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75.7k reviews for:

Beach Read

Emily Henry

4.07 AVERAGE

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted sad medium-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

Good summer read.  Had lots of character growth and no third act breakup
emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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: Yes
emotional lighthearted 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: Yes

Depending on your perspective, this is either a book about writer’s block… or about romance. Maybe both.

“Falling’s the part that takes your breath away. It’s the part when you can’t believe the person standing in front of you both exists and happened to wander into your path. It’s supposed to make you feel lucky to be alive, exactly when and where you are.”

The setup is brilliant: two struggling writers with clashing genres (and personalities) forced into close proximity, each daring the other to swap styles. It’s enemies-to-lovers, sunshine-girl-meets-moody-guy, slow burn, with a dose of fated romance and forced proximity thrown in. So far, so good.

But it didn’t quite reach the starry heights of Book Lovers (for me). There’s an inconsistent tone that muddied the emotional impact. The darker elements—Gus’s fascination with cults, January’s grief and disillusionment—felt a little underbaked. And the miscommunication trope? Oof. We’ve seen it work well elsewhere, but here it felt unnecessarily drawn out and clunky.

🟡 Spoiler alert:
The scene in the rain was my real sticking point. There’s a dramatic reveal, a meandering monologue, and then… nothing? It tries to say something profound about choosing love over comfort, but never quite lands it.


Still, there is chemistry. There’s warmth. And there’s some genuinely sharp banter that made me smile. I gave it an extra star for that alone.

A solid read, but not my favourite Henry. If you’re new to her books, I’d suggest starting elsewhere.
funny lighthearted reflective medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Loveable characters: Yes

Los daddy issues me pegaron muy de lleno
emotional funny lighthearted fast-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

I was surprised by how many heavy topics this book included; I did not expect to cry at some points nor see the characters exhibit situations similar to my life right now. Emily Henry, somehow you have given me hope for romance novels.
lighthearted medium-paced
emotional funny lighthearted reflective fast-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