Dear readers, Over the past five years, Emily Henry has not so quietly been changing the face of romance writing. She has turned out a best-selling romance every year since she published her first, "Beach Read," in 2020. Though she tackles different arrangements in each of her stories, all her romances have shared DNA. Henry's stories follow smart, motivated and successful women who tangle with emotionally intelligent men grappling with wounds of their own. Readers can expect quick repartee between the love interests — Julia Whelan, who has narrated all of Henry's audiobooks, compared her to Nora Ephron — and screwball comedy that helps offset the depth of feeling her books contain. (There is a small-town community theater production in her third romance, "Book Lovers," that makes me laugh just thinking about it.) As Whelan put it: Henry's romances show there's more to the genre "than moving Barbies around and making them kiss." I spent the past several weeks immersing myself in the world of Henry and her fans. I was interested to see that all of the romantic dynamics she writes are predicated on a foundation of mutual respect. And that sense of decency extends to the mood of her followers: It's common for romance writers to inspire loyal fans, but the community of EmHen fans are different. "Some romance fandoms will absolutely turn on each other — if you're not careful there's going to be a brawl in the streets about the most ridiculous things," said Carley Morton of Under the Cover bookstore. "I don't see EmHens trying to fistfight each other. They'll argue about what their favorite book is, but never get onto the pettiness level that some other fandoms do." The next book by Henry, "Great Big Beautiful Life," will be released on Tuesday. It follows two writers competing for the opportunity to write the biography of a former tabloid heiress, who has hidden herself away in coastal Georgia. As the writers stoke a professional rivalry, they realize their feelings for each other are tipping dangerously toward love. I wish you a weekend full of wit and love, if you're lucky. See you on Tuesday.
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