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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
Graphic: Cancer, Infidelity, Grief
Moderate: Child abuse, Death of parent
emotional
hopeful
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Infidelity, Death of parent
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
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
While I equally love Emily Henry's books, don't go into Beach Read expecting People We Meet On Vacation. Beach Read carefully deals with heavier subjects and is less of a rom-com than PWMOV. Despite reading PWMOV first, I love Beach Read, which is loveable, messy, and thoughtful. Henry writes so beautifully that the main character and the love interest are developed spectacularly. NOTE: There is a difference in UK vs US versions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Death
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-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
This book was really something. I did have kind of a hard time getting into it, but at around 1/3 I was totally engulfed. I loved January (despite her name, sorry, it’s just weird) and Gus. Their chemistry, their banter, their everything. The only thing that kept this book from becoming a 5-star read was that some scenes just seemed awfully long and dragged on forever. Other than that I really liked the characters’ development, how we got snippets of their respective back stories and how all the story lines got such nice closure. Also, I kinda enjoyed that this book was so different from what I expected it to be. Usually I despise misleading titles but this book did it really well. Well done, Emily Henry. I‘m looking forward to reading Book Lovers now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Violence, Death of parent
Moderate: Vomit
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
It’s easy to like this book, the writing is beautiful, January is an interesting protagonist, Gus plays his part as the love interest very well and the story stays interesting and emotional throughout!
What I’m a little ehh about was Gus’ backstory. January’s backstory is quite heavy on it’s own - slightly too heavy for a book I’ve been frequently been told was a fun romp-y vacation romance - but his backstory? Yeah, that one came very much unexpected and I wasn’t really a fan of the pay off that plot gave us. I probably would’ve liked that part more if Augustus had POV chapters and we wouldn’t have gotten the whole thing solely through January’s eyes. Also … the sex scene that resulted out of exploring his backstory?? I was very hyperaware where they were doing it and for that alone it ranks high in the worst sex scenes I’ve ever read.
What his book did weirdly, for me, was the little amount of time it spend on the vacation/beach part, the title promises and I would’ve expected a lot more discussions about their respective genres or even shallow examination of the genre conventions.
I overall am - still - unsure about the ending. It felt very realistic and grounded in regards to the way the
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Vomit
funny
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Child abuse
dark
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
okay this fucking slapped. granted, the common accusations of false advertising in this book are probably well-founded, but i read it on kindle, so i barely ever saw the fluffly summery cover while reading. i myself loved it and could not put it down, despite the heavy subject matter. most of the time it felt almost like something that could happen in real life, which is a rarity in this genre i think? honestly i don't think someone like 23yo gus would fancy someone like january, brooding guys at this age just don't function that way, but their relationship at the lake houses was both believable and compelling. i also loved the pace, not too slow and not too fast, with just the perfect amount of introspection. the humor was a little stale though, and also there was a little of this overwrought time travelers wife-style romantic melodrama at the end, but i feel like that is to be expected with an american romance book, so i let it slide. if not for those, it would have been a full five star
Content Warnings
Minor: Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse
dark
emotional
funny
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:
Complicated
Emily Henry just knows how to write banter without it sounding really cringe.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Alcohol
Minor: Misogyny, Torture, Vomit
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
I loved this book so much. I resonated with January on a deep level for many reasons. It’s a love story — a story about how our flaws make us human — and a finding yourself story. This book is more than just a romance novel, it’s a story about people who are trying to figure out the meaning of life through all of the heart aches that life is wont to throw our way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
I'm not a huge romance reader, but there's something about Emily Henry's book that I really love. I read People We Meet on Vacation earlier this year and figured I'd try Beach Read as one of my first summer reads... naturally so I could read it at the beach.
January and Gus are both lovable characters, but I have to say Gus and his storyline were my favorite even though January showed the most growth throughout the story. She must come to terms with the fact that life can't always be looked at through rose-colored glasses. Gus helps her come to terms with this, but in turn, he must learn not to always look at life pessimistically. The two balance each other out and their chemistry is endearing.
The writing was witty and charming with just the right amount of angst and fluff. A great read to kick off the summer!
January and Gus are both lovable characters, but I have to say Gus and his storyline were my favorite even though January showed the most growth throughout the story. She must come to terms with the fact that life can't always be looked at through rose-colored glasses. Gus helps her come to terms with this, but in turn, he must learn not to always look at life pessimistically. The two balance each other out and their chemistry is endearing.
The writing was witty and charming with just the right amount of angst and fluff. A great read to kick off the summer!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Infidelity