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The Five-Star Weekend
Family Life, Genre Fiction, Marriage & Divorce
The official media tie-in edition of the New York Times bestseller, just in time for the 8-part Peacock streaming series this summer Hollis Shaw's life seems picture-perfect. She's the creator of the popular food blog Hungry with Hollis and is…
- Release Date
- 2026
- Length
- 384 pages
- Publisher
- Little, Brown Paperbacks
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Our Review
About the book
Food blogger Hollis Shaw, reeling from the sudden death of her husband, invites one best friend from each stage of her life to a weekend on Nantucket. The women don’t know each other, and old secrets and resentments surface over the course of the gathering.
Our review
Hilderbrand gathers best friends from every era of one woman’s life, plus a near-stranger, and lets the Nantucket sunshine expose the cracks.
The concept of The Five-Star Weekend is irresistible: what happens when best friends from childhood, college and young motherhood meet for the first time, alongside a woman Hollis knows only through her blog? Hilderbrand uses it to explore how we become different people in each friendship. Nantucket, as always in her work, is rendered with real affection, and the food details are a pleasure. The early chapters, introducing each friend in her own era, are among the strongest.
The structure jumps between viewpoints and time periods, which deepens the characters but can dilute momentum, especially in the first half. Hollis herself is not always easy to like, which is honest but may frustrate some readers. A subplot involving her daughter feels slight. Still, the book has warmth and a few genuine emotional surprises, and it rewards readers who enjoy slow-building relationship drama and long conversations over good wine.
What we loved
- A clever premise about friendships from different life stages
- Atmospheric Nantucket setting and food writing
- Moments of real emotional honesty about grief
Keep in mind
- Frequent jumps in viewpoint slow the pace
- Hollis can be self-absorbed, which tests sympathy
Read it if you like
Readers who enjoyed Hilderbrand’s Golden Girl, or who like Liane Moriarty’s Big Little Lies with a gentler edge.
The verdict
A warm, sometimes meandering beach read with a terrific premise and a sincere heart.
