Great Big Beautiful Life: Reese's Book Club

Evelyn Hugo lite and a romance I never quite cared about

An okay read. A bit predictable. Margaret Ives’ story was well-written and compelling. Meanwhile, it felt like the primary function of Alice Scott and Hayden Anderson’s relationship was to provide some resemblance to the author’s previous works. Margaret’s story didn’t leave a lot of room for it to develop so it was mostly a distraction, and the space probably would’ve been better spent expanding on other things. It was odd. Like another reviewer said, there really wasn’t a basis for the weight Hayden put on penal-vaginal penetrative intercourse, especially in the context of all the other forms of sex and intimacy they already engaged in together. The format confused me because I thought “Their Version” was Alice and Hayden’s and “Her Version” was Alice’s until Alice clarified about seventy percent of the way through that the format for her pitch was the media’s version juxtaposed with Margaret’s version. The format also does exactly what the book spends a lot of time criticizing “the media” for: being reductive rage-bait. The media has always been a spectrum encompassing anything from the likes of TMZ, to Fox News, to the New York Times, independent journalists and more. This is particularly relevant when Margaret’s sister, Laura, shifts the narrative from celebrity “news” to what would be national news with the recovery of illegal arms shipments and plots to assassinate government officials. While Alice could be seen as representative of how media can be liberating, the writing goes out of its way to treat her identity as a part of the media as a technical aside. I appreciated the amount of depth that Margaret’s story got, though I wasn’t really interested in another romanticization of the California Gold Rush in the form of Margaret’s great-grandfather, which was bad for the environment, the miners, and most of all Native Americans. The power of the “Ives media empire” once introduced is quickly forgotten despite remaining relevant enough for Margaret to think Cosmo visited to ensure they wouldn’t write about him. It’s one thing to be a celebrity, it’s another to be a celebrity with a propaganda machine at your disposal and the stable wealth to catch and kill stories and sue other companies. The author also neglects the history behind the Jezebel stereotype. It is specific to the intersectionality of Black women and came about in contrast to the supposed purity of white women and therefore would not be applied to Margaret, a distinctly white woman.

A long way to go for a mediocre conclusion.

This book gave so much. The story she’s covering, her own, and more. I loved the nostalgic flashbacks, the cozy beach feeling, and the twist at the end. Looking forward to reading more of this author!

This was my favorite of all Emily Henry’s books! I literally couldn’t put it down. I loved the mystery aspect of it and couldn’t wait to keep reading. Such a fun read.

I’m in awe of Emily Harris’ writing. Once I started reading, I didn’t want to put down her book. It wasn’t just the characters and plot that kept me glued to the pages; it was her turn of phrases, her descriptive creativity, and the engrossing relationships. It’s rare when I don’t predict a book’s ending, and she surprised me. Bravo.

4.5 Stars. I actually really enjoyed all of the stories presented in this one.

It’s ok. Predictable.

I felt it was a little slow at the beginning but it picked up in the middle and end.

Loved the premise of this book and the way different life stories intertwined. Fast read but kept me on my toes — guessing what was coming next.