Take a photo of a barcode or cover
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:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Car accident
Minor: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, Classism
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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:
Complicated
Wow! This book was such a good read. I was on the edge of my seat as this whole story unfolded. I felt like a fly on the wall the way Emily Henry described the setting the characters, and their relationships with one another. It was intriguing and hopeful which is heartwarming.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Toxic relationship
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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: Infidelity, Sexual content, Death of parent
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Stalking, Pregnancy, Abandonment
funny
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Toxic relationship
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
sad
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Eating disorder, Infidelity, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment
Minor: Chronic illness, Infidelity, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy
emotional
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, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Kidnapping, Car accident, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Borrowed this from Libby twice before actually trying to finish it. I like most of Emily Henry’s books but I could not get into this one at all. The romance lacked and I don’t think the plot was interesting enough on its own. It really gave off similar vibes to “The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo” and it was just disappointing.
Read For
✓ Slow Burn
✓ Summer Read
✓ Contemporary
✓ Rivals to Lovers
✓ Reporter Interview
𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊𓋼𓍊
Spice Level: 🌶️
Sad Level: 💧
Plot: 2/10
Pace: 2/10
Ending: 4/10
Characters: 3/10
Enjoyability: 2/10
Writing Style: 2/10
Would I Recommend? No
Favorite Character: n/a
Favorite Quote: ❝Just because something doesn’t make money or win awards doesn’t mean it doesn’t have value.❞
POV: Duel, First Person
Pages: 432
Format: Audiobook
Language: English
Release Date: 22, April 2025
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting
Moderate: Death, Car accident, Pregnancy
Minor: Mental illness, Terminal illness, Dementia
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
As a longtime Emily Henry fan, I was excited to pick up her latest novel.
“Great Big Beautiful Life” follows Alice Scott, a bright, young woman who is determined to put her name on the map by writing a biography for the elusive Margaret Ives, an heiress who has been in hiding for years. There is only one thing standing between Alice’s once-in-a-lifetime chance: Pulitzer Prize winning Hayden Anderson. Margaret has requested Alice and Hayden both compete to be the author of her biography by interviewing and getting to know her individually for a month. But Alice’s and Hayden’s attraction towards one another might be difficult for them to ignore, and a writing competition is not helping.
I picked this up not fully knowing the synopsis because it was Emily Henry, which is something I do like doing with authors I have historically enjoyed in the past. I do think the premise of this story would have intrigued me on its own if I just stumbled across this novel in the wild.
There was something incredibly off putting to me about Alice. I felt like her character was almost too resilient. Alice’s mother is not supportive of her career and is actually quite critical that Alice does not “do more”. This has lit a fire under Alice to write more and work harder. I think this is great, but I wish I saw more anger or grief from Alice that her family is so unsupportive of a really great life she is creating. Additionally, Alice is the type of character that can hear “no” a hundred times and she will still show up with a smile and a positive attitude thinking and believing today is the day you will finally say “yes”. I think resilience is important, and a really admirable quality, but there was something that felt too much to me.
Alice and Hayden definitely have some chemistry and a common interest, but I did not feel like their relationship was one hundred percent believable. Something about their situation felt too insta-lovey to me.
The story arch with Margaret went in a direction I was not expecting that I actually did enjoy. Margaret has a lifetime of secrets and I was on the edge of my seat learning them all. I feel like this story would have been better for me if it was a contemporary fiction that focused more on the Margaret plot line rather than a romance between Alice and Hayden.
I will still read Emily Henry in the future, and I would recommend this novel to someone with the right expectations.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
emotional
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:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Infidelity, Sexism, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Alcohol
Minor: Toxic relationship