<i>Maybe home isn’t a place. It’s a feeling. Of being looked after and understood. Of being loved.</i>

Oh this story is so sweet! It took me a bit to get into it but then I read the last 40% in one sitting, letting the story wrap around my heart and leaving me smiling for days.

Emmie Blue releases a balloon as a teenager that contains a confession that she was sexually assaulted by a teacher. Lucas finds it an ocean away and they quickly because best friends. Fast forward fifteen years later to their thirtieth birthday, and Emmie thinks Lucas has asked her for dinner so he can confess his feelings (which she obviously reciprocates). Instead, he tells her he’s getting married and wants her to be his best woman.

This is a story about putting yourself back together. About not letting the worst day of your life define you. About unconventional family and friendships so close they feel like family. About realizing that some things aren’t as they seem and the best things in life may be right in front of you.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for the advance copy of this delightful read.

Sweet, albeit predictable read! This was the perfect book to get lost in for an afternoon and walk away with a smile and full heart.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of Dear Emmie Blue.

I'm not a fan of chick lit, but the premise of Dear Emmie Blue was unique so I was excited when my request was approved.

Fourteen years ago, during a turbulent period in 16 year old Emmie Blue's life, she let loose a red balloon that flew across an ocean and was found by a young man named Lucas. And an enduring friendship was born.

Now, at the age of 30, Emmie is in love with Lucas and believes their destiny is to be married. Until Lucas tells her he is getting married. To another woman. And would she be his best woman?

Of course she will! But, as she slogs her way through all the events leading to the big day, Emmie discovers that her friendship with Lucas was seen through rose colored glasses and someone has loved her since day one. His brother.

To say Dear Emmie Blue follows the traditional and predictable route of so many chick flicks and chick lit books is an understatement.

Its all here; a meek main character with no family and few friends who is desperate for a partner to feel less alone who, at the end, has gained everything she always wanted. And then some.

Emmie Blue was hard to like; she is a doormat, desperately lonely (which I understand) but believes getting married will cure her loneliness.

By the end, I still found it hard to like her, much less care about her.

Her mother is a narcissistic, neglectful parent and her father is a no-show, Emmie the result of a one night stand, or so she was told.

Her job is meaningless, she lives in a tiny apartment with an old landlady and is haunted by a terrible assault when she was sixteen.

As the story continues, Emmie learns that the most important thing a person has to do, before they can love anyone, is to love themselves.

Sadly, I didn't love Emmie, not after she started to get back on track, though I did like her friends.

This a good read for anyone who wants to read something predictable with a happy ending.

I loved loved loved Emmie Blue! She was such a great character, trying to find herself and her place without the picture perfect family and a LOT of past baggage. This was really such a sweet story at heart, I loved the fated friendship between her and Lucas. That balloon! I think her feelings about him moving forward in his own life and finally getting rid of the "perfect" image she had of him felt incredibly real and honest. I loved the way the story turned and that it allowed for her to have a little space to really figure out what she wanted, before finding the love she needed. I read this one really fast and found it easy to love! Highly recommend if you are looking for a sweet story about love and friendship!

Thank you to Atria Books & NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for honest feedback.

“Dear Emmie Blue” needs to be at the top of everyone’s TBR list. The story is so emotional yet feel-good that it’s just the right anecdote for a case of the quarantine blues (or any type of blues you may be suffering).

Lia Louis is one of those authors that can give you a book that is equally humorous yet emotional in equal balance. There were many times I laughed and just as many times I had tears in my eyes but the book never weighed me down with sadness. I also found it very refreshing that she built a romantic relationship between Emmie and Eliot without it actually turning physical. That made their bond feel more than superficial and more relatable to me.

I will admit I picked this book up once before and could not get into it. I don’t think I was in the right head-space for this book but when I did finally revisit it I found I couldn’t put it down. After reading this I am definitely looking forward to the next Lia Louis novel!

I received an eARC of Dear Emmie Blue by Lia Louis from Atria Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!

I give this book 5 stars! It's an emotional romantic read one I will probably re-read sometime very soon. I couldn't put it down because I had to find out if Emmie would get her HEA. I highly recommend this book!!!

Dear Emmie Blue is a quirky, albeit slight melodramatic, story of Ellie who sends off a balloon and begins a pen-pal type of relationship with Lucas, the boy who finds the balloon. 14 years later Emmie is hopelessly in love with Lucas and hoping he can finally reciprocate those feelings. The story dragged on a bit in the beginning but over all it was a light, easy and pleasant book.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the ARC of this book!

Dear Emmie Blue was exactly the novel I needed to right now! Emmie releases a balloon with a note from her high school class in England and it is found 100 miles away in France by an expat teen named Lucas. They become lifelong best friends and his family welcomes her as one of their own. Emmie eventually realizes that the love of a lifetime and the family she always wished for was always within reach, but not in the ways she expected. The narrative switches between then and now, cleverly filling in dramatic backstory as you read. It won't surprise me if this is eventually optioned as a movie.

ARC provided by #NetGalley for an honest review.

Trigger warnings: absentee parents, sexual assault, victim shaming

A sweetly poignant novel about love and friendship, with rich characterizations and tantalizing themes. Perfect lightweight escapist reading!

Dear Emmie Blue is a sweet story. It will be a great summer story. Emmie has a tough start to life until she sends off a balloon and it is found by Lucas who becomes her best friend. Emmie really needed a best friend in her life. The book moves forward to when Emmie and Lucas are thirty and Lucas is getting married. Most of the book is about this time in their life.

The book did move.a little slow in the beginning. However, I read the second half of the book in one evening. I did feel some of the characters could have used a bit more development. A few were tossed in and I really did not get to know them.

This book is a light, feel good book. It is not all fluff and takes on some serious topics. Overall, this book was very enjoyable so stick with it and you will be rewarded with a good book.

Thank you to NetGally for an advanced copy of this book..

Dear Emmie Blue is such a sweet story of love - love lost and love found. Young and troubled Emmie Blue sends up a secret note in a balloon and it's found by Lucas, who becomes her lifelong best friend. At age 30, their relationship takes on a different twist and this book chronicles what happens next, as Emmie discovers the truth about the past, present, and future. The ending is perfect and satisfying.

Dear Emmie Blue is light reading - perfect for vacation, or passing the time without too much challenge. I would have given it 5 stars, but I felt it could have been somewhat shortened. I recommend to all who enjoy a good love story.

Lia Louis' Dear Emmie Blue is a sweet and thought-provoking tale about friendship, first loves, and family. What starts as a sharing of secrets turns into a lifelong friendship and maybe more? This book is a must-read for fans of Evvie Drake Starts Over and Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine.

Many thanks to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

This was a great read about friendship, love and finding your self worth. Longing for more.
Emmie Blue sends a balloon into the air. A boy named, Lucas, finds it and they begin a friendship. Fast forward to age 30 and Lucas is getting married. Emmie struggles with it along with trying to locate a father she never knew.

A very different "coming of age" novel that has a happy ever after ending.

Fourteen year old Emmie Blue is the only child of a disinterested single parent, living in the UK. She longs for a family to love and to share her life with. In desperation she sends up a balloon into the sky with her email address and her secret attached. When she gets an email from France from Lucas Moreau, who found the balloon, she is hopeful. Sixteen years later as her 30th birthday approaches her life is shattered when a wedding proposal from Lucas isn't the one she expected. He wants her to be his best woman when he marries Marie in 9 months time. In true Emmie fashion she agrees and puts her whole self into fulfilling the duties of a best man/woman.

Emmie finds her best friend Rosie and her landlady Louise a source of encouragement as they insist she needs to let people in. Finding a father never knew is another Emmie effort that her mother finally shatters.

I liked Emile Blue’s perseverance. She overcame every obstacle life threw at her. She found good friends, a guy who loves her and most importantly a family.

4.5*
This is one of those reads that sneaks up on you and when you least expect it…wraps itself around your heart.❤️

Emmie Blue just turned thirty. A birthday she gladly shares with her dearest friend Lucas. Tonight, she’s wishing on a star, with all her heart that Luke opens his eyes and sees what she believes. That the two of them could have a wonderful future together, far beyond the “friend zone.” Well, all you hopeless romantics…let’s just say things don’t always turn out as we hope.

Emmie Blue is a tragically sad character simply searching for happiness. To be loved. Isn’t that what we all look for in life.💁🏻‍♀️ Poor Emmie has had more than her fair-share of misfortune in her thirty short years.
I absolutely felt for Emmie. Her pain and discomfort were palpable. The author did a masterful job bringing her to life.

For me the book was a slow starter. Until I hit the half way mark, when I found it quite impossible to put down. I wanted so much for Emmie to finally discover her peace and happiness and couldn’t, wouldn’t stop until I saw her journey through to the end! I laughed, I cheered and I cried!

A superbly written story of love and friendship.

Thank you to Milena Brown at Atria books via NetGalley for an ARC to read and review.

Absolute PERFECTION as a summer read!

There is love, love lost, misunderstandings, secrets, kisses, a note sent over an ocean while tied to a balloon, weddings, mix tapes, cheating, more secrets, and once again, love.

Dear Emmie Blue should defnitely be on your summer read list my friend!

What a sweet book! The story follows Emmie as she navigates life and grows as a person. Emmie hasn’t had an easy life but her friend Lucas has always been by her side. When Lucas tells her some news, Emmie’s world shifts and she has to figure out how to right it.

I loved these characters and seeing how Emmie slowly let people in. I adored Elliot. Rosie was such a fun character and brought so much humor to the story. Emmie was sweet and strong. This story is a great reminder that you never know what people have been through and to always be kind.

Dear Emmie Blue was a cute uplifting read, especially during this pandemic. A bit predictable but nevertheless enjoyable. A story about love, missed connections, reunion, and self discovery.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! No spoilers. Beyond amazing I enjoyed this book so very much. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Could not put down nor did I want to. Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers. Maybe even a book club pick.