Thank you Berkley for my copy of Book Lovers. All thoughts are my own.

Hyped up books and well loved books are always tricky. We can read books at the wrong time and not like them. We can read them at the right time and they change our lives. One of the most hyped authors in the last few years has definitely been Emily Henry. I interviewed her last year on Read It Or List It and became obsessed with Emily the person. She doesn’t take herself too seriously and at the same time, she is utterly brilliant. She is smart and generous and fun.

But her previous two adult novels didn’t quite work for me. I didn’t fall into the camp that adored Beach Read. And while I liked People We Meet On Vacation, there was still something missing from it for me. But with Book Lovers, I am all in. I think it’s her best yet and it just worked.

What I Liked:

The Characters—Nora and Charlie have my heart. There were so many parts of both the characters I could relate to, in the best ways. Charlie is going to go up there on my book boyfriends list. I loved how dynamic of a love interest he was!

The Concept—The concept of “what happens the girl the Hallmark guy leaves behind for small town life” felt so original and unique. Seriously, what happens to all those “cold” women?! Cause Hallmark makes them so one dimensional but Nora shows us that it’s okay to be determined and successful, that city life doesn’t mean you value material things more.

The Writing—Emily Henry has always intoxicated me with her writing. I’m glad that this time I was able to attach to the characters and plot as well.

The Love for New York City—So many tiny moments that made me nostalgic and proud to have called NYC home for six years. I miss it every day.

What Didn’t Work:

Not much, maybe one too many side plots but this was a solid read for me!

Content Warnings:

Grief, loss of a parent

Character Authenticity: 4/5 Steam Rating: 1.5/5 Overall Rating: 4.75/5

Emily Henry has just solidified herself as one of my favourite authors with this book! This is now her third adult book that I've given 5 stars, that's how much I love her writing. I love that her characters have depth and deep backstories, and she gets you invested in those characters right away. I also really enjoy the wit and banter her characters have. The hate-to-love was done very well, and I really enjoyed the dynamic between Nora and Charlie. It was so fun to watch how their relationship develops. I also enjoyed the sisterly relationship between Nora and Libby. I'm an older sister myself who is very close with my younger sister. I fully understand that need to want to take care of my younger sister and have to come to terms with the fact that she's an adult who can take care of herself.

Such a fantastic read! I love every second of it. I already know that I'm going to be staff picking this at my store on release day, and can't wait to talk with customers about this book!

Everyone say "thank you, Emily Henry" for this masterpiece.

There's just something about her writing (and characters!!) that speaks to me on a whole new level. I love the fact that I can always count on her to give me a good romance novel, and I'm gonna be honest, I could read her shopping list and still give it a five star rating.

Book Lovers is now one of my favorite books. Nora Stephens? A LITERAL QUEEN. She's at the top of my heroines list. Charlie Lastra? I wish he was real. He's THAT man. I am clearly obsessed with them. Their chemistry was off the charts, they were made for each other and at times my heart ached for both of them.

“Until you got here,” he rasps, “all this place had ever been was a reminder of the ways I was a disappointment, and now you’re here, and—I don’t know. I feel like I’m okay. So if you’re the ‘wrong kind of woman,’ then I’m the wrong kind of man.”

ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? I wanted to scream.

But aside from romance, Nora has a deep and beautiful relationship with her sister, Libby, and it's amazing to see their journey as they're trying to find themselves and deal with the loss of their mother. The ending had me sobbing.

This book is beautifully written and it will take me a while to process everything.

I'm about to incur the wrath, I know...

I don't know if I've aged out of this type of book or if it's just a "not right now" situation for me, but I didn't love BOOK LOVERS as much as most people did.

The positive... I like that Nora is hard-edged and perceived as a "shark." It's nice to have a main character who is good at her job and maybe a little harsh, but who is also still very relatable. I also thought Henry did a really good job of creating and building sexual tension between Nora and Charlie. By the time they finally got it on I was like, sheesh, fantastic! So happy for you both.

The not so positive... Despite the good stuff in here, there are still many tired tropes of romance characters and relationships that I have come to loathe. Why oh why does Nora have to be a klutz? How many times must a woman literally fall into the arms of her would-be-lover? It's maddening. We are capable of walking, people.

Also, yes, the sexual tension build up is effective...but does it actually make sense? I have a hard time believing that there is much keeping Nora and Charlie from smooshing from the start. Just because they are colleagues doesn't mean that a sexual relationship is forbidden. I never was able to buy into the false dilemma they create for themselves.

Last, I didn't love Nora's relationship with her sister. Nora is protective of Libby to the point of weirdness. Shared trauma can explain that dynamic up to a point, but I had trouble believing that Nora--who is portrayed as a blunt, straight-to-the-point, client-whisperer magician in her professional life--would become incapable of even simple conversations or questions with such an important person in her personal life. I was invested in their relationship, sure, and I was curious about what was really going on with Libby. But it was a mystery that could have easily been solved with one honest conversation.

I know my opinion isn't the popular one, but there it is. I still enjoyed the book, and I look forward to reading whatever Henry publishes next.

I don’t always like to read reviews before/while reading a book as I’ve found that has altered my view of the book (usually in a negative manner). However, given this was an ARC and there were only a few reviews up, I looked around. One person described this book as Henry’s most romcom-like book yet, and I have to say I both agree and disagree with this assessment. Was there plenty of romance? Hell, yeah! Did I laugh out loud and sometimes even snort while laughing? Yes (on both accounts). I would 100% classify the first half of the book as romcom, but the second half had a tone shift and changed focus that made it much more serious. Henry developed her characters—especially Nora—in a way that made me feel their every emotion, both good and bad.

Nora is my idol. Henry did not hold back on writing about an independent young woman making her way in the world and taking no crap from any man (no matter how attractive). While Nora could have easily come off as a stereotypical working woman (think The Proposal), Henry made her so unique and lovable in an effortless way. Nora is ruthless, she is career-driven, and she is loyal (almost to a fault). I’m unashamedly a Nora stan. While we definitely see her perception of work and family shift over the course of the book, Nora does not compromise on who she is as a person, something I deeply respected.

Charlie is the love interest to end all love interests. He is capable, he is sassy, and he is also loyal (almost to a fault). The way he self-sacrificed for his family and even for Nora had me close to tears several times. On the outside he may appear a little frosty, but by the end Charlie is 100% a cinnamon roll hero. Charlie supported Nora every step of the way (hello camping scene) and never made her feel like she needed to change herself for him. I felt so much acceptance and support from him. He becomes so endearing (so fast!) that all you will want to do is give him a hug and tell him to be happy.

Another review stated that this book was a love letter to books, and it’s so true! Both Nora and Charlie adored reading (enough to make it their careers). The way they described books and their jobs, the more the reader is able to relate to them. Furthermore, romance was often related back to reading. The way Henry described how Nora and Charlie felt about each other would be well-known by any avid reader. Their shared passion for reading only drew them closer together. It’s difficult to describe how glorious it was to read a book about characters I felt such a strong kinship to.

I would be remiss if I wrote a review on Book Lovers and failed to mention the ending. So much feeling and emotion was packed into the last few pages. I felt devastated by the course of events and the fact that it was coming to an end. I had so many hopes and started to get scared as the pages trickled down to the last few. I felt—

I may be a reviewer, but I’m not always great at communicating, which is why I’ll conclude here and just let Emily Henry’s Book Lovers speak for itself. This book is beautiful and filled with so much growth and love. Preorder this book! Book Lovers releases on May 3, 2022.

Romance is not typically my thing, and this is actually the first Emily Henry I've picked up. But the hype is REAL, and in this case, very much deserved. Reading this one has inspired me to check out her sizable backlist as well.

One thing I loved about this is that this is also very much a story about sisters. Yes, it's a romantic story, but I'm glad it's also a story about the love between Nora and Libby. Charlie is a fun romantic lead, and I'm glad his 'brooding' nature had a well-developed backstory and origin.

I expect BOOK LOVERS won't need my help in selling, but I can compare it THE HATING GAME, especially with the publishing connection, which did very well for us.

1. this isn’t enemies to lovers, it’s romance novel enemies to lovers so jot that down. (romance enemies to lovers is when a misunderstanding causes them not to like each other for like 2 chapters and that’s it.) that isn’t why this is four stars but i did have to start there!!

my major criticism is that i felt like nora and charlie began the book so complex but as we went along, each of their neuroses were given a simple and easily identifiable place of origin that just didn’t feel realistic to me. one of my favorite things about henry’s romances IS how complex the characters are and how she resists the archetypes and simplifications that are common in the straight romance market.

i really loved the beginning and the introduction to the characters, and i honestly love a lot of the tropes it pulled out (legitimate reasons keeping lovers apart, location pulling them apart, love sometimes not being enough!!!!!). the pining was very very good in the middle. i also just generally think the theme of not having to change or compress down to be loved is good. but these are frankly things i expect from henry because there are undercurrents of these themes throughout henry’s books (part of the reason i love them so much!!!)

i liked the way it subverted the big city to small town trope. i’m a person who has only lived in cities recently and romanticize moving to a small town, but this felt like a v strong criticism of the prevalence of that trope!

all this being said, the book spent a lot of time in small town sunshine falls for a book about two characters who Love New York as a defining characteristic of both themselves & their relationship. kind of felt like having your cake and eating it too.

i liked a lot of what it was trying to do and the bones but it struggled to come together for me. not my fave henry.

I utterly adored this book. I still have yet to read PWMOV but Book Lovers has skyrocketed to my favorite Emily Henry. I had so many highlights and things that resonated with me, especially Nora. Although I am married and have kids, I find that my strong, sharp nature can be off putting and Nora experiences that struggle continuously - sharing the frustration of always being deemed as too hard, too mean, too aggressive for love. But Emily gives her the best, sweetest, swooniest love story with Charlie Lastra and Charlie has become a new fave book love interest.

As much as this is a romance, it is also a story about sisterhood. What it means to lose a parent and feel responsible to car for and protect your younger sibling. Nora spends her entire life trying to be better for Libby, give Libby everything she wants and need, protect her. So much of this is Nora learning to let go.

Lastly, there is so much book within a book/story within a story. I love a bookstore setting and even with super cliche and meta jobs for the characters (author and literary agent), this never feels trite. The language that Emily uses: describing feelings akin to reading the last line of a book, never quite getting the ending you want. I truly think this is Emily's best book.

Now I am lowering this to 4.5 stars in Storygraph because I need Emily to write people of color. Like I don't understand it. They are invisible, never appearing, never in the town at all. I would even be happy with a Black best friend if written well. Emily - this is your third book. Please, get some sensitivity readers (happy to be one! I have experience) and add some POC into your next book.

Beach Read was good, People We Met on Vacation was surprisingly wonderful, but Book Lovers (which I’ll admit, I was a bit apprehensive about) truly knocks it out of the park. It’s been awhile since a book grabbed me in the way this did; this had perhaps the best prologue I’ve ever read. I instantly felt the connection between Nora and Charlie and the witty banter was some of the best I’ve ever read. It is rare I laugh out loud at a book but I found myself doing so time and time again. The build up to their relationship felt natural and not rushed. I felt they had the right amount of interaction for the connection that was occurring.

The descriptions in this story were also so detailed and spot on. This book serves, in a lot of ways, as a love letter to many things, but especially to New York. I resonated strongly with that and with Nora’s character. Even though I don’t have siblings, the storyline involving her and Libby’s mother was so intricately woven through, I felt the pain. This book is about sisters and loss just as much as it is about romantic love and that is what sets it apart from the many romances on the market today. I’ll surely have a book hangover after this one.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Book Lovers is Emily Henry's best book yet!
This is my favorite romance read of the year!

Literary Agent Nora and her sister Libby are very close. Nora has always looked out for Libby especially since their mother passed away. Now suddenly the roles have changed and Libby finds herself taking care more of Nora without really realizing it.
Libby has a brilliant idea that the duo embark on a vacation to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina. A little sister's trip away.
Sunshine Falls happens to be the setting of Nora's famous clients novel.
When Nora bumps into Charlie, who is a book editor and has fate would have it lives in the town she is currently visiting. Nora isn't a fan of him. But the two keep running into each other. And what starts as rivals disliking each other, could be just what these two book lovers need!
Because they can't deny when the sparks start flying!

Henry knows how to write a stunning enemies-to-lovers story!
And this book is another wonderful, beautiful story that strikes a perfect balance between cynical, humorous banter and serious topics.

Captivating story telling from the beginning: I couldn’t put down this book.
I seriously devoured the pages. The writing was so addictive and easy.
I couldn’t stop reading Nora and Charlie's growing attraction.
The rivals trope is one of my favourite tropes and Henry outdid herself here with Book Lovers!
It’s romantic and adorable and hot and hilarious, yes, but it’s also genuine, clever, well-written, and addictively told. Not to mention a very refreshing story.
Also with fascinating supporting characters, and it’s also surprisingly poignant and thought-provoking this book is top notch!
It’s everything I wanted in a rom-com and so much more! 

If you're looking for a unique romance book with great tropes, freaking amazing banter, addictive writing then you need to pick this book up now!

It’s everything I wanted in a rom-com and so much more! 

She’s quickly becoming one of my favorite contemporary romance authors.

“I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

Berkley,
Thank You for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!
I will post my review to my platforms, blog, B&N and Waterstone closer to pub date.

Emily Henry’s ‘Book Lovers’ feels like wrapping yourself in a warm, witty hug. It’s a tribute to anyone who has ever felt like they don’t quite “fit,” and is a fantastic exploration of relationships in all their forms. And, as the title suggests, ‘Book Lovers’ is, in many ways, a tribute to people who love reading books.

Nora Stephens is an unapologetically driven literary agent that people may or not refer to as “the shark” when her back is turned. While she’s (mostly) fine with that assessment, she finds that when she ends up in the same small town as Charlie Lastra, a book editor/rival, she realizes that she just might care what he thinks. Shockingly.

Henry once again delivers readers a fantastic amount of quippy, razor-sharp banter, a lot of slow burning chemistry, and wholly formed characters. As main characters, Nora and Charlie both shine, each complimenting each other in the most satisfying of ways. The relationship between Nora and her sister, Libby, is also wonderfully crafted. I laughed. I cried. And I empathized. Hard.

This book reminded me why I love reading so much, and it will definitely be on my best-of list come the end of the year.

Thank you to Berkley and NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This is the Emily Henry’s best work yet. Full stop.

Here are just a few of the million things I LOVED about this book:
- Nora: This book is a love letter to driven, misunderstood women. I loved and related to Nora with every fiber of my being. She’s a “shark” at work and the best at what she does, but because she’s a woman, she gets all the negative associations that come with that thrown at her - bitchy, unfeeling, etc. - when that’s not who she is at all.
- Charlie: Move over literally everyone ever, Charlie is my new favorite book boyfriend. As @kikiareyoureading pointed out, he’s a combo of Gus and Rhysand. I might actually argue he’s mostly Rhysand. He is PERFECT. Ugh.
- Nora + Charlie: The BANTER is absolute perfection. It sizzles on the page. I laughed, I cried, I couldn’t get enough.
- Nora + Libby: I have so many feelings about their relationship and some of them are mild spoilers, so all I’ll say is that their relationship was wonderful and really tugged at my heartstrings.
- This book is a romance but there is just so much depth. I cried for the last quarter of a book in a way that I did not anticipate, just because I related so much to everything and Emily Henry’s characters are such specific, real people that you can’t help but feel SO deeply for them.

I’m just so flipping excited for the entire world to read this book.

Nora Stephens is a literary agent who will do anything for her clients... and her Peloton bike, which is referenced SO MANY times in this book! Don't get me wrong - I love my Peloton - but wow that was a lot! Ok back to the book - Nora's younger, pregnant sister, Libby, convinces Nora to spend the month of August in Sunshine Falls, NC, an adorable small town and the setting of Nora's biggest client's recent hit book. While there, Nora hopes to reconnect with her sister and have some downtime from work, but she is thrown for a loop when she runs into her work-nemesis, Charlie, a moody book editor.

Another good one from Emily Henry! I love Emily Henry's writing style - the characters were hilarious and the writing is so witty that there were multiple instances when I burst out laughing. She never forgets to put the rom in rom-com, which I certainly appreciate. I felt that a lot of the issues the characters in this book could have been solved through some frank conversations, but then we wouldn't have a book so I totally get it! Nora is a supposed "shark" but to me she seemed anything but unfeeling and at times I was dying for her to be even the slightest bit selfish and just worry about herself instead of others. Overall I really enjoyed this one and will continue to read any book this author puts out!

I really enjoyed this book, as I do most of the books by this author. The main character in this story, Nora, was a very relatable character for me for many reasons. The other characters were also very likable and engaging and I enjoyed reading about all of them. The story focused around the book industry and family relationships that will be appealing to all those who also love books. Definitely a great pick!

(4.5 stars, rounded up)

Content warning: loss of a parent

Nora Stephens is a publishing agent in New York City. She's career-focused and unlucky in love. Each one of her boyfriends ends up traveling and having a small-town romance that he then dumps her for. She's the other woman in the Hallmark movies -- the one who's left behind so the man can live his fairy tale romance.

Nora's sister Libby convinces her to spend a month in small-town Sunshine Falls, North Carolina because it's the setting of one of her favorite novels. Nora runs into rival Charlie Lastra, who refused to be the editor of the same book that began the sisters' vacation. Even though she can't stand Charlie, it's obvious that their chemistry is off the charts. But will control freak Nora be able to let everything go and accept her attraction? And when more than her love life goes off the rails, will she be able to keep it together?

The characters in the novel are complex, each dealing with their own set of issues. Nora is still mothering her adult sister, who she's felt obligated to care for since the death of their mother. Sister Libby is overwhelmed by being a stay-at-home mom to two children with a third on the way in a small, one-bedroom NYC apartment. Charlie is still damaged by not being the perfect son because he's more cerebral than his construction worker adoptive father.

Recommended for all readers of women's fiction and those who enjoy bookish novels and romances.

Representation: single mother, stay-at-home mother, lesbian

I don't often read romance novels, but when I do, I can only hope that they will be half as clever, witty, and heartfelt as Emily Henry's latest, Book Lovers.

Nora is a successful, type A literary agent in NYC, who has cared for her more free-spirited younger sister Libby after their mother dies while they are both still teens. When book editor Charlie turns down a novel from her top client, he is cast as Nora's nemesis (anyone familiar with the enemies to lovers trope can probably see where this is headed). So imagine the hijinks that will ensue when she runs into him in tiny Sunshine Falls, North Carolina, while on a bucket list sister's trip that Libby has planned before the birth of her third child.

I spent the first two thirds of this novel laughing out loud... the banter (whether spoken, emailed, or texted) between Nora and Charlie is so sharply written and flat out hysterically funny. The last third of the novel, I was genuinely moved by their obstacle-ridden romance. And wow, do these two have chemistry!

Of course, NYC is not the sugar spun metropolis it is made out to be in this novel, nor is small town North Carolina likely filled with hunky Cornell-graduate farmers ( sadly I was thinking, where is the jerk in his MAGA hat driving his pick up truck with the Confederate flag and gun rack). But it was sweet to just live in this lovely escapist world for a couple days.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced readers copy of Book Lovers in exchange for my review.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 5/5 stars

Beach Read has been my all-time favorite romance book since it came out, but when I saw Book Lovers had a peloton in it..I knew. I knew Book Lovers would be better than Beach Read. And it was.

Book Lovers tells the story of Nora, a cutthroat literary agent who has cast herself as the “cynical city girl” in Hallmark movies that is always dumped by the lead character so he can find love with the sweet small town baker. When Nora’s sister asks her to go on vacation to the small town of Sunshine Falls, she reluctantly goes. There, she runs into her nemesis, book editor Charlie, and finds she may actually fall in love in a small town..with a man from the city.

It is known with my friends and family that I have been a huge fan of Hallmark since one fateful, wine-filled night in 2012 that ended with me sobbing in a cat onesie and wondering if I just discovered true cinema. They are a lifestyle and I have always been fascinated with the villain girlfriend from the city. This another reason I knew I would love this book.

These characters. Basically, I would die for Nora. I have been loving the hot mess lead characters in romcoms this year, but Nora is a little more relatable to me personally with her book loving, micromanaging, anxious, introverted-and-constantly-worried-it-comes-off-as-mean self. There is also the obsession with her peloton that I very much relate to. Yes, it’s a piece of exercising equipment, but I have bonded with it like it is my child.

As for Charlie, I am obsessed with him. Obsessed to the point where I don’t want to talk about him and give away just how obsessed I am with a fictional man written by a woman. That fashionable, sarcastic vampire is the standard to which I will hold all book boyfriends to. We will just leave it at that.

I loved this book. I loved the world, the banter, the plot, everything. I love the audiobook and I haven’t even listened to it yet. I never wanted it to end and I’m heartbroken that it has. Emily Henry can write characters that just speak to me. We all wish to be the person that leaves an amazing job to find love and the Christmas spirit on a small town Christmas tree farm, but some of us know we would never want to deal with the financial stress and relationship strain that it would inevitably lead to. This book is for those people. I’m those people.

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Full review to be posted on release date.

It’s official. Emily Henry is one of my absolute favorite authors. This is my third book by her and each book has been better than the last (and that’s saying a lot since I loved her last two). She’s such an incredibly gifted writer and always finds the perfect balance of emotion, heart, and humor. Her words hit me right in the feels and I devoured this book. Book Lovers falls more into women’s fiction for me (though there is a very strong and wonderful romantic plot), since Nora’s character arc is the foundation of this story.

Things to look forward to:
- One of the best sister relationships I’ve ever read. I loved the romantic plot in Book Lovers, but it’s the bond between Nora and Libby that really sold me on this book. It’s honest and raw and will have you crying happy and sad tears.
- Charlie. Oh wonderfully pouty, bigfoot erotica reading, sweet cinnamon roll of a man. I loved seeing him slowly open up his heart. His banter and chemistry with Nora was the best and had me grinning ear to ear. I was not expecting this book to be as spicy as it was, so that was a very pleasant surprise!
- The book is an ode to all things bookish! I loved all the tropes mentioned (small town, forced proximity, enemies to lovers, etc) and the bookish references and that the main characters were a book editor and literary agent. I don’t think I’ve read a book featuring these professions before. It was a pseudo-behind the scenes that completely worked.
- Small town shenanigans and a colorful cast of secondary characters. Much like Nora, I slowly fell in love with Sunshine Falls, especially all of the punny establishments.

This is a beautiful novel about family, love, and living a life at full volume. Easily one of my favorite reads of the year!

CW: grief, death of parent (past), anxiety/panic attacks (on page), parental abandonment (past), bullying (past), mentions and discussion of: hospitalization/stroke and caring for loved one, housing/food/financial insecurity

*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book *

*screams* Oh my gosh! Truly so many emotions for one of my most anticipated releases of 2022. First of all, this is my favorite of Emily Henry's romances. Period. While I have enjoyed both Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation, Book Lovers brings something completely different to the table. What would I even classify this? Enemies to lovers? Grumpy and less grumpy? City person not as much of a city person? With a hint of workplace romance? But really, what it boils down to more, is that this book is so much more than just a romance between two characters. This is a romance between a woman, her family, her love for the city, her love for her job, and her loving herself.
There's a lot that you get a glimpse of reading this from the viewpoint of main character Nora. She's passionate, she loves her Peleton, she works. All the time. But she's also scared. She also puts others before herself. She wants to be there for her sister, even if they don't see eye-to-eye. And she loves Charlie. Charlie, her butting-head coworker but he's really an editor for a book she helps sell. Their relationship is just...perfection. It's so wholesome to watch page by page, how he pours out so much for her, and how she slowly starts to fall in love.
Gah. I just want to relive this book over and over again. Emily Henry's writing in this is just so mature, so well crafted. Ugh. Get me tissues and a highlighter so I can just note all the times Charlie bends over backwards for Nora. It's truly...perfection.

from the moment this book started, i knew i was going to love it. and i DID. it was so good, emily henry did not miss. the grief this book put me through, i wanted to CRY. this book was so emotionally charged. also... the notion of following your dreams?? and doing what you want?? the timing of this book has never been better for me. i wish i had more coherent thoughts for this book because it deserves more than me just saying i loved it over and over again. maybe nora and charlie can team up and edit my review.