In Emily Henry's newest novel, a journalist and a Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer compete for a chance to write the biography of a famous heiress now in her 80s and living as a recluse.

Alice works for a pop-culture website and hopes that writing this book will earn her more respect from her family. She has spent months tracking Margaret Ives down to small island off the coast of Georgia. Hayden seems the ideal choice for the job, having already published a best-selling biography. When the two meet Margaret, they must sign iron-clad NDAs and remain on the island for a month, working with her until she decides who's going to take the reigns with her story. Of course, it's a small island, so these new rivals are going to keep bumping into each other, and eventually sparks fly.

I've seen this book marketed as a mystery/thriller, and I think it's important to point out that it's not, at least IMO. However, it is a departure for Henry, who combines her exceptional talent for contemporary romance with historical fiction. The story of Margaret and The House of Ives - the name given to her scandalous family - traces all the way back to the Gold Rush and the early days of Hollywood, exploring the family's history, their relationships, and the tragic love story that led Margaret to retreat from the public eye.

It has all the elements of Henry's earlier novels: steamy romance, witty banter, electric chemistry, and brilliant characters. Fans of the grumpy/sunshine and forced proximity tropes will squeal. But this story is also an emotional and thoughtful exploration of family ties, the power of truth, the fragility of trust, and, of course, love in its many forms.

I loved Alice and Hayden, and Alice's relationship with her mother was a highlight. A cosy, engaging, and gripping read with plenty of swoon, and a testament to the writer Henry is. Gorgeous!

I love reading emhen in the spring/summer and I really enjoyed this one.
I think comparisons that will be made to TJR’s seven husbands are not without cause as in places it does feel very similar (familiar connection to the researcher, enigmatic character) but that’s not to say that this is an identical copy.
As always, emhen writes believable and fully developed female mc and GBBL was no different. I would have liked to have known more about her relationship with her dad and more interaction with her sister- family plays a huge role in the plot of GBBL that it didn’t make sense to me for other family members to not be given more colour. I’d also say that the ending was perhaps too simple. I wasn’t sure how I wanted it to end - but this felt too easy. Then again- it’s a light hearted romance so it’s entirely in keeping.
I think Emily Henry has such a talent in weaving natural romance into her characters and GBBL is a a great example of this. I didn’t enjoy this as much as happy place but I enjoyed it far more than funny story. Emhen continues to be a favourite for me.

At this point, I don’t think I have anything new to say about Emily Henry’s books, so this review is going to be rather short. Personally, I think she must put some kind of drug in there because there’s something so compulsive about them when you’re reading them. Of course, once you’re done, you might decide you feel otherwise, but while you’re there, you’re sucked in entirely.

Which is pretty much what happened in Great Big Beautiful Lie. On my Emily Henry Rankings Chart, I think this one falls #4, after all the odd numbered adult books (Beach Read=Book Lovers>Funny Story), but before the remaining even numbered ones (Happy Place>You and Me on Vacation). So, pretty solid.

The big difference in this one is the romance. Where, in every other book, the main characters know each other somehow, be it from university, as old friends, or in the same field of work, here both are almost complete unknowns to one another. As such, you end up with what’s possibly Emily Henry’s most egregious instance of instalove. And somehow, when I was reading it, I never felt that way! They barely knew each other and yet, and yet, while I had the book open, I could barely remember that part. Of course, once I put it down and started to think, the instalove came looming large again, as is its wont.

My other (slight) gripe here actually relates to Emily Henry’s romances as a whole. Please, I am begging, would you stop putting your third act break ups 30 pages from the end! It’s just not remotely realistic that they can be “broken up” and then reconciled in that time to me! It feels rushed, sometimes even forced (coughcough PWMOV)! I will allow that, in this instance, the break up made sense for the characters and plot, but what is stopping you from making it happen earlier and drawing things out, so that the reconciliation feels more earned? 90% of the way through the book is just too late.

Anyway, overall, I liked this one a lot, particularly the way it was more plot-outside-of-romance driven than her previous books. Okay, so that made the romance come across quite instalove-y but she puts enough crack in there that I can overlook that.

Emily Henry has written yet another fun, thoughtful, engaging fictional story. I really enjoyed the characters of Alice and Hayden and the story woven through Margaret. This is the perfect weekend read and I will definitely recommend it to others.

This was a fun one! Classic Emily Henry meets The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. Loved the setting and thought the romance was sweet. Emily Henry deals with grief so well in her books and I was happy to see it here, too.

This was a lovely read. The story of two journalists competing to write the biography of a reclusive socialite., Margaret Ives. As well as the burgeoning love story between Alice and Hayden, we are also treated to the stories that Margaret tells Alice about her life. But it soon becomes clear that Margaret is an unreliable narrator and Alice, and the reader, are left puzzling over what is fact and what is fiction. I loved that this wasn't just a straightforward love story. The whole puzzle around Margaret's life was compelling, and I sat up way past my bedtime to finish this. Until this month, I hadn't read an Emily Henry novel, despite many of my customers recommending her to me. So far in May I have read two, Book Lovers being the other, and I strongly suspect I won't be stopping there.

As always, this was such. gorgeous Henry book. I was hooked from the beginning and was so intrigued to know more about both Margaret and what the story that she felt like she had to share and that part of the story was so interesting and beautiful to read. Then there was the love story between Alice and Hayden that was so subtle and gorgeously done and I loved the way that it unfolded throughout. The twist at the end was both expected and unexpected and it felt like that came a bit later than I thought it would but the pay off was still great. Overall, a wonderful read that I would recommend.

I'm convinced that any reading slump can be abolished with an EH book and this book was no different. This book warms my heart and has set me up for a good reading summer. Did feel a bit hornier than her previous books but I'm not complaining - find me a man like Hayden PLEASE I beg.

Not my favourite of Emily Henry. Usually I am hooked from the start, but this took me a while to get into. I am a bit disappointed cause I was looking forward to it.

I love Emily Henry and always enjoy recommending her to store customers! I really enjoyed her newest work and will definitely recommend this one

This was an interesting one - it took a little while for the plot to diverge from what was essentially a Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo rerun but I'm glad I stuck with it! Once the romance really takes off the book becomes it's own story and it was worth it to get to the twisty ending. I did preempt some of the plot beforehand as breadcrumbs get dropped throughout but it was still a satisfying read. I found the romance a little on the insta-love side but it was believable for the characters and it really helped to bring their POVs to life. This is something I felt was really missing from Seven Husbands - although there was a backstory for the interviewer it didn't really weave in until the end. It was fun to follow the FMC and MMC outside of Margaret's memories and see how the interviews were changing them and their perspective. If I'd read this first it would've scored higher but as it's a bit too close to the Seven Husbands plot it kind of fell a little flat so it lost some points there but still highly recomend for a contemporary summer read with a drop of spice!

Reaaaaaally loved this story. Two rival journalists writing about a reclusive heiress but so much more. I love that Henry writes writers in her books. Emosh by the end.

Simply gorgeous - EmHen at her best reliable self, delivering swoon and story in equal measures. Perfect Summer read!

This book tells two stories - the romance of two writers falling for each other, but also the history of a celebrity who has hidden away from the public eye as she finally tells her story to these two writers.

While pieces of this book were intriguing, including both of these types of stories in one novel at times made it feel unfocused without time for growth. It was a fine read but not a strong or lasting one.

A gorgeous tale of the lengths people go to for love, and all the different facets of love that exist.

Another Emily Henry masterpiece! I loved the characters and I loved unraveling the story within the story!

I’ve enjoyed Emily Henry’s previous books - though I’m not as obsessed with her as many romance fans seem to be - but I saw this one being compared to Taylor Jenkins Reid’s The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and so moved it to the top of my tbr.

There are definite similarities. Not least that, like Evelyn Hugo, Great Big Beautiful Life feels more mature, more… I don’t want to say literary, but I guess that’s probably the word, than Emily Henry’s previous books.

Having said that, it’s still a romance. Still features a charming MC and hot love interest. It’s still funny and sexy with a delightful setting. There’s just another storyline running alongside and I really enjoyed it. Plus the last line - and the title - are perfect.

Very interested to see what EmHen does next!

Emily Henry continues to be one of my favorite authors. This book was so different from her usual writing but also had that same warm feeling that all her other books gave me.

The flashbacks add to the backstory and history and every look at their history had me more obsessed with them. They are imperfectly perfect.

Emily Henry never fails to write a story that has you understanding the characters on a personal level.

Another great read from Emily Henry, I was excited to read this as I have read a few of her other books. This definitely did not disappoint. The story had so many different layers and relationships and kept me hooked until the end. This would make an amazing mini series or film. Looking forward to the next book.

A somewhat more complex and grownup feeling to this novel compared to Emily Henry's earlier ones. The historical fiction portions, the 'great bib beautiful life', really were beautiful, and actually captivated me more than Alice and Hayden's story, although the two narratives gelled well together. Overall another compelling read from one of my favourite authors.