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emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, Grief
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Sadly, this is not the first Emily Henry book that I could not feel the connection between the two MC's. Alice and Hayden's relationship was very instalove-y, with a whole lot of on again, off again vibes that did not jive with this reader. The book was also set up to include two storylines, that of Alice's present day as well as the past of the woman she is interviewing, Margaret. Unfortunately, Margaret's stories and recollections were too confusing for me at times; I felt like I needed a family tree. In the end, 'The Story' chapters trumped Alice and Hayden's "romance." Execution = bad, and let's be real... it was the Temu version of a lovely, better novel from 2017. đź¤
Side note: I recently discovered that this book is Henry's take on a Taylor Swift song. It's no wonder I hated it so much. 🤮
Side note: I recently discovered that this book is Henry's take on a Taylor Swift song. It's no wonder I hated it so much. 🤮
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Abandonment
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Mental illness, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Medical content, Dementia, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Confinement, Misogyny, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Abandonment, Classism
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent
Minor: Body shaming, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Misogyny, Dementia, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-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
Although this was a bit of a genre change for Emily (not just completely contemporary romance, but also historical fiction), I really enjoyed this book. I liked Alice and her optimistic view of the world, and I liked Hayden's quiet and pensive vibes. However, I think I liked following the story of Margaret Ives and her family's history a bit more than Alice and Hayden's plot line. I found myself gasping out loud when finally hearing the "truth" from Margaret, and I appreciated how detailed Emily got with the Ives family. It was clearly well thought out and I liked how it was told to us over the course of the book, and had parallels with Alice. I did still enjoy Alice and Hayden's interactions, but I didn't like it as much as some of the other romances in the other Emily Henry books lol they were kissing by page 20 but not going fully all the way til page 357, and then seriously everything wrapped up in the last 10 pages. Talk about some pacing differences! Also, it still felt a little fast for them to fall in love; even though it was a month, it felt fast. I kind of wish that we'd had a dual POV with Alice and Hayden both, as I would have enjoyed seeing things thru his perspective. Regardless, I really enjoyed the story of both Alice and Margaret. I also really enjoyed reading this book as a buddy read with my bestie, which I think made it that much more special!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief
Minor: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse
emotional
mysterious
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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
I enjoyed this even if it felt a little different than other books I have read by Emily Henry.
Alice and Hayden were cute but they fell just a little too fast for me personally.I guess it kind of mirrored Cosmo and Margaret though. I liked their dynamic a lot though.
I did find myself being ripped between the romance and the storytelling and that was jarring at certain points. Honestly I cared more for the storytelling for most of the book and got frustrated when I had to read through the romance bits to get back to it. That said all of it tied together very nicely in the end. I think I would enjoy it more if I read it again.
I see the comparisons to other popular books and while I slightly agree I think this story is different enough to be its own thing.
Alice and Hayden were cute but they fell just a little too fast for me personally.
I did find myself being ripped between the romance and the storytelling and that was jarring at certain points. Honestly I cared more for the storytelling for most of the book and got frustrated when I had to read through the romance bits to get back to it. That said all of it tied together very nicely in the end. I think I would enjoy it more if I read it again.
I see the comparisons to other popular books and while I slightly agree I think this story is different enough to be its own thing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Sexual content, Death of parent
Moderate: Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Grief, Car accident
emotional
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
Emily Henry meets The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Grief, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Mental illness, Pregnancy
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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:
Complicated
What makes a life? All the big moments, and all the little ones. All the beautiful things, and all the ugly things, too.
And that’s just what GBBL is, aptly named. Although not your typical EmHen romcom, I really loved this new foray into more of a solid contemporary fiction with romance elements. I don’t think it should really be considered a mystery, as some marketing suggested. Of course I would’ve been okay with more of said romance (I adored Alice and Hayden) but at the same time, I don’t think the story-within-the-story really took away from that, either. Margaret’s life story (and her family secrets) was really interesting to me and essentially, it did link everything in the book together. You couldn’t have Alice and Hayden’s romance without what brought them together on that little Georgia island. And come on—an EmHen book where one or both of the protagonists are writers? I’m sold before I’ve even finished reading the synopsis.
This book did remind me a lot of “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo”, which others have pointed out. I love both, independent of each other, though they do share some similarities. But at the end of the day, this still reads like an EmHen book, and, dare I say… that’s one of my favorite things to witness in this great big beautiful life.
And that’s just what GBBL is, aptly named. Although not your typical EmHen romcom, I really loved this new foray into more of a solid contemporary fiction with romance elements. I don’t think it should really be considered a mystery, as some marketing suggested. Of course I would’ve been okay with more of said romance (I adored Alice and Hayden) but at the same time, I don’t think the story-within-the-story really took away from that, either. Margaret’s life story (and her family secrets) was really interesting to me and essentially, it did link everything in the book together. You couldn’t have Alice and Hayden’s romance without what brought them together on that little Georgia island. And come on—an EmHen book where one or both of the protagonists are writers? I’m sold before I’ve even finished reading the synopsis.
This book did remind me a lot of “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo”, which others have pointed out. I love both, independent of each other, though they do share some similarities. But at the end of the day, this still reads like an EmHen book, and, dare I say… that’s one of my favorite things to witness in this great big beautiful life.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Medical content, Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Stalking, Abortion, Gaslighting