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emotional
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
Going into this book, I’d read and heard a lot of mixed reviews saying that this book deviates from Emily Henry’s typical style. I wasn’t too concerned about this because the style of this book actually aligns more with my typical reading preferences, so I feel I was lucky in this regard.
Alice and Hayden are both given a month to vie for the chance to write the life story of an aged former celebrity, Margaret Ives, now living in seclusion. The competition isn’t exactly bitter as Alice and Hayden connect. Unfortunately, thanks to NDAs, neither of them can discuss their interviews with Margaret. This becomes increasingly difficult for Alice in particular as the month goes on.
While certainly different than what I’m used to from Emily Henry, I did enjoy this. That said, this isn’t necessarily the kind of book I’m looking for when picking up her work. I think I would have preferred to listen to the audiobook. I also found it too similar to The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid. It’s less of a romcom and closer to general fiction. Which, again, is not an issue for me, but might be for people expecting another Beach Read.
I enjoyed the scenes with Alice and her mother the most. I liked how that situation played out, and I liked watching Alice’s growth through these situations. Honestly, I could have read an entire book about them and leave or take Hayden. I liked him, but I feel like we missed out not hearing his POV.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual content, Car accident, Pregnancy
Minor: Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Dementia
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Minor: Mental illness, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Listed as romance but reads like a mystery - mother child relationships - small town vibes
Having read all of Henry's other books, this was not what I was expecting. Personally, I would have preferred 2 POV's. There was a serious lack of Hayden's inner thoughts which left me felling 'meh' about the romantic relationship aspect of the story.
That being said, if it was sold to me as a mystery... well, this could be a different review.
“There’s an old saying about stories, and how there are always three versions of them: yours, mine, and the truth.”
Having read all of Henry's other books, this was not what I was expecting. Personally, I would have preferred 2 POV's. There was a serious lack of Hayden's inner thoughts which left me felling 'meh' about the romantic relationship aspect of the story.
That being said, if it was sold to me as a mystery... well, this could be a different review.
“There’s an old saying about stories, and how there are always three versions of them: yours, mine, and the truth.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Car accident, Pregnancy
Minor: Dementia
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
inspiring
reflective
fast-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
my first emily henry book and i loved it!! the concept of two writers battling for the same opportunity to write a famous person’s never-told biography is sooooo delicious and it was so well done!!! i also feel that alice and hayden had such good chemistry and their relationship was well-written. the last 15% of the book was my favorite though; i couldn’t have predicted it if i tried and i feel like it was such a satisfying conclusion to the story!! i’ll def be reading more from emily henry!!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent
Minor: Infidelity, Misogyny, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Minor: Dementia, Pregnancy
emotional
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:
Yes
This is probably Emily Henry's least romance filled book yet. That’s not to say it isn’t a good book, but the romance did feel as though it were the B plot in this one. I found the structure of the book, including the dual timelines through story telling to be interesting. I thought the plot involving Margaret was compelling as the reader (just like Alice) was trying to piece together her story and what she was hiding. At times the romance felt a little insta-love like because we did not see the interaction between the two characters as much. It was challenging to really buy into Alice and Hayden as a couple. Despite that they did have moments where you felt the romance growing between them, I wish there was more of them. I would almost describe this book as Daisy Jones and the Six meets The Last Great American Dynasty meets The Lucky One but also make it a workplace romance.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Car accident, Pregnancy
Minor: Dementia
emotional
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
My least favorite Emily Henry to date. It wasn't terrible, just boring.
The lead couple and their romance was pretty unconvincing and Margaret's story just wasn't interesting to me. The big reveal was predictable and not worth slogging through all this family history for.
The overall vibe was different enough from previous books that I forgot I was reading a Emily Henry novel.
The lead couple and their romance was pretty unconvincing and Margaret's story just wasn't interesting to me. The big reveal was predictable and not worth slogging through all this family history for.
The overall vibe was different enough from previous books that I forgot I was reading a Emily Henry novel.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Grief
Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Dementia, Car accident, Suicide attempt
emotional
funny
hopeful
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Dementia, Grief, Car accident, Abandonment