No one should be surprised, I wasn’t, that Emily Henry has done it again with Book Lovers. It is published and available on the 11th of May in the UK and is one not to be missed.
Book Lovers is Emily’s next romance book hitting the shelves in 2022, delivering sweet romance with interesting and layered characters. I am so thankful, and pleased, to have received an ARC from Penguin in exchange for an honest book review.
Book Lovers Blurb
One summer. Two rivals. A plot twist they didn’t see coming…
Nora is a cut-throat literary agent at the top of her game. Her whole life is books. Charlie is an editor with a gift for creating bestsellers. And he’s Nora’s work nemesis.
Nora has been through enough breakups to know she’s the woman men date before they find their happy-ever-after. That’s why Nora’s sister has persuaded her to swap her desk in the city for a month’s holiday in Sunshine Falls, North Carolina. It’s a small town straight out of a romance novel, but instead of meeting sexy lumberjacks, handsome doctors or cute bartenders, Nora keeps bumping into… Charlie.
She’s no heroine. He’s no hero. So can they take a page out of an entirely different book?
My Thoughts On Book Lovers
Mini-Plot Breakdown
Nora is in her thirties, giving up on romance, focusing on her career as a literary agent and doing the most to support her sister, Libby. Complex and emotional, she hides behind a thick front to avoid getting hurt which often has her dubbed as cold and withdrawn. But, this couldn’t be further from the truth. Nora may be one of my favourite characters Henry has written to date, having found so many similar qualities when Nora begins to let us in.
Enter Charlie. Immediately, I was rooting for Nora and Charlie. While they don’t get off on the right start in New York, when Nora ends up in a small town—which happens to be where he grew up, things develop quickly. They’re snarky, full of banter and also flirtatious as hell. But, Nora has a list to complete set out by her sister Libby, who wishes to get away and do something fun with her sister before baby number three comes along. This list involves many tropes which needed to be ticked off, something any romance reader will love.
Feelings & Thoughts
While it’s clear who the romantic relationship will be between, the way it unfolds made me grin. Neither Charlie nor Nora really wishes to really investigate the emotions they’re feeling, even when both of them can’t stop thinking of the other. They find themselves in mini trope situations or anti-trope situations, while the heat, passion and affection are bubbling away. You feel it all between them, even without physically seeing it—that’s how good Henry’s writing is.
In Book Lovers, one of my favourite things about them is that they’re their own people, but they’re also two halves who make a hole. While neither of them ever needs the other, they want them. Both of them are flawed, with sharp edges than are softened when they’re around one another.
I read once that sunflowers always orient themselves to face the sun. That’s what being near Charlie Lastra is like for me.
Book Lovers, Emily Henry (arc edition)
This quote above had me grinning when I read it, and had to make the cut for the book review. It’s one that has stuck out for me since finishing. It’s in these lines you really fall in love with Henry’s writing and the relationships she crafts. Especially when these characters have really been put through the wringer, as well as never feeling they quite fit in where people expect them to.
While the ending may be predictable, I was here for it. It brought tears to my eyes and had me wanting to wiggle my legs in happiness. All of the characters find a special place each for themselves, with a cute, fluffy and joyful ending.
Book Lover Rating
When it came to writing Book Lovers book review, I had to listen to my instinct. Even just partway through Book Lovers, I was already in love. Head over heels, in fact. For me, every time Nora and Charlie interacted, I was grinning.
So, before I even finished, I knew this was going to be up there as my book of the year. There was no other rating than 5 out of 5 for me.
The pacing was well executed, never lingering in one place too long. The relationships were all well-executed, and the ending was the perfect way to wrap up the story. I was especially impressed with Henry’s layering of the characters, especially Libby and Nora, because their bond is so much more than we first understand on the first page.
I’ve been a huge fan of Emily Henry’s since Beach Read, and I knew as soon as it came out about a third book, I needed to get my hands on it. A huge thanks, once again, to NetGalley and Penguin for allowing me to delve into Henry’s words earlier. I’m in love. And, I can’t wait to get my hands on my physical copy in 11 days.
You can pre-order a Waterstones signed edition here (AFF)
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