Dear Netflix, please make a movie out of Beach Read STAT. When you do, the little infinite romance squad is here to help you with casting.
I am so in love with this novel that I’m almost afraid to write about it, lest my words detract from its perfection. What I most want to say is drop whatever you’re doing and read it now. I’m sure your boss or SO will be understanding.
Emily Henry is a fantastic writer and has two BOTM selections to prove it. Beach Read is the first, and People We Meet on Vacation, the second. Back-to-back BOTM selections are the author equivalent of winning Oscars for two films in a row.
Beach Read is the story of January Andrews, a successful romance author who finds herself mired in grief and writer’s block following the loss of her father and the revelation that her parent’s marriage was not the fairy tale she’d always believed it to be. When the book opens, January has moved into a home in Northern Michigan, left to her by her father, to focus on delivering her next manuscript.
January’s next-door neighbor turns out to be fellow writer, former college classmate, and competitor Gus Everett. Gus writes literary fiction and seems to look down his nose at stories with a happy ending.
Yes, January and Gus go on to have an adorable relationship because…romance. There is so much more here, though – commentary about how we perceive various genres, friendship, grief. The banter between January and Gus is possibly the best I’ve ever read, romance novel or otherwise.
Did I mention that I am madly in love with this book? You will be too, I promise.
Find Beach Read at your favorite retailer.
Want more romance reads? Get the best love and romance novel recommendations, handpicked by our experienced editor, straight to your inbox each week. Sign up for little infinite’s Romance Newsletter, here.
