Scan barcode
annarbpollock's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcohol, Sexual content, and Alcoholism
Minor: Fatphobia
jessiereads98's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
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
5.0
Beach Read was next to impossible to put down. I love the way she writes characters so you really feel like you know who they are. Typical romance tropes are incorporated without feeling tired, played out, or unnatural. At times I found January frustrating, however this didn’t make me dislike her. Nothing in the book feels unbelievable or like it came out of nowhere as can often be the case in romance novels. No one writes romance like Emily Henry.
The one thing that annoyed and disappointed me was that Gus doesn’t write a proper romcom or romance novel, but just litfic with a romance plot line.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Cancer, Death of parent, Grief, Infidelity, and Sexual content
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
sophiesometimesreads's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
I absolutely loved this book - the characters, the writing, the relationships, the depth. I am now officially an Emily Henry stan.
Firstly, these characters felt so real. I felt their feelings and was so connected with them. They were complicated and messy, and their flaws were real. Even when I wasn't reading the book, I was thinking about January and Gus. And not only were the characters great individually, they worked really well together and I could really believe in their relationship.
I also really loved the writing style, it was simple yet poetic at times but never tried too hard to be too poetic or flourished.
The conflict was believable but I appreciated that there were multiple forms of conflict and not one big miscommunication or misunderstanding, and these were resolved relatively quickly and not drawn out.
Overall, an excellent read that I would be happy to reread in the future and I am absolutely excited to read more of Emily Henry's work.
Firstly, these characters felt so real. I felt their feelings and was so connected with them. They were complicated and messy, and their flaws were real. Even when I wasn't reading the book, I was thinking about January and Gus. And not only were the characters great individually, they worked really well together and I could really believe in their relationship.
I also really loved the writing style, it was simple yet poetic at times but never tried too hard to be too poetic or flourished.
The conflict was believable but I appreciated that there were multiple forms of conflict and not one big miscommunication or misunderstanding, and these were resolved relatively quickly and not drawn out.
Overall, an excellent read that I would be happy to reread in the future and I am absolutely excited to read more of Emily Henry's work.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death of parent, and Alcohol
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Alcoholism
ktv'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
4.5
I loved Julia Whelan as the narrator for this. She rly bought to life all of the characters. Her voice is also nice.
I liked the slow burn aspect and how the book centered around January and Gus’s problems. I thought it would be more grumpy x sunshine but I ended up liking it the way it was. I liked the second chance thing too.
-0.5 stars because the spicy scenes were significantly different than the ones in take a hint, Dani brown and it threw me off. Definitely a me problem, not an Emily Henry problem! The order u read books in matters, and I shoulda taken that into account before diving into this.
I liked the slow burn aspect and how the book centered around January and Gus’s problems. I thought it would be more grumpy x sunshine but I ended up liking it the way it was. I liked the second chance thing too.
-0.5 stars because the spicy scenes were significantly different than the ones in take a hint, Dani brown and it threw me off. Definitely a me problem, not an Emily Henry problem! The order u read books in matters, and I shoulda taken that into account before diving into this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Sexual content, Cancer, and Infidelity
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Child death, Alcohol, and Cursing
Minor: Addiction and Alcoholism
queen_melliott's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Vomit, Infidelity, Emotional abuse, Cancer, Death of parent, Child abuse, and Alcohol
Minor: Drug use, Alcoholism, and Fire/Fire injury
kendra_taylors_version's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Infidelity, Suicide, Death of parent, Religious bigotry, Terminal illness, and Cancer
Moderate: Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, and Vomit
kelly_e's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Title: Beach Read
Author: Emily Henry
Genre: Romance
Rating: 3.25
Pub Date: May 19, 2020
T H R E E • W O R D S
Fun • Deep • Over-hyped
📖 S Y N O P S I S
Augustus, an acclaimed author of literary fiction and January, a bestselling romance novelist are polar opposites. Each struggling with writer's block and dealing with personal demons, they find themselves living next door to one another for the summer. One evening they strike up a deal: Gus will write something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel.
💭 T H O U G H T S
Emily Henry's Beach Read has been absolutely everywhere, and so I fell victim to the hype and finally dove in. An original and deep plot with a side of romance is typically how I like my romance books, yet for me January and Gus lacked chemistry and I was expecting so, so, so much more from this novel.
There's no denying Emily Henry does banter unlike anyone else. It adds a lightness to often heavy content. With this book, there is excellent individual character growth, but I wasn't invested in the romance at all. In fact, I was way more invested in the plot and them writing their books. I felt as thought it started out strong, but faded by the midway point and never really regained traction. A few of the things I really appreciated were the exploration of grief, the east coast setting, and the letters.
For me, Beach Read was simply an average read, one I'll soon forget, which has me thinking Emily Henry's adult romances may just not be my cup of tea. I appreciate the depth of the plots, but the romance and lack of communication just don't cut it. With that said, I'll probably continue to read her books with hopes of finding one I really love.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• fans of the grump/sunshine and/or enemies to lovers trope(s)
• readers who like depth in their rom-coms
• Emily Henry fans
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Bad things don't dig down through your life until the pit's so deep that nothing good will ever be big enough to make you happy again. No matter how much shit, there will always be wildflowers."
"Because I know no matter how long I get to love you, it will be worth whatever comes after."
"It was okay to let a little ugliness into your story. That it would never rob you of all the beauty."
Author: Emily Henry
Genre: Romance
Rating: 3.25
Pub Date: May 19, 2020
T H R E E • W O R D S
Fun • Deep • Over-hyped
📖 S Y N O P S I S
Augustus, an acclaimed author of literary fiction and January, a bestselling romance novelist are polar opposites. Each struggling with writer's block and dealing with personal demons, they find themselves living next door to one another for the summer. One evening they strike up a deal: Gus will write something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel.
💭 T H O U G H T S
Emily Henry's Beach Read has been absolutely everywhere, and so I fell victim to the hype and finally dove in. An original and deep plot with a side of romance is typically how I like my romance books, yet for me January and Gus lacked chemistry and I was expecting so, so, so much more from this novel.
There's no denying Emily Henry does banter unlike anyone else. It adds a lightness to often heavy content. With this book, there is excellent individual character growth, but I wasn't invested in the romance at all. In fact, I was way more invested in the plot and them writing their books. I felt as thought it started out strong, but faded by the midway point and never really regained traction. A few of the things I really appreciated were the exploration of grief, the east coast setting, and the letters.
For me, Beach Read was simply an average read, one I'll soon forget, which has me thinking Emily Henry's adult romances may just not be my cup of tea. I appreciate the depth of the plots, but the romance and lack of communication just don't cut it. With that said, I'll probably continue to read her books with hopes of finding one I really love.
📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• fans of the grump/sunshine and/or enemies to lovers trope(s)
• readers who like depth in their rom-coms
• Emily Henry fans
🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S
"Bad things don't dig down through your life until the pit's so deep that nothing good will ever be big enough to make you happy again. No matter how much shit, there will always be wildflowers."
"Because I know no matter how long I get to love you, it will be worth whatever comes after."
"It was okay to let a little ugliness into your story. That it would never rob you of all the beauty."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Sexual content
Moderate: Infidelity, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Cancer, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, and Addiction
Minor: Cursing, Suicide, Car accident, and Vomit
crissi's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Alcoholism
vanesst's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Death of parent, Infidelity, Grief, and Sexual content
Moderate: Cancer, Fire/Fire injury, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Vomit, Car accident, Alcoholism, Cursing, and Drug use
bookishplantmom's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
relaxing
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
This was an achingly beautiful story. I like this author’s style of storytelling. Her emphasis on individual development and growth makes the love story (stories) in the novel so much more poignant. I also really appreciated the writers note at the end of the book.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse, Suicide, Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse