Take a photo of a barcode or cover
funny
lighthearted
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
As always with an Emily Henry novel, i found this to be funny and genuine. The characters are witty and their challenges are realistic. To me this is the standard of a Henry novel!
January and Gus are old college rivals that wind up being next door neighbors in a small Michigan town. Gus is still reeling from a divorce and January from the death of her father. In small town fashion the two get forced into interactions and in rivalry fashion they strike up a challenge to see who is the better author. So ensues weekend research outings and writing notes through to each other ‘you belong with me’ style. I loved.
I was destined to love this from the start but I do have a couple complaints. First is petty: January cries a lot. I get it, her dad died, she is in a low emotional state overall. But relax. Second: I didn’t really love Gus’ divorce and how that was handled. It had been a year and he was very much in love with January but anytime the ex wife interacted with him it threw him for a loop and he just completely locks January out. It made his love and commitment a smidge less convincing to me. Hesitation ain’t a good look Augustus!!!
Anyway those are pretty minor and didn’t take too much away from my enjoyment. Loved this!!
January and Gus are old college rivals that wind up being next door neighbors in a small Michigan town. Gus is still reeling from a divorce and January from the death of her father. In small town fashion the two get forced into interactions and in rivalry fashion they strike up a challenge to see who is the better author. So ensues weekend research outings and writing notes through to each other ‘you belong with me’ style. I loved.
I was destined to love this from the start but I do have a couple complaints. First is petty: January cries a lot. I get it, her dad died, she is in a low emotional state overall. But relax. Second: I didn’t really love Gus’ divorce and how that was handled. It had been a year and he was very much in love with January but anytime the ex wife interacted with him it threw him for a loop and he just completely locks January out. It made his love and commitment a smidge less convincing to me. Hesitation ain’t a good look Augustus!!!
Anyway those are pretty minor and didn’t take too much away from my enjoyment. Loved this!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Sexual content
Minor: Vomit
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
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
Awww! I liked this one!
The ending with the letters had me wanting to break down and cry, it was so beautiful and full circle and sweet and UGH I LIKED IT OK
The romance was wonderful, I loved Gus, that moody, leaning, secretive, little bastard.
At times, January’s inner monologue got a smidge repetitive as she constantly circling back to her daddy issues, but understandably so considering the circumstances, I guess.
Also having characters named both January and AUGUSTus - Emily had some fun. Good for her, we love months!
Overall, a really fun vacation read! Thanks for the rec, Lizzie!
ONTO FUNNY STORY
The ending with the letters had me wanting to break down and cry, it was so beautiful and full circle and sweet and UGH I LIKED IT OK
The romance was wonderful, I loved Gus, that moody, leaning, secretive, little bastard.
At times, January’s inner monologue got a smidge repetitive as she constantly circling back to her daddy issues, but understandably so considering the circumstances, I guess.
Also having characters named both January and AUGUSTus - Emily had some fun. Good for her, we love months!
Overall, a really fun vacation read! Thanks for the rec, Lizzie!
ONTO FUNNY STORY
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Child abuse, Domestic abuse
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content
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
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.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death of parent
Moderate: Infidelity, Grief
Minor: Child abuse, Vomit
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:
Complicated
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 ofGus'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.
There were some aspects of the book that didn't feel quite right to me (like the subplot of
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Sexual content
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Dare I say my favorite contemporary romance read of 2024? Bonus points for it taking place in a beach town in West Michigan AND including a scene watching the sunset over Lake Michigan (aka my personal favorite pass-time). This felt like a breath of fresh air. Even with some of the cancer stuff hitting a little too close to home, this truly felt like an escape for me. I laughed. I cried (both happy and sad tears). I absolutely loved this. My personal perfect summer read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer
Moderate: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicide, Vomit, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury