Oh, I did enjoy this. A gripping rom-com with depth. The writing was great and I loved the characters. Will definitely be looking out for more from this writer.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for allowing me to read this in exchange for an honest review.

This was an interesting read, a good light-hearted read in the end. It started off quite sad and I wasn't sure where it was going but once I got into it, I found it a book I wanted to keep lifting to see how it would end. It was interesting to see how both 'writers' in the book approached things and how some things had gone unsaid over the years. Overall I would def recommend this book as a relaxing and enjoyable read.

Really enjoyed this book. Great characters and story. Made me laugh and smile. Believable story. Thank you to netgalley and the author and publishers for the chance to read this for my honest review

This was one of my favourite romances of all time. I loved the contrast of heavier themes with a soft romance. Gus and January were such wonderful protagonists. I really appreciated seeing Gus come out of his shell, so to speak, seeing him open up about his past experiences, writing style, inspiration, and his family. January's journey with grief and anger were also super well written and realistic. I enjoyed the banter and their tussles with their craft and it noticeably affected the other's character growth which was amazing to see throughout the book. I also appreciated seeing the lesbian aunts get a feature in the book!
One thing that did upset me was January's best friend. She felt underdeveloped and simply a tool for January's emotional distress. She got no character development. This fact is soured even further because she's a woman of colour and it's almost comical how many times women of colour are obligated to do emotional labour for white women. Based off her name, she was Arab but there clearly was no research because it was a male name not a female one. There's no development for her and that felt like a cheap shot.
Overall this was amazing!!!

I’ll be the first to admit that, whilst I live for romance in books, I wouldn’t consider myself a romance reader. However, Emily Henry’s Beach Read is full of so much heart that I may now be a convert.

Synopsis


January Andrews loves happy endings – it’s why she became a romance writer. However, racked by her grief for the father she never really knew, she no longer believes in them. Broke, and with a manuscript deadline coming up for her next romance, January is forced to move into his secret second home, which she learnt about at his funeral. Already down on her luck, things couldn’t get much worse – until she realises that her new neighbor is none other than her college rival, Augustus Everett, a successful author who loved to criticise her work during their creative writing classes. However, Augustus is also struggling with his next book, and so the pair challenge each other to write a book in the other’s genre. For research, Augustus will take January on his research trips for his current work in progress, based on a cult, and January will take him on the romantic adventures her books are known for, with one condition – that they won’t fall in love in the process.

Review

It’s a rare and special thing when a book comes along with so much heart that it cuts right through you, and Beach Read is one of those books. Henry’s prose is heartbreaking and heart-mending in equal parts and the relationship and steamy tension she builds between January and Augustus is so genuine that you believe in them wholeheartedly. This authenticity is not limited to their relationship with each other – it is echoed in all of the relationships they have – and this is what makes Beach Read so special. For romance readers, it’s important to note that, despite the colourful cover and title, this is not a particularly light read – whilst it has plenty of romance which will keep you satisfied, it also has a lot of grit which gives the story its heart.

As a book about a romance writer, it is not unexpectedly filled with plenty of classic romance tropes that regular romance readers will love. However, occasionally these tropes seemed to be introduced for the sake of it – including the ex-significant other trope, which seemed to cause unrealistic conflict for January and Augustus when considering the strength of their relationship. However, whilst I didn’t enjoy this element, my reservations were overcome by the strength of Henry’s writing, and I would still recommend it to anyone and everyone looking for a book that really tugs on your heartstrings.

Okay, so I adore this book with my entire heart.

Augustus Everett and January Andrews are complete opposites he writes dark depressing literary fiction whilst she writes light- hearted romance. In Avril Lavigne terms he was a punk and she did ballet, what more can I say.
When they find themselves in neighbouring beach houses a bet is struck that over the next few months January will attempt to write literary fiction whilst Gus writes something with a happy ending.
Their days are then spent with writing and taking each other on research missions visiting ex-cult members and going on adventures fit for a rom-com.

It feels as though someone decided to write my ideal book and then Beach Read was the result of that.
In regard to being a romantic comedy, it does it perfectly. I adored the relationship between January and Gus and laughed out loud numerous times. I was sitting at the hairdresser trying to contain my laughter reading a scene that I had already read before. It is perfectly my sense of humour and I just ate it all up.

I loved January and Gus’ relationship, stemming from being academic rivals to neighbours, through their bet and into them becoming more. The banter January and Gus had was amazing, the dialogue was so witty and clever. If the build-up of a couple is done well enough, I feel a physical sense of joy at them finally getting together and that’s exactly what I felt. There’s such a sweetness to them that sometimes Gus would say something and I (who does not take this word lightly) would swoon.

“’ When I watch you sleep’ he said shakily, ‘I feel overwhelmed that you exist’”

Like oh my god??? I need an Augustus Everett immediately.

Both Gus and January have really deep backstories which whilst they are really tragic never felt cliché. The book, though centred around a romance was rich apart from it as well. The bet allowed for a subplot about a cult, introducing interesting stories of those affected by it and January’s struggle with her father's death was so poignant and emotional that when it came to a certain point near the end (ahem those letters) I was sobbing.

The story itself is so beautifully done but the writing was as well??? I loved the way it was written, copious lines in which I sat there thinking ?? That’s so beautiful?? The descriptions, the dialogue and the expression of relationships through the way in which they thought and spoke were all so gorgeous.

The book is so smartly composed, whilst Gus in his writing sees the world as bleak and for all of the bad things it holds January views the love and joy it can hold. And then the book itself matches that by having both?? There is a love story that you adore but January’s revelations about her father’s affair and dealing with his death shows you the disparity the world can hold. Showing a juxtaposition between the difficulty’s life presents as well as the possibilities for happiness.

Now you might think wow this book sounds incredible it can’t possibly get any better BUT IT DOES. Emily Henry has mastered the art of realistic in book text messages. You might think that is so random and insignificant, but you would be wrong. I have read far too many books where the text messages are riddled with acronyms despite being written recently when this is just not the way people text anymore. January’s best friend Shadi saying “his friend was like ‘be careful with him he’s crazy about you’ and I was like ‘lol same’”, was amazing. I say lol same on the daily and it feels incredible to see some realism in the texting.

I cannot say anything bad about this book it is up there as one of my all-time favourites and I love it with every fibre of my being, absolutely everyone should read it and I have told pretty much everyone I know do just that.

Ok, let’s start with some things that bugged me:
1. it’s a lake coast, not a beach
2. The cover does not match the story. It gives you the wrong impression and sets the wrong mood. They never sunbathe on beach towels and Gus doesn’t like the beach. In addition, it’s not a light, summery read.

Now I’ve got that off my chest, let me tell you the things I liked about this book:

January is a ‘normal’, relatable character who doesn’t have her shit together and is struggling with the death of her father and the news that he had a second life.

Gus is the brooding guy next door who totally floated my boat. There’s something about a man sharing his raw emotions and feelings, warts and all, that works for me.

I loved Pete. Every book (and person) needs somebody with a big personality and a massive heart. I bet she gives great hugs!

I don’t know why, but I clearly have a thing for enemies to lovers. I was rooting for January and Gus. They had a connection and understood each other well. They didn’t want to change each other or have a cookie cutter happily ever after. While I enjoyed it, I felt my romance loving heart wanted a little more (demanding greedy beast that it is).

This is a moving story of love and grief, set in a lakeside village in America.January is a writer of romantic fiction who goes there to write, following the death of her much-loved father and the end of a long term relationship. She discovers her old college rival,Gus ,is living next door.Both are suffering from writer’s block and despite their former rivalry, discover that they now have quite a lot in common.They set each other the task of writing a book in the preferred genre of the other in an attempt to meet the deadlines set by their editors.The outcome isn’t exactly unexpected, but the relationship develops in a very satisfying way, with some hiccups .
The book says a lot about dealing with grief and childhood trauma,but it’s never heavy-handed,and I enjoyed it very much.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review which reflects my own opinion.

I liked the scenario - can two writers of opposite genres fall for each other when their mindsets are so different? The author cleverly expressed both characters with intelligent dialogue. January wants to believe in romance, and has been trying to live her best fairy tale, but when her father dies, she learns his secret and it throws her entirely off balance. She is not sure who she is anymore and what she believes in. She also has her publisher chasing her for her next book and in her current mind frame, she cant write. Escaping to a cottage on the lake, she finds her college nemesis is living next door. They take a bet to write a book in each others genre.
I found this an easy read, despite hitting on some heavy topics and the characters were well rounded. At its heart, it is a good old-fashioned love story, of hope and overcoming the odds. I'm not sure it will be the most memorable book Ive read this year, but I enjoyed the journey while I was in it.

January thought her life was perfect until her dad died and her whole world unravelled. Now she is at the home he shared with his lover as she tries to write her next book. How do you write a happy ever after when you've lost all faith in love?

This was such a fun read. The story is fairly predictable but the plot is interesting enough to keep me engaged throughout. The ending was beautiful and worked perfectly with the story. I loved her and Gus each learning about the other's methods to their writing. Any writer could easily relate to much of this. The story was fun, sad, sweet, relatable and touching. It deals with grief and adultery in an honest way. I love January, she has her issues but at heart she's real and honest. A fun romance perfect for summer.

The formatting of the last chapter was awful in this though. The text is so muddled up.

This book came along and provided me with a much needed pick-me-up today! A lovely story, which was filled with humour and romance, without being overbearingly soppy, with relatable characters, who are flawed but trying their best to overcome them.

I devoured 'Beach Read' in 2 sittings today, and would happily recommend it to my customers. I'm looking forward to reading Emily Henry's future novels.

TW for parental death, grief, cancer, child abuse including descriptions of physical assault, cults, emetophobia

BEACH READ was a delight from beginning to end, and I raced through it so quickly. I haven't stayed up reading a book till 3am just because I was enjoying it that much in such a long time! I adored reading about January and Gus, and when I tried to pick a different book up after finishing this one I was honestly disappointed they weren't in it. They felt so utterly and convincingly real, whilst also being endlessly entertaining. Their dynamic and banter was top tier, and their shifting relationship was so meaningful. The novel struck a beautiful note between light and dark (one of Henry's favourite pieces of imagery), funny and serious, laughter and tears.

This novel is a romance, but it's also a story of two people rediscovering themselves, and realising that they do deserve love. January thought that she had a perfect life before it fell apart, and she thinks that she wants this back — but what she comes to realise it that this was a facade, and that her obsession with stories meant that she was trying to force a narrative on her own life. Instead she must endeavour towards something new. But just because life isn't a fairytale, doesn't mean she can't find true happiness. I felt deeply connected to January and could even relate to some of her struggles. However Gus is a whole different ballgame, and his development was even more moving and personal to me. To start, as a love interest and as a character, he is My Type to the letter. He's both infuriating and relatable, and his self-worth and abandonment issues were particular punches to the gut. I appreciated how consistently inconsistent he was, because he really wasn't just your average sarcastic bastard with a secret heart of gold. However on that note, the he way he masks it all with a harsh and snarky exterior? I just lap that up.

But on to the romance. The romance! It was delicious. I adore a twisty hate-to-love story where the characters have a complicated past, and they're kind of rivals but they're kind of friends, and they both have a crush on each other but they're in denial because they think the other person hates them, and so on... (I even have a feeling all the references to January watching Veronica Mars were a nod to how similar her dynamic with Gus is to Logan/Veronica — my favourite fictional TV pairing of all time — so if thats true then Emily Henry: you have impeccable taste.) I adored the way we got to know each of them as they got to know each other. Got to see them become friends first, building up trust and mutual admiration, before things went further. I loved their dates that *totally weren't dates because they were research*, and I love the way the houses became like metaphors for their division vs. coming together.

I'm always intrigued by books about authors that examine the craft, and I love the slightly metafictional style BEACH READ took on at times. Not only are we reading a novel about two novelists of opposing genres who decide to tackle each other's styles, but we are ultimately reading a romance story from the perspective of a romance author. At times, January feels like Henry's mouthpiece, and it caused me as a reader to wonder how much of the story is autobiographical in the same way that January's story sometimes wanders into the autobiographical. It's January's catharsis, and one can't help but wonder if this is Henry's. As I mentioned, January had a bad habit of narrativising her life, but as readers we are literally reading the narrative of her life; and this allows Henry to knock on the fourth wall.

In summary: lovely, a dream, and exactly what I needed. Can't wait to read future romance releases from Henry.

Rating 4.5/5

January is spending the summer at her late father’s beach house. She is an author plagued with writers’ block that resulted from finding out her dad was having an affair whilst her mum battled cancer. Her dad has recently passed away and she is grieving his loss was trying whilst having conflicting feelings about him following the bombshell of his infidelity. Down on her luck she has little choice but to stay at the beach house he shared with his mistress. Things appear to only be getting worse when she realises Gus, her old college rival and fellow bestselling author (who writes literary fiction) is staying next door. Initially they get off to a rocking start but soon realise Gus is also suffering writers block. they decide to put their differences aside and switch genres whilst taking each other on various excursions for inspiration.

I think this is one of the most hyped books I have seen floating around online this year. Everyone loves it and I can honestly see why. It was such a sweet wholesome romance whilst tackling some tricky topics really well. The main arc of this story surrounds Gus and Janaury trying to write their next books. It was so much fun getting a peek into the world of authors and what goes into the books we read. Being someone who reads so much I have always wondered if authors who have written lots of books ever struggle to come up with new ideas or how they manage to keep books new and fresh and not fall into the trap of rehashing previous books. I really enjoyed the fact that we got an insight into the stories both Gus and January are writing. It was interesting to see how they took each other’s genres and wrote them but still added twist that stayed true to their own genres.

So let’s discuss the romantic part of Gus and Januarys relationship. It was sweet and in the style of enemies to lovers however I would say it’s fleeting enemies. They knew each other in college and didn’t get along and got off to a bumpy start when they met again but that does diminish quickly. They realise they are in a similar situation try to capitalise on that. They very quickly start spending time together where they take each other on trips they would usually take to research their own books. I thought this element was great and a real juxtaposition. January takes Gus to the funfair for example whilst Gus takes her to interview members who were once in a cult. As a side note I found this so interesting, I just find cults fascinating.

Quite soon these excursions go beyond their Friday/Saturday arrangement and they start to spend more and more time together doing couply things. What I liked about their romance was both had hesitations and there were bumps along the way, but I felt that once they were in, they were all in and I felt this was particularly the case with Gus. The book is told from January’s viewpoint so it feels she is more hesitant than he and doubts Gus’s desire to be with her, but I think as readers we can see how much Gus likes her. It was just lovely watching these two characters spending time together and falling for each other.

Before reading this book, I had seen several reviews that mention that this wasn’t just the hearts and flowers romance which I do agree with as it does tackle some tough issues. We have January talking about her mum’s cancer and Gus interviewing people a cult that have been through terrible abuse and loss. There is a part where Gus and January go to the burned-out remains of a cults camp and that was particularly hard to read. For me the most hard-hitting part was January dealing with her grief. She is so incredibly conflicted regarding her feelings towards her dad. She loved him dearly and had a close relationship with him but now feels it was all a lie because of his infidelity. There is a part at the end that had me welling up because it was just so sad and emotional.

I also love the setting of this book. I had such a clear picture in my head of the beach front houses Gus and January are staying in. It was also set in a small town and this just came together to give the book such a cosy vibe. I also really liked that they liked the characters of Pete and Maggie who run the local bookshop. They were so warm and welcoming to January and once again this just added to the small-town cosy vibe.

Overall, I really liked my time reading this book. The setting gave me such cosy vibes and the romance warmed my heart. We watch the characters go from enemies to friends to lovers. They had a fiery jovial back-and-forth relationship that worked so well but also shared some tender moments as they started to fall for each other. The fact they were both writers helping each other out of a writing slump added a nice unique element I hadn’t read before. It was just a lovely mix of romance and real-life emotions.

Looking back on my read list, I realised this was the first rom-com I had read in quite a while and it was a refreshing change (though it wasn't quite what I expected, but not in a bad way!).

What do you do when you have writers block (January), move into your recently deceased fathers secret love house, and discover that an old college acquaintance (Augustus aka Gus) lives next door and is also a writer? Well, you make a bet and swap genres of course!

This was my first book by Emily Henry and it was such an easy read from the off. Her writing and the storyline flowed really well - I enjoyed delving into a writers mind even though it was a fictional one, though I suppose she drew from her own experience! I actually felt like I wanted to read the book January was writing.

January and Gus's relationship developed at a good pace, from first realising who each other were, to being writing buddies, to becoming more than friends... There were a few mishaps and bumps in the road alongside some real laugh out loud moments. Gus's aunt and January's best friend certainly added to the laughs too!

The story didn't just focus on that relationship though; it was about January's realisition that her dad wasn't completely who she thought he was, and also discovering life & love from Gus's more bleak view rather than just hearts and roses like January. It all tied in well together, and I felt like it was a real journey of self discovery for both main characters.

January, a romance author, is gutted by the death of her father, although she never really forgave him for deserting her mother, so when he leaves her a beachfront house she decides to move in...... maybe that will help solve her writers block! Gus lives next door and is a literary writer who also has writers block and knew January at college and before they know it they have challenged each other to swap genres offering each other help along the way.

A lovely book very easy to read and great the way the characters gradually started to gel and organise outings to help each other to understand their genres and January gradually coming to terms with her family situation

January and Gus story had me rooting for them from the start. The story was heartwarming and uplifting if not a little predictable. Not 100% sure why the booked is titled 'Beach Read' as doesn't really have anything to do with beaches but maybe because its a spot on the type of book you would want to read on the beach.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

‘Beach Read’ is a funny, heartwarming book and it was really difficult to put down. The storyline was very engrossing and entertaining throughout and I found myself very invested in the characters.

The synopsis really doesn’t do this book justice, as I thought it would be a lot more light and cheesy but it turned out to be so much more than just a stereotypical romance novel.

‘Beach Read’ is very enjoyable and if you’re looking for a rom com which also highlights more serious issues, such as grief and infidelity, this book is for you.

I am a huge crime, thriller and suspense reader. But every now and then I have to introduce chic lit or something like in to my reading or I get bored. I was in a bit of a reading slump when I picked up this book.

This book was a huge welcomed distraction from the world right now. It made me laugh so much in places, but it also made me cry.

This book is the perfect definition of a rom com and truly has all the characteristics of a great one.

I absolutely love this book and was so glad that I chose to read this chic lit in my break!

A wonderful tale of finding love right under your nose! I relate so much to this story - I feel in love with my now husband, nearly 33 years ago but he went back to his first wife. In the intervening, 11 years we both married (his second wife, my first hubby). We found each other again on a night out and have been together for nearly 23 years, married for 20. We all have back stories; of happiness and sorrow and these are shown beautifully in the Beach Read. I was glued to it.

Never quite figured out why this novel was called ‘Beach Read’, because for me, it wasn’t a beach read, and it seemed to have to have nothing to do with beaches..
That said, I enjoyed reading it.
The heroine was called January. She thought it had a meaning for her parents, just as they told her about ‘her’ song – the one that was number one in the hit parade when she was born did. Only not so much.
And then here was her father – and his lake house and his mistress.
A complicated story with high emotions at times and good writing style and believable characters.