Book Lovers: The Sunday Times bestselling enemies to lovers, laugh-out-loud romcom – a perfect summer holiday read
£8.50£9.50 (-11%)
One holiday. Two rivals. A plot twist they didn’t see coming…
——–
‘Her best yet’ Taylor Jenkins Reid, Malibu Rising
‘One of my favourite authors’ Colleen Hoover, It Ends With Us
‘Magical, delightful, and utterly one of a kind’ Ali Hazelwood, The Love Hypothesis
Nora is a cut-throat literary agent at the top of her game. Her whole life is books.
Charlie is an editor with a gift for creating bestsellers. And he’s Nora’s work nemesis.
Nora has been through enough break-ups to know she’s the one men date before finding their happy-ever-after. To prevent another dating dud, Nora’s sister has persuaded her to swap her city desk for a month’s holiday in Sunshine Falls.
It’s a small town straight out of a romance novel, but instead of meeting sexy lumberjacks, handsome doctors or cute bartenders, Nora keeps bumping into…Charlie.
She’s no heroine. He’s no hero. So can they take a page out of an entirely different book?
Brimming with witty banter, characters you can’t help but fall for and off-the-charts chemistry, BOOK LOVERS is Emily Henry’s best novel yet.
——–
‘Emily Henry’s books are a gift, the perfect balance between steamy and sweet’ V. E Schwab, Gallant
‘So smart, so funny, so sexy’ Beth O’Leary, The No-Show
‘Emily Henry has another hit on her hands’ Sophie Cousens, Just Haven’t Met You Yet
‘A thoroughly modern yet classic romance’ Sunday Times
‘Heartfelt, funny, and full of joy. (Also, three cheers for Nora’s super-relatable bangs journey!)’ Tia Williams, Seven Days in June
‘The master of witty repartee’ Daily Mail
‘Super fun, sassy, smart, sexy… Emily Henry is now an auto-buy author for me’ Red Magazine
‘Book Lovers is Schitt’s Creek for book nerds’ Casey Mcquiston, One Last Stop
‘The most phenomenal portrayal of enemies to lovers I have ever read. . .’ Laura Jane Williams, Our Stop
Sunday Times bestseller, May 2022
Read more
Additional information
| Publisher | 1st edition (12 May 2022), Penguin |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Paperback | 384 pages |
| ISBN-10 | 0241995345 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-0241995341 |
| Dimensions | 21.6 x 13.8 x 2.31 cm |
by Fraser Witherow
My heart is so warmed.
I dutifully cried, laughed and more crying (laughter)
Read this book if you want a real story
by MM Reviewer
And yes, “the romance gods” would be proud!!!
5 stars for a wonderful romantic story where once again the “Opposing magnets are the ones that draw together.” and make for the most interesting stories when written well. And this one certainly delivered.
I confess to feeling disappointed in the first 100 pages wondering what all the fuss and hype was about. Then the book moved up several gears in just a few pages, and I found myself another one of those ‘Book Lovers’ that loved the ‘Book Lovers’. I will go as far as to say this is probably my favourite RomCom novel this year. Here are the reasons why
1. We had some serious themes without being too heavy, which gave the book depth and purpose. The themes blended perfectly with the storyline and the characters. Sister relationships, parentification, loss, grief, ambition with broken and strained relationship at the heart of the story.
2. A solid romance that builds slowly as two people get to know each other, coming from being arch-rivals. Same old troupe? It did not feel like it. The story brought the perfect blend of love, sexual tension, and the theatre without any of it overplayed or sentimental
3. The characterisation was excellent with all characters likeable but imperfect but not with the same old flawed characteristics we read about too often. They felt real and believable
4. The build-up in the story inspired a hungry turn of pages and I found myself captivated and absorbed in storyline. Nothing felt rushed not even the two lovers getting between the sheets which all added to the intrigue.
A brief summary of the plot.
There are many shades to Charlie, the arch nemesis of Nora. Small town boy who seeks a better life in the big city. The book starts with Charlie this once quiet, unfocused boy, precocious, and resentful boy returning as the sharp-edged man trying to fit back into his childhood home and environment. A place he never belonged to begin with.
Now take Nora who returns to North Carolina with her pregnant sister Libby, who appears to be having relationship problems of her own. The relationship building between the two sisters was a bonus side line to the story that could easily have been just about Charlie and Nora. Adding more detail to the storyline would only spoil the surprise, needless to say Charlie’s and Nora’s paths cross, clash and unite as we see the future unravelling for true soulmates.
A final thought.
“The tropes, the archetypes, the common plot twists all start to organize themselves into a catalogue inside your brain, divided by category and genre”, until a story comes along like Book Lovers, that adds more meaning and depth with real themes that accompanied that all important feel good factor. Positives that compensated for the very neat and convenient ending where everything slots perfectly into place.
Thoroughly enjoyable, perfectly written and highly recommended, to keep the romance God’s proud!!!
by SARAH E PEARCE
I’ve had this one waiting on my Kindle for a while, so I finally got around to reading it, and I only wish I had sooner.
I think I’ve discovered another favourite author in Emily Henry, so I’m very much looking forward to devouring her other books in a not too distant future.
Does anyone else picture Dan Levy whenever Charlie is described, right down to his capsule wardrobe!
by Han
I finished this book last week and when I tell you it’s occupied an obscene amount of my thoughts since, I’m not joking. This book was EVERYTHING. The way it had me SOBBING my heart out was, in fact, a bit concerning. And the way it made me feel so SEEN?
I immediately fell in love with Nora, she may be one of the most relatable characters I’ve ever read about. She appears as the cold, calculated woman at first but the more you learn about her, and the more she learns about herself with Charlie’s help, you see she’s just someone who loves with her whole heart and wants the best for her people, even if that means giving up the best for her. Watching her unbreak her heart and learn how to put herself first was honestly so beautiful.
Also, Charlie “I can buy my own big foot erotica” Lastra!!!!!! I can’t coherently explain my love for this man so I won’t even try but the way he thought he wasn’t deserving of Nora and good things, and he wasn’t the guy to make someone happy truly ruined me.
The romance in this book definitely feels like a side plot, but it was incredible. I loved the banter between Charlie and Nora, the way not many people understood them but when they were with each other things were just so easy? God, it was beautiful. They’re relationship felt so real and the chokehold they have on my isn’t even funny. I love Charlie and Nora with my whole heart.
I loved that this book included the narrative that “this is how romance works books so this is what I should do” and then just threw that all away because life isn’t a book, it’s real and things don’t always work out. What works for some people doesn’t work for everyone and with the good times comes bad times. I really though we weren’t going to get that HEA and I could feel my heart breaking – thankfully only to be put back together in the best way.
Idk what it is about EH’s writing, but reading it makes me feel smart. She m really feels like the bridge between the classics and the contemporary and I’m obsessed.