Two writers compete for the chance to tell the larger-than-life story of a woman with more than a couple of plot twists up her sleeve in this dazzling and sweeping new novel from Emily Henry.
Alice Scott is an eternal optimist still dreaming of her big writing break. Hayden Anderson is a Pulitzer-prize winning human thundercloud. And they’re both on balmy Little Crescent Island for the same reason: To write the biography of a woman no one has seen in years—or at least to meet with the octogenarian who claims to be the Margaret Ives. Tragic heiress, former tabloid princess, and daughter of one of the most storied (and scandalous) families of the 20th Century.
When Margaret invites them both for a one-month trial period, after which she’ll choose the person who’ll tell her story, there are three things keeping Alice’s head in the game.
One: Alice genuinely likes people, which means people usually like Alice—and she has a whole month to win the legendary woman over.
Two: She’s ready for this job and the chance to impress her perennially unimpressed family with a Serious Publication.
Three: Hayden Anderson, who should have no reason to be concerned about losing this book, is glowering at her in a shaken-to-the core way that suggests he sees her as competition.
But the problem is, Margaret is only giving each of them pieces of her story. Pieces they can’t swap to put together because of an ironclad NDA and an inconvenient yearning pulsing between them every time they’re in the same room.
And it’s becoming abundantly clear that their story—just like the tale Margaret’s spinning—could be a mystery, tragedy, or love ballad…depending on who’s telling it.

I was enthralled with this book from the start. It has the addictiveness of an Emily Henry with the punchiness of Taylor Jenkins Reid, and I adored it.

We do of course have a romance to follow, and our main character is the lovable and flawed Alice, a journalist who is desperate to write the memoir of former tabloid princess, Margaret Ives. So desperate, in fact, that she tracked her down and followed her to the small island in which she has retreated from the limelight.

But now she has to spend a month competing for the job against Hayden, a Pulitzer-Prize winning writer who seems to be under his own little permanent raincloud.

This has all of the grumpy x sunshine vibes you might be looking for – and have come to expect – from an Emily Henry book, but also has the mysterious, evasive Margaret Ives and her story.

Even though Emily Henry’s books always have the ending I expect, I always find myself so caught up in the story and end up right on the edge of my seat, and possibly with tears in my eyes. This book made me want to read, and I don’t think I can ask for much more than that feeling.

I loved this. It’s definitely my new favourite Emily Henry. Be warned – it may not be what you’re expecting. But I thought it was bloody great.

Thank you to Penguin for my copy in exchange for an honest review!

★★★★★
5 out of 5 stars

-Beth

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