Welcome back to my favorite recurring blog posts where I interview past book·cation attendees to learn more about why they came to our reading retreat and why they loved it! This post features 2 attendees who came solo- one I didn’t meet until she arrived and the other who was a newer friend in the past year! My hope is that you’ll see yourself in these readers. Whether you’d want to come alone or with friends, book·cation is open to all types of readers!
Kirstyn and I met about a year ago at our daughters’ preschool! They’re in the same class and after Facebook suggested we become friends we learned we have a lot in common, thanks social media 😉 I then convinced her to start Throne of Glass again and the rest is history! Since meeting we’ve also both started our sourdough journeys so we’re definitely in our millennial mom era. 💁♀️
What is your favorite genre?
I’m 100% a romantasy girl; I love the romance side, I love the fantasy side and even better when they’re mixed together! I do also like to swap out a beach read or thriller (that’s not too scary) depending on my vibe after I read a romantasy novel to cleanse the palete, though.
What is your favorite book you’ve read so far in 2025?
‘Promise Me Sunshine‘ by Cara Bastone- it has my heart! I keep thinking about it. It gave me all the feels and I rooted for all the characters and I’m glad it was a positive twist on some negative life happenings.
Why did you come to book·cation?
Like every other millennial, I fell back into reading not too long ago. I thought that spending a whole weekend with other people who love reading and getting to know what other people read would help me explore more and branch out more for myself with other people who get it.
What is your favorite book·cation memory?
Honestly, the group meals. I showed up solo and it was really easy to bond over books and it made the chatting so easy! By the last meal I felt like we were our own little book club, like we all knew each other just solely based on the books we’ve read and we could talk deeper about them.
Describe book·cation in 5 words:
Okay it’s only four words, but ‘no detail left behind’. Mallory killed it and I’d come back just for her planning alone.
What’s your unpopular book opinion?
Assassin’s Blade should be read first. How else are we supposed to keep up with someone that we’re literally just finding out about and she has like 800 names? How are we supposed to know her backstory if it’s 3rd in the series?
Chrissy and I met at book·cation! We connected a little beforehand over Instagram after she signed up, but we never met face-to-face until she walked in on Friday night. (And by that point it felt like we were already friends, lol!) We learned we live about 10 minutes from each other and both have 3.5 year olds so we had lots to discuss in addition to books 😂
What is your favorite genre?
My favorite is contemporary romance. I love authors like Emily Henry and Colleen Hoover!
What is your favorite book you’ve read so far in 2025?
‘Great Big Beautiful Life‘ by Emily Henry- it’s a little bit a departure from her previous books, but I really loved it!
Why did you come to book·cation?
I wanted to attend book·cation because, to be honest, it’s really hard for me to make friends as the mom of a young child. I have a 3.5 year old little boy and I love to read and I wish my life allowed me to do it more often. When I heard about book·cation I thought this is kind of the perfect getaway designed to make space for reading and I thought it would be a great opportunity to make new friends who love to read. Plus, it was close to home and I love Lake Geneva so it made it the perfect opportunity to me!
What is your favorite book·cation memory?
I loved participating in the book club. I haven’t been a part of a book club in more than 10 year so for me it was so fun and engaging to discuss a book with a table full of diverse, dynamic women while eating really delicious mini donuts. That was a highlight for me!
Describe book·cation in 5 words:
The perfect reading weekend getaway!
What’s your unpopular book opinion?
I hope people don’t come for me with this, but audiobooks do not count as reading! I think it’s cheating; I think everyone needs to put in the time to flip the page or at least tap the screen to turn the page on an e-reader. Audiobooks are like a podcast!
Coming to book·cation solo does NOT mean you’ll be by yourself all weekend 🙅♀️ (Of course if that’s what you prefer, you do you – zero judgement!) But I loved watching people who came by themselves meet and befriend other attendees so by the end we’re all taking group pictures together! I’m laughing to myself as I realized that Chrissy + Kirstyn are next to each other in this group shot we took Saturday night 🙌
If meeting new friends who love reading as much as you do sounds fun, you need book·cation! Our reading retreat is the perfect escape from your responsibilities while simultaneously giving you permission to treat yourself to a relaxing weekend of reading + connection 🥰 I’d love to have you there!
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