A Happier Life by @kristywharvey is a captivating story that effortlessly pulls you in, blending the past and present in a way that keeps you hooked from start to finish. Listening to the audiobook was an incredible experience, thanks to the narrators’ amazing talent in bringing each character to life.

Harvey’s knack for describing her characters makes them feel like real people you might know. Each character is so well-crafted and relatable that you find yourself deeply invested in their lives and stories. The narrators capture these nuances perfectly, making the emotions and personalities of each character stand out.

One of the things I loved most about this book is how smoothly she transitions between different timelines. The way she weaves together past events with the present-day story adds depth and richness, helping you understand the characters on a deeper level. It never feels confusing or jarring – just a beautifully seamless flow.

A line that really struck me was, “Only the truly lucky are given the gift of dying from a broken heart.” This quote captures the emotional intensity of the story and Harvey’s ability to touch on deep, universal truths in such a poignant way. Several times while reading, I was moved to tears.

Overall, A Happier Life is a fantastic read (or listen!). The audiobook narration is top-notch, adding an extra layer of enjoyment to an already great story. Kristy has created a novel that’s both heartwarming and thought-provoking, leaving a lasting impression long after you’ve finished it.

Really like this one a lot, although I enjoyed the past timeline better than the present day. Sometimes I wished we'd been given more action-- much seemed to take place off page, which took me out of the story a bit. The middle wasn't quite as snappy as the beginning and the end, but overall it was an enjoyable family drama with great writing. Looking forward to this author's next work!

The story alternates between present day chapters featuring Keaton, a young woman just hitting her stride in her career when she is blindsided by news from her co-worker/ex-boyfriend, and chapters focused on Rebecca "Becks" St. James - a prominent member of her small coastal North Carolina town and Keaton's grandmother.

When Keaton finds herself needing a new place to stay and space to consider her future, her mom offers her an odd opportunity, but one that might be just what she needs. Keaton leaves NYC to travel by car to North Carolina to her mother's childhood home that was essentially abandoned more than 40 years ago. Keaton's mom and uncle want to prepare the house for sale after all these years.

While in NC, Keaton starts to learn more and more about the grandparents she never met, who died in an assumed car wreck.

In the chapters from the POV of Becks, readers piece together the actions and activities that led to the grand old home being left behind.

The intertwined stories beautifully build on each other to reveal a touching family saga. Along the way Keaton makes several new friends and a possible new love interest.

Woodson Harvey does a great job of developing Keaton and Becks as main characters, and also a great supporting cast in the small town of Beaufort, NC. This was a lovely story with a beautiful backdrop and a little bit of mystery.

One of my favorite books of the summer. The character development and descriptions are so above board it’s truly a literary transportive experience. Loved the alternating timelines too and this is a book you won’t forget. Becks Saint James truly is an phenom!! I went into A Happier Life blind and it was a real treat. It’s a keeper for the shelf and now KWH is auto buy author for me!

I have always enjoyed Kristy Woodson Harvey's books- they all have an underlying theme of southern life with the beach mixed in but each book is always uniquely done. In A Happier Life, her gorgeous writing of small town life mixed in with family saga is the chef's kiss! Beautiful job with the mystery- I honestly could not have guessed how it would wrap up. Perfect for the beach or just the next time you want to "escape"! Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have never come across a Kristy Woodson Harvey book that I didn’t absolutely love! I think this one might have been my favorite! I loved the old house, the family mystery and the duel perspectives.

A bittersweet story of love, grief, and mystery. Harvey’s reputation for sweet southern stories doesn’t disappoint. In fact, it was pleasantly surprising to have a bit of added substance by way of life advice.

Keaton finds herself in desperate need of escaping NYC and her present life when her mother randomly says she needs someone to head down to Beaufort, NC to put her childhood home on the market. Keaton takes up the offer to flee the city and head to a past she has never known much about as her grandparents passed away before she was born. What starts as a quick way to distract herself from her life ends up becoming a thirst for knowledge about the family she had but never had the chance to know, including the matriarch that reigned over the sleepy southern beach town of Beaufort. A Happier Life had me yearning for traditions that have gone amiss in modern times while also turning the pages to see how the women of yesteryear and today were going to handle the day's dilemmas. Always with grace, poise, and dignity, no doubt of that.

Kristy Woodson Harvey has done it again by writing a wonderfully poignant but refreshing novel about living your life to the very fullest every single day. 5 stars all the way!

This novel is a great recommendation for those who love small town charm, hidden family secrets and just a touch of drama. Woodson Harvey writes characters that I want to meet in real life and sets her novels in picture perfect areas, meant to be explored by your imagination.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the opportunity to read this novel.

Oh this was so wonderful. The characters were so great and the relationship was so relatable. The idea for this book was great. Highly recommend this one.

I was so excited when a friend said she saw a review of this book and wanted to read it for our book club. Kristy Woodson Harvey has such a sweet presence on Instagram, I’m always happy to support her work.

We had book club this week (see the second picture for our sunset, ocean view during our meeting!). We all really enjoyed this book. We loved the multiple points of view and alternating timelines. Family mystery, drama, romance, friendship - this book had a little something for everyone. There’s a big cast of support characters and I loved them all - in both timelines.

Some of us were troubled with the grandparent situation. We were sad that the next generation missed sharing the legacy of their parents but it led to a really great, thoughtful conversation. I love when books challenge you to consider what you’d do in similar situations. And I love when we spend more time than usual discussing the book!

I keep thinking that one day KWH will write a book that i will not be fond of and every year her books get better and reach parts of my heart that only some books/authors can. KWH manages to paint the most beautiful stories and put you right in the middle of them with the smallest details that she shares. This story doesn’t fall behind, it was absolutely beautiful and Keaton’s story, the bond she shares with a set of grandparents that she never got to know and the relationship that evolves with Bowen was so well written and put together that KWH manages to write another 5 star read!!

Thank you so much to Gallery Books for a copy of this!

This was my first Kristy Woodson Harvey book and I will say I likely would read her again! This was such a moving story told between the past (her grandmother & grandfather) and the present. You really got a sense of each of the characters and what they were going through at that time in their life. There were elements of the book that were predictable but I still was enjoying the ride. I absolutely loved Beck's point of view! She seemed like she was a fire of a woman who stood up for what she felt was right. Her relationship with Townsend was so sweet and you could really sense the love between them. Another favorite character of mine was Keaton's neighbor Anderson down in North Carolina! He took a liking to Keaton right away and I enjoyed seeing their friendship grow. And of course where there is a cute kid there's an equally cute single dad. Bowen was a little bit more reserved as there is this stranger now living in this old abandoned house but quickly he became smitten with Keaton. Although we did not get to see much of the life Keaton had while in New York (only through past reflection and storytelling), I felt that she really belonged in the south. She adapted so well to the environment and the town folks.

We got to learn about Beck's home life growing up and how challenging that was for her. And how even more challenging it was to face the later half of her life when things just were not the same as it was. Hearing from Townsend's point of view was a nice bridge to Beck's stories and seeing his point of view especially in the later years. Those letters & diary entries he wrote were a key to past that his children and grandchildren needed in the present timeline. I love family mysteries like this and how it truly does bring families together. I did find it a little weird that Keaton and Harris mom and uncle never went back to the house after their parents died. They simply just up and left and hired people to take care of the house for the last 50 years.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and thought it was a great book to read towards the end of the summer. It had all the elements of a beach read - mystery, family drama (nothing too dramatic), friendship & romance.

4.5

This is always my sticking point when writing reviews, especially five-star reviews.. I can never find the right words to convey just how much I enjoyed (or not enjoyed) a book. This one is especially true.

I have been on the Harvey train for NINE years now. I can never say enough great things about her words and her ability to craft such heart felt, rich stories that leave her readers in complete awe. This book is no different in that aspect.

Yet again Harvey has given us a story full of present and past colliding in a story that turns out to be explosive in so many ways. Aside from her deep character building, she has thrown in a little real life dilemma that pulls on your heart strings, leaving you a little breathless.

This book isn't just a run of the mill book with the main character looking to start over or pick up the pieces by "running away". This story is so complex and raw, I found myself completely blindsided from the emotions I experienced from start to finish.

I don't have enough positive things to say about this book. It's one of my favorites of the year so far!

Kristy Woodson Harvey is always an author I say I need to read more from and this book reminded me why. It was the perfect summer read and I loved that it had a bit of everything thrown in it, family drama, some romance and even a little mystery!

Review posted: July 5, 2024

Traveling With T’s Thoughts:

There are a lot of us in the book world that proclaim to be a KWH Super-Fan and I’m not looking to arm-wrestle anyone over that distinction, but I feel like I am the super-iest of the SUPER FANS. 🙂

I’ve been reading her books since the first one (Dear Carolina) and I even posed last year in my wedding dress with The Wedding Veil. 🙂 I also took The Summer of Songbirds on my honeymoon for the photo opps on the beach (because that is what Super Fans do 😉

Anyway, moving on.

I adore her books and each is a favorite for some reason. This one, I loved Becks and Keaton.

Keaton cemented her role in my heart with this statement: (picture from a section of the book)

And Becks? The hostess with the mostest? YASSSSS please.



What I Liked:

The cover. Dreamy and color coded perfection!

Keaton and Becks. I loved both of them for so many reasons.

The ending. I didn’t cry, but I felt a joyful sigh leave my body as I closed the chapter on these great characters.



Bottom line: Kristy Woodson Harvey proves with her 11th book that she is here to stay. If this is not in your summer beach bag, then we can’t be friends.



*This book was sent to Traveling With T for review consideration. All thoughts and opinions are mine alone.*

KWH always delivers with friendships, family, and a story that captivates me, and this one was no exception!

Many thanks to Netgalley and Gallery books for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

LOVE KWH and this one was no different - perfect summer read. Such a good read that I enjoyed! I'm so glad that I got the chance to read it early and will definitely be recommending it to multiple people who enjoy these types of novels. I enjoyed the characters and especially enjoyed the writing by this author. I'm excited to see what the author comes out with next as I'll definitely be reading it! Thank you to the publisher for my early copy of this book!

Loved the dual timelines and POVs. The setting was perfection. Had a little bit of everything - romance, historical fiction elements, mystery.

3.5 rounded up.

What is missing from your life? Have your ever felt like something was missing? Keaton is ready for a clean start. This is a great story about how learning about your past can make your life whole. How merging your past with your future makes for a full and happy life.

Keaton is out of a boyfriend and her job in current day New York City. So when her mother tells her they will pay her to go sell her grandparents home, she has nothing better to do. So off she goes to Beaufort, NC. This house has been closed up since her grandparents died in 1976, so there is shag carpet and colored appliances (gold, green). Keaton knows absolutely nothing about her grandparents. No one in the family will talk about them.

Keaton meets great people and falls in love with the town. She has so many questions about her grandparents. She gets to know them from the people she meets and from the writings of both of her grandparents. One of her favorite people is the young boy that lives next door that routinely checks on her - Anderson. Keaton feels more at home in Beaufort and realizes what she has been missing. But how does she make a living and life in Beaufort?