Book Lovers

By: Emily Henry

Narrated by: Julia Whelan

An insightful, delightful, instant #1 New York Times bestseller from the author of Funny Story.

“One of my favorite authors.”—Colleen Hoover

One summer. Two rivals. A plot twist they didn't see coming...

Nora Stephens' life is books—she’s read them all—and she is not that type of heroine. Not the plucky one, not the laidback dream girl, and especially not the sweetheart. In fact, the only people Nora is a heroine for are her clients, for whom she lands enormous deals as a cutthroat literary agent, and her beloved little sister Libby.

Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina for the month of August when Libby begs her for a sisters’ trip away—with visions of a small town transformation for Nora, who she’s convinced needs to become the heroine in her own story. But instead of picnics in meadows, or run-ins with a handsome country doctor or bulging-forearmed bartender, Nora keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a bookish brooding editor from back in the city. It would be a meet-cute if not for the fact that they’ve met many times and it’s never been cute.

If Nora knows she’s not an ideal heroine, Charlie knows he’s nobody’s hero, but as they are thrown together again and again—in a series of coincidences no editor worth their salt would allow—what they discover might just unravel the carefully crafted stories they’ve written about themselves.

©2022 Emily Henry (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"[Book Lovers] is multilayered and the characters' familial challenges are complex. By both playing to and overtly subverting romance tropes and archetypes like the high-powered big city woman who neglects her family and the life-affirming power of small-town life, this novel delivers an insightful comedic meditation on love, family and going your own way."—NPR

“If Emily Henry makes herself laugh at the character's dialogue in her own books, it's understandable. She is a master at witty repartee….It's a safe bet that viewers would enjoy seeing Henry's characters come to life on screen."—Associated Press

“It is humanly impossible for Emily Henry to write a bad book. Her particular blend of grief and messy relationships is a heady cocktail of intoxicating yearning…Whatever Henry decides to spear, be it literary posturing or vacation rom-com, she subverts her subjects in the most delicious ways."—Entertainment Weekly

Finally!

This was the best book I've read in a while! I highly recommend it!

My Heart is Happy

Julian Whalen is one of my top 5 favorite narrators. I searched her name to see if there are any novels she’s read that might pique my interest and happened upon PWMoV. After binging on true crime books & documentaries, dark mysteries, and horror flicks, I needed something light.What I didn’t expect is to find Emily Henry. EH is the author I needed without knowing how badly I needed her. Once I finished that book, I immediately downloaded this one and it didn’t disappoint! I find myself in reading funks and get agitated by awful narrators or dull stories. I didn’t feel that way with either of these books at any point. The two novels got me excited to put away laundry, clean, and complete the mundane tasks that I work on while listening.

So glad I found her.

Overall good, but very wordy & obsessive in places

Generally a good story, but there were many places where it got overly wordy and excessively drawn out. I used the skip ahead 30 seconds button often. Interestingly, the part where she's talking about editing the book within the book, had me talking back and saying "author, edit thyself!" Other times, it had me laughing out loud. So overall good, but not great.

A new favorite!

This book was fun, heartbreaking, and intelligent written with well developed characters. The narration was excellent. I laughed, I cried…I almost started it over from the beginning as soon as it ended. Just like the characters in the novel, I didn’t want a good book to end!

I loved everything about this book!

I didn’t want it to end! A great, feel good love story. I wish it was a movie too.

Loved it

I could have done with far fewer f bombs but other than that it was a great story.

my first audible!

this book was funny, sad and cute! a new aged romance!! i loved the narrator!

Banter and Humor

Besides the great characters, it’s the banter between them that had me hooked. I never laughed so much while listening to an audio book. It brightened every morning and gave the escape I needed after a long day.
Julia Whelan did a wonderful job brining all of these characters to life. I thought enjoyed this book, the story, the characters and the performance.

Delightful!

This book was engaging and fun. I smiled and laughed and felt their pain. The narrator is perfect. They pair well!

Good story. Didn’t need the gratuitous “F***”s.

Responsible Guardian guide: Lots of sex. Lots of “F” words. Not something you would listen to with kids around.

The narrator was amazing!

Overall I enjoyed the book. However the characters would throw in an “F” word at random times that made no sense and took away from the moment. At first I was like, ok. Then I was like, this was unnecessary. Finally about half way I would just cringe because it stuck out in a very bad, and completely unnecessary way.