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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
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
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
reflective
slow-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
Margaret Ives, aged socialite heiress and widow of feted musician Cosmo Sinclair, wants her biography written and recruits two writers, music journalist Hayden Anderson and celebrity writer Alice Scott, on a month's trial basis, before she decides who gets the gig. But what is her real motivation?
This is brilliantly written and I enjoyed the story very much. It is about love - romantic love, love between siblings, between parents and children etc. There are two storylines - Margaret's life story and as a frame around it, Alice and Hayden's romance. I liked most of the characters but Alice is the only main character who gets a first person POV, and everything seems to revolve around her. She has friends and a mother to deal with. In contrast, Hayden feels underdeveloped - does he even have any friends? His childhood is also just touched upon.
The book feels too long, and by trying to tell two stories, Margaret's isn't getting the attention it deserves. However, the twists are good and I liked Alice's side story with her mother. The sultry Louisiana atmosphere is described vividly, but, this being American, they drink too many weird iced drinks and eat too much weird local food I have never heard of. One time, Hayden, Alice and her mother prepare food and there is talk of a salad, roasted carrots, kale and an Alfredo pasta sauce and then her mother says: Soup is ready. What kind of soup is this? Where is the pasta? Anyway, those are minor niggles in an intelligently plotted book using names like Cosmo, Nicollet and Cyril.
This is brilliantly written and I enjoyed the story very much. It is about love - romantic love, love between siblings, between parents and children etc. There are two storylines - Margaret's life story and as a frame around it, Alice and Hayden's romance. I liked most of the characters but Alice is the only main character who gets a first person POV, and everything seems to revolve around her. She has friends and a mother to deal with. In contrast, Hayden feels underdeveloped - does he even have any friends? His childhood is also just touched upon.
The book feels too long, and by trying to tell two stories, Margaret's isn't getting the attention it deserves. However, the twists are good and I liked Alice's side story with her mother. The sultry Louisiana atmosphere is described vividly, but, this being American, they drink too many weird iced drinks and eat too much weird local food I have never heard of. One time, Hayden, Alice and her mother prepare food and there is talk of a salad, roasted carrots, kale and an Alfredo pasta sauce and then her mother says: Soup is ready. What kind of soup is this? Where is the pasta? Anyway, those are minor niggles in an intelligently plotted book using names like Cosmo, Nicollet and Cyril.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love Emily Henry, I really do, and I really sped through and enjoyed reading this book, but I can’t really give it four stars or more when it feels like I’ll forget what it was about in two months. A good summer read, classic stupid miscommunication subplot at the climax , but I teared up a few times.
slow-paced
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Absolutely beautiful it may even beat out beach read for me
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
i literally have no idea how to feel about this book. i was vibing until halfway and i wanted to yell “get to the fucking point??” like i do not care about margaret’s great grandfather/grandfather and it feels like we spent more time on them than we did her actual life. i liked the idea of this book but it easily could have just been two books. also…the ending sucked? like why was the main point of the ending alice’s relationship w her mom when it literally was barely touched on during the entire book? not the worst book i’ve read but i just was wishing for it to be over in the second half.