“I did what any reasonable adult woman would do when confronted with her college rival turned next-door neighbor, I dove behind the nearest bookshelf”

Dear diary,

The book may be called ‘beach read’ but it’s also the perfect ‘late winter night’ read! January and Augustus are like two poles of a magnet. Gus is an acclaimed author of literary fiction, and January writes bestselling rom-coms. Her stories end in bliss; his in blood. The only thing they have in common is the fact that for the next three months they are living in neighboring beach houses, are broke, have crippling writer’s block, and need to write bestsellers before the summer ends.

January and Gus don’t get along. January thinks he’s a pretentious snob, and Gus teases her about being unrealistically optimistic. One thing leads to another, and they end up making a bet—to swap genres and see whose gets published first. Gus will spend the summer writing a happy ending, while January writes a bloodshed fiction. They agree to take each other on research outings to help with their respective genres—January visits places that inspire Gus’s darker narratives, while Gus tags along on activities worthy of romantic montages.

The result? No one falls in love… really.

I love how, despite their stark differences, when in college and even now, they slowly evolve into a friendship and probably something more. In telling each other’s stories—both with emotional baggage of their own—January and Gus’s worlds change entirely.

There were certain parts of the book that bored me and felt a little stretched. However, the book gave me an ending I didn’t know I needed. The story is told completely from January’s point of view, which I liked, as you never know what’s going on in the other person’s head—and a good deal of tension comes from this. I love their continuous banter and competitiveness, and Gus is the definition of a man written by a woman—shaped by a mix of intellect, wit, and vulnerability, making him both intriguing and endearing.

Beach Read proves that opposites don’t just attract—they collaborate, banter, and argue their way into a story you can’t put down.

read-o-meter rating: 3.9/5

Age rating: 16+

Until next time… dear reader of my book diary:)