Emily Henry Archives - The Litertarian

How is everyone sleeping on People We Meet on Vacation?! This is the last book on Emily Henry’s backlist for me to read and you know what? I’m just going to say it. It’s my favorite.

People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry Book Cover

Poppy is living her dream life as a travel writer in New York City but for some reason, she’s not happy. She hasn’t been, actually, since she and her best friend Alex had a falling out a few years back. They used to go on vacation every year, scraping together their pennies in college to go anywhere-but-here. That’s when she fell in love with travel. So she bites the bullet and sends that first awkward hey-haven’t-talked-to-you-in-years-but-what’s-up text and to her delight and surprise, things pick up as if no time at all has passed. Texting soon leads to planning a new trip, and this one will fix everything for good. Hopefully.

My god there is something about a years spanning will they won’t they best friends with a little something more MFEO romance novel. Seriously, send me every rec you can think of that follows this same trajectory because MY HEART IN THESE NOVELS JUST CANNOT. If you’re chasing that same feeling, read this one, but also In the Likely Event by Rebecca Yarros. That one is darker than this, but it’s the same can’t-put-it-down-gah-get-your-shit-together energy this one has. Both of these…they just have their own electricity.

Poppy and Alex are opposites. She’s talkative and friendly and wants to get the most out of life. Alex is quiet and reserved and is happy with the life he has at home with his brothers. They had a little when-harry-met-sally style meet-cute and a life-changing friendship was born. Poppy and Alex are more fun than Harry and Sally, if it’s not blasphemous to say (H&S is one of my favorite movies too – clearly I have a type), but their problems also run deeper and had my heart in my throat so many times.

I’m telling you, this book had me in a chokehold. The timing of the flashbacks building up all those ‘almost’ moments and the ones that were so close and personal and foundational to their friendship that also make the possibility of ruining what they have too much to risk…I mean, it was just *chef’s kiss*

It is turning into a movie (screenplay by Yulin Kuang who’s debut novel came out last year, How to End A Love Story), but I’m not sure if I can bear to watch it. This book has buried itself into my heart and has become a part of me. That’s what a good book feels like. And I’m going to sit with that awhile before I risk tainting it (ha!).

Seriously though, if you’ve been putting off reading People We Meet on Vacation because you haven’t seen it hyped at all compared to the great Emily Henry’s other works, stop it. Pick it up right now. It’s phenomenal. Get the audiobook, too. Julia Whelan makes everything better.

Details

Title:: People We Meet on Vacation
Author:: Emily Henry
Genre:: Contemporary Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 400 pages
Audio Length:: 10h 46m
Audiobook Narrator:: Julia Whelan
Published:: May 11th, 2021
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars

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Let’s talk about the new Emily Henry book —

Daphne’s fiancé came back from his bachelor party weekend with a declaration of love on his lips. Unfortunately, it was for his childhood friend Petra, not her. She had packed up her entire life and moved to Michigan for the guy. She lived in the house he bought for them. And now? Now the only thing she has is her dream job as a children’s librarian…in the one place on earth she no longer wants to be. She has nowhere to go. Then Miles, Petra’s beau, shows up after he gets the NOTE she left him, ending their years long relationship. He wants answers, but they’re already long gone. Instead, he picks up a new roommate. Daphne & Miles are practical strangers, both mourning the death of relationships they’d put everything on the line for. In a bout of revenge, they decide to pretend they’ve found new love in each other. We know how the rest of the story goes, right? They grow closer, become true friends, help each other navigate the troubles in their lives, and the pesky little spark between them, once struck, refuses to die out.

The banter is top tier. Daphne and Miles get each other. The bond of friendship that anchors them is so genuine. They’re not just grieving together, they’re grieving the exact same thing. And when one of them is going through something rough, the other is there with immense support.

Although it is firmly inside romantic comedy territory, it has authentic depth that pulls the ol’ heartstrings. As Daphne sifts through the wreckage of her life to figure out what she even wants out of life, she has to really examine all the pieces of it. Would moving back ‘home’ solve any of her problems? Or is she just trying to run away…again?

In conclusion – drumroll please – I loved it. As far as Emily Henry goes, this ranks for me just under my favorite she’s written (Beach Read) for a solid runner-up. I loved Miles. I loved how he was revealed in layers, just a little bit at a time. I related so hard to Daphne in many ways. The difficulty of adult friendships, her self-doubt. Very little of this book felt tedious to get through (unlike Book Lovers, honestly). Although there were some things that bothered me, too.

The third act conflict was confusing and needlessly stressful (in my opinion). It stretched the bounds of my belief, but it wasn’t enough to ruin it for me.
The title. It’s explained in the opening anecdote, but other than that, it doesn’t feel like it applies in any meaningful way to the actual story. Not the only Emily Henry book to which this gripe applies though. Titles are hard. Hers are catchy. I get it.

It’s hard to go wrong with an Emily Henry book. She’s a sharp-witted writer with a modern style that is easy to read and lose yourself in. Her characters have so much complicated depth, and the narrative works long and hard to resolve their long-standing issues realistically. They’re more spunky than fluffy, and give you plenty of fodder to ruminate over long after the last pages are turned. I’d say of the four Henry’s I’ve read so far, for me this is a solid runner-up behind Beach Read (Happy Place settled at the rear).

Details

Title:: Funny Story
Author:: Emily Henry
Genre:: Romance
Publisher:: Berkley
Length:: 395 pages
Audio Length:: 11h 23m
Audiobook Narrator:: Julia Whelan
Audiobook Publisher:: Penguin Audio
Published:: April 23rd, 2024
The Litertarian Rating:: 5-Stars