Beach Read: Deluxe Edition

My Rating: ★★★½☆Okay, so going into Beach Read by Emily Henry, I already knew I was entering dangerous territory.Because this is one of THOSE books.You know the ones.Everyone has read it. Everyone has an opinion about it. Half the internet seems to think it's incredible, the other half is wondering what all the fuss is about, and somehow you're supposed to wander into that chaos without letting any of it influence you.So, where did I land?Honestly... somewhere frustratingly in the middle.Because I DID enjoy Beach Read.The writing is beautiful. Emily Henry clearly knows how to create characters who feel like actual people rather than fictional little puppets being pushed towards each other for the sake of a romance. January and Gus were both incredibly easy to connect with, their banter worked for me, and the emotional baggage they each brought into the story gave their relationship far more depth than I was expecting.The setting was also done SO well.There's something about the atmosphere Emily Henry creates that makes everything feel tangible. You can picture these characters existing outside the pages, and there was an effortless quality to the writing that made the book genuinely enjoyable to sit with.Which makes my rating slightly annoying.Because technically?Everything was there.Beautiful writing? Yep.Characters I could connect with? Yep.Great setting? Absolutely.Chemistry? Yep.Emotional depth? Also yep.So WHY couldn't I give it five stars?!I DON'T KNOW.And that is genuinely the most frustrating part.There was just... something missing.Some tiny, completely unidentifiable ingredient that kept me from becoming fully obsessed with it.You know when you finish a book and you KNOW you enjoyed yourself, but you don't have that immediate feeling of “holy shit, I loved that”?That was Beach Read for me.I liked January. I liked Gus. I enjoyed watching their relationship develop. I appreciated that underneath the romance there are some genuinely complicated themes surrounding grief, family, betrayal and learning that the people we love aren't always exactly who we thought they were.And I can absolutely understand why so many readers adore this book.But apparently my brain has decided that “very good” and “I LOVE THIS” are separated by some mysterious invisible ingredient that Beach Read simply didn't contain.Rude, honestly.I think this is worth reading if you love romance that isn't afraid to sit with heavier emotions, characters carrying a significant amount of baggage, witty banter, writers writing about writers, and relationships that develop alongside genuine personal growth.Just don't necessarily go into it expecting the light, fluffy beach romance the title might have you imagining, because there is considerably more emotional weight hiding underneath that cover.Beautifully written, genuinely enjoyable and filled with characters I had no trouble connecting with...Yet somehow I'm still sitting here trying to work out what the fuck was missing.

Took me awhile to get into it, I'm pretty sure it was a me problem, but once I was able to sit and really focus I really enjoyed my time! Parts felt rushed but overall I think it was so fun

🏖️3 stars📘This is neither a good thing nor a bad thing, but this book is not set on a beach. And the ideal place to read this probably would not be at a beach either.🫰Gus and January and their relationship, obviously.👍Emily Henry's writing, prose and pacing are good as usual.👌Was expecting a cute romcom, not a devastating depiction of grief to shatter my heart -- in a good way.👌Side note: I don't like the US version ending. I read the UK version though, so it's okay.👎Their books had me confused because it was additional characters that I couldn't bother remembering.👎While I loved Gus and January, I cared less about the other characters like Maggie or Pete or even her mum. Plus, I wanted more information on Naomi and on her dad as well. And I do like Anya and Shadi, but they're hardly mentioned enough.