Reviews with content warning for Grief - Beach Read

this book was beautifully written. i could tell the author had an appreciation for this story and was very intentional. the only thing that fell short for me was i didn't really feel anything for the characters. i also wish the book dealt more with her friendship with Shadi. there were little tidbits here and there but i didn't fell entirely convinced when she said

that the only person she felt immediate love towards other than gus was shadi

. BUT this really was beautifully written. It's been a minute since I've read quality writing like this one.

also i read the UK version which has a different ending than the US version. i think the UK ending was so much better. i would actually dock the rating if i read the US version.

it was wayyyy too soon for the two of them to be getting married. did not seem believable to their love story.

another thing that bugged me a little was the title… when i think of beach reads i think lighthearted stories that don’t delve too much into emotional topics but this book def had some trigger warnings. it’s very minuscule but it def caught me off guard since i went into this blind

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infusionofviolets's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective 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

4.75

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ryleewalter's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful 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? Yes

4.0

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heather_freshparchment's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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lallagray's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad 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? No

5.0

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luna_98's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

my first emily henry book and it was so good. i really loved the depth of gus and january and how they balanced each other without attempting to “fix” each other. it made me giggle and made me cry and overall just made my heart happy.

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stellahadz's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted 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? It's complicated

4.0

As someone who's not typically a big romance reader, I honestly liked this book more than I expected to! It struck a good balance between fluffy, funny, and serious. At first I was worried that the story would lean too heavily into the "grumpy/sunshine" trope, but I actually really liked how the relationship between Gus and January developed. The way they interacted and spoke to each other was realistic and fun, and made me actually smile and laugh a couple of times. I also thought the steamy scenes were well done. No overly cringey synonyms for genitals - we love to see it!

There were some aspects of the book that didn't feel quite right to me (like the subplot of

Gus's divorce

), and I think if those had been shortened or removed altogether, there would have been more space to flesh out January's relationship with her mom, or for Shadi to get more airtime. I also wasn't a fan of the last chapter, but I understand that it's difficult to wrap up a romance story in a way that doesn't feel predictable or tropey. Still, the things I didn't like about the book didn't ruin it by any stretch - I thought it was a sweet story. This is the second Emily Henry book I've read (the first being Happy Place, which I think I liked a little more than Beach Read), and I love that her stories are never *just* about romance. There's always an underlying theme of family dynamics, or friendships, or some other form of love that the MCs embrace in addition to their romantic relationship, and I think that's a lovely message.

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