Sonia M. Rompoti, MSc, Bsc

Every summer, usually about three days before I leave for holiday, I have the exact same conversation with myself.

“Be sensible.”

“Take the Kindle.”

“It holds hundreds of books.”

“Your suitcase will be lighter.”

Five minutes later… I’m trying to figure out how to fit four paperbacks into the side pocket of my suitcase because what if I’m in the mood for something completely different on day three?

Romance readers understand this struggle better than anyone. It’s not really about choosing a format. It’s about choosing the kind of holiday reader you want to be.

The Case for Taking a Kindle

Let’s start with the obvious.

A Kindle is ridiculously practical. One device. Hundreds of books. No worrying about finishing your holiday read on the second day and desperately searching for an English-language bookshop in a tiny seaside village. No trying to squeeze “just one more paperback” into an already overpacked suitcase. No paying excess baggage because your luggage weighs approximately the same as a small library.

And let’s not ignore one very important advantage.

When you finish a book at eleven o’clock at night, you can immediately start another one. No waiting. No planning. Just one click and you’re back inside another love story…. That’s a dangerous amount of power.

But Physical Books Have Their Own Magic

Now let’s talk about paperbacks…. Because logic isn’t everything.

There is something deeply satisfying about choosing one special book for a holiday. You tuck it into your beach bag. It picks up a little bend in the cover. A grain of sand somehow finds its way between the pages and stays there forever.

Years later, you pull that book off your shelf and instantly remember where you were when you read it. The little café by the sea. The balcony where you stayed up until midnight. The morning you ignored everyone because you absolutely had to finish one more chapter.

Physical books don’t just tell stories…. They collect memories.

The Unexpected Bonus of a Kindle

Can we also appreciate one of the Kindle’s greatest talents?

Nobody knows what you’re reading. Want to read a ridiculously fluffy billionaire romance with a shirtless man on the cover while sitting beside the hotel pool? Go for it. To everyone else, you’re simply reading. No explanations required.

Your Kindle quietly protects all your questionable reading choices.

A true friend.

The Unexpected Joy of Paperbacks

On the other hand… A physical book has a funny way of starting conversations. Someone notices the cover. They ask if it’s good. You swap recommendations.

Before you know it, you’ve spent twenty minutes talking to a complete stranger about your favourite romance authors.

Books have always been wonderful conversation starters. Especially on holiday, where everyone seems just a little more relaxed.

My Solution? I Cheat.

Every single year. I tell myself I’m only taking the Kindle. Then, just before I zip up the suitcase, one paperback mysteriously finds its way inside. Not because I need it. Because I want one book that belongs to that holiday. One book I’ll remember every time I see it on my shelf. The Kindle comes for convenience. The paperback comes for nostalgia.

Somehow, they make a rather good team.

So… Which One Wins?

Honestly? Neither.

The best reading format is the one that gets you reading. If your Kindle lets you carry your entire summer reading list in your handbag, wonderful. If nothing beats the feeling of turning real pages while listening to the sea, that’s wonderful too.

The important part isn’t what you’re holding.

It’s that wonderful moment when the world disappears, the ice in your drink slowly melts, and you realise you’ve been smiling at fictional people for the last half hour.

That’s what holidays are for.

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Whenever someone asks me where I’d love my books to be read, my answer is always the same. Everywhere. On a Kindle beside a swimming pool. In a dog-eared paperback on a sandy beach. Curled up in a hammock. On a balcony as the sun goes down.

Whether readers meet the characters in Confessions of a Curvy Heart, The Billionaire’s Curvy Match, or The Widow’s Curse on a screen or on paper doesn’t really matter to me.

What matters is that, for a little while, they forget what time it is.

Because in the end, that’s the real magic of both holidays and good romance novels.

They remind us to disappear into a story… and enjoy every minute of it.

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