*4.25*

What can I say? "Book Lovers" was one of my most anticipated books of the year, and it certainly was a lovely story that entertained me and made me feel the classic "butterflies".
Emily Henry is by now my favourite romance author out there, and I would read everything she writes, but I also have to be sincere and say this is my least favourite from her recent romance releases. I have givent the previous two books five stars, and while this was still really really good, I don't think I enjoyed it as much.

My main issue with this story, and that is totally subjective, is that this story reminded me way too much of another one of her books. I found the dynamics to be way too similiar, and while I loved this book, I couldn't possibly give five stars to a book that reminded me so much of another one of her owns.

"Book Lovers" is still a very enjoyable read, and way more than the small town romance classic trope that I was expecting. I think this is Henry's book that focuses way more on familial relationship, and the plot line with Nora and her younger sister Libby was really good to read about. I'm an only child, but I think a lot of people will relate to this particular dynamic.

The romance was good, like I said, it's kind of an enemies to lovers story, but the enemy part is not so prominent, I think it quickly dissolves at the 20% mark of the book. It's mostly like a wrong first impression kind of scenario to be honest. Charlie and Nora were so cute, and I honestly believed in their love, they were so similiar I could see why they were so drawn to each other. This is certainly quite the opposite of the trope "opposites attract" and it was fun to see.
My main issue was that, in my eyes, the stakes weren't so high. Of course in romance novels the happy ending is guaranteed, but a relationship without a big obstacle is not something I enjoy so much, IN BOOKS, of course.
In this case, I didn't particularly believe in the main obstacle, I think it could be easily resolved and so it was, but other than that I rooted for them a lot.

Emily Henry for sure has a way for words, and I enjoyed the ending of this book so much, it even made me tear up.
So yeah, if you're searching for something cute, but also dealing with familial aspects and with a lot of small town vibes, this is the book for you.

3.75⭐️
No one could wipe the smile off my face after I got the email accepting ARC my request. This was one of the very few anticipated reads of this year.

The first 20% was meh, I honestly thought I would DNF it. I was looking for romance and found none on those first pages. It was a dragged introduction with bits of witty banter that I held onto because I wanted to like the book.
Once I pushed through that meh part the really good shit started, more banter (possibly the best part of EH books) and some high-class sexual tension, and just when you think it’s at its peak (😉) you’re proven a fool cause that shit was non-stop.
I loove how EH intertwines the MCs' emotional barriers so seamlessly with the romantic plot. I’m not gonna lie, as much as I love this I’m here for the romance, this offered a nice buffer so I didn’t have to drown in rainbows or die from heatstroke from Charlie-related thoughts.

Overall it was a good read with some funny moments and conflict throughout the book, the last bit really had me, I wanted it easily solved but the whole message of the book was on living in the “enough”. However, the first bit was a bit of a pain to get through and the other 80% didn’t wow me enough to put this book above 4⭐️

Thank you to Net Galley and Penguin for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Book Lovers tells the story of Nora, a literary agent who spends all of her time working, until her sister Libby convinces her to take a vacation together in a small village. There, Nora comes across Charlie, a book editor she met once and who definitely didn't cause a good impression on her. In such a small village, they are bound to find each other more than once.

Emily Henry is such a fantastic writer and I was so happy when I got this copy, because this book was on my top 10 most anticipated of 2022. I love her romance books because they are so profound and not the typical romance novel (not that i don’t like a <I>silly little romance</I> because <b>i do</b>). Also, she kind of made me want to move to a little village, help a local business and own a bookshop. Basically, she made me want to romanticise my summer.

The characters were very likeable and well constructed. <b>Nora</b> is a workaholic and she mothered Libby and wanted to solve all of her problems, and that got on my nerves a bit, but I knew where she was coming from and that her intentions were good. So, we forgive her. Also, she was such a badass. <b>Libby</b> is Nora’s pregnant sister and she was probably my favourite. Libby comes up with a list of things to do during their vacation and I loved it- I love lists. Also she was very fun and considerate, and she was also very mysterious and i was dying to know what was going on.

And <b>Charlie</b>… how can i even begin to describe them? There is something about men in romance novels. First of all, a man who likes books? <I> hot</I>. But then Charlie is so good and he is helping his family and has such a big heart. He has the reputation of being harsh but is such a softie, need i say more?


<I>The way Mom saw New York—that’s how I see Charlie.</I>

Emily Henry is quickly becoming one of my go-to romance authors! A sunshiney romance with heart and depth.

I am slowly becoming a huge fan of Emily Henry. She is taking the book world by storm with this new book, I’ve seen it everywhere on bookstagram.

From the get-go, I knew I was going to be hooked and it didn’t fail me. I couldn’t put it down and thought it to be an extremely entertaining and great read.

I feel Nora is your typical book character who falls for the wrong men but meets the main of her dreams on holiday despite him being the enemy to start with!

I loved Nora’s sister, Libby. She’s definitely a hardworking mother and a full on mum-life. Loved her.

It was fun, sassy and is the first book I’ve read in over a week because of my slump. Highly recommend.

Nora is a literary agent who loves living her busy city life.
She can't seem to hold down a relationship though - her boyfriends are the typical type she always reads about, who go away to work in a sleepy town, meet someone who needs saving and end up dumping Nora for them and a new life.
Her sister, Libby, is a frazzled Mum of 2 young girls, expecting her 3rd, and begs Nora to go away with her for a month.
One last trip together to reconnect their sisterhood, which has drifted a bit, and complete a list of adventurous things that Libby has put together.
Their destination, Sunshine Falls, is the setting for one of Nora's authors most successful books, and the last person she expects to find there is her work nemesis Charlie.
It's frustrating enough having to deal with his attitude and sharp words at work so why is he here on her break away?

I found this to be a bit of a slow burner to start with - I didn't connect with Nora or Charlie and both of them annoyed me a bit.
At some point though, this did a total flip and I started liking the characters and loving the story.
The main setting of a small town in desperate need of updating, where everyone knew everyone and had lived there their entire lives, was so different to any I've read about before.
Nora and Libby's relationship was really sweet and it was interesting trying to work out what Libby was hiding and why Nora felt she had to look after her.
I haven't seen anyone yet who hasn't loved this book!

Literary agent Nora meets book editor Charlie when he disses her author Dusty Fielding’s latest project. Her pregnant sister, Libby, is exhausted and persuades Nora to join her on a vacation in Sunshine Falls, the location of Dusty’s novel. And lo and behold but who she should bump into in town – only Charlie whose family runs the struggling book store.
With tongue in cheek, this story plays on a number of small-town tropes – saving a business, local love interest. And it has all the snarky banter that you expect from Emily Henry. In fact, this is my favourite book of the author’s to date.

With Beach Read and You and Me On Vacation Emily Henry has very quickly become my favourite contemporary romance author, but I was still a little nervous I wasn't going to enjoy Book Lovers. Another sort-of-rivals-to-lovers romance set in the book world? Was it just going to feel like Beach Read 2.0?

Then I started reading and I can say with confidence that this is my favourite of Emily Henry's novels so far, and quite possibly my favourite contemporary romance.

In every small town romance, there's the city-based workaholic who gets dumped so the lead can settle down in an idyllic rural town with the local teacher or baker or carpenter or mechanic or farmer they've met in the one week they've spent away from the city. Nora is that workaholic - in fact Book Lovers opens with her being dumped because her boyfriend has met someone new in a small town, and this isn't the first time it's happened either. The tropes should be so on the nose they're painful, but this novel is so self-aware that it <i>works.</i> Emily Henry isn't criticising or maliciously making fun of the romance genre, she's just having a great time bending the rules a little.

Nora is a literary agent in New York City who butts heads with editor, Charlie, over the quality of her favourite author's most recent book. A few years later the book - a small town romance set in Sunshine Falls, North Carolina - has been such a success that it's spawned a film adaptation, and Nora's pregnant younger sister, Libby, convinces Nora to go on a month-long vacation with her to Sunshine Falls. While there, she bumps back into Charlie...

There is so much I loved about this book, but perhaps my favourite thing was how much it made me laugh. I can't remember the last time I laughed out loud this much while reading a book - the banter between Nora and Charlie is fantastic - and I so needed a book like this at the time I picked it up. Nora and Charlie's relationship is so refreshing in a genre that often builds its drama around miscommunication and misunderstandings. Instead, these are two adults who are into each other and are more than happy to admit they're into each other, but there are circumstances that don't make the budding romance between them easy. I started rooting for them so quickly, and thinking about them is going to make me smile for at least the rest of this year.

That this is a romance novel doesn't diminish Nora's other relationships, though - in fact her relationship with Libby is just as central to Book Lovers as her relationship with Charlie. They had a somewhat difficult upbringing with a single mother who loved them dearly, but perhaps wasn't always the adult two children needed. When she died Nora essentially became Libby's mother, and I loved how Henry explored how two children from the same family can recall their childhood so differently. Nora adored their mother and loves everything about NYC, whereas Libby, now a mother herself with a third baby on the way, did love their mother but also disliked how much Nora had to be her parent even when their mother was alive.

The tone of Book Lovers is still ultimately very light, though. This is the kind of book you should pick when you're feeling low and need a bit of humour for the soul. I loved it so much, and it's without a doubt one of my top books of 2022!

Of course I have heard of Emily Henry's books before, but this is the first one I've read and it did not disappoint. Book Lovers has everything I adore in a book. Characters who are easy to fall in love with, funny moments and a family connection. I really enjoyed this one, and I found it to be such an easy, joyful read.

I appreciated the base of the book. How Nora's life so far has been the woman left behind after each boyfriend falls in love in a small town. And as someone who loves a small town romance, this point of view was really captivating and I was sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen.

Nora is a strong female character, who has done nothing but tried her best and basically brought her younger sister up. I couldn't help but admire her throughout this book, and reading how she developed throughout was really beautiful. I was obviously routing for Nora and Charlie throughout, their relationship and banter made me laugh and cringe so much.

Another aspect I loved of this book was how Sunshine Falls isn't shown as a happy go lucky town. It's run down, and it was so interesting to read a small town book without the rose tinted glasses. Not forgetting the hilarious shop names! It gave me a Gilmore Girls/Virgin River vibes.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one. I think Book Lovers is a book which a lot of people will enjoy and appreciate.

Romance isn’t my first genre choice but I indulge myself in it every once in a while. And I really liked this :)

The enemies to lovers trope is spot on and I loved, loved, loved the humour between the MCs. The romance is so modern that spoke to my heart and seen a lot of me in the female character. However, it wasn’t the cheesy type that you think, ‘no way this can happen in the real world’.

The setting is cool and I like the irony behind the location and the challenge list. The family stories of the MCs give the book an extra dimension and help the plot too.

It’s a heartwarming, contemporary romance story and I definitely recommend it!

I loved this book and I loved the characters. The perfect book to escape into with a cup of tea, and the perfect summer read at any time of the year!

Loved this book from start to finish. It initially centres around Nora, a go-getting literary agent and her younger married sister Libby. When Libby proposes a trip from New York to a small town which is the setting for her favourite book, Nora agrees, seeing it as a chance for them to reconnect and regain the closeness they once had. One of the first people Nora bumps into on their arrival is Charlie, her literary nemesis who she hates and tries to avoid at all costs. What starts as a sole trip away changes all their lives in ways they couldn't have imagined. Loved this book, it's a great beach read and would make a great film.

If you like hallmark movies then you’ll love this! It was amazing and cute and the characters were deep and real.

I read it in 24 hours! I kind of feel guilty because there is a lot of work due but it was worth it. This book made me realise how utterly single I am and will probably remain that way if I keep on expecting my partner to be like romantic leads 😭

I wasn’t particularly keen on the fact that the MC was constantly wearing impractical shoes and referred to as hot so much. It’s always been my least favourite aspect of hallmark movies but here it seemed ridiculous because she kept wearing those stupid shoes despite not being able to walk in them and nobody told her not to!

If you like small-town romance, enemies to lovers, grumpy to sunshine and puns then this is the book for you.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this arc!

Emily Henry has done it again!! I loved everything a bout this book and I did not want to put it down which is unusual for me with this genre as it’s not my go to sink really have to be into a book out with it to always want to pick it up.

I kept gwttinf angry at Libby but I get the reasoning behind why she done it and I live seeing different parts of Nora develop. The character holding was amazing and I’m so glad they didn’t ruin any of the characters in the book ag the end

Complex characters, layers to the plot, always creative, never obvious or boring. Book Lovers feels fresh and current, while Henry plays with tropes and form, which I loved.

Every time I read Emily Henry’s book I am in awe of how real her characters are. How I’m able to find a bit of me and/or someone I care for in her stories. But, Nora and Charlie’s story engraved itself in my heart especially strongly. It’s the stomach-lurching chemistry that Henry never fails to deliver. I will always have this story and for that I’m eternally grateful to Henry.

All the stars.

Book Lovers is another really strong novel by Emily Henry. It boasts a great storyline, and the locations are brilliantly described. There's a great deal of witty banter between the main characters, Nora and Charlie and I adored the way their backstories were slowly revealed. The complicated sibling relationship between Nora and Libby was riveting. The romantic aspect was not overdone; rather, it was poignant and amusing. I read Book Lovers in two sittings. Very highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel at my request from Penguin Books via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

As always, Emily Henry never fails to deliver. This book was everything I could ask for and then some. Nora was such a relatable character, her dedication to protecting the people she loved shining through, above everything else. And Charlie was so easy to fall in love with, especially as you learned more and more about what made him the person he was.

The anticipation I felt, waiting to read this was something else entirely. And now that I've finally finished reading, I know that it was well worth it!

Thank you to the publisher for kindly providing me with an ARC via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This was such a good read! I've only recently dived into the world of rom-coms, but I'm very glad I did. I really enjoyed the tongue in cheek references to books and their (sometimes overused) tropes, and how it was like the book was poking fun at itself at times. The character growth was great - I loved seeing how the main 3 characters grew over the course of their summer. I'm on a mission to get to Emily Henry's back catalogue now for more!

New Yorker Nora is a book agent, a workaholic, books are her life. So when her sister, Libby, suggests they take a vacation to Sunshine Falls, the setting of one of Nora’s clients most famous books, she is reluctant, but finally agrees in order to spend some much needed quality time together. Sunshine Falls isn’t exactly what they expected, but Libby is determined that they enjoy their stay and makes a small-town bucket list for them to tick off over they duration of their stay. However, Nora gets another surprise when Charlie, an editor she’s had a tense interaction with, shows up in the local coffee shop.

If I could possess even 5% of the wit and charm the characters in this book have, I’d be extremely happy. The chemistry between Nora and Charlie was insane. I really enjoyed it, from the bookish references to the mention that Nora is tall. (I was getting sick of all these female protagonists being teeny tiny.)

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A great read, loved this book.

Nora and Charlie have met before as she is an agent and he is an editor. They meet in Sunshine Falls when they are least expecting, and once they start to get to know each other they start to fall, but he will be staying while she heads back to New York, so what will happen to their relationship as Nora feels she is losing everyone, including her sister who is leaving New York too.