Worst book i've ever read, I don't understand how someone could EVER sit through this and like it.

Ah, how I’ve missed a good ol’ rom-com. When I was a kid, I didn’t really like reading. It was boring, and I needed to concentrate on something long enough to actually understand it. Also, the things they made me read between the ages of 8 and 11 in my country were not it. But when I got access to the internet and discovered that I could download shows and movies and watch whatever I wanted on my computer, my content consumption era began. First, it was Hannah Montana, which only aired once or twice a week on TV, but then I discovered my favorite genre: rom-coms!

This book felt like a rom-com movie. And yes, I totally read it because it’s getting adapted on Netflix. I love Emily Bader (watch My Lady Jane on Prime, it’s perfect), and I also can’t watch a book adaptation if I haven’t read the book, so I had to. The thing is, Set It Up was probably the last movie that actually felt like a rom-com, and I hadn’t felt those giddy feelings again until I finally opened an Emily Henry book.

First of all, the setup of her being a writer for a travel magazine in THE city for rom-coms, New York, is just perfect. But what really spoke to the nostalgia in me was how the main character romanticizes everything: the people in airports, relationships with boyfriends, the strangers around her, and especially Alex, even before she cranked up the percentage of “what if.” This kind of worldview, full of optimism and unbridled happiness for the world around you, is something that was embedded in us girls who grew up on rom-coms.

What also sets the foundation for a great rom-com is having flawed characters. Both Poppy and Alex are bad communicators, have fears they can’t quite comprehend or express, and are quick to make assumptions. Poppy is annoying, stuck in her feelings, and, most of all, a normal human being who makes mistakes, has normal thoughts, and reacts in normal ways. She isn’t a therapized, perfect person who always responds healthily. We’ve all been there at some point in our lives, especially in our 20s, when we’re expected to act like adults without a guidebook but with a ton of things to process or new ones to discover. Alex is so confusing, especially because we see everything through Poppy’s lens. His actions seem wildly complicated in the present, but they make complete sense once they’re finally explained.

I really enjoyed the double timeline of the chapters, especially knowing that something would happen (happened?) in Croatia. I saw that many people were disappointed about that chapter being made such a big deal, but it made total sense in the grand scheme of the book. Before finishing it, I thought it would have worked better after the moment they finally got together, but since they had a lot more to process afterward, its placement ended up being perfect.

As a Theatre Journalism major who read only plays, classics, and theoretical writings for years, I needed a break from reading after finishing university. I got back into it recently through hockey romances, romantasies, and books about hot cowboys. And honestly, I just want to say I am so happy I didn’t have to read about dicks getting hard every time the male character saw the love interest. Such a breath of fresh air! And no, I don’t work in the field I studied; the market is oversaturated, and my critical writing was bad even back then.

If you’ve reached the end of my humble review, hi and thank you for reading it. I’m missing a creative outlet in my day-to-day life, and I love to write, even if it’s badly structured and mostly word vomit. For a long time, I tried to gather the courage to write reviews for the books I’ve been reading, but I kept making excuses for why I couldn’t. Well, now I’m doing it. Please let me know how I can improve. I genuinely enjoy doing this, and while I may have lost some skill and passion along the way, I’m trying to find my way back. hugs, loou 🎀