When it comes to my reading habits, I have two polar opposite interests. At any given moment, you’ll probably find me enjoying either a horrific crime thriller or a lighthearted romantic comedy (I have varied tastes, what can I say!).
And when it comes to the rom-com category of novels, there are few authors I’d recommend more than Emily Henry. Since 2020, the author has been releasing annual adult romantic comedies, gaining a massive fandom through TikTok and Bookstagrammers. After reading just one of her works, you’ll completely understand why. Each book features two captivating leads, bound to fall in love whether through enemies-to-lovers, friends-to-lovers, or simply a great meet-cute. But instead of just being a formulaic romance, her stories capture three-dimensional characters with complicated backstories and quirks that will leave you completely invested in them getting together.
As of 2025, the author has released six rom-coms, the latest of which was Great Big Beautiful Life in the spring. While each one is well worth the read (I’ve certainly enjoyed all of them), I’ve ranked them from my least favorite to my favorite. Read on to find out more about each of Emily Henry’s books, including what they’re about and how I’d rank them.
Who is Emily Henry?
If you love a rom-com read, you’ve likely already heard of Emily Henry. The author began her career in the young adult reading space, with her first adult romance novel, Beach Reach, debuting to widespread acclaim in 2020.
From there, Henry continued to write adult romance novels, with a new one published each spring through 2025. As of now, all five of Henry’s adult romance books (prior to her 2025 novel) have been optioned for on-screen adaptations, with an adaptation of People We Meet on Vacation due to debut on Netflix on January 9, 2026.
Her sixth adult romance book, Great Big Beautiful Life, was published in April 2025.
Do I need to read Emily Henry’s books in a certain order?
All of Emily Henry’s books are standalone novels, so you don’t have to read them in a certain order to understand any of the reads. However, if you do choose to read them in publication order, you can enjoy some fun Easter eggs and cameos from previous books. For example, characters from Beach Read are mentioned in the later Book Lovers.
Here’s the publication order of Emily Henry novels:
- Beach Read (2020)
- People We Meet on Vacation (2021)
- Book Lovers (2022)
- Happy Place (2023)
- Funny Story (2024)
- Great Big Beautiful Life (2025)
Emily Henry books ranked
Let’s get this out of the way first—I’ve never had an Emily Henry novel that I haven’t at least enjoyed reading. The characters are always fun, three-dimensional people who you end up adoring by the very last page. That being said, some stories have caught my attention more than others. Here’s how I’d rank the stories of the Emily Henry multiverse.
6. Great Big Beautiful Life
Alice Scott and Hayden Anderson are journalists on Little Crescent Island for the same reason: to write the biography of a woman who claims to be Margaret Ives—former tabloid princess and daughter of one of the most storied families in recent history.
Bound by an ironclad NDA and distracted by the inconvenient yearning pulsing between them, Margaret and Hayden realize their story, just like Margaret’s, could be a love ballad.
Goodreads Rating: 4.0/5
While not entirely the same, the latest Emily Henry novel reminded me a bit of the Taylor Jenkins Reid bestseller, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. Not only are you getting the will-they-or-won’t-they between protagonists Hayden and Alice, but you’re also learning the backstory of heiress Margaret Ives, with the glitz and glamour of a headline-making socialite. While the story was a fun summer read, the story never caught my attention as much as many of the other novels on this list. I chalk it up to a third main character drawing some of the story away from our main couple, which left the reader with a little less time to get to know them then the other novels provide.
5. Happy Place
Harriet and Wyn have been the perfect couple since college. Until they broke up five months ago.
Still hiding their breakup from their friends, the ex-couple find themselves sharing a room at their friend group’s yearly getaway. Desperately ignoring how much they want one another, Harriet decides to be the driven surgical resident, while Wyn will be the charmer who never lets his goofy smile fade. I mean, after years of being in love, how hard can it be to fake it for one week?
Goodreads Rating: 4.0/5
Unlike most of the other novels on this list, Happy Place features a pre-existing couple in the midst of a breakup. While my own personal preference skews more towards enemies-to-lovers (which happens in a few of these books!), I really enjoyed the unique situation that this book set its characters up in. While not my top pick from Emily Henry’s novels, the endearing characters and humor from this one are well worth a read.
4. Book Lovers
Nora Stephens’ life is books. She lands massive deals as a literary agent and is a heroine for her beloved little sister Libby, who leans on her for pretty much everything.
Which is why she agrees to go to Sunshine Falls, North Carolina with Libby for a sisters’ trip. But Nora doesn’t get the peace she’s expecting. Instead, she keeps bumping into Charlie Lastra, a brooding book editor from back in the city. As the two are thrown together over and over, they discover a simmering chemistry that may completely alter the stories they’ve written about themselves.
Goodreads Rating: 4.1/5
A small town, a brooding male lead, and a heroine who loves books—if it sounds like a grown-up Hallmark rom-com, that’s because it very much feels like it. Nora and Charlie make for a fun couple to read about, with some of the wittiest dialogue of the six books.
Book Lovers is a fan-favorite for many Emily Henry readers, and I can understand why. It has all the best elements of her books, with a great couple, a unique story, and a lot of heart. Reading about Nora’s relationship with her sister, Libby, also sets this one apart, offering readers a look into not only Nora’s romantic entanglements but her relationship with her family as well.
3. Funny Story
Daphne always loved hearing her fiancé Peter tell their story and how they moved back to his lakeside hometown to begin their picture perfect life together. Until Peter realized he was in love with his childhood best friend, Petra.
Daphne has only her dream job as a children’s librarian to get her through. Struggling to make ends meet, she decides to be roommates with Miles Nowak, Petra’s ex, and the only person on planet Earth who could possibly understand what she’s going through. The two form a plan: fake date on social media to make their exes jealous. No one will actually fall in love.
Goodreads Rating: 4.2/5
When I’ve talked with friends who have read most of Emily Henry’s books, I feel like this is the one they often rank highest. While it’s not my personal top pick, Funny Story does feature two of my favorite characters with Daphne and Miles. Seeing the two thrown together as roommates makes this part hilarious, part tragic as they heal from their respective breakups, and also incredibly romantic. In fact, if you’re looking for spicy books, I’d say this may be the best pick of the six Emily Henry novels!
2. People We Meet On Vacation
Poppy and Alex have nothing in common. She’s an extroverted wild child. He’s an introvert who wears khakis. She lives to travel to every corner of the earth. He prefers to stay home with a book. But somehow, they are best friends. And every summer for the past decade, they have taken a glorious one week vacation together. Until two years ago, when they ruined everything. They haven’t spoken since.
Ever since, Poppy’s been stuck in a rut. She knows the last time she was truly happy was when she was with Alex. So she convinces her best friend to take one more vacation together, and somehow, he agrees. One week to fix everything. What could possibly go wrong?
Goodreads Rating: 3.9/5
Now we’re getting into my top recommendations. People We Meet on Vacation is set to be the first of Emily Henry’s novels to get adapted into a film, and I think it was the perfect pick. Rom-com movie lovers might also like to know the book is a homage to 1989’s When Harry Met Sally. The book follows best friends Alex and Poppy, polar opposites who meet up every summer for a week-long vacation.
I’ve always been someone who loves a friends-to-romance trope, perhaps because I actually ended up marrying my own college best friend. And in the case of this story, the characters feel really three-dimensional and true to life. I found myself empathizing with the more introverted Alex and fully understood how he fell for the captivating extrovert Poppy.
This is a book I can’t wait to see on screen, and am anxiously awaiting its release on Netflix in January 2026.
1. Beach Read
Augustus Everett and January Andrews are both authors—but Augustus is an acclaimed writer of literary fiction, and January of bestselling romance. The only thing the two have in common is their neighboring beach houses, where they’ll be spending the next three months, bogged down with writer’s block.
Then one evening, they strike a deal to force them out of their creative ruts: Augustus will write something happy, and January will pen the next Great American Novel. Everyone will finish a book, and no one will fall in love, right?
Goodreads Rating: 4.0/5
The book that started it all is also the one that I find myself wanting to reread year after year. Beach Read combines all of the best elements of Emily Henry’s novels: a book-loving main character (in this case, two authors), a polar opposite couple of romantic leads, all set against a quaint backdrop (two beach houses during the summer holiday).
The love story of Augustus made me laugh, it made me cry, and it had me captivated from start to finish. Equal parts sweet and spicy, for me, Beach Read has every quality of the perfect romantic comedy.
Plus, depending on where you read it, you may get a different ending. I recently found out that the U.S. and the U.K. versions of this book feature slightly different versions of the novel’s conclusion!
Emily Henry’s young adult books
While Henry is probably best known for her adult novels at this point, she got her start working with young adult novels. For younger readers, you can pick up her three books: Hello Girls (co-written with Brittany Cavallaro), When the Sky Fell on Splendor, and A Million Junes.
Winona’s father locks the pantry door to control Winona’s eating. Lucille suffers beneath the needs of her mother and her drug-dealing brother. One night, the girls realize they can’t wait until graduation to start their new lives. Soon, they have a plan that will take them from their small Michigan town and their harrowing home lives to Chicago. All they need is three grand, and a stolen car.
Winona and Lucille go on an immersive journey to reclaim their strength and make their daring escape.
Goodreads Rating: 3.4/5
Everyone in Splendor, Ohio, was affected when the local steel mill exploded. Seventeen-year-old Franny is no exception. Five years after the explosion, she has to watch as her brother lies in a coma. The only thing Franny finds solace in is her friend group, “The Ordinary.” The ragtag group spend their time investigating local legends and uploading their adventures for YouTube fans.
Until one evening, when the adventure they film isn’t just a legend: it’s something massive hurtling toward them from the sky. And when they go to investigate, everything changes.
Goodreads Rating: 3.3/5
In their small Michigan town, the O’Donnells and the Angerts are mythical legends. But the families refuse to spill about the century-old rift between them. All the public knows is that it began with a cherry tree. For 18-year-old Jack “June” O’Donnell, that’s all the reason she needs. But when Saul Angert returns to town, June realizes she may have a soft spot for the gruff, sarcastic boy she’s supposed to hate.
Now, June must question everything she knows about her family and decide whether it’s time for her and the rest of her family to let go of the century-old hate they’ve held onto for so long.
Goodreads Rating: 3.8/5
Morgan Flaherty, Contributing Writer
Morgan is full-time writer, editor, and mom. She lives in Florida with her husband, daughter, and one very sassy cat. Along with her work as a contributing writer for The Everymom, her writing has appeared in Well + Good, InStyle, Scary Mommy, Byrdie, and Baby Chick.
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