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A review by laaurenculpan
Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry
emotional
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
5.0
oh this book was so lovely. i enjoyed every minute reading this (even the moments when it made me cry!) but i wholeheartedly loved it.
this is only the second emily henry book ive read but it’s immediately become my favourite. i loved the premise, i loved the characters, i loved the storytelling- i just loved it.
alice was immediately likeable. i wanted to be her friend, she felt so real with all of her feelings about the world and her relationships with her parents. how she could see the world with so much joy and didn’t want to focus on the negatives because that wasn’t was life was about. she wanted to focus on the here and now because life is short. i related to that a lot.
hayden was also lovely; im glad it wasn’t a enemies to lovers thing- that wouldn’t have been right. and whilst their relationship did develop quickly, i didn’t mind that. in most ways it felt right. they were both investigating this story and stuck on the same island, why wouldn’t they become friends and then lovers? the pacing felt natural at most points and i felt myself loving them too.
whilst there were a number of characters to follow (most in the present, some in the past) none of them felt undeveloped. i felt like i knew all of them and loved/liked them all individually.
i only had a couple of issues with the book (i didn’t love the final pages, but that’s my issue) and i felt too many words were in italics (again that’s my issue) but not enough of an issue for me to rate it lower. i loved reading this and found myself thinking about it when i wasn’t reading it. i’m not surprised i read it so quickly; it was very readable and un-put-downable.
it does have very similar vibes to seven husbands of evelyn hugo so if you’re a fan of that (which i am!) then this book is for you!
this is only the second emily henry book ive read but it’s immediately become my favourite. i loved the premise, i loved the characters, i loved the storytelling- i just loved it.
alice was immediately likeable. i wanted to be her friend, she felt so real with all of her feelings about the world and her relationships with her parents. how she could see the world with so much joy and didn’t want to focus on the negatives because that wasn’t was life was about. she wanted to focus on the here and now because life is short. i related to that a lot.
hayden was also lovely; im glad it wasn’t a enemies to lovers thing- that wouldn’t have been right. and whilst their relationship did develop quickly, i didn’t mind that. in most ways it felt right. they were both investigating this story and stuck on the same island, why wouldn’t they become friends and then lovers? the pacing felt natural at most points and i felt myself loving them too.
whilst there were a number of characters to follow (most in the present, some in the past) none of them felt undeveloped. i felt like i knew all of them and loved/liked them all individually.
i only had a couple of issues with the book (i didn’t love the final pages, but that’s my issue) and i felt too many words were in italics (again that’s my issue) but not enough of an issue for me to rate it lower. i loved reading this and found myself thinking about it when i wasn’t reading it. i’m not surprised i read it so quickly; it was very readable and un-put-downable.
it does have very similar vibes to seven husbands of evelyn hugo so if you’re a fan of that (which i am!) then this book is for you!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, Death of parent
Moderate: Death, Car accident
Minor: Mental illness, Pregnancy, Alcohol