Book Review: Happy Place by Emily Henry

Book #84 of 2024:

Happy Place by Emily Henry

I don’t read a ton of romance novels, but author Emily Henry’s Book Lovers was such a pleasant surprise for me that I decided to check out this next title of hers as well. Unfortunately, I haven’t liked it nearly as much in either its premise or its execution, both of which rely on a frustratingly high degree of miscommunication — a trope that I don’t have very much patience for in general, and especially not in stories about seemingly well-adjusted adults with grown-up responsibilities.

Our 30-year-old protagonist here, for example, broke up with her long-distance fiancé six months ago and still hasn’t gotten around to informing her supposed best friends, who were in the same tight-knit social circle with the two of them back in college. When one invites her to visit the family vacation home where they’ve made fond memories in the past, she thinks it’ll be a good opportunity to finally break the news, only to be surprised when she gets there that her ex has flown in too. So that’s already multiple counts of people not talking to one another: the heroine and the guy each keeping their breakup a secret from everyone else, and him not telling her he’d be coming after getting pressured into it by their hostess. (He protests that he called and left her a voicemail, which she didn’t get because she blocked his number. But he didn’t confirm she’d received the message before booking airfare for a super awkward reunion? He didn’t try reaching out by email or social media or any other method??)

To not ruin the weeklong getaway for the others, the former couple pretend to still be an item, though it’s obvious from their chemistry that they’re not really over one another anyway. It doesn’t help that, per genre conventions, they’re stuck in close quarters and sharing a single bed, either. They’re also only obliquely discussing the reasons behind their separation in whispered private asides, which means that readers are kept in the dark about any specifics until relatively late in the text. Eventually we learn that, sure enough, it all stems from a series of misunderstandings and assumptions they never questioned about each other and their respective priorities. Oh — and minor spoiler alert, but it turns out the love interest was included in these plans because the organizer found out about the split and is trying to Parent Trap the lovers back together again, so she’s been patronizingly lying the whole time too. Sigh.

Different elements are handled better. I do like the six main characters for the most part, and the non-romantic side of the plot is a fairly nuanced exploration of the sadness and anxiety that can stem from the natural progression of time and the post-collegiate feeling of moving on in life from the folks who used to be your closest peers. But this is primarily a love story with a predictable ending, all predicated on none of the participants actually voicing what’s upsetting them, and that’s just not my cup of tea overall.

[Content warning for alcohol abuse.]

★★★☆☆

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