One Great Big Beautiful Readathon (Emily Henry Binge!)

I don't know about you, but the second I get the slightest hint of summer I immediately crave all the feel-good summer romances. For me, this means diving into the world of Emily Henry! They're the perfect fun, summery beach reads that kinda get you in your feels. Her books give off ~ immaculate ~ summer vibes and summer is basically here anyways, right?

So, in order to prepare for her newest release of 2025, Great Big Beautiful Life, I'm reading through all of her current romance books. I already placed a hold at my public library for the book and the wait is pretty long so I've got time to kill. For this readathon I will be reading (and re-reading) Emily Henry's books and giving my quick thoughts on each. I'll also be giving just a light overview of each book because I don't want to give too much away. Grab your favorite iced drink and let's talk Emily Henry!

1) People We Meet On Vacation (Re-read)

The first Emily Henry book I ever picked up in the summer of 2022. I just knew there was a lot of hype around the book, it was a rom-com, and the cover was cute. I was sold. This story plays with the idea of friends-to-lovers, and who doesn't love a classic trope like that? Alex and Poppy are two best friends who go on a vacation together every year. However, after a falling out, the two stop their annual trips together. Poppy comes to the realization that she misses her best friend and makes one more trip happen to kind of fix what went wrong. The book is filled with cheesy, rom-com-esque moments that really are cringeworthy! I thought this book was good. It wasn't my favorite of the bunch for its less engaging plot and characters, but I still consider it a solid read. It was definitely good enough to keep me reading more of Emily Henry's romance novels!

2) Beach Read

Ahh yes, the book that started it all. Beach Read is the perfect intro to Emily Henry for new readers of hers. Obviously, this isn't the first Emily Henry book I've read, but if I were to recommend anyone else starting Emily Henry, I'd recommend them to start with Beach Read. This story follows two authors, Augustus (Gus) and January, who happen to be neighbors in a cute beach town. Both of them are struggling with their own personal life situations while facing writer's block, and so they challenge each other to swap genres of writing. So, I liked this book a lot more than I thought I would. There was a lot more depth to it than I initially thought, and I was surprised at how much I actually enjoyed it! I do think this would be a mid-tier book for me, though. There wasn't anything about it that stuck out to me the way some of her other books did.

3) Book Lovers (Re-read)

I randomly picked this book up on a late night Target run (one of my fave pastimes). I remember liking it last year, and after the re-read I still liked it! It's also got the rivals to lovers sorta trope (which I love)! I also love rom-coms with a small town feel to it. Book Lovers follows cutthroat literary agent Nora Stephens and her younger sister Libby to the small town of Sunshine Falls on a sister's trip. It's also the place where she unexpectedly runs into Charlie Lastra, the editor who doesn't really have the best history with her. As dynamics change between the two of them, the book begins to feel like small town romantic comedy that makes you feel good. I just had fun reading through this book, and it honestly didn't take long to get through. It gives all the right summer romance vibes I'm looking for and Emily Henry does a great job at encapsulating the reader.

4) Funny Story

When I say I inhaled this book- I mean it. I finished it in three days, which is crazy considering I haven't been reading as much as I used to when I was younger. This is a big accomplishment for me! This book was SO GOOD. It's got the opposites attract trope and I enjoyed every second of it. Funny Story follows Daphne and Miles. Their exes are dating each other so Daphne and Miles decide to move in together (because that makes sense, right?). This book is filled with funny, witty moments while also having deeper moments between the two. I enjoyed the banter between two polar opposite characters and would say this might be the spiciest Emily Henry book. Reading the chemistry and emotion play out between Daphne and Miles was so much fun. I would obviously place this on the higher end of my Emily Henry rankings list!

5) Happy Place

For some reason, I have the UK edition of this book. I ordered the paperback a while ago on Amazon and this is what I got. Honestly, I'm not mad about it because the cover's really pretty! Anyways, this book follows the story of exes Harriet and Wyn who are pretending to still be engaged to one another while on their yearly friends trip to Maine (they haven't broken the news to their friends yet). That's a very watered down summary, but it's essentially the main point. I liked this book more than I thought I would, and even liked when it got deep with certain themes. It wasn't what I was expecting when I picked it up, so I was mildly surprised by that. I did like the different dynamics between people in the friend group, though, and it felt relatable at times. That said, I thought it did get slow at certain points, and I had issues with certain characters and plot points of the book. Did it have moments where I thought things could have played out better? Absolutely. Overall, mid-tier in my rankings.

IF you enjoy summer romances as much as I do, Emily Henry might just be right up your alley. I had a lot of fun doing this Readathon, and I seriously cannot wait until I get my hands on a copy of Great Big Beautiful Life!

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Have you read all of Emily Henry's books? Which ones were your favorites? Let's chat in the comments!

-N