Happy place is the perfect mix of Beach Read, People We Meet On Vacation and Book Lovers. There is the banter of Book Lovers, a similar structure as You and Me on Vacation and the melancholy and nostalgia of Beach read. The one thing that has not changed is Emily Henry’s ability to capture emotions, you will giggle, cry, scream, laugh hysterically and then cry some more (hysterically, because let’s be real this book is beautifully painful). You will relate to the characters and be surprised of how seen you feel.

Here Emily Henry decided to dip into the ex to lovers trope, and as a person who is not the biggest enthusiast of second chance romances I was a bit scared, but I knew I trusted Emily Henry enough to get myself into it. Let me tell you, I was blown away of how much she made the romance believable to me, we actually root for these characters, Harriet and Wyn, to find their way back to each other, we actually believe how much they care for one another, I fell in love with them as characters and as a couple, it was a joy to read this slow burn and to discover how we ended in this place and how to move forward.

As usual, Emily Henry writes characters we could actually find in our own lives, we all know a Wyn or an Harriet, we all had a group of friends like the one in this novel, they even feel like family at the end of the book, it is a beautiful story about love wether it is friendship, romance or found family.

This book is a roller coaster of emotions, and gives us many definitions of a happy place.

Harriet and Wyn are the perfect couple - aside from the fact they aren't actually together anymore. Ever since college, they've been the power couple everyone has aspired to be; sweet, supportive, successful.

But as Harriets yearly trip with her best friends draws closer, they still haven't talked about the real reason they broke up, or even told anyone. They're not ready to break their friends hearts, or their own, so when Wyn is unexpectedly invited to their trip, they give themselves this last week of sunshine and sea before their lives change for good.

They just need to make it through a few more days and they can stop pretending - but they've both been pretending for a lot longer than they'd like to admit, and now it's time to get real.

"I know this place, even if I can't name it. I know that I'm safe, that I belong."

Witty, wise and wonderful - Emily Henry does it again with this charmingly beautiful and heartfelt story about love in all its messy, painful and amazing glory for this second-chance romance.

Harriet and Wyn were enchanting - so evocative and relatable, invoking so many feelings about how love can shape our lives even after it ends. Harriet was an anxious but determined surgical resident who's more of a 'slow release' kind of hot, and even though Wyn is almost her opposite as a smooth and suave ranch boy, they compliment each other. As we learn about their relationship today, and in the past, we watch as they grow together but also grow as their own people - but we're left waiting to learn about the one moment in their relationship they won't talk about - the end. I felt so invested in them, wondering whether the end of the story would be the end of them, or the start of something new. This book made me think about the endings I've experienced, the good and the bad, and the bittersweet ones that paved the way for a beginning.

The supporting characters in this story were delightful - strong, individual, so very real women who spoke their minds, made mistakes, set boundaries without apologies - Harriets best friends made me glow with warmth and I loved seeing the open love and affection between them. These relationships were shown as just as important as any romantic one, and they grow and change just like Harriet and Wyn.

The setting was absolutely stunning - I felt the sea breeze on my face and the sun on my skin and felt transported to my own happy place. This entire book felt personal and cosy, flowing seamlessly from chapter to chapter, switching between the past and present to give us a picture of the past, but also to help us figure out what the future might hold.

Full of utterly brilliant mishaps and mistakes that can only happen in a romcom, thoughtful reflections on love and a dose of playful humour; this book was a lot of laughs and quite a few years. As always, this reminded me that reading a beautiful story is my own happy place.

Wow oh wow! this was one of my most anticipated reads for 2023 and it did not disappoint! Emily Henry, you are a queen. Not only did this book make me laugh out loud but it also made me sob. I am in love with the characters and all the side characters, feel like I need novellas of the besties just to fill my heart even more! This is going to be the top book of the year, I can feel it!!

‘I’m saying,” he murmurs softly, “it’s not home unless you’re there.”

Harriet and Wyn were the perfect couple living the American dream, until the moment they weren’t. Now they are living a lie. They broke up six months ago and still havnt told their best friends.

Harriet has been looking forward to her friends annual week away and finally coming clean when Wyn appears at the cottage and they find themselves pretending they are still together, normally in the single beds room they decide they can do it, until they end up in the largest room with one big bed.

They all try to have the best time, sticking to routine but somethings different this year. Harriet is unhappier than ever, job baring too much and the normally quiet persona begins to show cracks. With one crack comes more and quickly the holiday starts to crumble around them.

A story of love, laughs, friendships, struggles and growing apart. Life changes and so do people, but it’s about sticking around for the people that matter and making time for them.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to review this one early. I loved it, it has that unique Henry storyline with characters and friendships you simply adore. Once I started I couldn’t put it down.

Another great book by Emily Henry. I loved the created family. I enjoyed the woven love story interwoven with the friends weekend.

My God I love Emily Henry. Every book of hers I absolutely race through, even though I want to savour every page. The most glorious, happy making novel. I loved it. I hope Emily keeps writing a book a year FOREVER.

I LOVE Emily Henry. Honestly she is one of my automatic purchase authors. I didn't even know what this book was about before I preordered it. I have endless faith in her writing and she has never disappointed. This book was absolutely beautiful. I sat down and read the entire thing in one sitting. It was such a heart warming story. I was so worried that these two characters weren't going to find their way back to one another after everything they had been through. The loveable band of characters that make up the found family are also brilliant. I loved how different they all were while perfectly fitting together. It was exactly the kind of story I needed. I will be recommending this book to everyone that asks for reading suggestions. Outstanding.

Emily Henry has done it again! I absolutely adored this, raced through it in two days. As with all her other books, Henry has a knack for getting you hooked from the first page. I thought the relationship between Wyn and Harriet had more depth, and darker sides, than her earlier novels which I really enjoyed, and I thought the supporting characters were strong too. This is going to be a big hit i'm sure.

Emily Henry has done it again! New year, new romance trope fulfilled with expertise in the pen of Henry! Love this ex-lovers to lovers trope, and really liked the Summer setting! An amazing read to transport me to Summer instead of the Winter in the UK.

Emily Henry does not miss.
I LOVED this book. It’s the perfect combination of a fun summer read that manages to explore some tense themes that make it so enjoyable to read.

Henry explores grief, heartbreak, and the complications that come with growing apart from old friends. Under the disguise of a romance novel, this is a a guide book for achieving self-acceptance and ultimately self-love. I really, really enjoyed this and I’m so grateful to NetGalley for the arc.

I’m a huge Emily Henry fan but it felt like this book was a step up, even for her. I was a bit apprehensive because I don’t love a second-chance romance trope but here it was handled beautifully- you still got all the heat, all the slow-burn but also a depth of feeling that made this something special. The romance element was wonderful, but I think the exploration of friendship was even better. I adored the setting and the nostalgia, it was giving me Judy Blume Summer Sisters vibes which is the highest compliment! I laughed, I cried, my heart was warmed. The perfect escape from reality.

At its core, ‘Happy Place’ is a story about found family. The people that make you feel that little bit braver, who make you feel like your insides are made of glitter. The people you can sit with, with no pretence, the people who see all of you and make you better for it. This book made me feel full in a way that exceeds the word wholesome. It was bursting with life and love in all its complexities.

The setting was gorgeous and the characters were loveable, rich, and complex. The dynamics of this friendship group should be studied, and I am processing my paperwork to join this group in their cottage as we speak.

All of Henry’s books have a distinct feel to them, this was no different with its amalgamation of melancholy and warmth. Though this time around the distance between the two felt wider and making 'Happy Place' feel deeper than her other bodies of work. I had such a profound feeling of hopefulness and serenity after finishing this book and I truly wanted the best for all of these characters, the resolution was fantastic!

In the words of Gus Everrett, Henry manages to “make[s] the world seem brighter, and the people in it a little braver.” I have a sneaky suspicion that this book will be even better upon a reread and am very much looking forward to April 25th.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Another great Emily Henry novel! I was immediately invested in all of the characters and their beautiful lives together! The imagery was really vivid. I felt myself wishing I could be in the places they were in! I highly recommend!

Where do I start... I'M OBSESSED. I screamed when I saw I got the opportunity to read this before its release. What can I say about the book besides saying it's AMAZING. Emily Henry will never disappoint. I was already captivated by the first few pages and I couldn't put it down. She has such an incredible way to narrate stories that it makes you feel like it's your friend telling you something. It's fun, it's romantic, it's cute, it's everything you would expect from Emily Henry. Don't get me started on the characters. I LOVE them. This is probably my favourite book she's written. What a masterpiece. Please do yourself a favour and go grab a copy!!

Really loved the book! Had the same sarcastic romantic vibes that book lovers had and really was able to fit a story of a ten year relationship into a short book. I did feel like the ending was rushed and I would have like to seen a bit more of these two together. Book lovers was a 5/5 and this was a 4/5.

In Emily Henry’s best romance novel yet, we follow exes Harriet and Wyn. Despite being broken up for six months, they’re forced to reunite on an annual holiday with their best friends who have no clue. After years of being in love, how hard will it be to fake it?

Despite its slow start, Happy Place more than makes up for it. With not only a strong hero and heroine, Henry doesn’t skip out on her side characters. They are fully developed, equally as flawed and just as loveable. This novel is not just about romance, but about found family and friendship, forgiveness and finding yourself.

Although romance can be great for escapism, Happy Place worked so well for me because it felt so deeply rooted in reality. Our main characters were relatable, and their conflicts plausible and compelling. I found parts of myself reflected here, which is not something I can say often about romance novels.

There is humour and heart in equal measure. Henry explores grief and mental health with maturity and grace. It’s not to say romance novels don’t have value when they’re just light-hearted, but I often got the sense that what I was reading was truly important.

Happy Place highlighted to me how Henry gets her prose just right. Romantic, bold, heartfelt, but never too farfetched. This has become one of my top romances for sure.

I’m going to be super cheesy and say that Emily Henry books are a Happy Place for me.

Her writing is flawless, the banter in witty and the characters are the perfect blend of fictional traits.

The overall message that I received from this book is that YOU are responsible for your own happiness. It can’t solely come from another person or place, it is about the choices you make for yourself. And I really love that message.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the all-consuming romance of a book that we forget that the love we have within ourselves is just as, if not, more important than the one we have with anyone else.

One thing that I’m not a super big fan of is second chance romance and particularly when miscommunication/lack of communication is a major factor.

While not my favourite Emily book, Happy Place proved to be a page-turning read that left me smiling.

I absolutely fell in love with this book and its characters....All the stars :) Utterly sweet and romantic, a perfect story about friendship and finding what makes one happy.

Every book by Emily Henry as been such a treat for me. She keeps surprising me with original plots, incredible and relatable characters and unforgetable settings. In Happy Place we travel to Maine to a very special cottage where a group of friends has met yearly for the last decade. As you can imagine, the four walls of this cottage have seen it all: bonds forming, bonds breaking, love, laughs, tears... but above all friendship. Unfortunately, the cottage is being sold so this is the last trip this group of friends will ever meet again there. The fear they all have is if they will ever meet again at all, as the years have taken them in very different directions.

I loved the dynamics between the friends and how they had evolved over the years. But the real show-stopper was the friendship turned love story between Harriet and Wyn. I absolutely fell in love with their story. We learned about them little by little, moment by moment, and we got to really understand them. I think the character development during the story for these characters was outstanding. And I couldn't have loved discovering their story more.

If you have loved Emilly Henry's stories before, then you are going to enjoy this immensely. It has her very special touch that makes you laugh at the most silly situations and shed a tear or two at the most heartbreaking ones. And if you haven't discovered her books yet, you are in for a real treat. Highly recommended!

I don't want to make everyone jealous- but I think that this is Emily Henry's best yet! I was hooked from the start and very happy Netgalley gave me the opportunity to read this particular gem in advance.

I think it was mainly the two protagonists-Harriet and Wyn- who made me so glad to get my hands on this advance copy, but the overall plot and all its other characters were pretty great too. Especially the switch between the two eras- when the two love birds met in college and the present day when they were very much no longer together worked really well.