I’d seen the hype all over social media about this so I had high expectations but unfortunately it just didn’t live up to the expectations for me .
The bright summery cover indicates a summer beach / rom com sort of read but I it’s actually a lot more poignant and dark and not really very beachy !
The characters are likeable and I did like their banter but I felt it was just very drawn out .

I kept seeing this book being advertised on my newsfeed so I decided to give it a read and I'm glad I did.

It's not your typical predicable romance, I had expected a light read but it was actually quite a deep story that was moving and emotional. I think the fact that it wasn't what I expected is why I enjoyed it so much.

It made me laugh and cry and I loved it!

Look. I've been saying lately that romance novels between two heterosexual people might not be my thing anymore but here we are.
I really liked this book. I don't know if it was because the two main characters were writers and I love anything centered on writing or just that it was so well written and well done, with complex and layered characters.
I'm a sucker for character-focused novels, especially in romances. That makes all the difference to me.
This really gripped me from beginning to end and I felt everything.
Yes, with all that raving, you'd think I'd have rated this more than four stars, ut I don't know, I still had something missing. Could not tell you what anymore though. I mean, I read this over a month ago, I'm too old to remember it well.

This book made me cry! Once I started Beach Read, I couldn't stop. The plot was amazing. Emily Henry has such a talent. She managed to write of a blossoming romance with the subplots of cancer, betrayal, dysfunctional families and their secrets. One of my favourite things from the book was the witty dialogue between January and Gus. The main characters felt so realistic. I could not hold back the tears when the novel shows how January's father felt about his daughter. Such an intense and heart shattering father and daughter relationship. This book was just absolutely captivating. I love how it dealt with hard topics but still left you feeling satisfied with the ending.

Given all the hype on social media about this title, my expectations for it were high. Unfortunately, I realized within the first few chapters that it wasn't for me. It is targeted at a very specific audience: women under 35 who either live in the USA or at least understand the culture and vernacular of the country. As a 60 year-old Brit, that doesn't include me.

The story has an intriguing premise and a nicely developed plot as well as likable characters. It's funny and also deeply poignant in places. But I just couldn't find a way into it. I didn't understand the writing style, and many of the social and cultural references flew right over my head. Thankfully, I was reading it on my Kindle and could easily look up everything that baffled me. But that's no way to enjoy a book.

My reading tastes are varied: from YA and chicklit through to women's, literary and historical fiction, crime, suspense and psychological thrillers. This is my first encounter with a supposedly mainstream novel that I simply don't "get". I felt frustrated all the way through and finished it decidedly underwhelmed.

I do see why it would appeal to the right demographic, though, and I would probably recommend it with that caveat. For me personally, though, it fell far short of expectations .

This book centres around authors January and Augustus (Gus). I feel my review is a little harsh, but the cover and description are really inaccurate. I was expecting a summery, light hearted romcom, but felt the book was pretty dark at times.

I didn’t connect with the characters, which always makes it difficult for me to really enjoy the book. I also felt some of the writing was quite long winded and drawn out.

I honestly think this is my issue as the book has so many great reviews.

Thank you NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book 📚

Augustus and January are both authors, who used to go to college together. Both are struggling to write their latest books and take themselves off to retreat - coincidentally to the same beachfront location. A nice read, but maybe a bit too long and drawn out, but would recommend.

This book was honestly so different to what I was expecting from the cover and blurb. To me the cover screams light-hearted, easy going beachy rom-com but the story actually feels a lot darker than that (and it really wasn’t very beachy?).

The first 100 pages were great. I had a number of laugh out loud moments which very rarely happens to me when I’m reading so I loved that!
However, I found as the book progresses the mood felt a little all over the place. I loved the witty banter between Gus and January at the start but then there were some really dark themes which I felt didn’t really fit. At times I felt like it could be that cute rom-com I was expecting and then it would seem super dark and depressing.

I think if you go into reading Beach Read expecting something a little darker than the cover suggests you may really enjoy it.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for this ebook review copy.

Before I give my two cents on this book, I must admit that me and romantic fiction don't always get on. I am a little too cynical to fully appreciate it, I think, but I am trying to change that. You overcome your fears by facing them so I am overcoming my judgement and literary snobbery around romance novels by reading them. A ton of them. What better way to spend quarantine?

Meet 29-year-old January Andrews. She is a romantic fiction writer who has just arrived in the small town of North Bear Shores, and her baggage is of the emotional variety. Her father died a year ago but she still hasn't gotten over that or the shocking news she received at the funeral: that he was cheating on her mother for years and lived with another woman in the very beach house January now stands in. On top of everything else, January is broke and facing writer's block, owing to the fact that she no longer believes in the happily ever afters that have dominated the storylines of her books.

Enter Augustus Everett, darling of literary fiction and, coincidentally, January's college rival. Gus lives in the beach house next door and is hoarding emotional baggage of his own. One afternoon, the pair decide to set each other a challenge with the hope of reawakening their literary genius: January must write the next Great American novel while Gus tackles romantic fiction. Our pair spend the summer together, going on 'educational' outings that include a local carnival (major The Notebook flashbacks) and the burned-down, dilapidated remnants of a former cult (charming). Through the process of writing and spending time with each other, the pair process their respective grief and loss, lightening the load of their baggage as they go.

I can say with great certainty Beach Read will be one of this summer's most popular reads. For me, it lost a little of its sparkle after the 50% mark and the characters felt like ones I have met before (the character of Shani, January's friend, was particularly hollow), but it is still a very enjoyable book. I liked the witty banter between January and Gus, the enemies-to-lovers storyline, the background family drama and the small-town charm. Overall, it is a fairly heartfelt novel about taking chances in life and love, and learning that 'happy for now' is just as good as 'happily ever after'.

I really, really enjoyed this, but I think the title does it a disservice.

It suggests a novel of fluff and not much else, but like most rom-coms, it’s smart and funny and really digs into love, family and friendship in a way that is constantly undermined by readers outside of the genre.

A delightful and amusing read. I have to admit this was right up my alley because I love anything that deals with writers and the publishing business.
The plot is apparently simple, two writers that start off as "enemies" and have contrasting approaches to life. The wonderful thing about the book is that it actually faces a lot more that just romance, it deal with grief, friendship, resentment and the fear that comes with being in love and in spite of this, it still manages to be a light read that you can pick up and put down whenever you want so it's perfect for you even if you don't usually read romance.
I gave it four stars out of five because it's just what I never knew I wanted from a "beach read".
I really hope you enjoy this book as much as I did!

When I first saw this cover I thought I was getting in to a light, rom com beach read so don’t let it deceive you, whilst it is those things it also covers topics that are much deeper.

The story centres around January, a romance writer that no longer believes in love or happy ever afters and Augustus who writes literacy fiction. They went to school together, however they haven’t seen each other in many years and find themselves living next to each other.

Overall it was more of an ok read for me and not one I loved, I think it was a case of it’s me and not you. The only thing I can put it down to is I was expecting quite a different read and I didn’t connect with the lead characters.

I did enjoy the beach side setting and seeing the relationship develop between January and Augustus. It gave me a range of emotions times and at times had me laughing out loud and was heartbreaking and sad at others.

I want to thank Penguin UK and Netgalley for generously providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review.

Rating : 3.5
Lovely light read. Most of us went into this book expecting the next The Flatshare.
What to love:
- writers going from enemies to lovers
- writers with writing blocks
- writers swapping genres (romance and literary fic in this case) and trying to write a manuscript on a dare
- book clubs not going as planned
- handsome guy, beautiful girl, in love, as all romance books do

What bothered me?
- many loopholes. For example how did they write so fast and edit and publish in the middle of so many problems.
- actually wanted more of writing scenes than talking scenes.
But no big complaints. I really enjoyed the book. And plus points for cute names like January and Augustus.
Read this as a light breather and don't overthink and you'll enjoy it.

To start with my 3 start rating is based in my opinions as an individual not enjoying the Romance genre at the moment.. there could have been a time in which I would have probably given the 5 roaring stars.

My thoughts... Well the book was enjoyable and had it's funny moments. It was easy to read and great if you are looking for a light, feel good book. It gave me the feeling of a YA Book ( if we remove the steamy parts 🤭)

Also the ending was very neat, and of course it was a love story so it deserved a happy ending. But I would have wanted it to be a little bit messy.

Maybe.. this will be an unpopular opinion.
I know this book is loved by many. So I'm not trying to discourage anyone of reading it.. if you love Romance, absolutely GO FOR IT!

For the last few months, I've been seeing reviews about this book everywhere. On instagram, goodreads, twitter and even some facebook groups I'm in! So when I saw there was going to be a heatwave, I thought it would be the perfect time to read this book.

From reading reviews, I knew it wouldn't be a cute fluffy book to read on holiday which I found quite refreshing!

For the first 30% I didn't enjoy this book and wondered why so many people loved this so much and I just couldn't stand the hype but after the chapters at the movie drive thru 😉 I began to love both characters and soon after that I couldn't put the book down and wanted to find out what happened next.



I loved the small parts where they go to each other planned days/nights out for their book research and the bits where they was sitting at the desks writing each other notes!



I also find it clever for the author to write a storyline/book where the main character is also planning a story but this book had two stories to make up and I kept wondering how complicated I'd find that!



Anyone if you haven't read this book yet, it's currently 99p and for only a limited time! Amazon



I never normally think abut the questions at the end of the book but I thought I'd answer some of them. I'd love to hear your answers too!

What traditional romance tropes do you see used in Beach Read? Past lovers, neighbours and frenemies to lovers
If you could visit one setting from the book, with one of the characters, whom and where would you choose? I think I'd have to go Augustus's house overlooking the lake and of course it would have to be Gus with me!
Have you ever felt 'book shamed' for liking a particular genre? Quite often! I've only recently starting romantic comedy books but I normally read books which are based around a character moving to a new town and opening up a: cafe, restaurant, farm or any kind of business at a certain area: seaside, country, on the pier! But I enjoy reading them so who cares!
Do you believe in the idea of Happily Ever After? What would your HEA look like i real life? I'd like to believe that there is a HEA for everyone and that I would get a chance of one. As I mentioned above about the books I read, I would love to move to the seaside and open up a little cafe or an ice cream shop! Maybe I could settle down there with my HEA Love maybe meeting him after I set up my shop?
Do you read books with a certain kind of ending? Yes! form my cute little reads, to thrillers and friends to lovers/ fake relationship books (what's the genre again?)
What is your perfect beach read? I haven't found my perfect beach read for this year but I't would most probably be a book by Heidi Swain or a thriller based at a seaside!
If there was a sequel, what do you reckon comes next for them? I'd love for them to write a book together and could possibly be a different genre all together? Or maybe they could travel the country together and go to scary and cute places together!

I really enjoyed this novel. I loved the characters of January and Gus and enjoyed the way their story unfolded. I think it goes deeper than your typical rom-com and was full of snarky banter which meant it wasn't sickly sweet. A fun and joyful Summer read, I'll be looking out for more writing by Emily Henry.

Was surprised by how much I loved this story. Much darker and deeper than expected and really well done, a story with real heart. Only downside is the cover and marketing which seem completely off for this story. This is not a laugh out loud beach read. It’s so much more than that.

Absolutely LOVED this book! I'm not usually a romance fan but I thought this was fantastic. A great story with real substance, and the characters back stories all seemed quite believable and real. The first book I've read by Emily Henry but I'll definitely be looking out for more. Thanks so much for sharing this review copy.

I'm sure I'm not the only reader who's frustrated with the way 'women's fiction' is treated when compared with how 'literary fiction' is treated. Often if a woman writes a novel about a divorce it's a cute chick-flick with a pink cover, but if a man writes about a divorce it's the Next Great Novel™, so when I saw the premise of Beach Read I knew I had to get my hands on a copy and I was thrilled when I was approved for an eARC.

January Andrews writes romance novels and has always believed in happy endings—at least she did until her father died and she discovered, at his funeral, that he had an affair while her mother was battling cancer. Her father has left January a beach house to sort through, but when she arrives for the summer she discovers her neighbour is none other than literary fiction author, Augustus Everett, her college rival. The two of them decide to strike a summer deal: they'll each write a novel in the other's genre, and whoever sells their book first is guaranteed an endorsement from the other. Oh! And, obviously, no one's going to fall in love with anyone else in the process...

I've seen quite a lot of reviewers talk about how Beach Read is a little darker than your classic rom-com, but while it does tackle some more serious themes (although I think a lot of romance novels do, on the whole) it's still a really fun and uplifting novel to read. I saw so many warnings about this book that I was expecting it to be rather bleak, but it's not at all. Yes, we have January's heartbreak at losing her father and discovering he wasn't quite the man she thought he was and Gus's own demons surrounding his childhood and a previous relationship that come to light, but this book isn't a downer. In fact I loved it all the more for including all those darker elements while still being a book that brought a smile to my face while I was reading it.

I wasn't sure what to expect from January and Gus's relationship. I know enemies/rivals-to-lovers is a very popular romance trope, but it's a trope I'm fairly picky with; I don't like couples who literally hate each other one minute and then love each other the next because it just doesn't seem like a healthy basis for a relationship and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Luckily, that's not what happens here at all. January and Gus were on the same writing course in college and there is some rivalry there, especially now that they're both published authors in very different genres, but it's all fun.

The chemistry between January and Gus is palpable, their banter is so much fun to read and genuinely funny, and I wanted them to succeed and be happy. They're the kind of couple who could make washing dishes an enjoyable, romantic experience, without ever feeling corny or over-the-top, and as much as I love the romance genre I do think those kinds of couples who feel real can be hard to find. One of the many joys of the romance genre is that it's a type of fantasy in and of itself in which everyone's a romantic and knows exactly the right thing to say at exactly the right time, but there's also something comforting in reading a romance novel that feels like it could actually happen.

I also really appreciate that this isn't a romance novel that condemns literary fiction, despite the fact that it features a romance author in a rivalry with a literary fiction author. In much the same way that January is allowed to defend romance and prove it's a genre that doesn't deserve to be dismissed just because it's happy, Gus is also given a chance to defend his writing, too. He doesn't write literary fiction to make a point about literature - in fact I often got the impression that Gus himself isn't a fan of the 'women's fiction' vs. 'literary fiction' distinction - instead the genre he writes is a way for him to understand his own feelings about the world and everyone in it, in much the same that January does by writing happily ever afters.

Essentially Beach Read is one of the best contemporary romance novels I've read, I had such a good time reading it and immediately recommended it to my sisters and friends, and I'd love to try whatever Emily Henry releases in future.

Beach Read has been one of my most anticipated reads of the year after hearing such good things about it all over my bookstagram.
The story sees the two main characters January and Gus, two published writers who went to college together coincidentally living next door to each other on a lake shore. They soon make a bet to switch to writing a book in each others genre whilst a fast friendship and more develops. Each of them has their own interesting past which must be dealt with so they can both find their happy ending.

In the end I did enjoy it and I always love rom coms that have characters finally reunited with some interesting shared past. But at the same time it didn't grip me the same way that I thought it would and their were no tears from me.
Thanks to Netgalley.com and Penguin Books UK for this complimentary eARC.