The Five-Star Weekend

Enjoyed the story … but the ending felt as though it fell off of a cliff. A rush to tie everything together.

Erin Hilderbrand is one of my favorite authors so her books always get 5 stars from me. But this book really made me reflect on my past friendships and how each person came into my life when I needed them the most. A few I don't keep in touch with but I know they would drop everything if I needed them. I think all women need different friends for different reasons.


“The thing I love best about reading fiction is that it gives you a way to connect the experiences of your own life to the larger world,”

Really basic writing that is not very creative. Felt very “real housewife”

A fun read…great story telling. I enjoyed it. LB.

The Five-Star Weekend was such a good summer read! Sometimes books with several main characters can be hard to keep up with, but I never felt that way with this one. Each woman had her own story that I enjoyed getting invested in, and the writing made the setting so easy to picture. The shifts between past and present flowed really well and helped me understand the friendships and everything that brought these women together. I loved that beneath the girls’ weekend were real-life experiences of grief, betrayal, change, and figuring out who you are in a new season of life. Each woman was navigating something different, but friendship remained at the heart of the story. This book actually inspired me to plan my own girls’ weekend at camp this summer, complete with a cute itinerary, themed gift bags, special meals, a boat outing, and a winery visit! My friends and I have been close since we were about 13, and now we’re in our 30s, living in different towns and different stages of life. Getting together felt like a grown-up version of our endless childhood sleepovers. One friend couldn’t make it because she has little ones, and while I missed her, it reminded me that being unable to show up for a weekend doesn’t change what a friendship means. There’s something special about continuing to make room for each other as life changes. I also enjoyed the adaptation—the cast brought some really funny moments to life—but the book gave me more time to feel connected to everyone. A summer read with plenty of heart that I’d definitely recommend!