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mpowers1813's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
sgkmiller's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
2.5
Not my genre. Fine but was happy it was over … pretty predictable.
leilaaa09's review against another edition
3.0
it's nice romance but i didn't feel the butterflies in my stomach like i did with emily henry's other books. even though they say beautiful things to each other, i couldn't feel their chemestry.
emma_mja's review against another edition
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
kristenlees's review against another edition
5.0
This one is more of a 4.5 but rounding up because the things that irked me weren’t too huge.
Friends to lovers is not my favourite trope, but when it’s done well…. Dang, it is done well! Emily Henry is a fantastic writer, she just sucks you right in, makes you feel like you know these characters, live in their world. I felt so connected to both characters – I’m sure I am not the only one who felt ‘seen’ several times during this book -and absolutely loved watching them go from awkward strangers to best friends to lovers. It was all so believable and developed so well. Their dynamic and banter was everything.
It was a super emotional read - Henry really excels at mixing all the emotions without it being too much. It was heartbreaking, gut wrenching, relatable, depressing, hilarious… I really enjoyed it. I loved Poppy’s family, I really enjoyed her boss, I liked the parts about depression after you’ve achieved long term goals. I loved the lines about loneliness and never knowing other people… really felt that in my soul.
However, I had some teeny tiny issues – as I mentioned, friends to lovers isn’t my favourite so I can get a little frustrated when there seems to be no real reason for them not to be together, or other people get hurt in the I’m-ignoring-my-feelings-for-my-best-friend-process. It just makes me feel ick. Also, I really liked Poppy’s friend Rachel except for that little mention of her calling her readers stupid because they had the audacity to… do the thing she needed them to do to make money off them. I mean, yes, I agree that social media has its issues and comparison is the thief of joy and people only show highlights/curated stuff but… to call them dumb? Little holier than thou. Finally, I wasn’t a huge fan of the flashback structure - I kept getting confused with what vacation we were in, as they all seemed a little repetitive. I do think we needed some sort of flashback, but not sure about the specific way it was done - I don’t think it added any suspense or twist, we knew what happened pretty early on. In my head it was all then vs now, but ‘then’ was actually a bunch of summers. But, I did appreciate meeting them in college and seeing some of their vacations, just… I don’t know, kind of all mushed together in my head I guess. Likely a me problem, not the book, but it still pulled me out occasionally.
All in all, I really liked it. Her writing is incredibly captivating and easy to read, and while you can’t deny that the romance is the focus of the book, I wouldn’t necessarily call this a romance. More like, contemporary fiction-with-romance. Aka, appeals to a more mainstream audience. Nothing wrong with that, it filled my romance happiness bucket, and I’d still recommend it to almost anyone who likes fiction and doesn’t hate romance.
arc received from netgalley in exchange for honest review
Friends to lovers is not my favourite trope, but when it’s done well…. Dang, it is done well! Emily Henry is a fantastic writer, she just sucks you right in, makes you feel like you know these characters, live in their world. I felt so connected to both characters – I’m sure I am not the only one who felt ‘seen’ several times during this book -and absolutely loved watching them go from awkward strangers to best friends to lovers. It was all so believable and developed so well. Their dynamic and banter was everything.
It was a super emotional read - Henry really excels at mixing all the emotions without it being too much. It was heartbreaking, gut wrenching, relatable, depressing, hilarious… I really enjoyed it. I loved Poppy’s family, I really enjoyed her boss, I liked the parts about depression after you’ve achieved long term goals. I loved the lines about loneliness and never knowing other people… really felt that in my soul.
However, I had some teeny tiny issues – as I mentioned, friends to lovers isn’t my favourite so I can get a little frustrated when there seems to be no real reason for them not to be together, or other people get hurt in the I’m-ignoring-my-feelings-for-my-best-friend-process. It just makes me feel ick. Also, I really liked Poppy’s friend Rachel except for that little mention of her calling her readers stupid because they had the audacity to… do the thing she needed them to do to make money off them. I mean, yes, I agree that social media has its issues and comparison is the thief of joy and people only show highlights/curated stuff but… to call them dumb? Little holier than thou. Finally, I wasn’t a huge fan of the flashback structure - I kept getting confused with what vacation we were in, as they all seemed a little repetitive. I do think we needed some sort of flashback, but not sure about the specific way it was done - I don’t think it added any suspense or twist, we knew what happened pretty early on. In my head it was all then vs now, but ‘then’ was actually a bunch of summers. But, I did appreciate meeting them in college and seeing some of their vacations, just… I don’t know, kind of all mushed together in my head I guess. Likely a me problem, not the book, but it still pulled me out occasionally.
All in all, I really liked it. Her writing is incredibly captivating and easy to read, and while you can’t deny that the romance is the focus of the book, I wouldn’t necessarily call this a romance. More like, contemporary fiction-with-romance. Aka, appeals to a more mainstream audience. Nothing wrong with that, it filled my romance happiness bucket, and I’d still recommend it to almost anyone who likes fiction and doesn’t hate romance.
arc received from netgalley in exchange for honest review
maryannc's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ratjus's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jkmiles's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0