(Image from Barnes & Noble)

Jenna Carlson has planned the perfect getaway to celebrate her husband's 50th birthday.  The bestselling YA novelist has rented a luxurious villa right on the beach in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.  It will be the perfect place for the couple and their moody 16-year-old to relax and bond.  Peter's best friend and business partner, Robert "Solly" Solomon, has also been invited along with Ingrid, his beautiful, much-younger wife, his teenage son from his previous marriage, and his 5-year-old autistic son from his current one.  Solly's exuberance can be a bit much, but the vacation won't be as much fun without his larger-than-life personality.  All in all, Jenna is patting her back for organizing what is sure to be a flawless trip, the vacation of a lifetime.

The Carlsons have barely stepped foot on the beach, however, before tensions start running high.  Jenna's gritting her teeth over her daughter's surly attitude, Ingrid's insufferable begging for advice on novel-writing, Solly's irritating monologues, her husband's clandestine phone calls, and a budding romance between teenagers Clementine and Malcolm.  Jenna wants everything to go smoothly, but her perfect vacation is slowly turning into a perfect nightmare ...

Back in February, I made a Top Ten Tuesday list about vacation-gone-wrong novels that I wanted to read.  Tomorrow There Will Be Sun, a debut adult novel by YA writer Dana Reinhardt, was on that list because it fits the bill.  While the problems the Carlsons experience on their getaway trip were interesting enough to keep me reading, I can't say I really enjoyed this book.  The characters are almost wholly unlikable, Jenna being especially obnoxious.  Although they do learn some valuable lessons from their beach vacation, the overall vibe of Tomorrow There Will Be Sun is negative and depressing.  When I closed the book, I found myself asking, "What was the point of that?"  It's not that I think the novel is poorly written—it's not—it just didn't appeal much to me overall.  Bummer.

(Readalikes:  Hm, I can't think of anything.  Can you?)

Grade:

If this were a movie, it would be rated:

for language, violence, and sexual content

To the FTC, with love:  Another library fine find