Beach Read: The feel-good rom com to add to the top of your summer reading list from the Sunday Times bestselling romance author

Emily Henry

May 2020 · Penguin UK

About this eBook

Two writers. One holiday. A romcom waiting to happen...

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'One of my favourite authors' Colleen Hoover, It Ends With Us
'A great love story' Jodi Picoult, Wish You Were Here
'The perfect escapist romp' Laura Jane Williams, One Night With You

January is a hopeless romantic who narrates her life like she's the lead in a blockbuster movie.

Gus is a serious literary type who thinks true love is a fairy-tale.

But January and Gus have more in common than you'd think:

They're both broke.
They've got crippling writer's block.
And they need to write bestsellers before summer ends.

The result? A bet to swap genres and see who gets published first.
The risk? In telling each other's stories, their worlds might be changed entirely...

Set over one sizzling summer, Beach Read is a witty love story that will make you laugh a lot, cry a little and fall head over heels. For fans of The Flat Share and If I Never Met You.

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'My heart ached for January, and Gus is to die for - a steamy, smart and perceptive romance' Josie Silver, One Night on the Island

'Full of banter, heat, and sexual tension, I felt the thrill of falling in love right alongside January and Gus. A gorgeous page-turner of a novel' Laura Jane Williams, One Night With You

'Funny, and seriously sizzling' Best

'If whipcrack banter and sexual tension is your catnip, you'll adore this book' Sally Thorne, The Hating Game

'Touching and heartfelt . . . I closed this book with a satisfied sigh' Jasmine Guillory, While We Were Dating

'Clever and funny, this is a tender love story' Woman & Home

Ratings and reviews

**spoilers ahead loves!** I was not planning to read this book anytime soon, but I am so glad I did! I loved how the story revolved around losing a loved one and living with grief. It is such a complex thing. There are no simple answers. January was so relatable in that sense, all the emotions she was grappling with while trying to deal with her dad's death, and so was Augustus with the way he perceived the world to be due to his experiences. Ironically, that was the kind of book I was trying to avoid. But I needed it this month, and this book gave me exactly that. I loved how they swapped genres through a bet! That was honestly so exciting, and I was more invested in those moments of them trying to write a book in each other's genres (that was such a creative and clever idea!) than the romance bits that involved a lot of touching. (I am not complaining about that. 😂😭) Nevertheless, Emily Henry never fails to amaze me. She writes so beautifully! I love her writing style. This wins!

This is a very pleasant summer read, but I can't help but feel it wasn't quite what I was expecting; it is a bit over-hyped for my liking. January and Gus find themselves living next-door to each other. Both writers, both struggling with their next novel, they agree to swap genres and see who get published first. As they are thrown together, we find out all about them, both together and separately; what will the summer bring? There is no doubt that this is a well-written and entertaining novel - and one I thoroughly enjoyed. However, due to the huge number of quotes attributed to it, I expected something with more of a 'wow' factor. I generally get caught up in novels very easily but the laugh-out-loud and tearful moments sort of passed me by with this one. It's a lovely read - and I wouldn't like to put anyone off reading - but for me it just lacked that something extra. Having said all that, I'm sure others will love it (I'm often out of step) and I'm very happy to give it four stars.

I wasn't too sure about this book when I first started it, but it didn't take me long to get into it and I ended up really enjoying it. I loved the banter between the two main characters, January especially was very amusing. January is a romance writer and is back in her recently deceased Dad's hometown, clearing out his house which has been left to her, before selling it. Of course nothing it quite as it seems as she never even knew he owned a house there and there was another woman involved in her Dad's life that she didn't know about - although her Mother did (but won't talk about it). So her parents life as she knew it isn't quite as January had thought. Gus is also a writer, but much darker books, and lives next door. January and Gus went to college together and were slight rivals, also skirting around a slight attraction, but nothing much happened at that time. So eventually, both struggling with writers block, they help each other, whilst navigating their new relationship and getting closer, along with sorting out personal issues with family, all in a small town setting. Very emotional at times, but also very funny in parts. I especially loved January's character, she was very funny, not afraid to say what she thought most of the time. I must admit I'm really not sure why it's called 'Beach Read' though, they are on the edge of a beach and do visit it once or twice, but it's really nothing to do with a beach, the cover is quite misleading. But that aside it was a very enjoyable, funny, emotional book with some great characters and dialogue.

About the author

Emily Henry is the author of the butterfly-inducing romantic comedies Beach Read, You & Me on Vacation, Book Lovers and Happy Place, all of which were New York Times bestsellers, with Book Lovers and Happy Place being Sunday Times bestsellers. She studied creative writing at Hope College and now lives and writes in the American Midwest. Funny Story is her fifth novel.