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whaddupsamantha 's review for:
Great Big Beautiful Life
by Emily Henry
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
I really wanted to like this one, but it ended up being a giant snooze fest. I didn’t feel invested in Margaret’s story until the last 30 pages, and every time it flipped to the “Story” sections I groaned — just give me the romance! Even that fell flat, with minimal development and a slow-burn that fizzled into an anticlimactic (literally) payoff.
The whole recluse-celebrity-tell-all trope feels tired after Evelyn Hugo, and while I think Henry could’ve put a fresh spin on it, this one just didn’t land. The only redeeming part of the plot was the discovery of Hayden being Margaret’s grandson — I’ll admit that was an interesting twist I didn’t see coming.
Having only read Beach Read before this, I’ll give Henry another shot — but not anytime soon.
Having only read Beach Read before this, I’ll give Henry another shot — but not anytime soon.