A fun literary rom com set on the shores of Lake Michigan
As we wind up the reading year, I’ve logged 53 books, 24 of which I’ve given 5 stars on The Story Graph. (I’m pretty generous in my ratings, and I make no apologies.) It’s possible that a few more books will hit 5 stars before the year is out, so I’m leaving some space at the end for current reads (I’m almost certain the book I’m currently reading will be a 5 star, since I loved the first book in the series).
The first book to hit the mark landed early: Emily Henry’s “Beach Read”, which I listened to through my Libro.fm subscription. It tells the story of January Andrews, a romance writer who’s hit a creative wall after learning about her late father’s long-running extramarital affair, and Augustus Everett, a literary fiction author with a reputation for dark and challenging novels. There’s also a bit of history between the two of them, dating back to a college rivalry (and brief amorous fumbling), and neither is especially thrilled to discover that they’re neighbors for the summer in a Michigan beach town.
They have more in common than would appear at the first glance, though, the biggest commonality being their shared writers’ block. In a twist on “The Prince and the Pauper,” the two agree to switch genres for the summer: January will write something opaque and literary, while Augustus will try his hand at a love story. As they trade chapters, and accompany each other on research adventures, their relationship moves from chilly to warm to … well, maybe not quite red hot, but definitely heated.
This was my first Emily Henry read (the local romance book shop, Tropes & Trifles, was doing a bingo challenge at the start of the year, and I used this one to check off the “new to you author” box), and I wasn’t disappointed. The main characters were interesting, with often prickly and always sparkling dialogue, and the side characters were fun. There were a number of laugh-out-loud comedy set pieces (like an ill-fated book club meeting), and just enough angst to lend the story some depth. Henry’s writing is brisk, and the story moves along at a good clip. It’s not quite a “love conquers all” story, but it’s definitely a “love conquers most,” and was a nice way to start the year. If you like rom coms with a little depth and great dialogue, “Beach Read” would be a solid addition to your to-be-read stack.
