Review - Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Title: Book Lovers*

Author: Emily Henry

*This post contains affiliate links. If you make purchases after using these links, I will earn a percentage of your purchase without any further cost to you.

Rating: 3.5 stars / 5 stars

Favorite Quote: “That’s the thing about women. There’s no good way to be one. Wear your emotions on your sleeve and you’re hysterical. Keep them tucked away where your boyfriend doesn’t have to tend to them and you’re a heartless bitch.” Henry, Emily. Book Lovers. Penguin Random House, 2022, pg. 6.

Review: Hiya bookish friends! I’m honestly a little nervous to post this review because I know this book is so beloved (including by people I adore). And I didn’t hate it. I just didn’t love it in the way that I thought I would. 

But let’s talk about what’s working first: Most importantly, Henry is a great writer. Her language is evocative - readers can see the place, can hear the voices of the characters, can feel the tension. Henry manages to evoke each sense with every word on the page. 

The main character, Nora, is also really well developed. She’s a complicated character, whose internal struggle between family loyalty and her own passions and ambitions, plays out through the entirety of the novel. Tying her character back to the way Henry writes in general, Nora’s struggles are painted vividly for the reader. 

Here’s what’s not working as much: I say this with SO MUCH love for Hallmark Christmas movies (for people who know me in real life, we all know my favorite Christmas movie of all time)…but there are moments where this book is trying too hard to be the literary version of a non-holiday themed Hallmark Christmas movie. Big city successful boss-lady gets dragged to a small town by family and struggles with her feelings for brooding enemy who happens to live in small town. The convenience of that part of the narrative is at odds with Henry’s talents as an author. There could have been plenty of reasons for Nora to run into Charlie in his hometown (the setting of one of her author’s most famous books) that don’t involve a convoluted plot by her sister that involves going to the town, falling in love, and saving a local business. The forced nature of the initial (and subsequent) run-ins was at odds with Henry’s otherwise well-written book. 

About that Quote: I think at this point it’s pretty clear that I look to books for an escape - but also that I look to books that reflect the realities of the world. And what is more true than a woman who can’t be any version of herself without the world seeking to label her “imperfections”?

Have you read Book Lovers? Share your thoughts below!