Reviews

i feel like i got shot in the chest upon finishing this book. not because it was particularly evocative, but because i realized i didn't love it.

i went into this book with probably the highest expectations out of all of EH's books i've read so far, and maybe i ruined my own reading experience because of them, but i also know that this book wouldn't have been for me even if i went in with no expectations.

this was, by far, the least witty/funny EH book, in my opinion (not fully including pwmov in this discussion since i barely remember anything from that book). the humor is veryyyyy millennial cringe (she even wrote that in the book!!), and the friend group is written to be quirky and endearing, but they're all pretty annoying.

i also didn't really care about either of the main characters or their romance, which...this is a romance book, if you don't care about the romance, that's clearly a glaring issue 😭. happy place felt very insta-lovey, so i didn't get a chance to experience the characters' yearning for one another before they started obsessing over each other. there was no time to become invested since we're told from the get-go that harriet and wyn liked each other from the very beginning—there's no real development of their relationship. perhaps the use of a then-and-now timeline wasn't conducive to helping the reader fall in love with these characters since we're retroactively getting snippets of their relationship before the breakup without getting the why they fell in love in the first place. this book is also HORNY AS FUCK! it's not as descriptive of the spicy/spicier scenes than other romance books, but for EH, this was very unexpected. harriet AND wyn are both very physical with each other from the jump, and since the reader doesn't get any backstory to their past until later on in the book, it just makes it seem like they're primarily physically attracted to each other, more so than emotionally.

wyn is also the weakest EH male lead (maybe tied with alex from pwmov). he's not very funny or compelling—his main personality trait is being nice? which is...good...but i want to read about a love interest with some oomph, some tangible qualities.

my last issue with this book is that the conflict doesn't make any sense. or it does, but does it?? it's like the miscommunication trope on fucking steroids, and sure, it's realistic i guess, but the payoff of knowing what happened is not commensurate with the buildup. these people are in their 30s, and you're telling me that no one knows how to communicate? to have a conversation?

also if wyn loves harriet so goddamn much, why didn't he DO something about her retreating away? we know harriet is a #peoplepleaser and can't handle confrontations for her life, but wyn could've, and should've, done something other than letting the love of his life shut herself out from those around her.

the parts i really enjoyed were the later chapters, where harriet and her friends finally argue about everything they've been repressing. that was some #tea, and i loved reading about their friendship/sisterhood.

other than that, i was pretty disappointed with happy place, one of my most anticipated books ever, i think. it's short and easy to fly through, and there are some great moments sprinkled throughout, but i'm heartbroken to say that it let me down.

vickytx's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.5

percybabercy's review against another edition

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emotional funny fast-paced

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

3.5

I finally got around to reading Happy Place! Mostly because I desperately craved a book to give me some fun summery romance vibes amidst my seasonal depression and Emily Henry came through as usual. I was giggling, twirling my hair, and kicking my feet...while also crying. I will say this is my least favorite of Emily Henry's books. I didn't love it as much as I loved Book Lovers or Beach Read.

tabea1409's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing slow-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

cdolbz's review against another edition

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5.0

This book. This BOOK. Currently my top 3 reads of the year. It was so beautiful. Pulled my heart in the best and worst ways. So many laughing tears and crying tears. Wow is literally all I can say. I loved her I loved her I loved her. I’m to have to come back and rewrite once I get off this high and can explain more than “I love it”

laufr19's review against another edition

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3.0

Ha sido muy cute y ha conseguido sacarme del bloqueo lector en el que estaba.
Adoro lo forma que tiene Emily Henry de contar historias.🫶

"Because even if there was nothing else for me, it felt like loving you was what I was made for."

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