Pub Day Review!
Happy Place
Emily Henry
Berkley

“Forget what you think everyone else wants. What do YOU want?” – The Happy Place

The Happy Place

In this dual timeline, opposites attract, second chance romance Emily Henry knocks it out of the park with her wit and sass. Where does she come up with some of this stuff? Right from the beginning, The Happy Place had me rolling. Literal snot coming out my nose laughter emerged while listening to this book! The woman knows how to write!

The story follows a couple that ends up stuck together for a romantic week with friends, even though they have long since broken up. They just never had the heart to tell their friends. Not wanting to ruin their besties wedding week, Harriet and Wyn go along with the ruse and pretend they are still together.

I love a good “locked room” style story and this structure worked well for the discomfort factor of understanding the depth of this relationship. The story flashes back and forth between present day hilarity and the past, showing the slow decline of their once supposedly perfect relationship.

“So much of life is waiting for him.”

However, as the story progressed and more backstory was told, I couldn’t help but cringe at so much dysfunction. Yes, they have amazing chemistry. But they also have crappy communication, unhealthy boundaries, and no adult ability to use their words. The real bummer is that NONE of the characters do.

“Sometimes, when things go wrong, it’s easy to blame someone else because it simplifies things. It takes any responsibility out of your hands.”

I did love the diversity and mental health rep in this book. But lack of communication and misunderstandings as a trope generally drive me crazy. And by the end, literally EVERY character hasn’t bothered to tell anyone they love the truth about any of their very real dreams or desires. It didn’t feel funny anymore to me. It was very sad and very shallow.

Thank you to Libro.FM for the early ARC. The audiobook was phenomenal, but of course it’s Julia Whelan who is always a win for me!

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