This may be the my favourite book by Emily Henry so far! I loved the relationship between the two sisters, the small town setting, and the slow burn romance. Nora was a strong and ambitious woman who will not compromise for love. Watching her relationship with Charlie grow from friendship into love, even as they tried to stay apart, was such a treat. Emily Henry delivers realistic romance stories with satisfying endings because her characters have to sacrifice and work to earn their happy ending. Even as you finish reading this book, you'll want to start it all over again, just to spend more time with these characters.

Beach Read is one of my all-time favorites, so you can imagine how excited I was to find out Emily Henry was gracing us with another rom-com in 2022. As expected, this novel's filled with top-notch banter, steamy scenes galore, and a great premise that subverts those Hallmark movie tropes some of us (me) secretly enjoy. Book Lovers is a fun, breezy read, but it's also a love letter to the written word and New York City — two things I'm particularly fond of. It did read a little similar to Beach Read at times, and Beach Read is personally still my #1, but if you're a romcom or Emily Henry fan, you won't be disappointed with Book Lovers.

Another great read from Henry - on par with Beach Read. Tackles some tough things that many people will relate to and as always has incredibly snappy dialogue and great laughs.

First Tessa Bailey came through with that Hot Ted Lasso energy (Window Shopping, for those who are curious...), and now Emily Henry has blessed us with, as she called it, "accidental Roy Kent energy"? Maybe this IS the Good Place.

This is one of those books that is written by a book lover, for book lovers, about book lovers.

Just in case the title didn't make it obvious.

As a literary agent, Nora lives and loves books, and she recognizes the tropes in her own life—namely, that she's the Evil Blonde Career Woman men date before falling for the small-town girl of their dreams and settle down. She's cutthroat and demanding, never afraid to go to bat for her clients, and has an elaborate skin care routine she will absolutely not skip, and she hones those sharp edges, but there's so much hidden softness beneath the surface. From the first page, Nora felt like a friend, despite being described as a platinum blonde shark by most who know her.

Charlie is—shocker—the love of my life. Yes, another one. He's intimidating and clever and serious, a master of flirty banter, and he has absolutely no issue with Nora's ambition and ferocity. Their chemistry is immediate and palpable, their banter witty and swoon-worthy, and it's lovely watching their walls come down the more time they spend together. The romance is grounded in respect and admiration and support, and it's clear that Nora and Charlie can see each other clearly, in a way no one else in their lives does.

Beyond the romance, Book Lovers explores family responsibility, sisterhood, grief, and the necessary pain of letting go of the past in order to move forward. Nora's relationships with her sister and mother are complicated and uncomfortable at times, but there is so much love in this book: love for family, for places, for memories, for each other. And for books, of course.

Oof I'm getting sappy just thinking about it. It definitely made me cry, which seems to be a hallmark of Emily Henry's romances. But don't let that fool you; Henry's distinctive humor had me laughing out loud most of the book, and the romantic tension is riveting as well.

Pros: Well-crafted and swoon-worthy romance, absolutely hilarious (I swear a venn diagram of Henry's pop culture references and mine would practically be a circle), and very real family dynamics and struggles
Cons: I know I should put my critical thinking skills to use but all I can come up with is the fact that a physical copy of this book is not in my hands right this minute
CW: Death of a parent (past), grief, sexual content
Recommended for: Pretty much any contemporary romance readers please I'm begging

Well, Emily Henry does it again. Beach Read rekindled my love for rom coms and I devoured People We Meet on Vacation in no time, but Book Lovers might just be my favorite of all!

Nora (named after Nora Ephron, of course) is a literary agent in New York City. She’s a native having grown up there with her mom, an aspiring actress, and her little sister, Libby. Nora is known as a shark in her industry and lives for her job. The only thing more important to her than work is Libby and her nieces. So when they start to drift apart and Libby asks for a month getaway to a quaint little town in NC (which is also the setting of one of her author’s bestselling romances), Nora jumps at the chance to reconnect. The last thing she expects is to run into Charlie, a super handsome but cut- throat editor from NYC while she’s on vacation. Little does she know that a month in Sunshine Falls, NC will change her life in so many ways.

Emily Henry is good at so many things, building character, revealing back story, building sexual tension, but the thing she does ABSOLUTELY BEST is dialog and banter. The women in her stories are FUNNY. They are witty, thoughtful, smart, quick, and just overall hilarious. I don't think there is a better compliment than your characters being genuinely funny. I find myself smiling when the characters are talking back and forth. And I want nothing more than to smile while reading a book. She does a fantastic job of taking you through a rollercoaster of feelings, but UGH I just love to smile in the end. And you know what! I love love. I love a good love story. I found myself feeling worried as the book was coming to an end, wondering if it would be a good enough ending or not. And it was perfect.

More about the book... Okay let's see... Nora is wonderful! Charlie is wonderful! Libby is sweet and spunky and just perfect. I don't have any sisters, but Libby sounds pretty perfect. The story line was sweet and well paced and everything was interesting and it felt all purposeful and meaningful. I don't know what else to say, other than... READ THIS BOOK.

loved loved loved... but I already knew I would because it's Emily Henry. These characters, especially Nora, were so relatable and realistic. They had great banter and their relationship grew naturally. I loved that she romanticized both NYC and the small town.

This was my first time reading a Henry book and I was disappointed. The plot was dull, the characters had little personality, and there is so much dialogue that I found it difficult to pay attention. I was hoping for some beautiful prose in between the banter, but no such luck.

This book was such a charming read, without being saccharine or overly fluffy. I think I liked it better than Beach Read, which I loved. The only issue I had was that I could not picture Nora as anything but a high-powered brunette.

So much fun with lots of heart.
Nora was a refreshing protagonist who didn’t want or have to change to find love. Can’t wait to recommend this one!

This was unfortunately a DNF for me.

I really wanted to like this book, especially after how much I enjoyed People We Meet on Vacation, but I just couldn't enjoy it. From the first few pages I already had an inkling that this just wasn't for me. My biggest issue is that I couldn't connect with the characters. They all fell very flat, and even when their backstories started to be introduced, I just didn't really care because I found that they weren't developed well, and felt very two-dimensional. Honestly, I found all of them pretty annoying. And when I say all of them, I mean ALL of them. There was not a single character that I even vaguely liked.

All of the characters felt like caricatures, and while the story I believe was meant to include trope-like elements that are common in literature as part of the plot, in my opinion it just did not come across well.

I gave this book a good chance, but after seeing no signs of anything different occurring or the story developing in a way that I enjoy, I decided to stop. I would have only gotten more infuriated with it than I already am.

I likely will still give Emily Henry's future books a try, but this one just wasn't for me.

I'm a huge fan of rom-coms. Always have been. This was adorable. I loved the banter between the two love interests. I loved the love between the two sisters. I laughed out loud at the "LION!" scene and a few others. Fun read. Will recommend to others.

This was my first Emily Henry book, and I have to say I'm a bit underwhelmed and unsure about how to rate this. Overall, the book was highly readable. I finished it in two days. The dialogue and banter is excellent; it's humorous and hard to put down.

On the other hand.... The plot was predictable, and tropey. Plus, I really hated Nora. I get that she has issues (that's the whole point) but the way she felt justified in controlling the life of her little sister (a grown ass adult with two children) was so irritating. I also found the romance a bit low stakes.... Right from the get go, they seem to hit it off, so it's pretty obvious how it's all going to wrap up.

This book is everything you want an Emily Henry novel to be - fun, romantic, and hard to put down. Book Lovers also examines a strong sister relationship, adding to the complexity of the plot and the characters. The witty exchanges between Nora and Charlie are highly entertaining; I really did enjoy everything about this book. I have a feeling this is going to be a big summer hit this year!
Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC.

Emily Henry does it again with another can't put down work that gripped me from start to finish.

Book Lovers hit every mark for me and if as my first book of the year is any indication of the state of the books I'll read this year, it is going to be a GREAT one.

The witty banter, the scenic small town setting juxtaposed against New York, the romance! This was a fantastic work. What I especially loved about this book (and found SO unique) is that the main characters work in publishing and therefore are aware of all the tropes that they themselves play into as people. It makes for some pretty fun, meta reading and also helps the book not take itself to seriously. This also helped avoid any sense of corniness for me!

Just the right amount of spice, perfectly paced and wonderful, this book is a 5 star read.

The phrase “it’s about the journey, not the destination” may be cliché, but clichés exist for a reason, and Book Lovers, the latest from Emily Henry proves it.

This is a book that both mocks romance novel tropes and also relies heavily on them to tell the story of Nora Stephens, an uptight literary agent experiencing a bit of a delayed quarter-life or early-mid-life crisis as she takes an impromptu vacation with her little sister.

Instead of falling prey to the big-fish-in-a-little-pond-falls-in-love-with-the-earnest-and-attractive-local trope, Nora instead finds herself drawn to her literary nemesis, Charlie Lastra, who scowls and grunts like Roy Kent impersonating Fitzwilliam Darcy.

But, as in any romance novel worth its salt, complications and self-imposed barriers ensure that the path to true love never does run smooth.

Henry’s wit lifts Book Lovers out of the trap she unwittingly sets by trying to turn the tropes on their head and instead landing Nora and Charlie in the biggest romance trope of all. Their easy banter and overall likability gives the story spark and wins the reader over with its charm. We know where we’re going and we’re just going to enjoy the ride.

Book Lovers will be released May 3, 2022.

Special thanks to Berkeley Publishing Group and Netgalley for the ARC.

My favorite book of Emily Henry’s so far!

Nora Stephens is a book agent in NYC who others consider a “shark”. Her sister, Libby, convinces her to travel to a small town in North Carolina for a month. While there, she runs into her nemesis Charlie Lastra, a book editor who passed on a book she pitched a few years earlier.

I don’t want to give any other details - I went into this blind, and enjoyed the journey of the story as it was told. I enjoyed the dynamics of Nora’s relationship with her sister and with Charlie. Highly recommend!

I'm moving to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina! I've enjoyed all of Emily Henry's books so far. This was a very sweet story. Big-hearted characters with small town glory! I loved the coziness of the town, warm friends and family, and Poppa Squat restaurant made me laugh. The romantic encounters were extremely hot, but tastefully written. It was really fun to have a love story centered around the world of literature. I did find Nora a bit annoying. The way she tried to “protect” (control) her sister, an adult with two children and one on the way, was disturbing and selfish. Overall, very enjoyable. Recommended for those who enjoy lighter reads, small towns, and romance.

A digital advanced reader’s copy of this book was provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

4.5 stars. This was a fantastic read. It has a nice plot and solid writing. I will certainly recommend this book and our library will purchase it. Thank you for the ARC!

I was very excited to receive an ARC of Book Lovers by Emily Henry. I absolutely adored People We Meet on Vacation. In this new novel we are introduced to Nora, a literary agent, who is a workaholic, but would drop everything and anything for her sister, Libby. Libby proposes a month long vacation to Sunshine Falls in North Carolina, the setting of one of Nora’s client’s books. There, in an act of kismet, Nora runs into Charlie, an editor from New York. Nora and Charlie team up to edit a novel, develop a friendship as well as something more. I loved Emily Henry’s writing in this novel. The characters were so real and flawed. They learned to find themselves in Sunshine Falls and found acceptance within themselves, flaws and all. I did, however, find some of the eccentricities of Sunshine Falls to be a little bit too much. Though I did enjoy this book and would recommend it, People We Meet on Vacation is still my Emily Henry favorite read.