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emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Death of parent, Alcohol
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, Grief, 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:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I thought this was a really fun book that utilizes the enemies to lovers trope well. The world was believable and I enjoyed being in it. the one thing I didn’t really like is how the protagonists had sex so close to the site of a murder suicide… the main character even remarks that she felt uncomfortable around there, so this seemed like something they could have done when they got back to the beach house.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Cancer, Death of parent
Minor: Child abuse
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Infidelity
Minor: Sexual content
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
medium-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:
Complicated
the writing style is so beautiful. and it's the most realistic romance book i ever read. i just didn't like how january acted sometimes, pushing gus to talk to her.
besides that, i loved it and cried many times.
besides that, i loved it and cried many times.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
With a title like Beach Read, you’d think you’re about to read a sweet, easy, cheesy romance: the perfect book to take with you on a holiday, to entertain you next to the pool before you inevitably get sun-drunk and fall asleep. And I guess, this book can be exactly that. But, it is also so much more. What I, personally, found instead was an amazing fiction juggling romance, friendship and family; a wonderful tale of rivalry, regrets, illness, grief and secrets.
Do not get me wrong, at first glance, there is nothing quite new about this story: January Andrews moves in her dad's beach house and her new neighbour happens to be Gus Everett, her old college rival. The set up is very simple and if you read romance on the regular you might even already know where this is going.
But! This was written by Emily Henry and if there is one thing Emily Henry does well, it’s character psychology. She (in my humble opinion) absolutely nails it every. single. time. She does not hesitate to give her characters those very authentic imperfections and they end up feeling like very real, actual human beings. January's conflicted feelings about her father, his imperfections and his lies are such an accurate representation of humanityher whole internal conflict about how she’s mad at him and can’t even have that one fight/harsh conversation she is so desperate for because he is dead was so extremely heart crushing . There is something so very real to Gus’ struggle to open up and communicate directly while also being completely willing to have January know him. Honestly, it’s a resounding 10/10 on characters from me.
I'll end this review with a list of a couple of my favorite things:
- The whole dynamic that develops between January and Gus, their banter and (for the most part, once they've realized it could be that way) easy going communication.
- The slow-burn! How they’ve clearly liked each other for a long time but are very hesitant of taking it a step further for fear of "ruining" something good.
- The incredible tenderness with which very difficult/heavy subjects are discussed.
- The father-daughter relationship, how easy it seemed and how complicated it was actually revealed to be.
Do not get me wrong, at first glance, there is nothing quite new about this story: January Andrews moves in her dad's beach house and her new neighbour happens to be Gus Everett, her old college rival. The set up is very simple and if you read romance on the regular you might even already know where this is going.
But! This was written by Emily Henry and if there is one thing Emily Henry does well, it’s character psychology. She (in my humble opinion) absolutely nails it every. single. time. She does not hesitate to give her characters those very authentic imperfections and they end up feeling like very real, actual human beings. January's conflicted feelings about her father, his imperfections and his lies are such an accurate representation of humanity
I'll end this review with a list of a couple of my favorite things:
- The whole dynamic that develops between January and Gus, their banter and (for the most part, once they've realized it could be that way) easy going communication.
- The slow-burn! How they’ve clearly liked each other for a long time but are very hesitant of taking it a step further for fear of "ruining" something good.
- The incredible tenderness with which very difficult/heavy subjects are discussed.
- The father-daughter relationship, how easy it seemed and how complicated it was actually revealed to be.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Infidelity
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Grief, Death of parent
Minor: Alcoholism
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual content, Grief
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was so cute. I've quickly become a fan of everything that Emily Henry puts out. I love that her romance novels tend to have lots of character depth and a plot separate from the romance.
I loved Gus so much and I am a sucker for the "I've had a crush on you all along" trope.
I loved Gus so much and I am a sucker for the "I've had a crush on you all along" trope.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse
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
this was my first emily henry book. i know she's a very loved author but i tried to get into the story with no expectations. i was only hoping to find a cute summer read to give me a bit of escapism, lmao.
let's start talking about the things i loved from this book! the first one, even though it's not plot-related was the dedication page. i just thought it was so endearing <3 then we have the contrast between the name of the two main characters. january and augustus. for me, it was a funny way to show some of their differences without even knowing them. the first pages were great, i absolutely loved it and i felt like emily was psychoanalizing me lmao. ngl i felt disappointed by january's dad behavior cause i was starting to like him and he decided to be an asshole lol.
but when the main characters began interacting was kinda scared, cause their relationship was being nice and sweet so i was expecting a breakdown anytime soon. luckily, there wasn't any! and instead, we got stuff that made me smile/scream internallysuch as gus confessing he had read january's books and even remembering them or the "why do you think, january?" OR when january realizes the way gus looks at her sometimes. therefore the romance (and also the comedy, btw! i have so many quotes underlined in yellow) were great.
on the other hand, i liked the fact that the book had other themes besides the januarygus relationship. i think this was the first time i've read a book where the main characters are authors and i completely loved that! the whole cult subplot was also interesting imo, and don't even get me started on their reflections about love because as a hopeless romantic with no love life i related to both of them. idk, it was enjoyable to read the whole bet thing and either reading very sad stuff or very cute things, and the characters getting to know each others' traumas in the meantime.
last but not least, as a daughter of moroccan immigrants, i absolutely ADORED the fact that the author mentioned my country several times <33
however, the reason why i can't give this 5 stars is because of the smut. like, okay, i know they're adults and everyone loves smutty books and blah blah blah but it just isn't for me, alright? and also because, although i ended up liking the story, i didn't really get the summer-themed read i was expecting. moreover, even though i love their relationship, the way they just get to date each other was a bit flat tbh.
so yeah i think it's a great mix between grief, love, loss, getting out of one's comfort zone and real and flawed characters. im looking forward to read more of emily henry's books!
let's start talking about the things i loved from this book! the first one, even though it's not plot-related was the dedication page. i just thought it was so endearing <3 then we have the contrast between the name of the two main characters. january and augustus. for me, it was a funny way to show some of their differences without even knowing them. the first pages were great, i absolutely loved it and i felt like emily was psychoanalizing me lmao. ngl i felt disappointed by january's dad behavior cause i was starting to like him and he decided to be an asshole lol.
but when the main characters began interacting was kinda scared, cause their relationship was being nice and sweet so i was expecting a breakdown anytime soon. luckily, there wasn't any! and instead, we got stuff that made me smile/scream internally
on the other hand, i liked the fact that the book had other themes besides the januarygus relationship. i think this was the first time i've read a book where the main characters are authors and i completely loved that! the whole cult subplot was also interesting imo, and don't even get me started on their reflections about love because as a hopeless romantic with no love life i related to both of them. idk, it was enjoyable to read the whole bet thing and either reading very sad stuff or very cute things, and the characters getting to know each others' traumas in the meantime.
last but not least, as a daughter of moroccan immigrants, i absolutely ADORED the fact that the author mentioned my country several times <33
however, the reason why i can't give this 5 stars is because of the smut. like, okay, i know they're adults and everyone loves smutty books and blah blah blah but it just isn't for me, alright? and also because, although i ended up liking the story, i didn't really get the summer-themed read i was expecting. moreover, even though i love their relationship, the way they just get to date each other was a bit flat tbh.
so yeah i think it's a great mix between grief, love, loss, getting out of one's comfort zone and real and flawed characters. im looking forward to read more of emily henry's books!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Infidelity