Kristy Woodson Harvey has become an author that I always anticipate reading.. I have to begin by saying, this book does not disappoint. In fact, it is now my favorite KWH book that I’ve read.

I was instantly hooked from the prologue told from the point of view from the house. Such a fresh start that left me intrigued to find out more about this family. I also loved the multigenerational stories told from alternating timelines that were perfectly woven together. The characters immediately feel like they are old friends.

“A Happier Life” is a wonderful Southern love story with a hint of mystery and a nod to the beauty of small town life. A special thanks to NetGalley, Kristy Woodson Harvey and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. This book hits the shelves in June and I encourage you to preorder now. You won’t be disappointed.

Oh, wow! So..I'll start this off by saying this book was emotional! Without giving anything away, I will say that my grandparents suffered from the same medical issues. So it was super emotional for me.
That being said, at the end of the day it's 2 beautiful love stories, a story about finding oneself and everlasting love. 10/10 despite the tears. I could not put it down!

The prologue of A Happier Life is from the viewpoint of a centuries old Beaufort, NC, family home which I found to be unexpected, compelling, and uniquely intriguing. That alone captured my attention and made me want to devour it in one sitting. This dual time line novel highlights the authors love of the area as well as the pain involved in learning the truth about family you never met. It is full of family secrets, relationships, love, mystery, self-awareness, understanding, and healing,

Keaton St. James Smith a young professional whose work and personal lives are in turmoil. She longs for a fresh start so when her mother asks her to ready her late grandparents family home in Beaufort for sale she agrees, expecting to make a quick trip, gather the commission her uncle promised her, and be back in NYC quickly. When she enter the front door of a home she didn't even know existed until a few days prior, Keaton feels as though she is in a 1970s time capsule as her grandparents home is exactly the way it was when they disappeared 50 years earlier!

While Keaton is making her way through her overwhelming task, she comes to know the grandparents she never met by reading their journals and meeting their friends. This also brings healing to her mother and uncle as they learn, through Keaton, the truth behind their parents mysterious disappearance.

Dare I say this is my favorite Kristy Woodson Harvey book yet? I loved the connections to Beaufort, NC and seeing the connection between different generations of women. Keaton goes to Beaufort to get her grandparents house ready to sell not knowing that the house has basically been untouched since her grandparents passed. She digs into so much family and town history and starts to feel a connection to her grandparents that she has never felt before. Her grandmother was the queen of dinner parties and Keaton reads all of her notes about how to be the perfect host and starts having her own dinner parties with the women that are her mothers age. I loved the dual timeline and getting to see Becks and Townsend's relationship and life. The romance for Keaton was a great addition and I loved the ending. I am very confident that this will be one of the best selling books this summer.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. I love, love Kristy Woodson Harvey and this one did not disappoint. Like most dual timeline stories, I enjoyed one timeline more than the other, but I loved the multi generational story and of course the setting.

A Happier Life is Kristy Woodson Harvey’s love letter to the town of Beaufort, NC, family and friends, and old traditions presented in a dual time period novel that will warm your heart, break it, and put it back together. New Yorker, Keaton is sent to Beaufort by her mother to get her grandparents’ house ready to sell. The fact that neither her mother nor her uncle has ever indicated that their childhood home was still in the family is the first clue in a family mystery that will only get more complicated. This is book that begs to be read in one sitting as Keaton gets to know her grandmother, Becks, through the journal entries she wrote for her daughter. What happened so that neither of Beck’s children returned home after their parents died together? Kristy Woodson Harvey is a writer whose works should not be missed! I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book from NetGalley. Most highly recommend.

5 stars

I love me some Kristy Woodson Harvey! I appreciate that her books aren't cookie cutter, one size fits all. For example, The Wedding Veil was part women's fiction, part historical fiction. The Summer of Songbirds was a mix of romance and women's fiction. A Happier Life is a little bit romance, a little bit women's fiction, with a splash of mystery. Well done!

The story is told in alternating viewpoints and timelines - Keaton in the present, and her late grandmother, Becks, in the 1970s. Keaton is a modern career girl surviving on takeout. The grandmother she never met was a stereotypical Southern doctor's wife, renknowned for her impeccable hostess skills. They could not be more different, it would seem.

Becks and her husband Townsend died in a car wreck when Keaton's mom was a young woman. Their bodies were never found. Their waterfront home in Beaufort, North Carolina has sat untouched ever since - over 40 years! When Keaton needs some time to clear her head after a personal and career crisis, her mom and uncle dispatch her to finally clean out the family home and get it ready for sale.

Through journals left behind by her grandparents, Keaton gets a chance to know and admire the grandparents she never met. Is there more to their deaths than meets the eye? Along the way, she falls in love with the town, the people, and hmmm, is there a hot but grumpy single dad next door?

This story kept me guessing. I literally woke up during the night to try to fit together the puzzle pieces. (I got some of them, but not all!)

This was a delight to read. There were a few "Easter eggs" for followers of KWH's social media (Salt the dog) and readers of her recent books (Camp Rock Springs). I'm a teacher on Spring Break and this was the read for an Adirondack chair on the porch, with my dog on my lap!

Thank you to Gallery Books and NetGalley for the digital ARC in return for an honest review.

'A tender and touching novel about a young woman who discovers the family she has always longed for when she spends a life-changing summer in North Carolina.'

I really enjoyed the alternating POV's and past and present timelines in this. All around, a great feel-good read! I love K. Harvey!

Thank you NetGalley and Gallery Books for this opportunity!

Kristy Woodson Harvey's books are always my favorite, and A Happier Life is no exception. After a series of life changing events, Keaton is going back to Beaufort to clean out her grandparents house so that it can be sold. While cleaning out the house, she begins to realize that her grandparents may not have died as she once thought. She finds herself a newfound family in Beaufort, but without a stable job or a place to stay once the house sells, how can she choose a happier life for herself?
Rebecca Saint James loves her life and is the perfect hostess. When she receives shocking news about her health, how will she cope with her future? This book is told from Rebecca(grandmother) and Keaton(granddaughters) points of view on a dual timeline. The way that KWH is able to pull together family history, a mystery and romance always makes for a delightful story and it was impossible to put this book down. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Happier Life is the first Kristy Woodson Harvey book that I have read, and I must admit I have mixed feelings about it. I was immediately hooked during the prologue, then almost DNF’d in the first chapter. I’m really glad I kept going though because for the most part I really liked it a lot. Here are some jumbled thoughts:

What I loved:
- Townsend and Rebecca Saint James were lovely characters. I loved their marriage.
- Rebecca’s tips at the beginning of each chapter. She was a true southern lady! I should write some of them down!
- The setting in quaint Beaufort, SC.
- The mystery of what happened to Townsend and Rebecca.
- Keaton’s relationship with her brother

What I didn’t:
- I think contemporary fiction is hard for me sometimes. I don’t like seeing things like texting and instagram in books. Modern language is also so much less elegant. It’s interesting how much more I enjoyed the past storyline in this one than the present day!
- The resolution to the mystery - sorry it would be a spoiler to elaborate.
Overall I would recommend this book, and I do hope to read some of Harvey’s others! It was a ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 read for me.

A Happier Life releases on June 25, which is perfect timing for this seaside read. Thank you so much to Kristy Woodson Harvey and NetGalley for this eARC!

I was excited to begin reading this book by an author I really like. The characters are realistic, and they mesh together in a way that keeps the story moving. That being said, there were too many characters to remember. I had a difficult time keeping the voices straight also. The time periods, of which I am not a fan of more than one, were not problematic. Reading about Becks' life...reading about Keaton's...that part worked. The major characters, of which there were several, and the numerous minor characters kept me wondering what was going on. The fact that there is a mystery woven into the plot was intriguing. Becks and her husband...I kept trying to discern what happened to them and the red herrings kept me guessing. Keaton and her family and friends...the house...how could anyone leave a house empty for so many years? This author has written an intriguing novel with realistic characters in a setting of the past and the present. When that past meets that present, fireworks...Thanks Netgalley.

This will be a lovely, heartwarming read for many but for me I found it to be kind of boring? I think Beck's story took over and Keaton's story took a backseat to Becks. At around the 150 page mark I made a guess as to what happened to Keaton's grandparents and even though I thought it was going to be wrong, I was spot on. I don't know if that made me disappointed or not but it definitely made it anti-climactic.

I did really like Anderson and felt that he added quite a bit to the story. I also loved Salt.

This is a well written book that many readers will love and I did find it entertaining enough to finish but that is about it.

Thank you NetGalley, Gallery Books and Kristy Woodson Harvey for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Happier Life
Kristy Woodson Harvey
Publishing: 6/25/24
5⭐️

It’s so true that the more you love a book, the harder it is to review. I do not have adequate words to express my love for KWH’s newest novel. While the Peachtree Bluff Series will always have my heart, A Happier Life is most definitely a new favorite.

I absolutely loved every single moment of this book! The writing was Harvey at her absolute best. We get the perfect mixture of family, southern charm, tender romance, history, a little mystery, and it’s all set in the most perfect, quaint seaside town.

KWH gives us an impeccable cast of well developed characters that are utterly charming and packed full of so much depth. I loved them all so much, but I think Anderson actually stole the show for me. I don’t know if I have ever adored a kid character to this extent. So much wit and humor packed into a 10 year old. I also loved Salt as a character. I smiled so hard as soon as I saw him written into this story!

I was so happily immersed into this beautiful story and cast of characters. I felt like I was right there in Beaufort sippin bubbly, trying to solve the Becks and Townsend mystery, and the very last thing I wanted to do was return to reality. It will definitely make you think about where you came from, and where you’re meant to be.

What I Loved;
✨ Beaufort, NC Setting
✨ Multigenerational Story
✨ Single Dad Rowan
✨ Anderson
✨ Salt
✨ The Dames
✨ The Dinner Parties
✨ The Journals
✨ All The Champagne Sippin
✨ Inspired by Actual Events

READ THIS BOOK! I wholeheartedly would recommend.

All the love for Gallery Books and Book Club Favorites for my gifted copies in exchange for my honest review.

Can't say enough wonderful things about A Happier Life by Kristy Woodson Harvey!

A huge thanks to Gallery for sending me an advanced copy of this book. KWH is my favorite author and this was exactly what I expect from one her her books.

Wonderful characters and I love this this was her love letter to Beaufort!

I can't wait for more people to read this! Definitely add this to your must reads for Summer 2024!

Love me a good Kristy Woodson Harvey book and this one did not disappoint.

After her professional and personal life tanks, Keaton heads to Beaufort, North Carolina to help her mother put her grandparents' house (not touched since the 1970s) on the market. While there, Keaton finds herself, found family, love, and and her "happier life", surrounded by an idyllic setting and great cast of minor characters.

Positives:
mutligenerational story
multiple points of view
loved the setting and description of Beaufort, NC-KWH made me want to visit
tugs at the heartstrings
helpful locals/townspeople trope

Negatives:
The "mystery" was alwasy pretty clear cut and straightforward so not sure if it was really supposed to be a mystery for the reader at all

This will be a terrific summer beach read. I was so happy to get my hands on it early and I will highly recommend it!

Sometimes, the key to a happier life is staring you right in the eye where you least expect it; and no one learns that more quickly than the protagonist Keaton in Kristy Woodson Harvey’s sure fire next bestseller.

In Harvey’s homage to The Notebook; the novel is written in two timelines with journal entries from Keaton’s grandmother Becks; aka Rebecca Saint James, a world class home entertainer, who mysteriously died with her husband Townsend in a presumed car wreck in 1976. In present day, Keaton is down on her luck after both her personal and professional life take a tumble with unexpected news; Keaton’s mom tasks her with returning to Sunset Lane in Beaufort, NC where the home of Becks and Townsend Saint James remains just as the day they left it down to the chargers on the dinner table; to clean the home and restore it to sell. But when Keaton arrives in Beaufort to spend a summer on Sunset Lane, she quickly learns there is so much more to discover about the story of the Saint James family; and there’s a dashing young boy living across the street with his adorable single father Bowen… which provides a beautiful storyline of love and healing. What readers won’t be expecting is some truly gripping emotion that will quite frankly rip your heart in two in the novels final act; Harvey manages to throw a couple twists that even her most loyal readers won’t have seen coming.

A HAPPIER LIFE will tug at your heart strings, and I know it’s one of my go-to sayings, but you will have to break out the big Costco sized box of Kleenex; but it also will put a smile on your face many times throughout the novel, and I believe you will laugh often; because there really is nothing Kristy Woodson Harvey does better than writing conversationally just like you were an old friend at the dinner table: her gift of storytelling is one for the ages, and I hope to see everyone with A HAPPIER LIFE in there beach bags June 25th!

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and its unique dual timeline approach. The narrative shifts between the present, where Keaton travels to South Carolina to clean out her grandparents' home after a breakup and leaving her job, and the past, which explores her grandmother Becks' life from meeting her husband to her final summer.

This captivating tale seamlessly blends romance, mystery, historical fiction, and family dynamics, and kept me engaged until the very end.

This is my first book by this author, but it will not be my last! She’s a gifted storyteller with a beautiful writing style.

Thank you NetGalley and Kristy Woodson Harvey for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Author Kristy Woodson Harvey takes us to her hometown Beaufort, NC through the eyes of Keaton Smith and the grandmother she never knew, Becks St. James. Keaton is at an unexpected crossroads after losing her boyfriend and job at the same time. So, when her mother needs her help in putting a family home, one Keaton didn’t even know about, on the market – Keaton jumps at the opportunity. But once there, the grandparents she never knew come to life through their possessions which have been left untouched and their personal journals. And quickly Keaton realizes, there was more to her grandparents than she’s been told.
Becks St. James was a legend in Beaufort, in her day. An invite to her weekly summer dinner parties was a coveted event. Envied for her perfect life, Becks has a secret and a challenge that no one wants to face.
With the help of the most delightful group of side characters, her handsome and sweet neighbor and his precocious son, can Keaton find healing, friendship and love?
As a huge fan of The Summer of Songbirds, Harvey once again delivers! She is such a unique storyteller. I was immersed in this story and could envision life in Beaufort as if I was there.
Available June 25, 2024, this is a must for your Summer TBR!
Thank you to Kristy Woodson Harvey for my #gifted ebook! I so much appreciate your generosity in sharing this story.

This sweet and tender novel shows a lady who is looking for a lot of things but finds a wonderful home in North Carolina. All of the characters are so easy to like and relate to in this book. This was such a feel good read and ended so happy. A must read for summer 2024.

Keaton finds herself out a job, at the exact same time her mother and uncle have decided to seek their childhood home in North Carolina. Keaton’s grandparents died in a car accident 50 years earlier, and no one has set foot in the home since. Once in the small town, Keaton finds her grandparents’ journals, which open up her mind and heart to the family she never knew.

I love KWH books! She is a newer to me author, but now it is my mission to read everything she writes. I adored the small town setting, the imposing neighbors, the mystery of what happened to Becs and Townsend, the family love & growth, and the small town romance. This book had everything I was looking for and would make a wonderful beach read! I loved the alternating then and now timelines and getting to know both Keaton and Becs throughout the story. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for an engrossing “summery” read!