In this charming and poignant novel that “oozes charm and wit and speaks beautifully about friendship and love, and the differences between the two” (Laura Pearson, author of I Wanted You to Know), teenager Emmie Blue releases a balloon with her email address and a big secret into the sky, only to fall head-over-heels for the boy who finds it. But fourteen years later, everything Emmie has … everything Emmie has planned is up in the air.
At sixteen, Emmie Blue stood in the fields of her school and released a red balloon into the sky. Attached was her name, her email address…and a secret she desperately wanted to be free of. Weeks later, on a beach in France, Lucas Moreau discovered the balloon and immediately emailed the attached address, sparking an intense friendship between the two teens.
Now, fourteen years later, Emmie is hiding the fact that she’s desperately in love with Lucas. She has pinned all her hopes on him and waits patiently for him to finally admit that she’s the one for him. So dedicated to her love for Lucas, Emmie has all but neglected her life outside of this relationship–she’s given up the search for her absentee father, no longer tries to build bridges with her distant mother, and lives as a lodger to an old lady she barely knows after being laid off. And when Lucas tells Emmie he has a big question to ask her, she’s convinced this is the moment he’ll reveal his feelings for her. But nothing in life ever quite goes as planned, does it?
Filled with heart and humor, Dear Emmie Blue “beautifully captures the heartache and frustrations of carrying our teenaged selves with us wherever we go” (Anstey Harris, author of Goodbye Paris) that is perfect for fans of Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine and Evvie Drake Starts Over.
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Song/s the book brought to mind: Wishin’ and Hopin’ by Ani DiFranco
Dear Emmie Blue by Lia Louis may have its differences, but it gave me serious My Best Friend’s Wedding vibes to the point where I actually plan on watching that movie ASAP now. It’s one of my favorite movies of all time and I just loved the similarities.
I absolutely adored Emmie Blue and there were a couple of little twists that I didn’t see coming. I was hoping to laugh more, but I still smiled an awful lot plus I shed tears more than once. This is a total tear-jerker, but it was also a heartwarming novel and was a lot deeper than I had expected it to be. I thought Dear Emmie Blue was going to be a 4/5-star book for me but it hit me so hard at the end that I couldn’t bring myself to rate it any less than a 5/5. The writing is fantastic, and I loved the addition of the WhatsApp messages, texts, and mixed CDs.
Dear Emmie Blue would make a wonderful movie and it definitely gave me ALL the feels. I couldn’t tear myself away from it, and it could easily be read in just a few hours. It was emotional, adorable, and more than I ever could have imagined. Highly recommend to the women’s fiction, contemporary, and romance fans out there!
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an advance review copy of this book, all opinions and thoughts are my own.
Edited 7/27/20
Audiobook Review
Overall 5 stars
Performance 4.5 stars
Story 5 stars
This story was even more powerful listening to the audiobook. It made all the scenes so much more emotional and Katy Sobey delivered such an incredible performance. She was perfect as Emmie and I had no issues determining which character was speaking. Her comedic timing was wonderful and it balanced the more serious scenes so well. This is my first time hearing Katy Sobey narrate and I really enjoyed her performance. This was the perfect way to reread this uplifting novel!
*****
I absolutely loved this book! I started it thinking I would read a few chapters before bed and ended up reading until I finished in the wee hours of the morning. I honestly couldn’t stop. The writing was amazing and was so heartfelt and witty. Dear Emmie Blue fell more into the women’s fiction genre for me, but there was also a healthy amount of romance and humor too.
I experienced so many emotions while reading this book. I laughed. I cried. I swooned. I laughed some more. I was invested in Emmie’s story right away and she was such a relatable heroine. I felt her pain deep in my chest, but I also celebrated her victories as if they were my own. The story unfolded in such a beautiful and thoughtful way. The flashbacks were perfectly placed and it was like each piece of a puzzle slotting into position. I did figure a few things out before Emmie, but that made the story even sweeter and powerful. Yes, this book is a love story, but it’s mainly about Emmie’s journey to love herself. It’s about Emmie coming into her own and being comfortable in her own skin. It’s about acceptance and change and emerging stronger on the other side.
Emmie’s friendships were the heart of the story. Her friendship with Lucas and his brother Eliot came at such a critical time that it irrevocably changed her (and them). It saved her in many ways, but it also came to hold her back. Lia Louis showcased all the shades and layers of friendship in such a raw and honest way. All the sacrifices and lengths we go to to maintain these bonds. Emmie’s friendship with Rosie and Fox was a highlight of the book and they added just the right amount of comic relief when it was needed most. I laughed out loud almost every time Rosie was on the page. My heart was so full as I finished the last page and that epilogue couldn’t have been more perfect.
Dear Emmie Blue was enjoyable and captivating from start to finish. I can’t recommend this uplifting novel enough!
CW: sexual assault
*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*
I loved this one! Totally had me reading past my bedtime and I’m a practical person, I don’t do that hardly ever, lol!
Emmie thinks her life has finally come to the moment she’s been waiting for and instead it all blows up in her face when her best friend delivers a surprising question (and not the question she anticipated.) Left reeling and feeling even more like her life is in shambles she starts picking up the pieces, unknowingly putting things in the exact place they need to be. It’s a story about realizations and finally taking the blinders off. A story about family, friendship, and love. A story about facing fears and finally coming into one’s person. I really enjoyed the characters, the timeline, and the message. It started a little slow as I was trying to figure it all out, but very quickly I became absorbed and couldn’t put it down. One of my favorites I’ve read this year! Highly recommend!
Oh my heart with this book!! I didn’t know what to expect when I started reading but by the time I finished I had run the gamut of emotions. I laughed, I cried – happy and sad tears, my heart stretched super tight, then settled back in my chest.
Emmie has been through some stuff in her life. Not turning out anything like she had imagined, she is due for some happiness and good fortune, finally and she’s hoping she finds that with Lucas once he realizes how he really feels about her and they get out of the friend zone they’ve been in for the past fourteen years. But oh, that is not what happens on their joint 30th birthday!
This is a story of friendships, of self-discovery, of realizing that the love and happiness you’ve been searching for could possibly be right in front of your face, if you just stop to see it. I loved the characters, the story is witty and endearing, and I know it will stay with me for a long time. I’m intentionally being vague in this review because it’s best to go into this story without knowing anything. The emotions you’ll feel will be so much more impactful that way as things unfold along the way.
What an amazing debut novel!! I can’t wait to see what else Lia Louis brings us in the future!
Many thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced review copy of this book in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.
‘Dear Emmie Blue’ completely blew me away with it’s captivating writing style that pulled and tugged at my heartstrings, vibrant and real characters readers are able to relate and sympathize with and an engaging drama that makes you want to root for the heroine and her happily ever after. It was an unforgettable story that left me an emotional wreck. It’s been a long time since a book hit close to home, driving me to ugly cry so hard you would’ve thought someone died.
It’s not to say this book was perfect. There were a few questionable scenes and actions that made me want to wring the neck out of Emmie, Lucas and Eliot. More-so, when reaching the conclusion of the story and how a particular life changing incident from Emmie’s past came to light, I was more than frustrated with the heroine’s reaction to this character’s deed and how easily it was pushed aside and not really addressed. Despite the long history between them, forgiveness came too easily and I wished their actions would have had repercussions. Vague, I know. But going further into would only spoil what transpires.
In the face of those underlying issues that I was able to push aside because it made the characters far more real and raw, ‘Dear Emmie Blue’ kept me spellbound and I was so compelled to read this, I finished it in one sitting with frequent breaks to wipe my tears and to reflect on the magic of the story. It’s evident that I’ll be thinking about ‘Dear Emmie Blue’ for a long time to come.
4.5/5
While this book has nuances of “My Best Friend’s Wedding”, it is much deeper and poignant than that movie. I loved it.
Emmie is a 30 yo living in England working in food service at a hotel. She met her best friend Lucas, when at the age of 16 during a school project, she sent a red balloon into the sky with a message attached…a secret that she was desperate to share and unburden. Lucas, finding the balloon on a beach in France, begins an email correspondence with that leads to their meeting. Over the years Lucas’ family becomes her family as she’s never had the emotional support from her mom or a father her mother refuses to reveal.
I won’t reveal too much here, but this story covers so much territory. There is a sexual assault (not too graphic) and PTSD to deal with, emotional abuse and abandonment issues, trust issues, lies and misunderstandings. But in the end, it’s a story about a young woman learning to see her own strength, stand up for herself and rely on herself, and in doing so, finds that she already has all the support and love that she needs in life from her landlady and her friends.
Yes, she loves Lucas, but is it as her best friend or something more? And while yes, this is an important part of the story, it was Emmie’s journey to self-healing and self-love that ultimately captured my heart.
Great cast of characters…bonus points for the dirty-minded, staunchly loyal, hilariously funny Rosie. My only con? I could have done without some of the language. Highly recommend.
My thanks to #NetGalley, #Atria and #EmilyBestlerBooks for providing me the ARC. The opinions are strictly my own.
Sometimes they say you can’t see what’s right in front of your face but Emmie Blue sees her best friend Lucas and she hopes that his big question on their 30th birthday is what she has been dreaming of. She knows she loves him and has her hopes set on him saying those 3 important words. Sadly her hopes are dashed but she still says yes to his all important question.
Now Emmie must try to figure out what there really is left of her life. She’s 30 years old, her best friend is still her best friend but doesn’t love her as she loves him, she rents a room from the ever quite Louise and is not working in the career she had dreamed of.
Emmie feels she must restart her life but it all feels so stagnant and some days meaningless. Emmie fails to see is that there is so much more to the background characters of her life and they will help change her story and the trajectory of her life in ways she could never have imagined.
Dear Emmie Blue is the story of a woman who is at a point in her life where it’s time to move on, to let go and see the bigger picture of her life and maybe, just maybe find the love and the family she has been longing for, for so long (even though if she had opened her eyes she could have already been living that life).
I absolutely adore a good British rom-com and there were parts of this that reminded me of how I felt when I read Bridget Jones’s Diary for the first time and that is a fabulous feeling!!
I can see this being a huge summer hit. I dare say there will be many readers enjoying this one poolside with a drink in hand, cheers!!
**Thank you to Atria Books and Netgalley for the ARC. Voluntarily reviewed.**
This was a delightful book. Emmie thinks that Lucas whom has been her best friend since they were teenagers, is going to propose. Emmie sent a balloon into the sky with a secret and Lucas found it. This started their friendship. Instead of proposing to her like she thought, Lucas asks her to be his best woman when he marries another woman! After this, Emmie must go and find her happiness. I loved Emmie taking charge of her life and the wonderful characters that are Emmie’s friends. It was a tad predictable but I still really enjoyed it. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.
“Someone shouldn’t be defined by one mistake for the rest of their lives.”
This is a story of friendship, love, wishes, mistakes, forgiveness and hope.
Emmie Blue wished for a friend and sent a balloon in the air with her name and email.
The beginning of a friendship and two who become bestest friends as teens now adults!
I loved the novel, but will admit I had a tough time in the beginning sticking with it. However, it is definitely a great read that you will truly enjoy!
Dear Emmie Blue by Lia Louis is a wonderful, sweet, heartwarming book that I think anyone can truly identify with.
We find Emmie, a 30ish woman, in a rough patch in her life. She is battling a difficult family situation, a loss at where she is on her path in life, and hopelessly in love with Lucas, who we find out is marrying someone else. While Lucas sees friendship and not much deeper, Emmie ends up focussing on the wrong things, almost missing out what great things were truly in front of her all along.
Without giving away too much of the story and the wonderful ending, we find Emmie truly does have so much to be thankful for: friends and relationships with Louise, Rosie, Fox, and of course Eliot. I enjoyed reading the transformation that occurred in Emmie throughout the book as she matured and awakened to see all the joys that surrounded her despite her frustrations and slip-ups. I am so glad she found her way and her happy ending.
I enjoyed the characters, the imperfections and positive heart and soul of Emmie, and the slow burn of a romance that blossomed between her and Eliot. I enjoyed the smooth pacing, and of course I loved the ending.
This book brings home the ever important themes of :love, friendship, loyalty, forgiveness, acceptance, and finding yourself and your path along the way.
An excellent read.
5/5 stars
Dear Emmie Blue was a story that I didn’t expect to hit me as it did, it is a story of second chances, hope, and friendship. It’s about acceptance, about being true to yourself no matter how much the world is trying to tell you a different story.
Dear Emmie Blue made me feel, joy and sadness but at the same time made me feel hopeful that there still love and wonderful friendships out there.
Emmie, a beautiful character trying to find herself in a world so cold, full of lies and a gossiping “town” that keeps breaking her heart over and over again. She only wants to have a home, a family, someone to hold her and make her feel loved, it was her dream and only dream. Sending her balloon away, she didn’t expect that her life was about to change bringing everything she ever wanted and wish for.
Lucas, a boy that has everything in life, a beautiful family, a warm house, and a brother that made his life easier. until the day, a balloon showed up, bringing a new friend into his life and family.
I really felt in love with Lucas, Emmie and Eliot their friendship was very beautiful, something so rare to find nowadays, they protect her so much no matter where she was, she was their everything, they will keep her safe and shield her from anything or anybody who tries to hurt her.
The secondary characters were amazing, they gave so much depth to Emmie’s story. Louise was a blessing balm in her life, someone who gave her love and hope when she needed the most. Rosie and Fox those two made me laugh at every turn with their shenanigans. All the people that never left Emmie and were always a constant support for her. Always seeing her for whom she was, an empathic, sensible girl who only wanted love and the warmth of a family.
A rollercoaster of emotions, many situations that you won’t see them coming and will make your journey even more enjoyable, I truly believe, it is best if you read this book without reading any reviews and going in blind, you will experience the story better.
This book is going to stay in my heart for a long time, the story really hit close to home, I identify so much with Emmie, I cried, I laugh and felt so much loved reading her story.
I’m looking forward to reading more books and stories by Lia Louis.