Oh boy. I am a fussy romance reader but damn, did this book knock it out of the park! Beach Read is the story of January (I promise her name is not indicative of the type of book this is) a romance author who is struggling to pen her latest work after a shocking truth about her dead father is revealed. Having lost her faith in love, she goes to her father's secret beach house in the hopes of being able to finish her latest book. Whilst there, she runs into an old college crush/rival, Augustus. Gus pens only cynical literary fiction so in a bid to stimulate her creative juices, January bets him they can't write a book in each other's genres. Hijinks and sexual tension ensue.
The best way I can describe the romance in this book is to compare it to Pride and Prejudice. You have the reserved, somewhat grouchy male love interest and the bright, judgmental female determined that he has already dismissed her and so she has nothing to lose in teasing him mercilessly. It is obvious from the start that January has misjudged Gus but the slow build of their friendship and their sexual tension is utterly delicious. This book made me swoon, cry, turned me on and put me on tenterhooks. In short, exactly what I want from my romance fiction.
In summary, everything good you've probably already heard about this book is true. It 100% deserves the hype and I only have the most minor of gripes with it. Firstly, I think the title of Beach Read works well on the surface but the beach setting is almost never used within the story and also they never really make the link in-text to romance novels being 'beach reads' which is a shame. Secondly, it becomes comical how often the characters are interrupted right when they are about to have sex. Apart from these incredibly minor niggles, Beach Read is amazing and I recommend it to anyone who wants a genuinely good, well-written and engaging romance.
Overall Rating:
.5
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