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Hamilton Spectator
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
The 8 top beach reads of the summer, from Emily Henry's latest to a Toronto foodie romance
Sunscreen, hand-held fan and refreshing beverage of your choice? Check, check and check. Permission to leave the world behind, albeit briefly? Granted. A sizzling summer read that feels like the literary equivalent of sinking into cool water on scorching hot day? Awaiting you — almost certainly on bended knee, and with a naughty twinkle in its eye — in the roundup below. With happy endings and high-velocity page-turning guaranteed, these are our eight best summer beach reads for 2025. Emily Henry Berkley, 544 pages, $41 If you're looking for the ultimate blend of heart and humour, look no further than the genius behind 'Beach Read,' the No. 1 bestseller that kicked off a new golden age of the genre when it was published in 2020. 'Great Big Beautiful Life,' by Emily Henry, Berkley, $41. This time, Emily Henry whisks us to coastal South Carolina, where a reporter has stumbled onto the scoop of the century: After decades out of the public eye, an infamous heiress is looking for someone to write her memoir — and it's going to be juicy. (Cross the tragedy of the Kennedys with the wallets of the Vanderbilts and spritz in some Evelyn Hugo-era Hollywood intrigue.) There's a small problem. The reclusive heiress is auditioning someone else at the same time, giving them both a month to prove who's the right fit to tell her story. Naturally, said rival is irritating and attractive in equal measure, with a rumpled charm that would be irresistible if he didn't stand between our heroine and her big break. You'll love this if you liked: 'People You Meet on Vacation,' 'Funny Story' and anything else by Henry, the thinking woman's romance writer. Spice level: Low. A few steamy moments, but this one's all about the banter and the slow burn. Tropes: Grumpy man, sunshine woman; the one-bed trope, but instead of a single place to sleep, they're stuck on a tiny island and can't help bumping into each other. Jessica Stanley Doubleday Canada, 336 pages, $26 Sometimes you can suspend your disbelief and believe that fairy tales really come true. Other times, you need a book that's clear-eyed about the limitations of human relationships while still managing to tell a joyful story that affirms our faith in love, even the imperfect sort. 'Consider Yourself Kissed,' by Jessica Stanley, Doubleday Canada, $26. If you're not in the headspace for a gloriously fantastical tale of happily ever after, may we introduce you to Jessica Stanley's charming, wise debut novel? Set across the years of a long-term relationship, it tells the story of an Australian woman who moves to London to escape a predatory boss and quickly falls in love with a Mark Darcy-esque Englishman. With wit and gorgeous prose, Stanley takes us through the stages of their relationship — and all the life that happens along the way, including grief, growing apart, even a trial separation — to tell a story that is somehow all the more romantic for feeling so realistic. You'll love this if you liked: Helen Fielding's ' Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy' and its pitch-perfect mix of light and shade. Spice level: Low. A pinch of cayenne, but honestly, you're more likely to cry than anything else. Tropes: Bookish-but-also-hot British man. Cecilia Edward Saga Press, 320 pages, $25.99 Finding love in 2025 is baffling enough when you aren't a late medieval witch who accidentally brewed a true love potion that catapulted you forward several centuries and directly into the path of a cute-and-kind man who looks as though he's about to trap your feline familiar (who journeyed with you) for nefarious purposes, but turns out to be a vet who provides charity medical care for stray cats. 'An Ancient Witch's Guide to Modern Dating,' by Cecilia Edward, Saga Press, $25.99. Delightfully daffy — but with a deeper message about how real love often comes when you're not trying to cast a spell in order to manipulate the world into thinking you're something you're not — this is a bewitching beach read that gets bonus points for a heroine who is closer to 40, not the standard 28 (which is the new 23). You'll love this if you liked: 'Practical Magic' by Alice Hoffman . Spice level: Mild. It's G-rated enough that you can listen to the audiobook on a drive with your ultra-conservative Aunt Pearl Clutcher. Tropes: Time travel, like 'Outlander,' but much, much breezier in tone and with way fewer burning of witches. Brittney Arena Random House Canada, 448 pages, $38 Once upon a time, Vasalie was King Illian's favourite dancer, his 'Jewel' whom he showered with gifts and shared late nights, long conversations and more than one yearning glance with. Then, she was framed for a murder she did not commit and thrown into a cell, the king not lifting a finger to save her. 'A Dance of Lies,' by Brittney Arena, Random House Canada, $38. Two years later, Vasalie — broken by captivity and isolation; barely able to walk, let alone dance — is summoned and given a choice: She can spy for the king at a gathering of rulers, or she can die. Despite the damage done to her physically and mentally, Vasalie seizes her chance — and finds herself caught up in a dark game of revenge, courtly intrigue and mysterious prophecies. And the most dangerous part of all? The feelings she develops for someone we won't name because it's a spoiler, sorry. Not only is this a particularly beautifully written romantasy, it's got a lovely backstory: Brittney Arena lives with several chronic illnesses and wrote this book as a 'declaration that our limitations do not define our worth or limit our ability to live wonderfully romantic and impactful lives.' Bring on book two … You'll love this if you liked: 'A Court of Thorns and Roses' by Sarah J. Maas . Spice level: Medium. Green chili with the seeds scraped out, as in just a few hot-and-heavy kisses, but not nearly the sort of action you'd see in, say, 'Fourth Wing.' Tropes: Forbidden romance with a splash of enemies-to-lovers. Meghan Quinn Bloom, 432 pages, $28.99 This book has a wonderfully silly premise: Newly divorced Scottie works at a golf putter manufacturer where everyone is married and obsessed with their spouses. To fit in, she pretends to have a husband. 'Till Summer Do Us Part,' Meghan Quinn, Bloom, $28.99. As lies tend to do, this snowballs into her recruiting her best friend's brother — who has nothing better to do now that he's sold his app for zillions — to join her for an eight-day couples camp run by her boss's therapist husband. Cue the forced-proximity tingles, amplified by the fact that Wilder Wells is not only up for anything, but he's also perceptive, kind and has a lip piercing that makes Scottie (frustratingly, thrillingly) weak at the knees. As with all Meghan Quinn books, it's very funny, with just the right amount of heart to ground it from absurdity. You'll love this if you liked: 'It Happened One Summer' by Tessa Bailey . Spice level: Scotch bonnet. Tropes: Fake dating, although in this case it's pretending to be a long-term married couple with a host of fabricated issues. Its amplified by some classic forced proximity in their camp cabin and kitted out with various erotic accoutrements prescribed by their therapist to help save their relationship. Amy Rosen ECW Press, 280 pages, $24.95 If you want a book that feels like diving into a buffet stacked with everything you love, immediately pull up a chair to the glorious smorgasbord served up by Amy Rosen, one of Canada's most talented food writers, making her romance debut. 'Off Menu,' by Amy Rosen, ECW Press, $24.95. Our heroine is Ruthie, a professionally adrift 20-something who inherits a nice chunk of change when her beloved grandmother (and noted dispenser of life advice, like 'Never buy green bananas, and never wear banana yellow') dies in a Jet Ski accident. It's enough money for her to quit her job and follow her bliss — that would be food — all the way to a year studying at Toronto's French cooking academy. On her first day, she's partnered with Jeff, a dreamy musician who irritatingly has a girlfriend who has the temerity to be both pretty and nice. The fallout from this — and all the hijinks in between — are told to us by Ruthie, chatting away Bridget Jones-style in her diary. The real love story here, of course, is the food. Whether Rosen is shouting out fictional Toronto spots — pistachio sandwich cookies from Cafe Forno, tofu with garlic sauce from Legendary Asian — or writing about dishes Ruthie prepares so vividly the smells practically waft from the pages, this is a book filled with good eating. Come for the giggles and mishaps (accidentally icing a carrot cake with cocaine!), stay for a lemon meringue pie made with tea biscuits and condensed milk that sounds so easy and delicious you actually wrote down the recipe to try this weekend. You'll love this if you liked: 'Julie & Julia' by Julie Powell. Spice level: Habanero, but only in small, infrequent doses. Tropes: Unrequited love. Noreen Nanja Random House Canada, 368 pages, $26 If you've already gobbled up (even reread) this year's Carley Fortune (very good, maybe even her best yet), we've got just the Canadian debut to fill that emotional-romance-on-a-cottage-country-lake-shaped hole in your heart. 'The Summers Between Us,' by Noreen Nanja, Random House Canada, $26. 'The Summers Between Us' is the story of first love's second chance after a 15-year separation, told as a nuanced exploration of the cross-cultural differences that can sometimes make people go their separate ways. In this case, that means Lia — the high-achieving daughter of immigrant parents — dutifully dating someone her mother approves of, while secretly pining for the boy that she fell for during long, heady teenage summers at her cottage. She never thought she'd return there, but life has other plans — and that boy from Pike Bay turned into a rather dreamy man. You'll love this if you liked: 'Every Summer After' by Carley Fortune. Spice level: More sweet and yearning than spicy and steamy. Tropes: Your classic 'we fell in love as teenagers, but fate forced us apart and now here we are as adults who never quite got over that cataclysmic first love.' 'Only Between Us,' by Ellie K. Wilde, Simon & Schuster, $25.99. Ellie K. Wilde Simon & Schuster, 416 pages, $25.99 We couldn't compile this list without a sports romance. First draft pick on our roster? Canadian phenom Ellie K. Wilde's latest instalment in her series set in the small town of Oakwood Bay. This time, our heroine is a former WAG desperately trying to save her family's business and smart enough to realize that fake-dating one of the hottest football players of the century could be her ticket to turning things around. This scheme has something in it for our hero too, as he's trying to make a comeback and could use a bit of good publicity. We really aren't spoiling anything when we say things get complicated — feelings develop between two people who pretend to be married while being secretly attracted to each other (what a plot twist) — and, also not a shocker if you've read her other work, pretty hot. You'll love this if you liked: Tessa Bailey's 'Fangirl Down.' Spice level: What they refer to on romance subreddits as 'explicit door open' — meaning trés, trés chaud. Tropes: Fake dating.
Hamilton Spectator
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Emily Henry and Meghan Quinn lead our list of the 8 best beach reads
Sunscreen, hand-held fan and refreshing beverage of your choice? Check, check and check. Permission to leave the world behind, albeit briefly? Granted. A sizzling summer read that feels like the literary equivalent of sinking into cool water on scorching hot day? Awaiting you — almost certainly on bended knee, and with a naughty twinkle in its eye — in the roundup below. With happy endings and high-velocity page-turning guaranteed, these are our eight best summer beach reads for 2025. Emily Henry Berkley, 544 pages, $41 If you're looking for the ultimate blend of heart and humour, look no further than the genius behind 'Beach Read,' the No. 1 bestseller that kicked off a new golden age of the genre when it was published in 2020. 'Great Big Beautiful Life,' by Emily Henry, Berkley, $41. This time, Emily Henry whisks us to coastal South Carolina, where a reporter has stumbled onto the scoop of the century: After decades out of the public eye, an infamous heiress is looking for someone to write her memoir — and it's going to be juicy. (Cross the tragedy of the Kennedys with the wallets of the Vanderbilts and spritz in some Evelyn Hugo-era Hollywood intrigue.) There's a small problem. The reclusive heiress is auditioning someone else at the same time, giving them both a month to prove who's the right fit to tell her story. Naturally, said rival is irritating and attractive in equal measure, with a rumpled charm that would be irresistible if he didn't stand between our heroine and her big break. You'll love this if you liked: 'People You Meet on Vacation,' 'Funny Story' and anything else by Henry, the thinking woman's romance writer. Spice level: Low. A few steamy moments, but this one's all about the banter and the slow burn. Tropes: Grumpy man, sunshine woman; the one-bed trope, but instead of a single place to sleep, they're stuck on a tiny island and can't help bumping into each other. Jessica Stanley Doubleday Canada, 336 pages, $26 Sometimes you can suspend your disbelief and believe that fairy tales really come true. Other times, you need a book that's clear-eyed about the limitations of human relationships while still managing to tell a joyful story that affirms our faith in love, even the imperfect sort. 'Consider Yourself Kissed,' by Jessica Stanley, Doubleday Canada, $26. If you're not in the headspace for a gloriously fantastical tale of happily ever after, may we introduce you to Jessica Stanley's charming, wise debut novel? Set across the years of a long-term relationship, it tells the story of an Australian woman who moves to London to escape a predatory boss and quickly falls in love with a Mark Darcy-esque Englishman. With wit and gorgeous prose, Stanley takes us through the stages of their relationship — and all the life that happens along the way, including grief, growing apart, even a trial separation — to tell a story that is somehow all the more romantic for feeling so realistic. You'll love this if you liked: Helen Fielding's ' Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy' and its pitch-perfect mix of light and shade. Spice level: Low. A pinch of cayenne, but honestly, you're more likely to cry than anything else. Tropes: Bookish-but-also-hot British man. Cecilia Edward Saga Press, 320 pages, $25.99 Finding love in 2025 is baffling enough when you aren't a late medieval witch who accidentally brewed a true love potion that catapulted you forward several centuries and directly into the path of a cute-and-kind man who looks as though he's about to trap your feline familiar (who journeyed with you) for nefarious purposes, but turns out to be a vet who provides charity medical care for stray cats. 'An Ancient Witch's Guide to Modern Dating,' by Cecilia Edward, Saga Press, $25.99. Delightfully daffy — but with a deeper message about how real love often comes when you're not trying to cast a spell in order to manipulate the world into thinking you're something you're not — this is a bewitching beach read that gets bonus points for a heroine who is closer to 40, not the standard 28 (which is the new 23). You'll love this if you liked: 'Practical Magic' by Alice Hoffman . Spice level: Mild. It's G-rated enough that you can listen to the audiobook on a drive with your ultra-conservative Aunt Pearl Clutcher. Tropes: Time travel, like 'Outlander,' but much, much breezier in tone and with way fewer burning of witches. Brittney Arena Random House Canada, 448 pages, $38 Once upon a time, Vasalie was King Illian's favourite dancer, his 'Jewel' whom he showered with gifts and shared late nights, long conversations and more than one yearning glance with. Then, she was framed for a murder she did not commit and thrown into a cell, the king not lifting a finger to save her. 'A Dance of Lies,' by Brittney Arena, Random House Canada, $38. Two years later, Vasalie — broken by captivity and isolation; barely able to walk, let alone dance — is summoned and given a choice: She can spy for the king at a gathering of rulers, or she can die. Despite the damage done to her physically and mentally, Vasalie seizes her chance — and finds herself caught up in a dark game of revenge, courtly intrigue and mysterious prophecies. And the most dangerous part of all? The feelings she develops for someone we won't name because it's a spoiler, sorry. Not only is this a particularly beautifully written romantasy, it's got a lovely backstory: Brittney Arena lives with several chronic illnesses and wrote this book as a 'declaration that our limitations do not define our worth or limit our ability to live wonderfully romantic and impactful lives.' Bring on book two … You'll love this if you liked: 'A Court of Thorns and Roses' by Sarah J. Maas . Spice level: Medium. Green chili with the seeds scraped out, as in just a few hot-and-heavy kisses, but not nearly the sort of action you'd see in, say, 'Fourth Wing.' Tropes: Forbidden romance with a splash of enemies-to-lovers. Meghan Quinn Bloom, 432 pages, $28.99 This book has a wonderfully silly premise: Newly divorced Scottie works at a golf putter manufacturer where everyone is married and obsessed with their spouses. To fit in, she pretends to have a husband. 'Till Summer Do Us Part,' Meghan Quinn, Bloom, $28.99. As lies tend to do, this snowballs into her recruiting her best friend's brother — who has nothing better to do now that he's sold his app for zillions — to join her for an eight-day couples camp run by her boss's therapist husband. Cue the forced-proximity tingles, amplified by the fact that Wilder Wells is not only up for anything, but he's also perceptive, kind and has a lip piercing that makes Scottie (frustratingly, thrillingly) weak at the knees. As with all Meghan Quinn books, it's very funny, with just the right amount of heart to ground it from absurdity. You'll love this if you liked: 'It Happened One Summer' by Tessa Bailey . Spice level: Scotch bonnet. Tropes: Fake dating, although in this case it's pretending to be a long-term married couple with a host of fabricated issues. Its amplified by some classic forced proximity in their camp cabin and kitted out with various erotic accoutrements prescribed by their therapist to help save their relationship. Amy Rosen ECW Press, 280 pages, $24.95 If you want a book that feels like diving into a buffet stacked with everything you love, immediately pull up a chair to the glorious smorgasbord served up by Amy Rosen, one of Canada's most talented food writers, making her romance debut. 'Off Menu,' by Amy Rosen, ECW Press, $24.95. Our heroine is Ruthie, a professionally adrift 20-something who inherits a nice chunk of change when her beloved grandmother (and noted dispenser of life advice, like 'Never buy green bananas, and never wear banana yellow') dies in a Jet Ski accident. It's enough money for her to quit her job and follow her bliss — that would be food — all the way to a year studying at Toronto's French cooking academy. On her first day, she's partnered with Jeff, a dreamy musician who irritatingly has a girlfriend who has the temerity to be both pretty and nice. The fallout from this — and all the hijinks in between — are told to us by Ruthie, chatting away Bridget Jones-style in her diary. The real love story here, of course, is the food. Whether Rosen is shouting out fictional Toronto spots — pistachio sandwich cookies from Cafe Forno, tofu with garlic sauce from Legendary Asian — or writing about dishes Ruthie prepares so vividly the smells practically waft from the pages, this is a book filled with good eating. Come for the giggles and mishaps (accidentally icing a carrot cake with cocaine!), stay for a lemon meringue pie made with tea biscuits and condensed milk that sounds so easy and delicious you actually wrote down the recipe to try this weekend. You'll love this if you liked: 'Julie & Julia' by Julie Powell. Spice level: Habanero, but only in small, infrequent doses. Tropes: Unrequited love. Noreen Nanja Random House Canada, 368 pages, $26 If you've already gobbled up (even reread) this year's Carley Fortune (very good, maybe even her best yet), we've got just the Canadian debut to fill that emotional-romance-on-a-cottage-country-lake-shaped hole in your heart. 'The Summers Between Us,' by Noreen Nanja, Random House Canada, $26. 'The Summers Between Us' is the story of first love's second chance after a 15-year separation, told as a nuanced exploration of the cross-cultural differences that can sometimes make people go their separate ways. In this case, that means Lia — the high-achieving daughter of immigrant parents — dutifully dating someone her mother approves of, while secretly pining for the boy that she fell for during long, heady teenage summers at her cottage. She never thought she'd return there, but life has other plans — and that boy from Pike Bay turned into a rather dreamy man. You'll love this if you liked: 'Every Summer After' by Carley Fortune. Spice level: More sweet and yearning than spicy and steamy. Tropes: Your classic 'we fell in love as teenagers, but fate forced us apart and now here we are as adults who never quite got over that cataclysmic first love.' 'Only Between Us,' by Ellie K. Wilde, Simon & Schuster, $25.99. Ellie K. Wilde Simon & Schuster, 416 pages, $25.99 We couldn't compile this list without a sports romance. First draft pick on our roster? Canadian phenom Ellie K. Wilde's latest instalment in her series set in the small town of Oakwood Bay. This time, our heroine is a former WAG desperately trying to save her family's business and smart enough to realize that fake-dating one of the hottest football players of the century could be her ticket to turning things around. This scheme has something in it for our hero too, as he's trying to make a comeback and could use a bit of good publicity. We really aren't spoiling anything when we say things get complicated — feelings develop between two people who pretend to be married while being secretly attracted to each other (what a plot twist) — and, also not a shocker if you've read her other work, pretty hot. You'll love this if you liked: Tessa Bailey's 'Fangirl Down.' Spice level: What they refer to on romance subreddits as 'explicit door open' — meaning trés, trés chaud. Tropes: Fake dating.
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
‘A Simple Favor' Writer Jessica Sharzer Directing Adaptation of Sian Gilbert's ‘She Started It' for Lyrical Media, Ryder Picture Company (EXCLUSIVE)
Lyrical Media and Ryder Picture Company will adapt Sian Gilbert's debut thriller 'She Started It' for the screen. Jessica Sharzer, the screenwriter behind 'A Simple Favor,' is set to direct from the script she co-wrote with Sarah Masson. Ryder Picture Company's Aaron Ryder and Andrew Swett are producing with Lyrical Media's Alexander Black. Lyrical is financing the development with Jon Rosenberg and Natalie Sellers executive producing. Casting is currently underway. The announcement comes ahead of the June release of Gilbert's second novel, 'I Did Warn Her.' More from Variety From Alliances With Emily Henry and A24 to Splashy 'BookTok' Acquisitions, How Lyrical Media Is Writing a New Story in TV, Film and Even Gaming and Comics Emily Henry to Adapt Her Rom-Com Bestseller 'Funny Story' Into Feature Film From Lyrical Media, Ryder Picture Company (EXCLUSIVE) 'The Death of Robin Hood' Producers Lyrical Media, Ryder Picture Company Enter First-Look Film Deal (EXCLUSIVE) 'She Started It' follows Annabel, Esther, Tanya and Chloe, once inseparable childhood friends who have since drifted apart. Their adult lives haven't unfolded quite as they'd imagined, but a shared past and buried secrets have kept them loosely connected. When they receive an invitation from former classmate Poppy Greer to an extravagant bachelorette weekend on a private island, curiosity, and the promise of luxury, pulls them back together. But the trip is not what it seems. With no cell service, no other guests, and tensions rising, the women soon realize they've underestimated Poppy — and each other. Sharzer adapted Darcey Bell's thriller novel 'A Simple Favor' and co-wrote its upcoming sequel 'Another Simple Favor 'starring Blake Lively and Anna Kendrick and directed by Paul Feig, which is set to be released exclusively on Prime Video this week. Sharzer made her feature debut in 2004 at the Sundance Film Festival with 'Speak'; wrote and produced the film 'Nerve'; and has been tapped to revive films like 'The Hunger' for Warner Brothers and 'To Catch A Thief' for Paramount. Additionally, Sharzer was a co-executive producer on 'American Horror Story' (FX), 'Star' (Fox), 'Amazing Stories' (Apple) and 'Nine Perfect Strangers' (Hulu). 'Whenever I write a script, I'm directing it in my head and then translating what I see onto the page,' said Sharzer. 'With 'She Started It,' I'm very excited to get the chance to see a movie all the way through production, from first draft to final frame. The movie is a genre mash-up with a very specific tone and, from the moment I read the novel, I knew I needed to direct it. I'm very grateful to be on this journey with RPC and the Lyrical team.' 'She Started It' falls under Lyrical and Ryder's first-look deal. They are currently in post-production on Adam Wingard's 'Onslaught' and Michael Sarnoski's 'The Death of Robin Hood' starring Hugh Jackman, Jodie Comer and Bill Skarsgård, both of which will be distributed by A24. The companies are also developing a slate of projects, including 'Funny Story,' an adaptation of Emily Henry's bestselling romantic comedy, and 'Butcher & Blackbird,' based on Brynne Weaver's popular novel. Lyrical Media's upcoming slate also includes 'Powerless,' a television adaption of Lauren Roberts' best-selling debut YA novel. Sharzer is repped by UTA and North Star. Gilbert is represented by the Helen Heller Agency. Best of Variety What's Coming to Netflix in May 2025 New Movies Out Now in Theaters: What to See This Week What's Coming to Disney+ in May 2025
USA Today
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
What Emily Henry really thinks about her books being turned into movies
What Emily Henry really thinks about her books being turned into movies Show Caption Hide Caption 'The Wedding Banquet' 2025 trailer: Bowen Yang stars in new movie A gay man (Han Gi-Chan) and his lesbian friend (Kelly Marie Tran) hatch a plan for a green card marriage in this remake of Ang Lee's 1993 movie. An Emily Henry novel reads like a classic rom-com in the making. How apt, then, that the romance author has optioned several of her beloved titles to be made into movies or TV series. Classic beachside love affairs, five of Henry's novels are currently slated for adaptation: "People We Meet on Vacation"; 'Beach Read'; 'Book Lovers'; 'Happy Place' and 'Funny Story.' But how does Henry feel about letting go of the characters on her pages and allowing them to be interpreted for the screen? "It can be a battle," she told USA TODAY in a recent interview ahead of the release of her latest book "Great Big Beautiful Life." Her role, she says, is 'to be the person who is shouting 'the readers won't like that' or 'they'll love that.'' She's looking forward to letting the projects unfold. Emily Henry reveals what love means to her as 'Great Big Beautiful Life' hits bookstores 'People We Meet on Vacation' movie and more Emily Henry adaptations to come "I'm so, so glad that it's happening and I'm really excited for readers and that is ultimately why I have enabled myself to let go enough for this to happen is for the readers,' Henry says. Book-to-screen adaptations can land a beloved book's story in tumultuous waters. Plot points can be cut or changed. Fans can object to casting choices. Then there's the media circus and gossip that can follow, most recently seen in actor drama tied to BookTok favorite 'It Ends With Us.' "It is so hard and weird and painful and it's humbling in ways that are really beautiful and ways that are really horrible,' Henry says. 'When you are working on an adaptation and you're the author of the original thing, you are the least important person in every room if you're even in the room. "That can be hard and painful to loosen your grip that much," she admits. "It can be a battle because as the original writer, you know, the audience very well, and you're attuned to what they love and what they don't like." That's just part of the deal, though, she concedes, pointing out that "you can't make a movie as one person," so to see her characters on the big screen, she'll have to loosen a bit to allow for competing visions of the love stories that have made her famous. What's next for Emily Henry? Yulin Kuang, who is adapting "People We Meet on Vacation," will also adapt "Beach Read" for film. "Happy Place" is being developed into a Netflix series with Jennifer Lopez's production company, Nuyorican. And Henry herself is writing the script for the "Funny Story" movie. Her newest novel, "Great Big Beautiful Life," at over 400 pages, was a heavy lift − so the first thing on Henry's docket is to take a "breather," she jokes. Then she may pivot back to another classic rom-com novel, a format her latest book strayed from slightly, and she's looking forward to fans getting their eyes on an adaptation soon. No official release dates for any of the projects have been revealed, but Henry promises one will be ready soon. "Hopefully we'll have an adaptation out to view very soon, so that's something I'm looking forward to," she says.
USA Today
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Emily Henry reveals what love means to her as 'Great Big Beautiful Life' hits bookstores
Emily Henry reveals what love means to her as 'Great Big Beautiful Life' hits bookstores Emily Henry is leading a legion of new romantics as she dives into what makes a love worth fighting for. Emily Henry writes a love worth fighting for. The renowned contemporary romance author, credited by some for dusting the cobwebs (and stigma) off the so-called chick-lit genre, says conflict is the key to a well-written love story. "I think the people you find that incredible intimacy with, closeness with, are the people who you can be vulnerable enough with to have those hard conversations," Henry tells USA TODAY ahead of the release of her newest book, "Great Big Beautiful Life" ($29, out now from Berkley). "Conflict is such a huge part of building intimacy with someone," she adds. "If you're not willing to have that, then you're shutting the relationship down before it can go to the next level." Perhaps that's why characters in a Henry novel fight, sometimes bitterly, before coming back together. Her latest novel is no different. It features two warring journalists − Alice and Hayden − vying for the chance to write the biggest celebrity memoir of the century. It's a take on the popular enemies-to-lovers trope, a favorite of Henry's. Emily Henry does it again. Romantic 'Funny Story' satisfies without tripping over tropes The sixth standalone novel in Henry's brightly colored collection of romance books, "Great Big Beautiful Life" hammers home Henry's point that discord can be a path toward – rather than an obstacle to – love. "These survival tactics that we develop and that come out in our relationships are not actually serving us," she says of the various ticks and coping mechanisms she bakes into her main characters. "I think every time I write a new heroine, I'm kind of trying on a new survival tactic in a way and seeing the flaws in that." Writing flaws in a way that is distinct enough to bubble up into conflict, but not so glaring that it makes a protagonist unlikable, is a fine literary line to walk, Henry says. "Readers like a flawed, complicated male lead. I think that's something that makes them feel real and familiar, like someone we could know and could fall in love with," she explains. "But for whatever reason – I'm sure there are myriad options – we're so, so, so much harder on female characters." Emily Bader, Tom Blyth cast in Netflix adaptation of 'People We Meet on Vacation' Fans will find pieces of Henry written into both her male and female characters. "I bleed into them equally," she says. In "Great Big Beautiful Life," Alice represents "me at my best" − a true optimist who gives the benefit of the doubt sometimes unduly. Hayden is "more cynical and a lot more guarded," she explains, adding, "I'm a relatively private person. I like to have distinct boundaries and expectations." Those characteristics, which readers might not as easily accept in a heroine, find a hospitable home in her heroes. 15 books we can't wait to read: Most anticipated releases of 2025 Emily Henry's new novel is her most tangled yet "Great Big Beautiful Life" represents a slight departure from the classic rom-com structure loyal Henry readers have grown to love. A sprawling, 432-page affair, the novel leans on all the elements of a good beach read: quaint townspeople; a misunderstood and charming male lead; a complex heroine with a creative job that somehow still affords her croissant and coffee money each morning. But the backdrop to their story is complicated, too. It weaves together countless secondary characters with their own often tragic love stories. The subject of the celebrity memoir, which grounds the novel, is the heiress of a media empire who's left to deal with a world defined by the tabloid culture her own family bred. Henry was inspired to write a complex novel with the idea that love is not just about the two people at the heart of a rom-com. It's about the invisible string that connects them to past loves – sometimes troubled ones – from which they came. "I do think we're all, to an extent, the products of the generations that came before us," she says. "We're reacting to how we were treated as kids by our family." She sees the book as a story about "doing the best you can with what you were given" and a testament to the fact that "every generation of our families … is trying to do just a little bit better than what they started out with, emotionally speaking …trying to be a little bit healthier." Even in Emily Henry's sprawling new story, love is still in the details In "Great Big Beautiful Life," Henry-heads will read the same detail-oriented romantic sensibility that separates the author from others. Her knack for creating a sense of place is uncanny, a well-named diner or perfectly described summer breeze lifting the reader out of their daily doldrums to a Reddi-Wip light beach town like Little Crescent Island, the backdrop for "Great Big Beautiful Life." Often writing love in subtleties, Henry has proven herself a master translator of our most puzzling and passionate feelings. "I have been taught, and have seen to be true as a reader, that the more specific something is, the more universal it's going to feel," she says. So while you may not have "loved someone with a dent in their nose," she jokes, those details are what connect a reader to a story. "That's also my experience of love," Henry, who is married, says. She describes the feeling as "the longer that I look at you, the longer I've known you, the more I know you, the more and more beautiful that you become to me or that I understand you've always been." That poetic tidbit, spoken casually mid-interview, is as good a piece of evidence as any of Henry's full-fledged grip on the romance's loyal readers. "Writing romance, it's just kind of bottling that sensation," she says. "I feel like it's actually a pretty good parlor trick to write a love story." For Emily Henry, romance is not 'wish-fulfillment' As for those who malign romance as "wish-fulfillment" for women in search of lasting love in a sometimes inhospitable dating environment, Henry has a counter-argument: Her books are about the exception, not the rule. While she acknowledges modern dating seems to be mostly "a wreck," the words that pour from her to the page are proof of grand love, she says. "All of those things that someone is writing came to them somehow," she says. "So if I can feel that way, then other people can feel that way. Men and women out there can feel that way. And why would you ever settle for any less? If that's the kind of love that you want, be with someone who has the capacity to love you like that."
