Happy Place

“Happy Place,” by Emily Henry. Copyright 2023, Berkley, New York (388 pages, $28.00).

Content Warning: Death of parent, grief, sexual content, mental illness, alcohol, drug use.

Harriet can’t wait for the annual week-long stay Sabrina’s little summer cabin off a coast of Maine. The relaxation and peace of this cabin being Harriet’s happy place is all she needs right now. Harriet’s been struggling with being so far away from her loved ones, her residency, and the fact that she, and her ex-fiancé Wyn, have been hiding that they’ve been broken up for six months. So, you can only imagine her surprise (and devastation) when she arrives at the cabin to see that Wyn has joined everyone on this trip and that Sabrina’s father is selling the house the following month. Wyn and Harriet decide to keep up the rouse of still being together so the trip isn’t a total waste and so they don’t upset the rest of their group of friends.

One thing that I really liked with Happy Place was Henry’s focus on her character’s and their dynamics with one another. Even though we’re following Harriet and Wyn’s relationship from the pass and present and they’re the main focus of the story, we’re still able to see how Henry made the supporting cast make sense. How they’re well-rounded with themselves and with how they interact within the group/with Harriet and Wyn.

I do feel like the ending was a little rushed, but if Henry had pulled out the conflict and resolution more she would have lost her readers. I’m also not normally a fan of a lot of angst with my books, but in this case, Henry knew what she was doing by twisting the reader’s heartstrings. She has truly out done herself with her newest novel, Happy Place.

Kayleigh Dyer is a Library Technical Processing Assistant at May Memorial Library. Contact her at kdyer@alamancelibraries.org.