Beach Read

2.5 stars. I feel like a bit of a jerk right now because I was so sure I was going to love this book. I mean, that title! That cover! That premise! Early reviews did mention that there was some emotional depth to an otherwise fluffy romance, but like, I think there was too much emotional depth and not enough fluffy romance?? The entire book had a thick layer of Sad that tampered my enjoyment because my expectation going into the story was feel-good summer romance. Which it wasnt. Not very feel-good, and I didnt think it was funny, either. I also didnt vibe with the chemistry between January and Augustus. Okay, Im done being grumpy. Ugh. I realize Im in the minority here, so Im glad there are people who were pleasantly surprised by what this book turned out to be! Unfortunately, I am not one of them.

This book had a promising start but quickly devolved into too many different threads and lost its identity. The chemistry between Gus and the heroine was well done and kept me reading but the story was all over the map. It was as if the author had too many stories to tell and awkwardly packed them all into one:
— The writing process thread was interesting but frankly I quickly lost interest in the whole cult thing and as for the clown story: yikes! Definitely not my thing at all.
— The grief thread was also something I should have been able to empathize with but the heroine was a spoilt brat and was creepily obsessed with her father’s infidelity: so much so that she acted like SHE was the wife.
— The romance thread got lost in the other two but showed signs of promise. There was definitely good chemistry between H/h and it was the promise of this thread that kept me reading.

The writing was good but there was lots of repetition (so many references to crooked almost smiles and to the heroines hips) and a good editor should have caught that.
In all, this book was a bit of a mess and I recommend giving it a miss. That said, I will look for Ms Henry’s next book cause this one showed promise — hence 2 stars.

January Andrews once believed in romance so much that she wrote books about it. That was before her boyfriend dumped her, her father died suddenly and everything she thought she knew about happiness turned out to be an illusion.

Now she left with nothing but an old house on the lake and a rapidly approaching deadline to deliver her next book, she packs up her entire life and heads to wilds of Michigan. She mistakenly thought she was buying herself time to come to terms with who her father truly was. The very last thing she needs is to discover that shes now living right next door to her infuriatingly handsome college nemesis.

January remembered Augustus Everett as Gus or Sexy, Evil Gus depending on her mood. Even back then, his writing was lauded by staff and students alike. Their artistic clash fueled both her imagination and her passion. Until the night when she almost (but not quite) surrendered to his charms. Saved from diving headlong into a sea of humiliation by her best friend, she could never forget the chemistry that sizzled between them.

When their old rivalry sparks a bet that will have both stepping out of their comfort zones, the result will either culminate in the salvation of her writing career or the breaking of her heart. And the odds arent in her favor.

Beach Read isnt the light summer romance that it appears to be at first glance. Its a story thats far deeper and more profound. With characters that light up the page, Emily Henry fashions each one with a rare combination of sharp wit and vulnerability. They made me laugh out loud, fight back tears and revealed a strength that was inspiring beyond words.

With everything from purse-wine to farting Labradors and one of the best arguments against the term Womens Fiction that Ive ever encountered – Beach Read is that special kind of perfection that the world could use a lot more of.

I really wish Amazon allowed 1/2 stars for their reviews but since they dont, youll just have to pretend to see the half star. Apart from being the closest thing Ive read recently to a believable contemporary romance, this is just a good story of two mature adults with baggage that they both must work through in order to find refuge in each other. Their baggage is essentially the same, broken hearts, even if the context is a bit different. For January, the female protagonist, her broken heart is coupled with jarring, recent, doubly heartbreaking disillusionment and for Gus, his broken heart is confirmation of the disillusionment hes known most his life.

I wont go into plot details, but there are a few things Id like to point out. One, the storys small cast of secondary characters is fleshed out enough to make them expansive additions to the story rather than just filler. Two, the other woman in the story delivers an interesting surprise element in the story line. Three, the author writes a good enough story making it easy for the reader to hang in there as the relationship percolates between January and Gus. It would have been so easy to make a quick trip to the bedroom early on as the attraction was certainly there but the author waited, knowing that the ultimate union would have much more impact. I thank her for that.

So, why the half star deduction? The romance novel tropes began to fly fast and furious in the last 50 pages or so and I found them distracting. However, that is a fairly minor complaint from a reader who normally cant finish a contemporary romance without gagging.

Bottom line: this is a wonderful Beach Read.

This book is readable, but its not anything to do with the beach. The jacket is misleading. They are at a lake house, but dont go to the lake. Suicide cult? Really? The plot is contrived, with some weird (and sometimes silly) episodes.

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