If you weren’t already aware, I adore books about books. I don’t know why. I’ve heard some people complain about such books, saying they’re lazy writing or not interesting, but I am drawn to them.
Give me books about bookshops, books about writers, and anything in between. I’ll take a chance on it.
So when I see this title, Book Lovers by Emily Henry at my local Barnes & Noble. I absolutely pick it up to read the back, I’m hooked, and it’s quickly tucked under my arm until checkout time.
Once I cracked it open, there was no putting it down.
This will be a spoiler free review
Book Blurb
Nora Stephen’s life is books – she’s read them all – and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laid-back dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom she lands enormous deals as a cutthroat literary agent, and her beloved little sister, Libby.
Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina, for the month of August when Libby begs her for a sisters’ trip away – with visions of a small-town transformation for Nora, who she’s convinced needs to become the heroine in her own story. But instead of picnics in meadows or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish, brooding editor from back in the city. It wold be a meet-cute, if not for the fact that they’ve met many times and it’s never been cute.
If Nora knows she’s not an ideal heroine, Charlie knows he’s nobody’s hero, but as they are thrown together again and again – in a series of coincidences no editor worth their salt wold allow – what they discover might just unravel the carefully crafted stories they’ve written about themselves.
Book Lovers by Emily Henry
What I Loved
The Banter
I have so many little post-it tabs in this book, most of them pink for scenes and things I loved. They made me smile, they made me laugh…hell, they made me giggle I’ll admit it.
The banter, in this book was top-notch in my opinion.
And it’s not just between Nora and Charlie, but between Nora and her sister Libby. But as smooth and natural as it seemed with these characters, there indeed times where it came off as awkward when it needed to be.
If this doesn’t get made into a movie, I’m going to be sorely disappointed. Because many of these banter scenes would play out so well, and translate amazingly to the silver-screen. But that’s my opinion.
“Good point. I’m sure that’s never happened. But just you wait until one of your authors turns in a book about an amber-eyed asshole editor.”
“Amber-eyed?” he says.
“I notice you didn’t question the asshole part of that sentence,” I say, and chug some more.
Book Lovers by Emily Henry, pg. 83
Unapologetically City Girl
I couldn’t begin to tell you how many Hallmark movies (okay, they’re not all Hallmark but it does have the formula down) and romance novels, have the MC (Main Character) be from the city or city equivalent. Then they get a summons of some sort, death in the family, reunion of some sort, fleeing some humiliation, and end up back in their home town or equivalent. There they reunite with an old flame, someone who bullied them in school, etc, and fall in love and decide that they have also fallen in love with the small town lifestyle.
But what if you loved the city? You can’t tell me absolutely everyone shares this dream, this romance trope. What if you got out into the middle of nowhere and you still missed the city lights and sounds. What if after weeks you still hadn’t fallen in love? With anyone or the place?
Our MC, Nora, loves New York. In fact she paints such a picture (as most movies and novels tend to do) of this bustling place full of possibilities I was even fantasizing for a bit, and I hate traffic and being surrounded by people.
It was so refreshing, to read about someone who actually liked – no – loved where they were from. No apologies.
Can you imagine living anywhere else? Mom used to say.
I couldn’t.
Book Lovers by Emily Henry, pg. 38
A Good Twist
This novel, has an excellent twist. I like to think I have a pretty good eye for where a story is going, movie or book, doesn’t matter. But I didn’t see where this one was going until it was too late.
Smacked me right in the face, and I was happy if I’m being honest, that I hadn’t been right.
I’d had a theory in the beginning, and it changed slightly in the middle as more details are given out, hinted. Then when it was revealed, totally floored me. Made sense, but still wasn’t what I was expecting.
So kudos to Emily Henry for surprising me. I raise a glass to your talents 🍷
The Ending
I can’t really go into much detail here. But suffice it to say it did not go exactly how you’d expect. It was how I was hoping it would go though, and that thrilled me that an idea was followed through, so thoroughly. I had a theory about the ending, and that did happen, but not exactly how I thought it would, and that made it better.
Ending was a chef’s kiss in my opinion. So refreshing!
What I Didn’t Love
The Epilogue
It wasn’t bad, but it didn’t need to be there.
It was a different perspective than the rest of the story and it did kind of give me that Hallmark-y vibe. It didn’t add anything to the story. We had already achieved closure, so it felt unnecessary.
The novel already has a Prologue, it didn’t need an Epilogue on top of that wonderful ending.
In Closing
This book, was in a single word: Refreshing
I loved our MC, Nora. She was so unlike a lot, a lot, of the other MCs I’ve read about in other contemporary romances. I loved her relationship with Libby and Charlie. Banter was excellent, devoured it. And it was just an awesome read as a whole.
Drop off that Epilogue and it would be perfection for a girl like me who loves books about books.
I gave Book Lovers by Emily Henry
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Until Next Time,
