Ahh, another thoroughly enjoyable Emily Henry read. I am not typically a fan of the "second chance romance" trope, but I had a feeling she could make me love it-- and I was not wrong! I couldn't put it down. This book has everything Henry's fans crave: characters who feel real, laugh-out-loud witty banter, and a layered exploration of some substantial topics- in this case, the complexity of friendships, struggles with mental health, and the beauty of found family. As one would expect, given the title, this book carries a vivid sense of place. The only thing I missed here was characters who work in writing or publishing!

I absolutely loved this and highly recommend it.

I stayed up way too late reading this book! Emily Henry never disappoints! Her characters are real and relatable, settings are descriptive and detailed, and romance is sexy and swoony. I wanted to be at the cottage in Maine with Wyn, Harriet, and the rest of the crew. This will be next summer's beach read for sure!

Harriet and Wyn are a side note in the story of Harriet’s friendship with Cleo and Sabrina. The cast of six was colorful and well-fleshed. I thoroughly enjoyed the story. I appreciated the themes of love and found family woven throughout.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

this book is CLASSIC emily henry -- simply perfection!! i was rooting for Wyn and Harriet the entire time, and the side character's relationships i was equally invested in. themes of family, mental health, friendship, growing apart, finding out what you truly want, honoring communication .... just wow

A fantastic read!!
It was an amazing, witty, second chance romance and I loved the focus on Harriet's friendships with Sabrina and Cleo. The back and forth between the present in their 'happy place' and their history made the book very engaging.
Highly recommend!

So good!!!

This book felt self-indulgent, like I too was hanging out with all my friends in a beautiful place, with tons of wine, doing our favorite activities. The ensemble actually reminded me of the show Friends, all the different personalities meshing together. I loved the established relationships and friendships, all the rich backstory they shared, that we were coming into Wyn and Harriet's love story at the end of it instead of the beginning.

Obviously I'm always going to be a sucker for the fake relationship trope and the only-one-bed trope. NOT a fan of miscommunication, but I understand that there needs to be a plot. I think the only thing I wanted more of was moments of just Sabrina/Cleo/Harriet. That three way friendship was good for my heart. It deserved its own book.

arc provided by netgalley!

Harriet (Harry) instantly becomes friends with her two roommates Sabrina and Cleo when they start college. Along the way they become friends with two guys Wyn and Parth and they all become inseparable. They stay at Sabrina's family cabin in Maine every summer. But this summer Harry and Wyn have broken off their engagement and she hasn't told anyone yet. She's afraid it would affect all their friendships so she makes an excuse for Wyn and shows up by herself in Maine. Unfortunately Wyn is there too and for the rest of the week Harry and Wyn will pretend to still be a couple because this is the last Maine vacation since the cabin has been sold and Harry doesn't want to disappoint Sabrina. I liked how real the relationships were portrayed. Harry and Wyn don't have a perfect relationship, thy don't communicate well and have left a lot of things unsaid. Also Harry, Cleo and Sabrina have drifted apart through the years and don't all have the same priorities.

I adored this book and simply can not wait to get it into our customers hands. Somehow, Emily Henry just keeps getting better and better. We will be recommending this for Romance book clubs and it will be featured in our store subscription boxes as well. Thank you for the opportunity to preview this title for our independent bookstore!

An almost immediate 5 stars for me except it has the one trope I cannot stand. Adults who do not communicate. There are 6 grown friends in this house and not one of them is honest with each other which could solve 100% of their problems. Jeez Harriet just tell Wyn you love him and you’re not happy.

I know, it adds to the angst, I felt the angst, I love angst. But I was yelling at them the whole time.

Other than that? God I LOVE THIS and I LOVE Emily Henry.

Emily Henry is as quick-witted as ever in this second chance romance!

This is the story of Harriet and Wyn! They have broken up, but they haven't told their four best friends. Actually, they haven't told anyone about the break up! Now, they have to pretend to be together for one more week so everyone can enjoy a last vacation in their favorite place.

The story goes back and forth between present day (real life) and the past (happy place). I love how Henry uses the time in the "happy place" to tell Harriet and Wyn's love story from the beginning. They are a sweet couple and they have a great group of friends! The banter between them all is just so clever and fun!

I would highly recommend this book, especially, if you have loved Henry's other books!! They just keep getting better!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a digital advanced copy!!

A masterpiece I fear

Happy Place is Maroon by Taylor Swift... Maroon by Taylor Swift is Happy Place... I do not make the rules I simply see the cinematic parallels so strongly that I'm so confused that they wrote these two pieces of media separately lmao maybe I'm deranged

Me: oh boy Emily Henry is tackling the fake dating trope with second chance romance hehe let's have fun
Me 4 hours later: sobbing with my head in my hands (ain't that the way shit always ends.. SEE the taylor references don't stop??)

Alright if I may I'll gather my thoughts

Harriet and Wyn met late in their undergrad careers, dated for 8 years, had a long engagement, and almost 6 months ago, they broke it off. But... they didn't tell their best friends... it's the kind of thing where they didn't say anything at first because it was painful, then it kind of snowballed because they hadn't said anything and then they couldn't say anything 3 months after the fact.. and now it's 6 months in and they're getting invited on the annual best friends' trip..... and in order to not ruin the fun, they decide it's best to wait until after the trip to break the news. So yeah, the first time they've seen each other since the breakup, they have to play happy couple. Seems easy enough

Their friend group is nowhere near split up, but they definitely have distance between them that wasn't there when they were all super tight in college. Which is a tough reality of growing up!! Which also explains why it was easy to pretend nothing had happened between Wyn and Harriet - because everyone lives in different states. The friend group consists of the original 3: Harriet, Sabrina, and Cleo; the 3 of them were freshman roommates. Parth was a roommate of theirs later in college, and now he and Sabrina are dating. Harriet went abroad in junior(?) year and Parth's friend Wyn moved in - so when Harriet got back, Wyn was in her friend circle, but they had instant chemistry. Things were back and forth between them for a while, but eventually they started dating. Then the 6th member of the group, Kimmy, didn't come in until later, when Cleo met and started dating her.

It sounds complicated but essentially the friend group consists of 3 couples. Or, in this year's case, 2 couples and Harriet and Wyn's charade.

The way this story is told is a pretty well used and effective narrative style - alternating between present day and the past, with the past starting from "the beginning" and being linear from there.

Harriet and Wyn go through the best friends' week pretending to be fine - amidst the lovers' suite they're given to share, amidst the swimsuits and drinking and all the tempting things that make you realize your ex is hot and you may have regrets, amidst just generally being in each others' vicinity for the first time as exes. While they're going through their own little version of hell, cracks in the group's friendship are beginning to show for the first time, and the stress suddenly isn't fully contained to the two of them.

The reason I feel so strongly connected to Emily Henry's books, and the reason I think a lot of us do, is that she is a fucking good character writer. She just is. Anyone can tell us what kind of person their character is meant to be, but Emily Henry has this way of making up these past scenarios that show us what characters are like, and the scenarios seem so specific and real that there's no way these characters only live in her head. Like Wyn's dad making pour over coffee for the whole family at the holidays and it taking so long that everyone is ready for their second cup by the time he finishes the last cup of the first round and he just happily begins making round 2. Like it's the casualness of the stories - it just sounds like something a friend would tell you their dad does. I feel like I'm kind of rambling here.. there's just no need for this one flashy and important defining story for each character because their foundations are all built by their day to day actions.

There is a lot of conversation in this book about understanding how to show love and be loved, and how you react differently to love being shown based on the love you received in childhood. Harriet's parents never divorced, but they never really loved each other either, and she has no attachment to them just as they have no attachment to each other. Meanwhile, Wyn came from a loud and loving household where you felt welcome as soon as you walked in the door. I think their upbringing absolutely influenced the people they became in adulthood, and influenced their relationship. As well as their friends were affected by their own childhoods. I think this was a really good thing to bring light to: not only the way we are formed by our parents but just to remember that not all your relationships can be as simple as you want them to be, because even people with years of shared history have different love styles.

Now... listen... I shan't lie... I was broken hearted that Wyn and Harriet broke up. I was that invested in their relationship that even knowing that they'd get back together by the end of the book, I was physically crying over the fact that they went their separate ways. Their relationship and its peaks and valleys was just really special to me and I Love Them

The group as a whole is fairly diverse. Cleo is Black, I believe Parth is Indian (mostly basing this on his name), and I'm not really sure about Sabrina, but she has "olive skin" so she could just be like a tanned white girl idk. Cleo is also wlw - Kimmy is her partner as we've established

So, I don't need to convince you to read an Emily Henry book, you're either going to or not going to and it doesn't have a thing to do with me, but I absolutely loved this book and just the reading experience in general. It had funny moments, tense moments, and personally devastating moments. If you love character based stories, I cannot see how you wouldn't like this one.

Alright y'all. I would read Emily Henry's CVS Receipts. I love how her books are thoughtful, steamy and bring a new layer of depth to the romance genre. I was exceptionally proud to be able to receive this ARC from Netgalley and Berkley Publising, thank you!
Last night, as I finished about 2/3rds of Happy Place I was ready to say, this is a hard trope/plot and to give it 4 stars. Break-up books or Lovers to Frienemies back to lovers are notoriously challenging. You almost have to start backwards, and for a fateful moment I thought this book would not live up to the hype. But as always, Emily Henry wrote a triumphant third act. Before I knew it, tears were streaming down my face. I was so emotionally involved in all of the relationships in this book. Henry has a way of capturing all the complexities of all types of love beyond just romantic. This book captures friendships, families for better for worse and grief. For the people pleasing honeys, this one is for you. For the folks who firmly believe in a chosen family, this one is for you.
Although I was thankful for a sprinkle of diversity in this book, it was that, just a sprinkle. My only critique is that Henry's love-interests always seem a bit too similar and maybe a bit too perfect. Wyn's flaws and insecurities seemed like an after thought, but I was in love with him too, so maybe that's the point. I gave this 5-stars and I cannot wait to add it to my physical collection in April to look back on how to fight well and love loudly,

I love a second chance romance. It's my favorite romance trope because I love angst and I love love. Second chance is all of my favorite things right out of the gate. As a self-proclaimed Emily Henry girlie, I was immediately intrigued by Happy Place as soon as it was announced.

For the most part I really enjoyed this one. I'd argue that the beginning is one of her best works so far. Somewhere along the way though I just grew tired of the Wyn and Harry's back and forth as it never felt like they were moving forward until the moment it jumped all the way there. It felt like I was teased with a slow burn and then all of a sudden we were all the way to the end. I wish I got just a little more along the way. That being said, there were some stellar moments in this one.

Thank you to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing, and Emily Henry for this ARC.

To call Happy Place a "delight" would be an accurate but incomplete review. Truly, the book reads at a lovely pace. The author captures the magic of those special, happy places we all have or find ourselves searching for. But on a deeper level, this story also captures that post-quarter-but-pre-mid life-crisis headspace of one's early thirties.

Complicated friendship dynamics. Jagged shards of heartbreak. Humour. Realism. A craving for fries seasoned with Old Bay. The story, characters, and setting of Happy Place feel whole and fleshed out.

A "vacation read" with teeth. Thoroughly enjoyable. 4 Stars.

OBSESSED! Emily Henry just does not disappoint. I don't want to be rash, but this may be my new favorite of hers. These characters felt so real to me, the whole friend group of 6 felt so fleshed out which is really hard to do. I think I could read a thousand pages between the 6 friends. Harriet felt so real to me and while I am sure she is not for everyone I hope people will cut her a little slack as a people pleaser I so relate. Normally fake dating does not do it for me, but this may be the first one that I really understood why the couple was doing it and it didn't just feel like some crazy scheme for a book.

This is the sort of book that makes you stay up late to keep reading because it is so good. The sense of place captured in this Maine coastal town is strong, as is the bond between the group of longtime friends adjusting to adulthood. This story is rich with inner conflict, and I think fellow millennials will find the existential angst experienced by both main characters incredibly relatable. What should I do?; where should I live?; and the biggest question of all: who should I spend my life with?
In addition to wrestling with those big questions, I appreciated how the author laid this book out to tell the story between different time frames to let the story unfold over ten years. The depth and breadth of the characters added to their authenticity and I could feel their unique qualities shine through in their dialogue and actions. Importantly, the romance aspect was tastefully done and felt realistic, which is a challenge for me with these contemporary romances.
This is easily now one of my favorite books. I can't wait for it to be published for others to enjoy.

Thanks to NetGalley & Berkely for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

With all the hype around Emily Henry, I somehow never read her books till now! I can definitely understand the fuss - she's a good writer, very engaging. She perfectly captures the feel of being on vacation in a small resort town. The characters are well fleshed-out and feel real (if a little too perfect in some senses).

Harriet is going on one last "friend group" vacation at her former roommate, Sabrina's dad's house in Maine. What none of her friends know is that she and Wyn, their other friend, have broken off their engagement some months pervious (after failing at a long distance relationship while Wyn cares for his sick mom and Harriet does her residency as a neurosurgeon [come on, now]). These 6 have been friends all through college and are now 30, yest, somehow haven't really graduated into adulthood. No one is married, although they are coupled off. No one has kids (maybe this is normal, now?), and it seems like any disturbance to this delicate balance will ruin the dynamics of the friendship.

So thinks Harriet, who's not expecting her ex to show up from Montana. But he does, and they spend the entire book pretending to be just as in love as ever. And of course, they are. The breakup was sudden, and Harriet hasn't exactly processed it. Anyone who's ever had that kind of breakup will relate. What's not relatable: not being truthful with your best friends (5 of them! it rivals sitcom "misunderstandings"), going through a breakup without ASKING QUESTIONS AS TO WHY EXACTLY IT'S HAPPENING, apparently hating your family in part because they are living vicariously through your achievements.

You know how the story will end, and it does. Along the way, some friends are called out on their bullsh*t, which is good. There is growth. People have to change their ideas about what a successful relationship is. You don't often get this in romance novels, so it's a nice change.

I didn't love everything about this book, for the reasons stated above, but it's still far and away one of the better romance novels I've read this year. I will definitely BOTL for more Emily Henry now that I understand the hype!

This book was fantastic. Emily Henry never misses and this one is no exception! This book kept me interested and invested in Wyn and Harriet's relationship as they revisited the past and tried to hide from their friends.

Each time Emily Henry comes out with a new book I think, “surely, she can’t do it again. Surely she can’t write another book that wrecks me.” But, alas, she always does. This book, I would give it 10 stars if I could.

Harriet is a med school student whose long-time fiancé, Wyn, broke off thier engagement 5 months ago. And she still hasn’t told their closest friends who she’s meeting for one last friend trip in Maine before the house they stay in, their “happy place,” gets sold. When she walks into the house, ready to come clean with them, she discovers that they’ve secretly roped Wyn into coming as well.

The perfect “former lovers into second chance romance”, this book will pull on all the heartstrings. Emily masterfully writes about love, loss, and friendship in such a beautiful way. Make sure you have a box of tissues at the ready.

I obviously loved this. I wasn't initially sure how would this would work; how would I root for people who had previously decided to part ways? And why did they? Who hurt who, and is love enough to look past that? The answer is making Wyn a full and nuanced character, with insecurities and hopes, who loves deeply and has a kind heart. I absolutely adored him.

Both of the leads were very relatable and made me look at things I usually sweep under the rug. Why do I feel that I am not enough? Why do I extend myself to convenience others, but criticize myself for having any needs at all? What really makes me happy? What does that word mean to me? I loved that these characters acknowledged their fears. I loved their hesitations and their bravery equally. I really loved how strong the friendships were and the emphasis on friends as family. Harriet's entire family situation was painful, but the way her friends offered support when it was necessary was very well-done. Most of all, I loved that each character had a rich interior life. It wasn't just the lead and her love interest that got the 3D treatment.

I will always recommend Henry's books. Each one is a treat. Each one challenges me to approach a difficult part of myself that I'd rather not look at too closely, and I'm always grateful for the empathy and gentle guidance that her stories offer.