Beach Read

By: Emily Henry

Narrated by: Julia Whelan

FROM THE #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION AND BOOK LOVERS!

A romance writer who no longer believes in love and a literary writer stuck in a rut engage in a summer-long challenge that may just upend everything they believe about happily ever afters.

Augustus Everett is an acclaimed author of literary fiction. January Andrews writes best-selling romance. When she pens a happily ever after, he kills off his entire cast.

They’re polar opposites.

In fact, the only thing they have in common is that for the next three months, they're living in neighboring beach houses, broke, and bogged down with writer's block.

Until, one hazy evening, one thing leads to another and they strike a deal designed to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will spend the summer writing something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. She’ll take him on field trips worthy of any rom-com montage, and he’ll take her to interview surviving members of a backwoods death cult (obviously). Everyone will finish a book and no one will fall in love. Really.

©2020 Emily Henry (P)2020 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

One of...

The New York Times Book Review's Summer Romance Reads

Entertainment Weekly’s Hottest Summer Reads of 2020

Oprah Magazine's Best Beach Reads of Summer 2020

Betches’ 20 Books to Read in 2020

SheReads’ Most Anticipated Books of Summer 2020

Goodreads' Big Books of Spring

Popsugar's 25 Exciting New Books Coming Out in May

Bustle's Most Anticipated May Titles

Shondaland's Five Books to Read in May

TheSkimm's 11 Buzzy Books for Your Imaginary Beach Bag

Good Morning America's 25 Novels You'll Want to Read this Summer

The New York Post's Required Reading

Good Housekeeping's 25 Best Beach Reads

Huffington Post's Best Books to Read during Quarantine

CNN's Perfect Summer Reads

LitHub's Ultimate Summer 2020 Reading List

BookRiot's 6 Captivating New Books

“Once I started Beach Read I legit did not put it down.”—Betches

“Reader, I swooned! Beach Read is a breath of fresh air. My heart ached for January, and Gus is to die for—a steamy, smart and perceptive romance. I was engrossed!”—Josie Silver, #1 New York Times bestselling author of One Day in December

“This is a touching and heartfelt book about love, betrayal, grief, failure, and learning how to love again. I adored going along on Gus and January’s journey, and I closed this book with a satisfied sigh.”—Jasmine Guillory, New York Times Bestselling Author of The Proposal

This book was so much more than I expected!

The greatest cure to the bizarre mania while still being totally board during a Pandemic is a cold drink and this book, Beach Read. I connected with Mrs. Henry’s writing style in a crazy way. The writers block, the chaos and layers of the story she built around January, and the heated tension between the two main characters was the best I’ve read in a while.
This book is not a typical romance book and I ADORE the way she deals with the reality of a HEA in her story.
I TOTALLY recommend this book to both Women’s Fiction readers AND Romance.
This is a very well written book and I spent half the time wanting to study Emily Henry’s writing style.
Julia Whelan did an amazing job bringing a newer voice than I have heard jn her other performances.
This book makes it to my top three of stories I’ve read in 2020.

Do yourself a favor and read this book.

Binged this book in 36 hours. It's a fresh take on romance that will keep you hooked until the very end. Henry's characters truly come to life with every word (partially due to the fantastic recording).

I feel heartbroken finishing it - like I've lost my Aunts, Maggie and Pete, like I've lost access to a world that became so real to me. I want to know more about Gus and the world that shaped him. I want to know more about these characters that feel like they're people I could meet in a town, just a few hours away. Mostly, I really want to go to the beach now.

Do yourself a favor. Read this book. Fall in love with the characters and their world.

SO Good!

I read one book a month and this one was fantastic!! Absolutely loved it!! I want to hug this author and say thank you!

Not what you expect

Loved this book! It was such a good feeling book, laughed a little. Nice change from all the mystery thrillers I listen to. I loved the characters so much.

Sooo Goood!!!

I personally am not a romance reader. I love books with murder mystery or at least trying to figure “who done it” type stories. So when this book was suggested as our next in our book club I immediately thought I would hate it. Oh was I Wrong!!! I seriously could not put it down!! Every chapter had me longing for what’s next!?!

The characters are very relatable with their problems, feelings, fears, all while still holding onto some type of hope things can, or will, get better.

Don’t put it off read this book right now it will make you laugh out loud make you cry will make you sad I will make you think

Every moment of this book was a treasure the author well together such a beautiful story of hardship heartache joys laughter trials and sadness and all of it all of it is meaningful and will last with you read this book!

Loved it

Loved it so much. Real, hopeful and sweet. A perfect book for a time when our world is oh, so scary.

Amazing Book For People With Writers Block

I never thought I could get over frustrations I had with writing and art until I picked up this book. It reminded me how to fall in love with art and life again. I love January so much. One of the greatest characters I have read in a very long time.

I’ll probably have to buy a physical copy too.

A full of life, summer read/listen

This has everything you’re looking for in a lazy summer story. Down to earth problems and complications, raw characters learning more each day about who they are.

Unexpected

Was not what I was expecting!! The turns this book took kept me listening. Loved it.