Tag: contemporary romance

Beach Read by Emily Henry

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Beach Read by Emily Henry is held up again a matching pair of shorts. Soleil de Zwart

★★★★★

January Andrews shows up at her father’s old lake house ready to sit down and right her next great romance novel. But after the year she’s had, the last thing she is in the mood to do is write about love. Little does she know that he ex college rival, Augustus Everett owns the lake house right next to her, that is until she runs into his book display in the local bookstore. Augustus has been having writers block of his own, but in an entirely different genre, one more dark and gloomy than anything January has ever written.

The two strike up a truce and make a deal, the first to complete and sell their novel gets an endorsement from the other, but there’s a catch. They have to write in each other’s genre. January will take her stab at a dark gloomy piece of literature and Augustus will attempt a romance novel.

Beach Read by Emily Henry is an enemies to lovers story with every bit of intrigue and slice of romance you will need. The characters are both vibrant and dynamic, each with their own set of baggage and problems. As you read, you learn more about both characters and how they are actually a lot more similar than they thought and how they’ve dealt with similar losses. While this is a fun contemporary romance, it deals with a lot of deeper themes of loss, separation, and death, and ties it all together with fun plot points.

At some point the characters end up interviewing former cult members but also traveling to an outdoor theater and eating the most extravagant sounding ice cream.

I read this book in a day, finishing it in the deep end of the night. There were moments when my heart was racing and I definitely cried. This book was everything I wanted it to be and more. I felt very connected to the characters in their discussions of writing and their feelings of isolation.

If you’re in the mood for a fun contemporary romance but with a darker twist, this is one to check out!

Tweet Cute by Emma Lord

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★★★★★

Tweet Cute is about Pepper, who moved with her mom to New York after her mom separated (amicably) from her dad. She’s been trying to blend in at the elite high school for the past 3 years, but she’s regarded as more of a study robot by her classmates. Pepper’s family own a fast-food burger chain and being the Gen Z-er that she is she often has to help them with their social media campaigns, primarily by posting memes on their official Twitter. But Pepper is more interested in baking and running her baking blog with her sister. Jack’s family run a small deli in New York, they’re known for their Kitchen Sink Macarons and grilled cheeses. Pepper and Jack end up in a twitter war between their parent’s business twitter accounts, and their story becomes viral.

I went into this book thinking it sounded cute and like a light rom-com. I was both right and wrong, in the best ways. It was cute and a rom-com but it also dealt with things such as parental pressures, familial problems, and loss. I was surprised in so many ways and read this book in a 24 hour period. I forced myself to sleep at 2am, so I would be able to continue enjoying it in the morning.

It was a little bit of a slow start, I wasn’t sure what was going on in the first few pages, but then it all started clicking into place. I understood there was a distance between the mother and Pepper’s sisters, there was something there that was waiting to be uncovered. Then we switched to Jack’s POV and I felt a little thrown off, but it was coming together, he also dealt with family expectations but in a different way. And slowly the larger plot came together.

The twitter war wasn’t what I had expected, it was better. And the moment that the ship name “Pepperjack” appeared made me cackle with joy.
I am so grateful I was able to read this book in advance, it has given me strength to tackle the new school year. And now I have a few months to rave about it to my friends before I make them read it in January 2020.