"Book Lovers" is a triumph. I think comparing it to Jane Austen's perfect blend of humor, sisterhood, romance, and tongue in cheek self-awareness is not overstating things. Readers familiar with Henry's work will expect the romance tropes to be subverted, and "Book Lovers" is no exception. But the romantic relationship is not central to this book; the relationship between the narrator and her sister is. And, the best part is that the romantic interest sees their relationship and understands that nothing can compare to a sister. I experienced an avalanche of emotion because I have a beloved sister; I cried happy tears, sad tears, incandescently happy tears. Even if you don't have a sister, this book as it all: banter, sexual tension, work life balance struggles, book stores, and a badass woman at the center.

"Book Lovers," is magic. I look forward to reading and rereading throughout my life.

Trigger warnings below:
Death of a parent, childhood bullying, grief, bad dating experiences, pregnancy

Book Lovers by Emily Henry is another fantastic rom com. This book has everything you could ever need: enemies to lovers, deep emotional issues, secret plans, and a sneaky sister.
Nora Stephens is a publishing agent in New York. Her sister begs her to come away on vacation in August with her to the town in the center of her client's last novel. However, it's not long before she realizes her work nemesis, Charlie Lastra, is also in town for the summer.
Emily Henry's books are so fantastically done and really bring the characters to life.

Wow, this was a major switch-up from People We Meet on Vacation (which is arguably in my top 10 favourite romance books of all time)… and honestly? It worked in its favour. Henry finally parts way with the unnecessary miscommunication trope that all romance authors love to wedge in to up their page count. Instead, this book is a change of pace as it veers away from all the tropes the romance genre’s been featuring in literally every week.

There is no enemies-to-lovers, no slow burn, no fake dating, no I’m-going-to-throw-this-book-across-the-room-until-they-admit-to-themselves-they-like-each-other. It’s actually… a relatively realistic love story. (Which isn’t the kind of book I was looking for! That’s my only qualm, which is very unfair.)

I was talking to my sister about Emily Henry recently and we both marvelled in her ability to create characters who are incredibly vibrant without being cartoon-ish—and that’s certainly true for my favourite love story in this book: that of the two sisters! Henry does such a good job representing the women’s dynamic without turning either Nora or Libby into caricatures; she also perfectly represents the tight-knit relationship between sisters that can be unwaveringly supportive, unnecessarily protective, overly involved, and filled with this immense love and dedication to one another. With the primary romance in the story, it continues to read as two totally normal (but very interesting) people falling in love instead of two flat characters in a shiny Hallmark movie. Honestly, I’m a little bit disappointed that in the end (view spoiler)

Anyway, as always, I wish I had a pile of Emily Henry’s books to work through during the dreary winter months. Until then, I can only hope one of her books gets optioned for a movie adaptation.

Review will post week of release date.

I’ve become an Emily Henry fangirl over the last couple of years, so when this book hit my Kindle I set aside everything to read.

Book Lovers centers around two main characters deeply involved in the publishing world. Literary agent extraordinaire Nora Stephens and her editor nemesis Charlie Lastra. They first cross paths at a coffee meeting to discuss her biggest client’s new manuscript. He disparages the small-town setting and she takes umbrage and it only goes downhill from there.

Now it’s several years later and Nora has agreed (under duress) to accompany her baby sister on a month-long vacation for just the two of them. Libby is pregnant with baby number three and Nora can sense that she desperately needs this time together to relax and recharge. If they are able to reconnect, even better. Libby is the most important person in Nora’s life after the death of their mother and she will do just about anything she asks, even leave her beloved New York City and head to the middle of nowhere small-town America. The fact that it’s also the setting for her client’s lastest bestseller just makes it weird. AND LOW AND BEHOLD WHO SHOULD ALSO BE THERE? You guessed it. Charlie Lastra.

"I’m the city person. Not the one who meets the hot farmer. The other one."

Nora is adamant in the opening of Book Lovers that she isn’t the romance heroine who gets the guy. She’s the woman who always gets left when her boyfriend goes to a small town and meets the girl who changes him forever. She’s the tough, city girl who makes no apologies about being the tough city girl because she loves her city and she loves her routines and she loves being the biggest advocate for her clients. Nora Stephens is only soft for Libby and her girls and that’s okay. But her sister thinks she needs to have a change in her life and has given Nora this list where she is encouraged to mark off her new experiences.

When she gets into town it’s not exactly what she envisioned. But the fact that it happens to also be Charlie’s hometown explains so much about why he didn’t love the book when she pitched it to him so long ago. They keep bumping into each other and eventually, the backstories come out about why each of them is there. She to make her sister happy and him to take care of his father and help out at their local business, a book store that badly needs a business makeover. And eventually, they end up working on a new project together, reading as the pages come in, shooting notes back and forth, and slowly realizing there is a sexual tension between the two of them that they just can’t deny.

"Sometimes, even when you start with the last page and you think you know everything, a book finds a way to surprise you."

Emily Henry writes some of the best dialogue, banter, and snark I’ve read in ages. Her back and forth verbal volleys are *chef’s kiss* and I absolutely love it. Nora and Charlie are both city people stuck together in a small town, both 100% aware that they don’t fit in and don’t really want to. But they fit together and they understand and admire the parts of each other that no one else seems to. They also happen to be super hot for each other. Their romance is slow-burn and there is a lot of getting to know each other before they give in and finally have sex. But it is worth it. Nora and Charlie have so much chemistry and the longing for each other after even while trying to keep it strictly professional is top-notch. So damn good.

Alongside this romance is Nora reconnecting with her sister and realizing that she doesn’t need to protect her anymore. She learns to let go and let Libby make decisions that will take her in new directions, even if they take her away from the city and all the places with so many memories from their childhood.

This book was a journey. For Nora, for Charlie, and for me. This enemies to lovers romance set around the publishing world hit all my buttons. And the ending and HEA worked for me in every single way. Emily Henry still remains at the top of my contemporary romance auto-buy list.

"I slip my arms around his neck and climb into his lap, kissing his temples, his jaw, his mouth. Love, I think, a tremor in my hands as they move into his hair, as he kisses me.

The last-page ache.

The deep breath in after you’ve set the book aside.

When he walks me to the door sometime later, he takes my face in his hands and says, “You, Nora Stephens, will always be okay.”"

Final grade- A

Emily Henry never fails to create characters that come alive! I loved this story, and the new twist on an old standard. This story was fun and original, and I finished it in nearly one sitting!

Book Lovers had me laughing, crying, and smiling at my kindle like an idiot. Charlie and Nora were a refreshing couple to read about (and I think my favorite of Emily Henry's couples?!) and their banter was *chefs kiss*! They were enemies to lovers without the pre-love bullying that you so often find in this trope. Book Lovers was so much more than just a romance novel and it covered some heavier topics, but it a way that I did not find myself feeling emotionally drained. Such a fabulous read, I can't wait to see what Emily Henry comes out with next! Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the e-ARC!

First off, what is not to love about the premise of this story? Nora Stephens is a high powered, NYC literary agent and believes she’s “the other girl, the snobby city girl” in those small-town romance tropes. And of course she’s determined to not be that and try and do what she can to break that stigma she seems to have around her. Enter Charlie Lastra, a NYC book editor and someone Nora has not had pleasant interactions with. When Nora’s sister, Libby, convinces her to take a break from the city, they head out to a quaint North Carolina town and of course… Nora begins to run into Charlie.

Yet again, Emily Henry masters at telling a deeper story, but also throwing in humor and in this book, fun literary references. However, where I felt this book was different than others was the fact it wasn’t JUST a love story. In fact, one of the main story lines was about sisterhood and family and I loved that part so much.

Sure, the love story was everything I could expect and ask for: messy, complicated, yet still super sweet and adorable. Both Nora and Charlie’s transformation as they recognized qualities and growth within themselves and with each other seemed so authentic yet heartwarming that even through all the mishaps and arguments you couldn’t help but be empathetic and understanding. Plus their character chemistry was top notch. Even though things weren’t perfect and follow tropes down to a tee, I still wanted to root for the best for all our characters.

Like her other books, Book Lovers delivers a punch and reality check in different ways, and that is one of the reasons why I love Emily Henry stories so much. Because they feel so real and like they don’t always fall into just one category.

While I admit that I think PWMOV is still my favorite, I very much enjoyed this and if you are an Emily Henry fan, then you absolutely will need to read this!

this book was everything !! Emily Henry is just so good at writing witty banter and i loved it so much. First and foremost the characters were written so well. I fell in love with Nora, Charlie, Libby, and pretty much every character in the book. I think Emily Henry captures the small town aura so well. and even though I guessed the ending about halfway through it did not lessen my tears when I got to the end.

I don't even think I can do this book justice by trying to review it. It's just so good. It's SO good. I read it in two days, it would've been one... but work and honestly, I thought about it all damn day. It's that good! If I could give it 10 stars, I would. I have nothing else to say. Thank you.

I love the theme of this book! The friendship between Nora and Libby was so special and it was one of my favourite parts. The enemies to lovers rom-com element was great and the whole thing made me not want to put this book down. I love Emily Henry’s other books and this one is no exception. Can’t wait for another one!

THIS is what I was promised by so many people who recommended me Beach Read. I can’t thank my friend Sophial enough for convincing me to give another chance to Emily Henry, and also the Berkley Publishing Group for granting me the arc that allowed this second chance to happen.

I have just finished this book and I am currently sobbing happy tears. Yes, that’s how much I loved it. The pacing was great, the characters were beautifully complex and flawed but still loveable, the banter between Charlie and Nora had me laughing out loud at certain parts, and don’t get me started on the themes! I have never related to a character’s story arc so much as I have with Nora’s.

I’m grateful that, for once, we got a main character in a romance that wasn’t the typical ditzy and loveable sunshine woman. Although I love a good Grumpy Meets Sunshine trope, sometimes, reading one makes me feel a bit self-conscious about myself because I’m not like that at all. I too, like Nora, am obsessed with my ten-step skincare routine, I enjoy being in a big city far more than the countryside, and I care about the people in my life so much that it makes me bottle-up my emotions out of fear. I can’t count how many people in my life have told me that they thought I was a bitch before they got to know me. It felt good to read about a character that made me feel completely normal for once, so thank you Emily Henry.

Also, can we talk about Charlie for a second??? I loved him SO MUCH! He was so sweet with Nora, and they really were made for each other. There’s nothing better than being in a relationship with someone that embraces every single parts of you, flaws included, and even loves you all-the-more for those very imperfections. To me, that’s what real love is all about, and that’s what Emily Henry gave us in Book Lovers.

Book Lovers was an interesting reading experience for me, as I left this book extremely divided on it. The characters, setting, and dialogue - all great. The overall concept of the plot - didn't work for me, partly I assume because I'm not an American (so I don't understand their work culture) but also because we live in a Covid world where remote work is totally normalized.
Nora goes with Libby for 3 weeks to a small town that is the setting of a book by one of Nora's clients/one of Libby's favourite books. Nora has been the dumpee several times over by men who have had their Hallmark movie moment and fallen in love with small town women, so Libby thinks Nora needs to prioritize making her own Hallmark movie while they're on their trip. Nora is working remotely during this period as a literary agent.
Charlie met Nora at a business meeting a few years prior, after both had recieved bad news (and neither disclose it, which is odd to me - like it isn't necessary to say the specific bad news, but even just to say you're a bit off kilter from bad news so everyone knows where they're at - just a nitpick) and the meeting goes immediately poorly. Charlie is a star of the editing world and is in the small town for personal reasons and working remotely (as is Nora).
My problem is that both are described as workaholics and as being able to work remotely. So the big plot drama about getting back to New York because they love it there makes no sense. What amenities were they enjoying in the city working dawn til dusk? Is the problem being specifically in Charlie's childhood town? Because they could live outside of the town, and closer to an airport, but still near his family.
Both are described as being top of their respective industries, so Charlie being pressured to return to the office or lose his job makes no sense - this is where I assume it's an American work culture thing - like he's still working, the internet exists so he can video-chat in as needed, and his workplace still can't grant an exception for a personal crisis? WTF. It was all I could focus on in our pandemic world alongside the implications of The Great Resignation. Like 5-10 years ago, it wouldn't have even crossed my mind that oh, yeah he best get to the office. Now? Insanity, especially with the reason he's off work.
I should point out that the book isn't set in a Covid world, so it's just me bringing our present day messes into the story, but I just can't reconcile the disparity.
And so I remain mixed in my feelings, I do recommend the book overall - it's a fun take on the Hallmark tropes with great characters - but I also recommend keeping a pillow nearby to scream into regarding the workplace and geographical drama.
Thank you to the publisher, via NetGalley, for providing an arc for review.

I expected to be blown away by this book because every Emily Henry book I've read has been a reminder of just how books can see us in ways sometimes people can't. Her books have been some of the most vulnerable and hopeful representations of love that I've ever experienced and it always stuns me, this book was no different. Book lovers was really soothing to the parts of me that fear and hope for love and understanding and I hope that in moments of insecurity I can remember how it felt to experience this story.

Loved loved LOVED this. Pages upon pages upon pages of simply fantastic banter that had me barking with laughter. Minimal drama that stayed far away from the Angst threshold, and that was entirely internal in nature, so there are no characters to hate. A heroine who gets to be amazing doing what she loves AND gets her HEA. And just really great writing. Will be returning to this for sure whenever I need a comfort read.

Out of Emily Henry's three books, this was my favorite. You can tell she is growing as an author. This is filled with romance tropes, but with a special spin. The banter is *chef's kiss*. I really enjoyed how the usual misunderstanding that happens in the third act did not rely on miscommunication. The love story wasn't just about the two main characters, but about family and putting yourself first. I thoroughly enjoyed this and highly recommend it to anyone who has enjoyed Emily Henry's other novels.

I really loved this book, I loved the banter between our couple Nora and Charlie and the subtle humour made it all the better. Definitely going to buy it once it is released to add my personal collection!

This book is indescribably wonderful! It has snark, sass, humor, romance, family...absolutely all the good stuff. Emily Henry has quickly become one of my favorite authors. This is definitely my favorite book yet!

Honestly this one was just boring. The story doesn’t make sense. The plot was slow. I thought it was going to be an enemies to lovers and it wasn’t really. It just wasn’t my favorite.

This was a typical rom com flipped on it's head. What do you do when you are always the one in the movies that is portrayed as the mean girl? I enjoyed this easy beach read, from the author of beach read and while it was enjoyable I didn't feel as connected with the characters as I have in the authors previous stories. Good read though.

I really enjoyed this. It was a clever examination of romance novel tropes while also fitting the genre. Nora was a great character and she had chemistry with Charlie from the beginning, and her relationship with Libby was detailed and delicate.