I don’t think Happy Place is just a romance. Along with the main second-chance romance plot, there was a very strong mental health and self-discovery subplot that worked so well. Due to this subplot, I felt like I related to the characters and was rooting for them and their personal journeys.

I did feel like I wanted more from Wyn, the love interest. I didn't think we got to know him on a personal level, and I think some chapters from his POV would have been a fantastic addition.

All in all, I enjoyed this book! It dealt with heavy topics yet still felt like a warm hug. Emily Henry has a knack for writing romance with a hint of litfic vibes and I'm HERE FOR IT!

Harriet’s Happy Place has always been at her best friend family lake house. Every year Harriet along with her 5 best friends have spent weeks whiling away eating lobster rolls and lounging by the lake. Nothing could possibly ruin this year’s trip, especially not having to pretend to still be engaged to her longtime boyfriend, and best friend Wyn. In an attempt to not ruin the groups trip, Wyn and Harriet are forced to act like their still together. But as the week continues it’s not just Wyn and Harriet hiding secrets. Can the groups friendship survive distance and time?

There are a few big reasons why this one didn’t work for me.

This was less of a rom-com than I was expecting and has a more serious tone than some of Henry’s previous works. This second-chance romance dives deep into the theme of growing up, friendships, and learning who you are. Henry also brings Depression into the mix, though I felt it could have been intrigued into the story better than the way it was. I’m 1000% a mood reader, and so I don’t think I was in the correct headspace to read Happy Place, especially considering I thought it would be more ‘fun’.

It drives me crazy when miscommunication or lack of communication is the main plot point. Everyone had so many secrets, and every just avoided all forms of talking about anything. Instead, Wyn and Harriet would rather not be together than voice a single concern. Some of our supporting characters also do the same thing, and it drives me crazy. We spend 99% of the book rehashing how nobody tells anybody anything, and I just got frustrated.

Lastly, the pacing of this book was off for me. Once again this could completely be because I wasn’t in the ‘mood’ to dive into a more serious story, but it felt slow. At 400 pages, I think 50 or so pages could have easily been cut.

As always, Henry has weaved some serious topics into a normally light-hearted genre. She’s proven that she’s great at writing emotional and witty romances. I’m pretty sure this will be an unpopular opinion, but unlike her other books I’ve read (which were easily 5 & 4 star reads) I just couldn’t seem to care about Harriet and Wyn. I’ve been craving mysteries and funny stories lately, so I truly believe this is a ‘me’ problem. I will 100% continue to read books from Emily Henry.


Happy Place comes out April 25, 2023. Huge thank you to Berkley Books for my advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion. If you liked this review please let me know either by commenting below or by visiting my instagram @speakingof.books.

Part of me wishes I didn't like this book so I could argue that Emily Henry is over-hyped, but at this point, it's a truth universally acknowledged that Emily Henry is a queen of romance. Some laugh-out-loud moments, a dreamy setting, a dynamic group of friends, and (of course) a to-die-for romance. What more could you ask for?

Also, I want to go to Maine now. And Montana.

Well..... I started this book back in January. This wasn't my happy place.

I have seen raving reviews for Emily Henry's books and I've tried to read ALL of her books and it's the same thing for me every time. I just can't connect and get extremely bored. I DNF the last book that I tried to read of hers and this was also a DNF at 35 percent but then decided to go back and try again. I skimmed a little more and threw in the towel.

I am on my outlier island with this author and officially I think it's time I stop trying to read her books. I am a huge fan of Christina Lauren and Abby Jimenez those are my go to romance girls.

We can't love them all. That's what makes the world a fun place!! :)

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley for my copy in exchange for an honest review.

Pub date: 4/25/23.
Published to GR: 3/19/23

Just when you think Emily Henry can’t get any better, she releases a new book. Happy Place delivers everything that you love about her writing -- impeccable dialogue, page-cutting tension, lovable and relatable characters, and heart wrenching romance. But, to me, this one stood out from her others (in the best way). Happy Place has much more depth and intent than your typical contemporary romance, dealing with serious themes in a relevant way without, thankfully, being too heavy and depressing.
Formerly engaged couple, Harriet and Wyn, have been separated 5 months when they are forced back together at their annual friends’ trip. To outsiders and especially their friends, Harriet and Wyn are soulmates with a relationship everyone strived to mimic, which is why they can’t come clean about this breakup that they have been hiding from everyone. They continue to act like nothing has changed, leaving Harriet and Wyn to face their unresolved feelings during their last bit of time together. This second chance romance is unlike any I have read. The newness and rawness of their breakup is what sets it apart; yet Ms. Henry still manages to give you that slow-burn that engrosses you to a point where you can’t put the book down. Her way of capturing emotions with words makes you truly feel what the characters are experiencing. She also created a cast of characters that you want to spend all of your time with. I just experience these worlds she creates firsthand.
Huge thank you to NetGally and Berkely for this ARC. I highly recommend.

Harriet and Wyn have been the perfect couple since they met in college, everyone in their friend group thinks so. Everyone’s sure that they are a match made in heaven. But here’s the thing: Harriet and Wyn broke up six months ago. And they haven’t told their best friends yet. This is how they find themselves pretending to still be together and happier than ever when they get invited to their best friends’ Maine cottage in an attempt to not ruin their final bash at the place they’ve all called their safe space for so long.

Harriet and Wyn are in for a pickle. They can’t stand to break their friends’ hearts but with every single day they have to pretend they’re still happy, that the things that tore them apart haven’t happened, all their shoved-down feelings threaten to rise to the surface and cause one an epic storm. Can two people who loved each other for years (and maybe still are in love) fake it for one week in front of their best friends?

I think the fact that it’s been over a month since I read this book and I still can’t talk about it without tearing up speaks for itself.

I don’t think I’ve ever quite been as invested in a couple the way I was in Harriet and Wyn. Through expertly placed flashbacks, we get to see them fall in love and then fall apart—all while watching the consequences play out in real life as they are forced to pretend they’re still happily engaged and just counting down the days to their own wedding. It was absolutely heart-wrecking to see them so broken up and learn in pieces what caused them to break up. My heart hasn’t ached this much while reading in years.

But then we also get to see how Harriet and Wyn met, what made them the perfect couple from the get-go, the devotion and commitment they both had for each other, which was simultaneously so reaffirming but also caused multiple sobbing parties for me. Honestly, the way Henry managed to celebrate romantic love and show all of its facets in such excruciatingly realistic detail absolutely broke me. You’ll cry reading this, guaranteed, but you’ll also be unable to put the story down before you know how it all ends for Harriet and Wyn.

There’s also so much to be said for the atmosphere of this book. We spend much of the story at this cottage that has been the friends’ getaway for over a decade. The memories, the emotions, everything that makes this cottage a home away from home is translated so beautifully onto the page that it almost feels like the cottage is another character. You can’t help but feel like you are right there along with Harriet and Wyn, caught up in the nostalgia and magic of this incredible place that shaped who they are.

And if you think it couldn’t get any better than this, think again: the cast of secondary characters is just as vivid and charismatic as Happy Place‘s protagonists. Harriet and Wyn’s friends are going through their own life troubles but above all, their friendship and deep bond prevails. From the heartfelt discussions of harrowing topics such as grief, loneliness, family baggage and growing apart when you promised to stay the same forever, this book gives platonic relationships the worship they deserve.

If you’re looking for a magical second-chance romance that will make your heart ache and read compulsively to find out what happened to the perfect couple (and whether they’ll get their happily ever after), then Happy Place is sure to keep you up all night!

What can I say? I already adore Second Chance Romances, but with Emily Henry as the author? It broke me and put me back together in a thousand different ways. This was by far my favorite Henry read. I’m sincerely enamored by her and the way she describes emotions, tension, friendship, and love. This novel had me chasing serotonin until the very end. I cannot wait until everyone reads this story.

Hands down my favorite Emily Henry to date. This has everything I love in a book. Humor, amazing side characters, relatable life struggles, romance, and a deeper plot line. I laughed, I swooned, and I cried… hard. To be real honest, this book kinda slapped me in the face with some realizations that our main character Harriet, comes to. Turns out I related to her a lot more than I originally thought. I love that this follows not only the not-so-perfect love story but also the complexities of adulthood friendships as they go through multiple chapters of life. I don’t know how Emily Henry keeps outdoing herself but she truly set the bar with this one, I loved it so much!

Thank you Berkley and NetGalley for the early access!

I want to thank NetGalley and Berkley for providing me with an eGalley of this book to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.
I've become a big Emily Henry fan. I was introduced to her writing through an online book club when I read Beach Read. I subsequently went and read all her novels I had not yet read. She doesn't disappoint. The humor and love stories she writes are fun and light and wonderful. This one did not disappoint with any of that.
I have to say I was a bit skeptic at first. How can you write a breakup to reunited story without it being sappy and boring? Well, Henry did that.
My favorite part of this book was Harriet's growth. All of which happened while she reminisced about her past with the long time friends at their annual gathering place. Drop in the angst that goes along with losing something so close to the heart, and growth is bound to occur. Harriet's struggles are relatable. to just about anyone whose had heart ache, heart break, and love.
Henry threw in a bit of the steamy and sexy to really show the attraction between the characters. There's something to be said about that type of attraction. It's raw and honest.
And let's not forget the friendships in this book. Long term friendships that have endured, and continue to do so. A very important part of life and emotional growth.
Overall, another fun read by Henry who has yet to disappoint me with her writing. Highly recommend to any romance reader.

🌅 Book Review 🌅

Thanks to @berkleyromance for early access to this book. I adored it - all the stars - all the heart eyes .

✔️ Second Chance Romance
✔️ Forced Proximity
✔️ One Bed
✔️ Cinnamon Roll MMC
✔️ Fake Dating
✔️ Found Family

I loved the premise of Happy Place by @emilyhenrywrites as it combines some of my favorite tropes. Second chance + forced proximity + fake dating? = former couple pretend to still be engaged so that they don't spoil their annual vacation with their college friend group who thinks they are still together.

I loved the entire friend group - all such fun characters with convos I feel like I've had with my closest friends. I love couple banter, but friend banter is just as good here.

I adored the couple here too. I love the juxtaposition of then and now so we see early courtship and current estrangement. It was like eating a sour patch kid - alternating bursts of sweet (loveliness of falling for someone) and sour (the still painful aftermath of a breakup when there are still feelings there). Harriet and Wyn were terrific characters, like all protagonists in Emily Henry books. Their convos sparkle (banter to the max) and their steamy scenes were A+.

I loved this one and it is likely to be one of my top reads of this year. 5⭐️.

Steam 🔥🔥
Banter 🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️🗣️
Swoon 💕💕💕💕💕

“You are in all of my happiest places.”

I fear I will never be in a coherent enough state of mind to put just how much this book means to me into words. Without a doubt, Happy Place is Emily Henry’s best work yet. I wasn’t even aware I was capable of feeling so many emotions, let alone all at once. I never knew air could be this fresh. Infinite stars for this work of art.

I feel like Harriet is a copy-and-paste version of me. I seriously should be sweeping my place for cameras because I cannot fathom how Emily Henry managed to so accurately depict every emotion I’ve had the pleasure, or dismay, of experiencing at this point in my life. She’s so down-to-earth and seeing her bear this resentment toward Wyn seemed so out of character that it made her growth that much more significant.

In our initial introduction to Wyn, I was worried I was going to despise him. After all, how could he break poor Harriet’s heart when she was head over heels in love with him? But the more we got to see glimpses of their past relationship, the fonder my feelings toward him grew. It’s obvious that leaving her hurt him just as much. While Alex, Gus, and Charlie, Henry’s previous male protagonists, were all written beautifully unique, there’s a depth behind Wyn that solidifies his spot as my favorite book boyfriend.

Oh. My. God. The banter. I always knew Emily excelled at it, but good Lord is it amplified in this book. It was just non-stop between the two. It was like watching a tennis match, or what I imagine it would be like. After all, I’m not one for sports. But from the moment they met, it was written in the stars. I stand on the ground that friends are even better lovers. Their dynamic pulled at all my heartstrings and left my mind going in so many different directions. They are the literary definition of the word soulmates. I don’t think I’ve seen two people that belong together more than they do. Their love is overpowering in a way I so rarely see on the page. I could feel the desperation behind their separation. Everything about it was palpable. I wanted to walk straight into their world and somehow get them to come to their senses. But all good things take time.

I think this is what Leo Tolstoy meant when he wrote War and Peace. It was war, but there was peace. I am an advocate for excessive angst and let me tell you, miss Henry absolutely served. All of the second-chance romance girlies are absolutely thriving right now. She is my Michelangelo. Everything she writes is pure gold. There were so many moments where I thought to myself, oh they’re gonna go crazy over this. I don’t mean that casually. I mean the book community is going to go feral, as they should.

I mean, let’s get real. What is in the water she’s drinking that gives her these magical capabilities? Consider this my written permission, or rather my formal proposal, for her to write my eulogy. The only words I want on my gravestone are the words of Emily Henry.

Shoutout to her for properly depicting mental illness on page. She never uses it as a guilt harboring tactic. There’s always a purpose behind it and while it does motivate some of the characters' choices, it doesn’t own the wheel, driving them wherever it pleases. She put so much care into her research, and perhaps even personal experience, and it reads that way. As someone that struggles with some of these diagnoses’, it makes me feel a little less alone knowing it isn’t a flaw that my favorite characters would see right through, but rather a unifying aspect that makes us stronger than we already are. Her portrayal of not only loneliness, but silence, brought me to the edge. It’s the kind of pain you only know how to describe after experiencing it.

“My best friends taught me a new kind of quiet, the peaceful stillness of knowing each other so well you don’t need to fill the space. And a new kind of loud: noise as a celebration, as the overflow of joy at being alive, here, now.”

The friendships in this is what sealed the deal for me. To my core, I am a found family lover and naturally, being the all-knowing entity she is, Emily Henry delivered. I have such a deep appreciation for the way they started as a group of three and ended as a group of six. Their partners weren’t see as enemies coming to conquer land, but rather allies. The more the merrier. Each and every one of them added so much value to the group and I can’t imagine a world where all six of them aren’t together, tied by some invisible string.

The writing is of the same caliber, even better if that’s even possible, but there’s a sense of realness about it that makes it resonate all the more with readers like myself. It was all about perspective and the connections we share on both platonic and romantic levels.

Those acknowledgements made me absolutely sob. It’s clear she appreciates all of her readers, down to the very last one.

As an avid 4.9 star rater and one-time reader, I can say with ease that this is not only a five star read, but one that I wanted to re-read not even a quarter of the way through the book. I want to inject it into my bloodstream, tattoo it on my soul. My world is no longer spinning because it only revolves around this book and these characters. If this were the last book I were to read during my time on earth, or even the only book, I’d consider it a blessing.

I hope Happy Place does to Emily Henry what Midnights did to Taylor Swift. I’m talking it better be at the top of every best-seller list to ever exist. In every universe, this deserves to be everyone’s favorite book.

I would like to amend my holy grail literature recommendations to put this at the top of the list.

If I could only describe this book in one sentence, it would be this…

"The feeling of being so grateful to have something worth missing.”

Thank you to Berkley Romance and Emily Henry for providing me with this ARC. As always, all opinions are (proudly) my own and are not influenced by early access to this title.

Although there is a nice undercurrent here about figuring out what you want as an adult and taking care of one's mental health, the two main characters spent a great deal of the book hurting each other over and over because they just wouldn't communicate. After awhile, it became tiresome and at times unpleasant to read. Which is a pity, because I did enjoy some of the group dynamics and the humor in their interactions.

I ended up recieving two arcs of this and it was my favourite emily henry yet! Her rom coms are always so swoony, and full of laughs and tension. The banter she writes between the characters really brings them to life and I have never found a better dialouge/banter writer she is top tier.

I’m not even sure where to start with this book. It was amazing. Absolutely phenomenal. This was also my first time reading Emily Henry. I was told by friends that all of her books are feel good with happy endings. Let me tell you, this book ripped my heart out and danced on it till I could barely take anymore. I don’t think I’ve had a book make me cry THIS hard. It’s got a little bit of spice but it’s not too bad. Beautifully written and wonderfully told. I’m pretty sure I cried for more than half the book. I would absolutely recommend this to anyone looking for a second chance romance.

Absolutely my favorite book of hers now. It is so nostalgic, so sad, so tender. The ways that we grow apart, the ways that we don't trust our person to care and hold us. I absolutely love romance books that are marriage in crisis or relationship in crisis. It feels SO REAL. And this felt unbelievably real.

I will say that I appreciated the increased diversity that Emily had - not just a bunch of white people. But, I think that the racial and queer diversity could've been fleshed out more. At time they felt like just add ons.

With that being said, this book was truly phenomenal and is a must read.

HAPPY PLACE is my favorite book of 2023 so far— Henry sprinkled MAGIC all over this book and it might also be my new all-time fave romance 👀😭💘💖👏🏼

i’ve read all Henry’s books and can admit i’m not as obsessed with some of them (namely PWMOV) as most of booksta, but there’s no doubt this girl can write. when she announced her 4th novel would be a second chance romance and compared it to Maroon by Taylor Swift, it was over for me 😂 this book has quite literally one of the best settings ever (a Maine beach house with your besties) and will put you in the best, nostalgic mood. everything was fabulous—the friendships, the setting, the pacing, the chemistry, the side characters/plots, the angst, the themes, the build up, the ENDING 🥹 i’m under Henry’s spell!!

HAPPY PLACE is about Harriet and Wyn and their group of best friends. they’re going to the Maine cottage that has been their friend group’s safe haven one final time. the issue? the friend group doesn’t know Harriet and Wyn called off their engagement six months ago. they don’t want to spoil the trip, but how will they make it through the week without anyone finding out? is it that hard to fake it for a week?

HAPPY PLACE is so much more than a second chance romance—the friendship themes were arguably as strong as the love story. i was tabbing so many quotes—Henry’s writing is TOP TIER. the forced proximity trope made me nervous bc it’s usually very cringe but this one wasn’t at all. and one more round of applause for this beach setting—sunkissed summer skin, your friends in one place with your happiest memories, time is frozen and “real life” doesn’t exist. this book is a HAPPY PLACE indeed 💘

thank you to @berkleyromance for the #gifted copy. i cannot wait for book lovers to fall in love with Harriet, Wyn and the rest of this crew like i did 🫶🏼

“Love means constantly saying you’re sorry, and then doing better.”


Don’t ask me why, but I feel so surprised every time I finish an Emily Henry book and end up loving it. I need to accept the fact that when it comes to contemporary romances, she’s the one for me.

I love her sense humour. I love her characters. I love her writing. I love her stories. I love the cozy light early 20s movies vibe I get from all of her books. Her books got a certain kind of “spark” that just so work for me. Her books -even when they aren’t usually so happy- are kind of my happy place.

Huge Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing this copy. This made me so freakin happy.

Emily Henry follows up her bestsellers 'Beach Read' and 'Book Lovers' with 'Happy Place', a story of first love on the rocks. First-person narrator Harriet came from a repressed, unhappy home. In college, she finds friendship with Sabrina and Cleo, and the three of them form an unbreakable bond. They spend part of every summer at Sabrina's father's luxurious cottage in Maine, creating memories and traditions that sustain them all year long. During one of these weeks, Harriet meets her roommate's best friend, Wyn, and they start slip sliding into love. Wyn and Harriet's connection is intense, with lots of yearning and pining. They get together and the bedrock of their friend group is solidified.

But that's all backstory. Eight years later, Harriet is traveling to the cottage alone, hoping to find a way to tell her besties that she and Wyn have broken up. But when she steps onto the property, she's ambushed by a bunch of news: the cottage is being sold; Sabrina is marrying her longtime boyfriend at the end of the week; and Wyn is here to help them celebrate. Alarmed and cornered, Harriet doesn't want to ruin their last week at the cottage with news of a breakup, so she and Wyn agree to conceal their separation and act like they're still together. Given the unresolved, mysterious nature of their parting, their reunion is intense, with lots of yearning and pining, and the added spice of not knowing what it all means.

This is an enjoyable read, with lots of Emily Henry's trademark attention to living and loving in a charming small town. The yearning and pining is potent and intense, and Harriet and Wyn's relationship is deep and worth exploring. The distinct voices of each of the six friends in the book is a triumph. The rhythms and cadences and histories of their friendships feel lived-in and real, and the coming-of-age conflict of college friends growing in different directions, of not being sure whether the friendship will survive, is extremely relatable though too easily solved. The romantic conflict is of the kind that could be mostly relieved with one forthright conversation between the leads, but the strength of their connection leavens much of the impatience a reader might feel. They each find their happy place by the end of the book, and many readers will too.

Many thanks to Berkley and NetGalley for the eARC.

This book broke me down, built me back up, and then toppled me over again. The ache I felt reading about these characters and the downfall of their relationship was so raw.
These characters were so vivid. I connected to each of them and felt myself reflected back in the worst and best ways. The relationships felt so realistic, from the ways that they showed love, to the ways they all got on each others nerves.
Wyn and Harriet's relationship was so authentic, and seeing the way that they ended up falling apart was so heart breaking. Their conversations about their relationship were so real and the ways that they found to reconnect with each other were beautiful.
Safe to say, I'm obsessed with this book and these characters. I can see this being a little more divisive - if you read Emily Henry you're likely already familiar with the fact that her books lean more women's fiction, but this one takes it a step further, so much so that I think the marketing of this book is doing it and it's readers a disservice by only describing it as a romance.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Emily Henry, and publisher Berkley for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

I don't know how Emily Henry does it!!!!! Queen writes 4 books in 4 years that each keep getting better than the last?? I am SO SHOOK by Happy Place, and I already can't wait to reread it again once it is published. HANDS DOWN my favorite of her books that she released for multiple reasons-- Harriet and Wyn, lake setting, and most importantly, the friend group!! This book is definitely different than her previous novels, in what I personally think is a GREAT way. Don't get me wrong, the romance in this book is definitely present and steamy (I want an outdoor shower now), but I would call this more women's/general fiction rather than ~romance~. There is so much emphasis on the characters in this story and on their friendships/relationships to each other versus only centered on the relationship, which I adored. It gave the book nuance and helped me as a reader who generally doesn't like romance novels to dive in further; I felt invested and would have loved to see EVEN MORE of Sabrina and Cleo. Because it is so character-centric though, I am interested in hearing other reviews of it because I think some readers are going to be surprised by this turn. However, Henry's gorgeous writing style is present throughout, and I hope it gets just as much love as her other books because I would LOVE to see her move more in this direction. My only complaint is that I felt like the word "happy" was repeated way too much in the book lol, and I personally wish that Henry would have taken a bit more of a risk with the ending, but I was still satisfied with the conclusion and already anxiously awaiting what she has in store next. Henry is truly one of the best writers of the moment in her genre who can write a contemporary romance that delves deeper than just the smut and relationship into nuanced characters and storylines that readers can genuinely relate to and root for. I don't know how she will top this for me, but I can't wait to see!!