mostly introspective story of a middle-aged woman who goes on vacation thinking one thing about her life and comes back quite different. An easy read with sunny setting turned out to be an engaging fiction that I can recommend to those who reach for slow and easy character-driven books.
My thanks to Pamela Dorman/Viking for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
September 22, 2020
Tomorrow There Will Be Sun by Dana Reinhardt was an incredibly hard book for me to assign a rating to. On one hand, I kept waiting for something really big to happen, but what actually happened was something more relatable and realistic than what I was expecting. On the other hand, it's a thought-provoking novel that will still give you vacation vibes due to the location. The end was also a little anticlimactic, but at the same time felt like a good way to end the story while making the reader wonder. I think this book is for a very niche market of readers. You won't love the characters, but you can't really hate them either, and Jenna will definitely be relatable for some people.
Even though the book is set in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico I wouldn't necessarily call this a beach read. The location was a part of the story, but Tomorrow There Will Be Sun was really more about Jenna and her internal feelings/dilemmas along with her family. She was a frustrating character due to her insecurities and controlling nature, but I couldn't help feeling a little bad for her when it came to how her husband and daughter treated her. Not a whole lot happens in the novel, but for some reason I just could not stop reading. I did really enjoy Reinhardt's writing style, and she managed to keep me engaged in Jenna's story and I also liked the fact that Jenna was a writer.
As I said right away, not everyone is going to like this book, and I think you really have to be in the mood for a slower burn where there aren't any major reveals. If you want to be introspective though and want a book that will make you think, I would still recommend Tomorrow There Will Be Sun. I thought there were a lot of good things about it, and I will definitely be looking forward to reading more from Reinhardt.
Thank you to the publisher for my advance review copy via NetGalley. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
Even though the book is set in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico I wouldn't necessarily call this a beach read. The location was a part of the story, but Tomorrow There Will Be Sun was really more about Jenna and her internal feelings/dilemmas along with her family. She was a frustrating character due to her insecurities and controlling nature, but I couldn't help feeling a little bad for her when it came to how her husband and daughter treated her. Not a whole lot happens in the novel, but for some reason I just could not stop reading. I did really enjoy Reinhardt's writing style, and she managed to keep me engaged in Jenna's story and I also liked the fact that Jenna was a writer.
As I said right away, not everyone is going to like this book, and I think you really have to be in the mood for a slower burn where there aren't any major reveals. If you want to be introspective though and want a book that will make you think, I would still recommend Tomorrow There Will Be Sun. I thought there were a lot of good things about it, and I will definitely be looking forward to reading more from Reinhardt.
Thank you to the publisher for my advance review copy via NetGalley. All opinions and thoughts are my own.
September 23, 2021
As Dana Reinhardt shows us in
Tomorrow There Will Be Sun
, sometimes the vacation you need isn’t quite the one you get.
Jenna has organized the perfect trip to Puerto Vallarta to celebrate her husband Peter’s 50th birthday. They’ll be traveling with their teenage daughter, Clementine, as well as the family of Peter’s best friend and business partner, Solly.
The villa is as beautiful as promised and the staff are tremendously attentive. So why isn’t Jenna enjoying herself? Why is Solly’s braggadocio annoying her more than normal? Why is Clementine suddenly cozying up to Solly’s teenage son Malcolm when she has a boyfriend she won’t stop texting? Why can’t she get her fourth book done while Solly’s much-younger new wife has written a manuscript while raising a young child? (And of course, it’s good.)
Things come to a head when Peter keeps getting mysterious phone calls from his beautiful assistant, and then unrest in Puerto Vallarta threatens their whole vacation. This isn’t quite the celebration Jenna imagined—and she’s not even sure this is the life she wants any longer.
I tend to enjoy stories about dysfunctional family vacations but I just never warmed to Tomorrow There Will Be Sun . The characters aren’t particularly appealing but I feel like the author also threw in far too much—like there had to be violence and chaos in Puerto Vallarta with drug cartels, etc., on top of everything else? It seemed a wee bit stereotypical to me.
Still, the villa sounded amazing. And I wouldn’t mind someone to hand me a margarita every now and again!
Check out my list of the best books I read in 2020 at https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-best-books-i-read-in-2020.html.
See all of my reviews at itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com.
Follow me on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/the.bookishworld.of.yrralh/.
Jenna has organized the perfect trip to Puerto Vallarta to celebrate her husband Peter’s 50th birthday. They’ll be traveling with their teenage daughter, Clementine, as well as the family of Peter’s best friend and business partner, Solly.
The villa is as beautiful as promised and the staff are tremendously attentive. So why isn’t Jenna enjoying herself? Why is Solly’s braggadocio annoying her more than normal? Why is Clementine suddenly cozying up to Solly’s teenage son Malcolm when she has a boyfriend she won’t stop texting? Why can’t she get her fourth book done while Solly’s much-younger new wife has written a manuscript while raising a young child? (And of course, it’s good.)
Things come to a head when Peter keeps getting mysterious phone calls from his beautiful assistant, and then unrest in Puerto Vallarta threatens their whole vacation. This isn’t quite the celebration Jenna imagined—and she’s not even sure this is the life she wants any longer.
I tend to enjoy stories about dysfunctional family vacations but I just never warmed to Tomorrow There Will Be Sun . The characters aren’t particularly appealing but I feel like the author also threw in far too much—like there had to be violence and chaos in Puerto Vallarta with drug cartels, etc., on top of everything else? It seemed a wee bit stereotypical to me.
Still, the villa sounded amazing. And I wouldn’t mind someone to hand me a margarita every now and again!
Check out my list of the best books I read in 2020 at https://itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com/2021/01/the-best-books-i-read-in-2020.html.
See all of my reviews at itseithersadnessoreuphoria.blogspot.com.
Follow me on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/the.bookishworld.of.yrralh/.
March 26, 2019
I really liked this contemplative novel. Maybe it was because I could really identify with Jenna--we're in the same time of life, so many of her life experiences mirror mine. I found her to be a bit too overbearing and helicoptery, but that was kind of necessary for the drama of the novel, although I just wanted to say "Chill! Enjoy your vacation without feeling like you need to control every single thing and person!"
The book is somewhat melancholy and not light enough to be considered a beach read (which is what the blurb implies). Definitely worth reading, but it's not a sun soaked travel book as much as an evolution of a middle-aged woman and some truths she learns about herself and those around her. The book also hints around about some underlying issues--Americans owning and renting out luxury property in Mexico, hiring Mexicans to do their bidding, the problems with the cartels, etc. but never dives too deep into the muck to turn the book into anything political. However it did make me think about these issues more than I had before reading.
Overall, I was captivated by this novel and am very glad I read it, I hope others will give it a chance too.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
The book is somewhat melancholy and not light enough to be considered a beach read (which is what the blurb implies). Definitely worth reading, but it's not a sun soaked travel book as much as an evolution of a middle-aged woman and some truths she learns about herself and those around her. The book also hints around about some underlying issues--Americans owning and renting out luxury property in Mexico, hiring Mexicans to do their bidding, the problems with the cartels, etc. but never dives too deep into the muck to turn the book into anything political. However it did make me think about these issues more than I had before reading.
Overall, I was captivated by this novel and am very glad I read it, I hope others will give it a chance too.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, all opinions are my own.
March 22, 2019
Oh my. If you are the type of reader that enjoys a character driven story in spite of their flaws, then this is a book you might enjoy.
The characters were not at all likable. Not even a little bit. Characters that live a life of privilege and have no sense of self or gratitude. There wasn't one character that I felt I could relate with or have some understanding. All the characters are driven by control and ego.
It isn't often that I can't find something to pull me into a story but I couldn't find it in this one. It just was not my cup of tea. I can see however that this book would appeal to those that enjoy a certain genre.
Thank you to Dana Reinhardt, Penguin Random House and Goodreads. I received this book in a Goodreads Giveaway and this is my honest review.
The characters were not at all likable. Not even a little bit. Characters that live a life of privilege and have no sense of self or gratitude. There wasn't one character that I felt I could relate with or have some understanding. All the characters are driven by control and ego.
It isn't often that I can't find something to pull me into a story but I couldn't find it in this one. It just was not my cup of tea. I can see however that this book would appeal to those that enjoy a certain genre.
Thank you to Dana Reinhardt, Penguin Random House and Goodreads. I received this book in a Goodreads Giveaway and this is my honest review.
December 8, 2019
Slow burning thriller set in PV
3.5*
Two families are certainly anticipating a week’s sunshine in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to celebrate up-coming 50th birthdays. Charismatic Solly is there with his second wife and their young son who suffers from autism and his teenage son from his first marriage. Peter and Jenna are married and arrive with Clementine, their teenage daughter.
This is a luxury beach house with attendant butler and staff, who are good at mixing margaritas and diligently catering to their guests’ every need and whim (they will not be eating off the plates, thank you very much, as the Mexican glaze is probably poisoned with a lead glaze, so they have heard, anyway). They are housed in the illustrious Villa Azul Paraiso (which in Mexican should actually be Villa Paraiso Azul, but it’s owned by North Americans who haven’t quite got it right). It has been home to famous people, like Richard Nixon, not necessarily a good advert for the place.
This is largely Jenna’s story who frankly is a control freak and as she beavers away it gets just that much harder to engage with her. She is tapping her daughter’s phone to check on the texts she exchanges with her boyfriend, but fortunately teenagers can outwit their parents when it comes to technology.
About 75% of the novel is scene setting for the looming crisis situation that arises and the eventual denouements. Secrets are revealed and Jenna is off on a totally new trajectory.
This is good storytelling, with a nice writing style and there is a level of tension that kept me hooked. However, it can feel really quite slow.
If you are off to Puerto Vallarta, then take this book along with you. It will make for interesting literary wanderlust and add an extra dimension to your trip!
3.5*
Two families are certainly anticipating a week’s sunshine in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico to celebrate up-coming 50th birthdays. Charismatic Solly is there with his second wife and their young son who suffers from autism and his teenage son from his first marriage. Peter and Jenna are married and arrive with Clementine, their teenage daughter.
This is a luxury beach house with attendant butler and staff, who are good at mixing margaritas and diligently catering to their guests’ every need and whim (they will not be eating off the plates, thank you very much, as the Mexican glaze is probably poisoned with a lead glaze, so they have heard, anyway). They are housed in the illustrious Villa Azul Paraiso (which in Mexican should actually be Villa Paraiso Azul, but it’s owned by North Americans who haven’t quite got it right). It has been home to famous people, like Richard Nixon, not necessarily a good advert for the place.
This is largely Jenna’s story who frankly is a control freak and as she beavers away it gets just that much harder to engage with her. She is tapping her daughter’s phone to check on the texts she exchanges with her boyfriend, but fortunately teenagers can outwit their parents when it comes to technology.
About 75% of the novel is scene setting for the looming crisis situation that arises and the eventual denouements. Secrets are revealed and Jenna is off on a totally new trajectory.
This is good storytelling, with a nice writing style and there is a level of tension that kept me hooked. However, it can feel really quite slow.
If you are off to Puerto Vallarta, then take this book along with you. It will make for interesting literary wanderlust and add an extra dimension to your trip!
February 3, 2019
Tomorrow There Will Be Sun is an okay book. I was expecting it to be much better. The characters and dynamic of the relationships are realistic, relatable even, but they're not that interesting. Parts that seemed like they could get interesting ended too soon, I felt that some of the parts were completely random and didn't make sense, and the book left me feeling like 'okay..so is she or is she not going to divorce him.' It left off on a rather disappointing note and the book felt like there was more that needed to be told for it to have purpose. Overall this was pretty anticlimactic and needed more substance.
April 10, 2019
Two middle-aged families go on vacation to Mexico with their kids and have a mediocre time and nothing major ever happens. I finished it and literally kept waiting for something noteworthy to happen and it never did. The only real “revelation” could be seen coming for miles. I know everyone’s tastes are different, but I wouldn’t recommend this one. Two stars instead of one because it was well written even though it was super boring.
March 12, 2019
Jenna's husband and his best friend are turning 50, so she has secured a rental in Puerta Vallarta for their families. A week of sun, getting away from it all, and time spent together would be perfect, if things went as smoothly as Jenna envisioned. While this was an easy and quick read, it wasn't one of my favorites. There were a lot of things I didn't like about the book but it wasn't an awful book, it just fell flat for me.
I prefer strong female characters and Jenna definitely did not fit the bill. She's insecure in herself, her family, and her marriage, even though her husband had never given her a reason in the past. I'm not sure many people could put up with what she jokingly calls her neurosis. There's overprotective parenting and then there's just Jenna, who even on vacation is all up in her daughter's texts like there was anything that ever gave her a reason to read *every-single-one*. Peter wasn't an exemplary character either, he put his best friend Solly before his wife often, even caving in on pretty much anything that involved him.
The blurb claimed this would be sharply funny, and I guess I didn't really see all that much humor in the book. The category on Amazon says "Women's Divorce Fiction" so there's not really any surprises in what I'm guessing is supposed to be the climax of the book. My most favorite character was the women Jenna meets who lives there full time, Maria who was kind and insightful. I was very disappointed in the ending which was vague and abrupt.
I think with some refining of Jenna's character and if some of the situations were fleshed out, it could be a much better book. The actual writing is well done and as I said, it's an easy read.
I prefer strong female characters and Jenna definitely did not fit the bill. She's insecure in herself, her family, and her marriage, even though her husband had never given her a reason in the past. I'm not sure many people could put up with what she jokingly calls her neurosis. There's overprotective parenting and then there's just Jenna, who even on vacation is all up in her daughter's texts like there was anything that ever gave her a reason to read *every-single-one*. Peter wasn't an exemplary character either, he put his best friend Solly before his wife often, even caving in on pretty much anything that involved him.
The blurb claimed this would be sharply funny, and I guess I didn't really see all that much humor in the book. The category on Amazon says "Women's Divorce Fiction" so there's not really any surprises in what I'm guessing is supposed to be the climax of the book. My most favorite character was the women Jenna meets who lives there full time, Maria who was kind and insightful. I was very disappointed in the ending which was vague and abrupt.
I think with some refining of Jenna's character and if some of the situations were fleshed out, it could be a much better book. The actual writing is well done and as I said, it's an easy read.
March 17, 2019
Dissapointing
I enjoyed reading this book until I was close to the end. It ended without a resolution or explanation of how their lives continued. Very disappointing. I feel like I'm left
Hanging and wondering.
I enjoyed reading this book until I was close to the end. It ended without a resolution or explanation of how their lives continued. Very disappointing. I feel like I'm left
Hanging and wondering.
January 16, 2020
This was a solid 3.5, but Christ, was I depressed after reading this. The story centers on Jenna, a recent cancer survivor and struggling young adult author, who has rented a villa in Mexico for her husband's 50th birthday along with their daughter and their business partner's family as well. What should be a relaxing occasion becomes a free fall into horror between Mexican cartel violence and family secrets coming to light, letting Jenna know she doesn't really know anyone in her life.. The story is well written, but it has such an air of depression pervading the atmosphere and a completely disappointing ending that I left this novel feeling bereft. Life just shouldn't be this way.
February 26, 2019
I received this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. I liked this book about two families who go on the "perfect vacation" to celebrate a 50th birthday. Nothing goes right, despite the fact that Mexico and the villa they are staying in seem the perfect getaway, and there's lots of backstory involved. The main character at times can seem to be a bit of a pain, but all in the all the writing is good and the story is enjoyable. I do feel, however, that the ending was a bit rushed and could have been wrapped up better.
January 28, 2019
A fun to read and enjoyable books. I liked the style of writing and how it describes the situations and the characters.
The plot was great, you cannot help being hooked.
A good book that I recommend.
Many thanks to Pamela Dorman Books and Edelweiss for this ARC
The plot was great, you cannot help being hooked.
A good book that I recommend.
Many thanks to Pamela Dorman Books and Edelweiss for this ARC
June 10, 2019
I can't say for sure if I really liked this book. I think I liked that it passed the time. I didn't care for the characters, especially the main character Jenna who is quite annoying. I kept waiting for something big to happen and it never did.
January 14, 2022
Enjoyable, quick read, nicely paced with well-fleshed characters, but something was missing; perhaps it was because I didn't care for Jenna. Also, I never understand immediate friendships in stories. The ending was unsatisfying and rushed.
December 2, 2018
3.5 rounded up. Compulsively readable fluff.
March 24, 2019
Sounded like an interesting premise but didn’t deliver
February 11, 2021
This book is like siting in an airplane, headed to an exotic destination, waiting for a takeoff that never happens.
May 18, 2021
This page turner reassured me I still enjoy fiction!
April 22, 2019
I have read several of Dana Reinhardt's YA books (A Brief Chapter in My Impossible Life, The Things a Brother Knows . . .) but this is her first adult novel. It's a quick easy read about a woman who plans a luxurious vacation to celebrate her husband's 50th birthday and things don't turn out as picture perfect as the website makes everything look. Dana Reinhardt is a great writer and the characters were very well-developed. I especially loved that the protagonist was a children's author herself, struggling to finish her 4th book.
March 14, 2019
Two married couples, children included, are off to Mexico for a luxury resort vacation. Jenna organized the trip to celebrate her husband Peter's 50th birthday. Their teenage daughter Clem is with them as well. Peter's best friend Solly and his wife Ingrid have joined them along with their 5 year old Ivan. Rounding out the group is Malcolm, Solly's son from his first marriage. The novel is told from Jenna's point of view. She is an annoying character as are most of the others since none of them seem to recognize their own faults. They are clueless about their privileged lives as they are waited on hand and foot by a Mexican staff. Yet somehow I still enjoyed the book and if you like the "family vacation goes amok" trope you'll probably like it too.
April 7, 2019
TOMORROW THERE WILL BE SUN is a quick, fun read. I want to call it a beach read, but mostly because it is set on a beach and I read it in one day. The novel, which takes place over one week during a swanky vacation spot in Mexico, follows two families who have a long and complicated history as they come together to celebrate the two patriarch’s 50th birthdays. It is a classic family drama, which secrets, confessions, confusion, and jealousy abound.
It was a page-turner for sure, but nothing too groundbreaking. It for sure made me want to drink a margarita, and had one pretty great twist at the end that I did not see coming.
It was a page-turner for sure, but nothing too groundbreaking. It for sure made me want to drink a margarita, and had one pretty great twist at the end that I did not see coming.
August 20, 2022
Amazing book about a subject that most people experience and the truthfulness in how it hurts yet liberates a person. I identified with Jenna so much. I knew in the beginning of the book when she didn't get the master bedroom and the bath with the volcanic tub how the book was going to end. It was still interesting to read all the signs that she missed and all the red flags that she ignored. It was comforting to see she "didn't know anything about anything." And it was a victory when she realized that she was indeed worthy of true love and respect. My personal story had a different outcome than Jenna's but I think that's the point of the book - the sun shines differently for everyone.
May 31, 2020
3.5 stars. This reminded me of The Vacationers by Emma Straub. I enjoyed the book despite it not really having a complex plot. It felt like a true depiction of vacation life, relaxed, without anywhere to go or be, and fun.
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