Emily Henry could write on the back of a receipt and I'd still beg to read it.

This was as beautiful as her previous books. Emily just has a way of writing gorgeously complicated characters who have so much chemistry and tension that I have to stay up all night just so I can get to the ending.

This wasn't my favourite of hers - I felt the resolution was quite repetitive and drawn out - but it was still captivating and fun and heartfelt.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Harriet is a surgeon, well a junior doctor training to be a surgeon. She has spent a lot of her late teens/early twenties completing her doctor training.

Every year since before college she has spent at least a week of summer in her friend Sabrina’s family vacation place. It’s her Happy Place.

Sabrina arranges a week for the gang to get back together. One last hurrah before her Dad sells up. Sabrina and her husband-to-be Parth, Cleo and her girlfriend Kimmy and Harriet and Wyn.

Unbeknownst to the others, herself and Wyn broke up about six months ago. They decide between them that Harriet would go on this trip alone.

Harriet is the last of the group to arrive. You can imagine Harriet’s when she is ambushed by Sabrina with a surprise, Wyn. Cue many awkward moments with him including having to sleep in the same bad.

Can they put their differences aside and get through the week? If not for themselves then at least for their friends.

Henry’s newest book due for release in spring 2023. I truly loved it. I enjoyed the dual timeline between the now and the description of how the house became her happy place.

So many references of nostalgia and recreating that feeling from childhood/growing up. Pedal pushers and Love Actually to name a few.

I love Henry’s style of writing. I instantly fell in love and became invested in Harriet and Wyn as a couple. I was intrigued as the story went on, to discover the plot points that separated the two in the first place.

A must read for the new year!

Let's start by stating the obvious: there is no Emily Henry romance novel I'm not gonna like.

That being said, this one did feel a little different to the other 3. I couldn't quite pinpoint the reason why at the beginning. First I thought it was because it had nothing to do with books or writing, but then I realized: yes, this is a love story but, above all else, it's a story about friendship. It's a story about best friends becoming family, about growing up together and growing apart and then close again.

At first I thought it was slow and I couldn't get quite as immersed in it as I normally do when I read Emily Henry. The angst was there and, objectively, I think Harriet is the MC I can relate to the most but for some reason I wasn't quite into it. I think the whole idea of Harriet and Wyn having broken up but not told anyone and "fake dating" wasn't as attractive to me because they're clearly into each other and the whole premise of this is based on one huge miscommunication issue. Not that it's not a plausible one, but I personally hate miscommunication in books. It drives me nuts.

So I was liking the story but not as much as I was expecting to. And then the last 100 pages happened and I started crying. That's when I realized this was a story about friendship and growing up, about deciding what you want for yourself and doing what makes you happy instead of what others expect you to do. And I finally connected with Harriet and Cleo and Sabrina, to the point where I see myself in the 3 of them and want nothing more than to be part of their friend group.

Overall, I did really enjoy it but it did not blow me away and it took me a while to get into (I've been in a bit of a slump so maybe that's entirely my fault and not the book's)

A huge thank you to the wonderful Georgia Taylor and Penguin UK for the e-ARC in exchange of an honest and voluntary review

One of my favourite authors, her books are fabulous and transport me to a different world. I loved all the friendships and their traditions were so nice to read about. The actual love story I got frustrated with, and it’s not my favourite book from Emily Henry but I still loved it!

I really like this author and her style of writing. Enjoyed the story and the characters. An easy read and shows what friendship means.

Harriet and Wyn are the perfect couple - they go together like bread and butter, gin and tonic, Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds. Except, now they don't. They broke up six months ago. And they still haven't told anyone. Which is how they end up sharing a bedroom at the cottage that has been their yearly getaway with their best friends for the past decade. For one glorious week they leave behind their lives, drink far too much wine and soak up the sea air with their favourite people.

Emily Henry never fails me, this woman could write a children's book and it'd still give it 5 stars and cherish it. Happy Place is deemed her 'best novel yet' and I strongly agree.

Nobody hooks me in like Emily Henry does, within 5 pages I'm here for the long haul. This group of characters connected with me in a way I've never connected with characters ever before. Maybe it's because I too am part of a trio friendship group where life always feels that little bit better when you're with them.

Normally everyone resonates with the main character but in this book, I highly resonated with Wyn and everything he felt was like reading straight out of my journal. I'm not sure how Emily manages to do this but she does it every time and I will never not be amazed at her writing. My notes app is full of my thoughts because screaming into my hands every time something happened was not enough, I need to put these feelings into words.

I'm so grateful to have received an early arc of this book and I will be an Emily Henry advocate forever.
I rated this 5 stars.

SCREAMING CRYING SHITTING TEARS RN, CUZ IT WAS SO PERFECT, BUT ALSO I'LL BE SENDING EMILY HENRY MY THERAPY BILLS, ANYWAY STAN SECOND CHANCE ROMANCE

Thank you NetGalley for providing digital advanced copy in exchange for honest review.

I had high hopes after Book Lovers and I was certainly not disappointed. The dialogue between Wyn and Harriet during the car journey after their first meeting was so pitch-perfect (and funny) that I went from vey much enjoying to completely hooked in 0-60. A terrific read.

More than a book about love, this is a book about relationships, basically friendships. Harriett and Wyn have a beautiful romance until they don't anymore. Their friends are tied to the past and struggle to find each other in the present. I like how the author managed to tell the story with the many flashbacks without driving me crazy and managing to give a style to each of the six key characters, but by the end I was a little tried by the weight of the plot.

Piú che un libro d'amore, questo é un libro sulle relazione, fondamentalmente quelle amicali. Harriett e Wyn hanno una bella storia d'amore fino a quando non ce l'hanno piú. I loro amici sono legati al passato e faticano a trovarsi nel presente. Mi piace come l'autrice sia riuscita a raccontare la storia con i tanti flashback senza farmi impazzire e riuscendo a dare uno stile a ciascuno dei sei personaggi fondamentali, ma alla fine ero un po' provata dalla pesantezza della trama.

I received from the Publisher a complimentary digital advanced review copy of the book in exchange for a honest review.

Look, I know. There's nothing as annoying as seeing a review of a book you're dying to read but can't because it's not out until 2023 (April 27th to be precise), but when you get an e-mail offering you the upcoming Emily Henry release, YOU SAY YES THANK YOU.

In 'Happy Place', we meet Harriet and Wyn. They're perfect for each other, they're soulmates, they were destined to be together. Every Summer, they meet up with their best friends and spend a few weeks at an idyllic seaside summer home. This year will be the last - the house is being sold, so their friends want to have one last hurrah and wrap it up in style. Only - Wyn and Harriet broke up six months ago.

They have a decision to make - do they break their friends hearts, or do they suck it up and fake it for a week?

I loved it. I loved it so much. I loved their relationship, I loved the friendships, I loved the setting. I do think that April will be a great time for this book to be released, because the whole Summer vibe didn't quite hit as hard as it could have while wearing a Christmas jumper, but it's lovely. I loved the look at difficult family relationships too, and the elements of found family in the friendships. Sometimes your friends can give you more than your parents ever did, and that's not something we often see in books like this.

I don't think fans will be disappointed with very much (is it okay to say I really dislike this cover?!) - maybe the communication could've been better at times, and maybe they should've just flat out told their friends they weren't together anymore, but then we wouldn't have this glorious slice of escapism.

Thoroughly enjoyable and eternally thankful to @penguinrandomhouse & Georgia Taylor for the opportunity to read it early. The April UK release will also be in Hardback for the first time, which will no doubt delight a lot of Bookstagrammers!

It's lovely.

Ever since I read Emily Henry's second book, I've claimed that she get better with every single one, and this is so exception. I rushed through this in a day because I could not put it down. Told in two narratives, of what was, and what is, we get to follow Harriet and Wyn as they fall in love and then back in it.
This felt like such an adult love story. One where it isn't easy, where you have to make hard choices, where relationships take work, take consideration. But one where love is important, where who you are and who you want to be sits front and centre.
Did it break my heart? Absolutely! But it also built it back up, stronger, and better, and more beautiful. This books is like Kintsugi, repairing the broken broken ceramic with gold. Yes, it was broken once, but you have made an effort to fix it, and now it isn't what it was before but it is better. It's new, and this time the way it fits together is because you've done this on purpose.
Long story short, this is my new favourite book and I will happily scream that from every mountain-top.

Alas, not my favourite Emily Henry, but I have rarely been a fan of second chance romances, so anyone that may be a fan of this trope will likely find it easier to dive into this story. I also think that in terms of Henry's previous work, this skews closest to PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION/YOU AND ME ON VACATION, which also happens to be my least favourite of her romance trio, but, again, people who enjoyed that more than me will likely enjoy this as well. While Henry put so much work into estalishing the characters' individual shortcomings and the journeys they had to go on individually before being able to commit to romance once again, I couldn't get behind the reason of their initial breakup enough to appreciate the overall arc of the romance.
What I loved most about the book was the found family aspect and the way all of the relationships in this, beyond the romantic, evolved over the decade they've known one another. I loved seeing them all in their happy place as their lives grow and the real world starts seeping into this fantasy. I'll also add that this was really easy to fly through, and the A++++ banter between the characters made it all the more enjoyable.
Not a bad read overall, but not my favourite Emily Henry.

*Thank you to Penguin Random House for the early access!*

If I had the time to read this book in one sitting, it absolutely would have been completed the day I received it.

Emily Henry continues to outdo herself somehow. This book was so beautifully written and I absolutely love and appreciate the importance that is given to the protagonists’ non-romantic relationships as well. Every character introduced or mentioned is so far from one-dimensional which is so refreshing to read.

Harriet’s relationship with Wyn, her parents, and her found family was detailed in the most gut-wrenching-knot-in-the-pit-of-your-stomach yet nostalgic kind of way. Every chapter had a moment that made me have to stop and take a second to just think - or have a quick cry.

Happy Place is far from being just a romance book and, like Book Lovers, is one that I will continuously look back to as something that changed the way I perceive every day life.

📚 r e v i e w 📚

My happy place is curling up with an emily henry book so imagine my excitement when her latest, happy place, arrived in my inbox!
Much like her other romances, this one featured top notch banter (seriously all i want is someone to verbally spar with) and characters that instantly feel like friends.

Happy Place has so much more substance than your average romance, and this one in particular hit a little hard in places, its about growing up, growing apart, endings, beginnings and everything in between. Its also a little different because instead of two people meeting or frenemies becoming more, our couple are exes in forced proximity for one last trip to their happy place with their besties.

I enjoyed every moment of this, so much so that i dragged it out so i could savour it as long as possible and spend more time with Harriet, Wyn, Parth, Chloe, Kimmy and Sabrina.
If you need a bit more happiness in your life make sure to pick this up in the new year.
Thank you to @netgalley for the early copy. Happy Place is out 25th April 2023.
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"Stupid, stupid, stupid heart. Don't you know he hasn't been yours to cry over for a long time."

That quote. ❤ And then the tears came. I dare you to read this book with dry eyes - but I also dare you to read it without a big smile on your face. Ms Henry is the queen of setting the scenes with palpable and tender emotions, and she is also the queen of quick comebacks and witty banter. And this book had everything.

I was filled with so much longing and aching from chapter one that I thought I couldn't bare it. And I loved every second of it. ❤

I have no more words except to say that if ever there was a five-star-read then this is the one.

I really love Emily Henry’s writing and was so excited for her new book and this was no exception. The writing was amazing and the character development was out of this world

Anything by Emily Henry is an auto read for me… but I can’t help but feel this just doesn’t have the same magic as her others.
The set go… A final friend holiday of a group of university friends before the old holiday house gets sold, reminiscing about the old routine on their once yearly break to Maine. Finding out their best friends are about to get married at the end of the week, the formerly engaged Harriet and Wyn now have to keep up the ruse of still being together…
Most of the characters are likeable and the plot is predictable but this won’t stop the enjoyment, for those looking for a feel good easy read.

I don't know how she does it, but Emily Henry has a knack of taking on a romantic trope and turning into a magical, unexpected, heart warming novel.

In 'Happy Place' we meet Harry and Wyn; the college sweethearts who have split up and and now have to spend a week together IN THE SAME BED. But this is so much more than a second chance at love novel. This is a book about friendship, about family and about growing up. It's about self discovery and knowing when to step outside your comfort zone.
Harry and Wyn's week together made me sad, it made me happy. I felt frustration and satisfaction. All at the same time! Told you Ms Henry was magic!

My thanks go to the publishers and NetGalley for the advance copy in return for an honest review.

Absolutely adore all of Emily Henry’s previous books. Happy Place was fantastic, the characters were beautifully written and the second chance trope was executed so well I couldn’t put the book down. A light read that I would definitely recommend to everyone who loves romance books.

Thank you ever so much to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'Happy Place' by the fabulous Emily Henry.

Anyone who knows me knows that Emily Henry is an author who I would probably sell my soul to, that's how good of an author she is. And 'Happy Place' does not disappoint. As always, Henry's characters are gritty and beautiful and complex - they felt like real human beings to me and I couldn't help but have my favourites. The romance in this story was a new way of romance in terms of Emily Henry's previous works but this was still just as beautiful and I think I preferred this love story. Will it ever beat some other Emily Henry books? No, but it doesn't have to. This book is beautiful in it's own way and I would definitely read it again and again when it comes out in 2023.