Exclusive:
Senior Social News Reporter Danielle Kate Wroe was given the opportunity to read Emily Henry’s new book – Great Big Beautiful Life – before it was released to the general public
Emily Henry burst onto the scene with her 2020 novel ‘Beach Read’ – and since her widespread success, she’s never looked back.
She’s managed to amass a huge following on social media, with people constantly in a state of desperation to read her new books, which are perfect for holidays.
With her latest book, ‘Great Big Beautiful Life,’ set to be released on April 24, people on X have already said that they “bet this will be the beach read everyone’s talking about this summer”. But having read it, I can tell you that this book is so much more than a wishy-washy, soppy beach read.
What’s ‘Great Big Beautiful Life’ about?
If you liked ‘The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo’ by Taylor Jenkins Reid, then I think you’re going to love this, because the premise is quite similar. Only the main character, journalist Alice, has her own love story to face up to – but it gets messy thanks to her rival, Hayden.
Margaret Ives, a reclusive heiress, invites Alice, who writes for a small-timey magazine, to Crescent Island to interview her for her upcoming memoir. Alice is convinced this is her big break and is majorly excited about what the future may hold for her career.
She’s desperate to impress her mum, who she thinks disapproves of her journalism job, and she also wants to prove to herself that she can do this.
Until there’s a spanner in the works – moody (yet incredibly handsome, well, in my head anyway) Hayden, who is a Pulitzer-prize-winning writer, is also going for the same job. Turns out Margaret has pitched them against each other for the role. Yikes.
Margaret puts them both on a month-long trial period, during which they have to uncover the secrets of one of the most scandalous families of the twentieth century. The plan is for Margaret to choose who she trusts the most to write her memoir.
But Margaret is only giving them small tidbits of information, and Alice and Hayden cannot speak about much as they’ve signed a non-disclosure agreement. But while they discuss the fact they think Margaret may be lying, are they also lying about their feelings for each other?
What did I think of the book?
This book was an instant five-star for me. There was nothing I didn’t love. The main characters were all likeable in their own ways; there was mystery, twists, turns, and family drama – plenty to keep you occupied and entertained. And remember, all this with a love story at the centre of it, too? Chef’s kiss.
I genuinely don’t understand how Emily Henry seamlessly packed so much into one book! I really enjoyed how it flicked between the present day and then into ‘The Story,’ which was what Alice had garnered in her interviews with Margaret.
I really felt as though I was right in on the action, and I didn’t actually guess the plot twists, so I was gasping when they came about.
This definitely isn’t as dramatic as enemies to lovers because I didn’t feel any hatred between Alice and Hayden – just a little bit of (more than) friendly competition. It also wasn’t as slow-burning as Emily’s previous releases, which I definitely appreciated because I do not have the time to wait until page 350 just for a kiss.
It is a poignant and clever book; I devoured every page and truly loved every second.
Someone joked on Goodreads that “life is just the great big beautiful wait between Emily Henry releases”. Another added: “I’m 100% sure Emily cannot write a bad book. I can’t wait for this!”
Get excited if this is already on your ‘To Be Read’ (TBR) list. If it’s not, I highly recommend you add it now because this book is not to be missed. You can pre-order Great Big Beautiful life here.