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Great Big Beautiful Life
Audible Audiobook
– Unabridged
鶹
A REESE’S BOOK CLUB PICK ∙ AN INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER ∙ Two writers compete for the chance to tell the larger-than-life story of a woman with more than a couple of plot twists up her sleeve in this dazzling and sweeping novel from Emily Henry.
As featured in The New York Times ∙ Rolling Stone ∙ People ∙ Good Morning America ∙ NPR ∙ Vogue ∙ The Cut ∙ USA Today ∙ Cosmopolitan ∙ Harper's Bazaar ∙ Marie Claire ∙ Glamour ∙ ELLE ∙ E! Online ∙ The New York Post ∙ Bustle ∙ Reader's Digest ∙ BBC ∙ PopSugar ∙ SheReads ∙ Paste ∙ and more!
Alice Scott is an eternal optimist still dreaming of her big writing break. Hayden Anderson is a Pulitzer-prize winning human thundercloud. And they’re both on balmy Little Crescent Island for the same reason: to write the biography of a woman no one has seen in years—or at least to meet with the octogenarian who claims to be the Margaret Ives. Tragic heiress, former tabloid princess, and daughter of one of the most storied (and scandalous) families of the twentieth century.
When Margaret invites them both for a one-month trial period, after which she’ll choose the person who’ll tell her story, there are three things keeping Alice’s head in the game.
One: Alice genuinely likes people, which means people usually like Alice—and she has a whole month to win the legendary woman over.
Two: She’s ready for this job and the chance to impress her perennially unimpressed family with a Serious Publication.
Three: Hayden Anderson, who should have no reason to be concerned about losing this book, is glowering at her in a shaken-to-the core way that suggests he sees her as competition.
But the problem is, Margaret is only giving each of them pieces of her story. Pieces they can’t swap to put together because of an ironclad NDA and an inconvenient yearning pulsing between them every time they’re in the same room.
And it’s becoming abundantly clear that their story—just like the tale Margaret’s spinning—could be a mystery, tragedy, or love ballad . . . depending on who’s telling it.
- Listening Length12 hours and 2 minutes
- Audible release dateApril 22 2025
- LanguageEnglish
- ASINB0DGHM7NTP
- VersionUnabridged
- Program TypeAudiobook
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Product details
Listening Length | 12 hours and 2 minutes |
---|---|
Author | Emily Henry |
Narrator | Julia Whelan |
Audible.ca Release Date | April 22 2025 |
Publisher | Penguin Audio |
Program Type | Audiobook |
Version | Unabridged |
Language | English |
ASIN | B0DGHM7NTP |
鶹 Rank |
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Customer reviews
Customers say
Customers find the book beautiful, charming, and sweet. They also describe the story as wonderful, interesting, and enjoyable.
AI Generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers find the book beautiful, charming, and sweet. They appreciate the romance and mystery intertwined.
"...She is a people person, a positive, sweet, kind-hearted lady. Hayden comes across as severe, serious, and perhaps a bit adverse to people...." Read more
"...I wasn't entirely invested in the characters but the charming town and story was good" Read more
"All I can say is Thank you Emily Henry for this beautiful story. I savored every word. Nobody writes love like you do!" Read more
"This book was so beautiful, in so many ways. It was deeply moving, emotional, eloquent!..." Read more
Customers find the story wonderful, interesting, and mysterious. They say it's a romance and mystery intertwined. Readers also mention the two main characters are enjoyable.
"...Great Big Beautiful Life was a story within a story, and I was equally captivated by both...." Read more
"...Henry romance experience... but I have to say the last chapters made the whole book worth it. You just have to be patient!!" Read more
"...n't entirely invested in the characters but the charming town and story was good" Read more
"...I eagerly awaited this book. But this fell so flat. The two main characters were enjoyable but the story-within-a-story seriously detracted from my..." Read more
Top reviews from Canada
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- Reviewed in Canada on May 27, 2025Verified PurchaseEvery year I look forward to reading the latest book by Emily Henry. I had it on my TBR list as soon as it was announced, and I was counting down the days until its release date.
Great Big Beautiful Life was a bit of a departure from Henry’s previous books, meaning that it wasn’t only a romance, but I was completely on board with that. Great Big Beautiful Life was a story within a story, and I was equally captivated by both.
Alice Scott may have just found the break that she’s been looking for. Getting to write a biography on Margaret Ives, a former socialite and member of one of the most talked about families would be a dream come true, especially because this particular woman has been off the radar for twenty years. Unfortunately for Alice, Hayden Anderson is another writer vying for this job, and he just so happens to be a Pulitzer-prize winning author. Margaret proposes that they each stay on the small Georgia island to interview her in order for her to get an idea of what style of book each of them would write, then she would pick the author that she would prefer to write her story.
This was not the way that Alice or Hayden wanted to approach this job. Neither one of them was looking for a competition with another author, but this would be an intriguing opportunity to get the story on this elusive heiress, so they both agreed to this one-month trial period.
Here’s where the real fun begins. Alice is a ray of sunshine who likes to find the bright side in everything. She is a people person, a positive, sweet, kind-hearted lady. Hayden comes across as severe, serious, and perhaps a bit adverse to people. This spelled a whole lot of fun for me! Bring on the competition between these two opposites! While Alice tried her best to be friends with Hayden, he just seemed to be cold and disinterested.
Of course, I loved the banter and interactions between Alice and Hayden. I wanted nothing more than for her to be able to melt his chilly exterior. A good opposites-attract situation is always a good time, and these two certainly had that underlying sizzle that makes it that much better.
Now, this was a story within a story. While we had Alice and Hayden’s interactions within the novel, we also got to see Alice with Margaret Ives. Trying to get the personal story from Margaret was akin to pulling teeth, but Alice was certain she was going to be able to gain Margaret’s trust. Soon, we get inside the Ives family history and hear the story of these infamous family members.
Great Big Beautiful Life was a romance and a mystery intertwined. As always, Emily Henry has created characters that I grew to care about. She delivered a wonderful story that kept my interest from start to finish. Margaret Ives was an interesting and mysterious character who harbored a lot of memories and secrets which made it entertaining to try to figure her out.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with these characters and their stories. There was a lot to love about this book, and I certainly did!
- Reviewed in Canada on July 3, 2025Verified PurchaseQuite different than the original Emily Henry romance experience... but I have to say the last chapters made the whole book worth it. You just have to be patient!!
- Reviewed in Canada on May 9, 2025Verified PurchaseIt is a comfy read though there are some revelations I felt that much happened. I wasn't entirely invested in the characters but the charming town and story was good
- Reviewed in Canada on May 23, 2025Verified PurchaseAll I can say is Thank you Emily Henry for this beautiful story. I savored every word. Nobody writes love like you do!
- Reviewed in Canada on April 29, 2025Verified PurchaseGood
- Reviewed in Canada on May 4, 2025Verified PurchaseThis book was so beautiful, in so many ways. It was deeply moving, emotional, eloquent! I have loved Emily Henry's writing for years now, but this book just proves what a great talent she is!
- Reviewed in Canada on July 29, 2025Alice and Hayden have both been invited to Little Crescent Island to write the biography of a woman no one has seen in years, or at the very least, to meet the woman who claims to be Margaret Ives. Margaret is a former tabloid princess, heiress, and daughter of one of the most storied families of the 20th century. Margaret offers Hayden and Alice a one-month trial period after which she will choose the person to tell her story. It soon becomes clear that Margaret isn’t telling the whole story, and Hayden and Alice are forced to figure out the missing pieces without breaking their NDA agreements.
GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL LIFE as many other readers have noted, is not Emily Henry’s typical contemporary romance that we’ve all come to expect and love. It’s different… but not in a bad way. I, personally, found it to be wholly refreshing. As I read, I felt the vibes of this book are similar to that of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s novel The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, which I really enjoyed.
GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL LIFE is told in Alice’s POV. I wasn’t always sure where the plot of the story was going, but I loved that it’s more than a romance. There’s a whole story that exists outside of the romance and that story is rich and well developed, with a journey I desperately wanted to know the outcome of.
Rest assured, Henry’s characteristic banter, strong character development, and character growth is present. The romances that transpire in both the past and present are beautiful and swoonworthy.
GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL LIFE weaves a story of a woman’s experience of generational trauma, grief, and the highs and lows of familial relationships. It’s a realistic and compelling read. The ending does happen fast, and maybe even abruptly, but nevertheless, I really enjoyed it.
Top reviews from other countries
- Anish S.Reviewed in India on July 4, 2025
5.0 out of 5 stars Must read book of 25
Verified PurchaseLoved the plot! It felt different from Emily Henry's previous books yet it was perfect blend of literary fiction + romantic comedy. I didn't see the connection between Margaret & someone (cant say who!) Loved her history & passion that Alice had for her work
- AnnjeReviewed in the United Kingdom on June 22, 2025
5.0 out of 5 stars This is such a good book never would have guessed the ending
Verified PurchaseThis book was a little different to a usual Emily Henry book, well at least for me. It had an amazing plot twist. It was heartwarming, and felt wholesome. Every family is dysfunctional, and they are dysfunctional in their own ways. But having someone to navigate these idiosyncrasies can be the weight you never knew lifted off of you. I can’t wait to find that person .
- Caz the bookworm /Caroline O'SullivanReviewed in Australia on April 25, 2025
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant read
Verified PurchaseI can confirm that this book is my favourite by this author, it was very different to all of her other books and I really enjoyed the mix of general fiction with a side of the romance that Emily is known and loved for.
This book gave me huge TJR vibes and honestly I loved that, I really loved the memoir style of writing interwoven with the friendship and love story of Alice and Hayden.
This book is about Margaret Ives, a famous heiress recluse hiding out on Little Crescent Island, she hires both Jayden Anderson and Alice Scott to help her write her memoirs. The problem is, she only needs one of them so they have to spend a month fighting it out for the job.
I adored the stories Margaret told and learning about her family all the way back to when it first started. I guess we can add in Historical Fiction and duel timelines to the mix both of which are favourites of mine. What a crazy family the Ives were which of course gave us a very interesting read.
I liked Alice and Hayden a lot, they definitely started off as enemies but soon became great friends that had a lot of fun together and a growing chemistry.
Loved Margaret and thought she played a brilliant leading lady.
I loved the whole journalistic side of it too and really enjoyed seeing Alice putting two and two together and coming up with 4, she was great at piecing together the stories and working out what Margaret wasn’t telling her, there was definitely a little mystery to this book too.
I also enjoyed the side storyline of Alice and her parents and loved the time she spent with her mum, I thought it was great to see them bond over their love for Alice’s dad.
This book gets a huge thumbs up from me, if you haven’t read this one yet then you need to bump it up your TBR.
Loved it 🩷
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sarahReviewed in Germany on July 31, 2025
5.0 out of 5 stars Ein Genuss!
Verified PurchaseNach Funny Story das meiner Meinung nach beste Buch der Autorin! Ich habe es sehr genossen!