With winter break approaching, everyone is itching to be somewhere warmer. For me, there is no place I’d rather be during the cold months than curled up under a blanket with a good book. In this issue of Lit with Lexi I will be reviewing two of my favorite winter reads: “Beach Read” and “People We Meet on Vacation” both by Emily Henry.
Emily Henry has written several books in the genres of Young Adult and New Adult. In her latest books though, Henry has targeted a more seasoned demographic of readers.
In Henry’s debut to the New Adult scene, she blew readers away with “Beach Read.”
January Andrews is a romance writer that moves into her recently-passed-away father’s summer home from his childhood to help her get past her writer’s block. Little does she know that her next door neighbor is her old college rival: the successful, and pretentious, literary fiction writer Augustus Everett. To make their time as neighbors more interesting, the authors decide to swap genres and see who can write the better book. Over the course of the summer, they take each other on “research” excursions to help the other feel inspired. Along the way January discovers that maybe Augustus isn’t as bad as she originally thought.
This book is a great beach read (no pun intended) and it has everything that makes a great rom-com: witty banter, funny side characters, and a scene in the pouring rain. Something I really like about “Beach Read” is that it feels so organic. Henry makes you believe that this story could happen in real life because the characters are so relatable and the story has a reasonable timeline. 10/10
Another one of Henry’s books that makes you feel like you are on your little oasis from everyday life is “People We Meet on Vacation.”
Poppy has been best friends with Alex ever since their freshman year of college. They have shared so many memories together from crazy road trips to their hometown, to favorite songs, to the summer vacations they go on together every year. Everything was great in their friendship until two years ago when a cataclysmic incident left the two out of touch. Since then, Poppy has been eager to find a way to sneak her best friend back into her life. As a travel writer for a magazine, Poppy is given the opportunity to go anywhere she wants and write about her experience. She goes out on a limb and decides to invite Alex, who surprisingly says yes. Throughout the rest of the book everything Poppy hopes will be magical to reignite their friendship turns into a dumpster fire that somehow ends them up being friends again… and maybe more?
“People We Meet on Vacation” is told during present time while going as far back as nine years in the past to showcase the bond between Poppy and Alex and what led up to the fatal event that left them estranged. This is one of my favorite books because it doesn’t feel cliche or forced. Henry does an amazing job of showing how people experience falling outs and life still goes on. 11/10
My favorite part about Henry’s books is her way to make everything flow so naturally. I love her writing style and that she helps readers visualize what is happening. Henry has another New Adult book releasing in May of 2022 titled “Book Lovers” that I am sure I will love too. I will never stop recommending these books.