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A review by sarah_who_reads
Book Lovers by Emily Henry
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The backstory of this book is delightful: Emily Henry wanted to write a story about the uptight woman in New York in a Hallmark Channel-style romance, who gets dumped when her boyfriend gets sent by his job to rural America and meets a small-town girl who's trying to save the family business. Nora is the woman in New York: she works in publishing, never cries, organizes everything for both herself and her sister, and is, indeed, pretty uptight. When her sister, Libby, begs her to come on a road trip to the sleepy North Carolina town where Nora's client's best-selling book is set, Nora reluctantly agrees, only to arrive and immediately run into her nemesis, Charlie Lastra, the editor who rejected the same best-selling book. It's a romance, so you know where this goes, but the premise alone should be enough to suck you in.
I liked this book for a lot of the reasons I like all of Emily Henry's books: there's travel; the sub-plot revolves deals with grief in an authentic way that resonates a lot with me; the protagonists have sizzling chemistry. However, I do wonder how long it will take for Henry to write some people of color into her books. Like, is she nervous about writing outside her own experience? Can she not get some beta readers? These are my more generous interpretations of why there are no people of color in the book; I hope she remedies this issue in the next book. Also, for me personally, sickeningly-sweet or close sister relationships feel inauthentic and I thus find them rather off-putting (especially Libby called Nora "Sissy" - gag), but maybe others are totally here for this.
I liked this book for a lot of the reasons I like all of Emily Henry's books: there's travel; the sub-plot revolves deals with grief in an authentic way that resonates a lot with me; the protagonists have sizzling chemistry. However, I do wonder how long it will take for Henry to write some people of color into her books. Like, is she nervous about writing outside her own experience? Can she not get some beta readers? These are my more generous interpretations of why there are no people of color in the book; I hope she remedies this issue in the next book. Also, for me personally, sickeningly-sweet or close sister relationships feel inauthentic and I thus find them rather off-putting (especially Libby called Nora "Sissy" - gag), but maybe others are totally here for this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
Moderate: Pregnancy