Great Big Beautiful Life follows two writers—up-and-comer Alice Scott and Pulitzer Prize winner Hayden Anderson—who are invited to Little Crescent Island to compete for the chance to write the biography of the elusive Margaret Ives. Once a tabloid staple and heiress to one of the 20th century’s most scandal-ridden dynasties, Margaret has spent decades away from the public—but only on her own terms.
The catch? Both writers are working independently under strict NDAs. They cannot share what they learn from Margaret with each other, despite being confined to the same island. As Alice and Hayden navigate this strange arrangement, a tentative connection begins to form between them as they unravel Margaret’s sprawling, layered past.
Alexa, play The Great American Dynasty by Taylor Swift.
I rarely start my reviews with a disclaimer, but it just feels relevant. Whether you are going to enjoy this book entirely depends on what expectations you are going into it with. If, like me, you expected another deeply emotional romance like Happy Place or Funny Story, you might be in for a surprise.
At its core, Great Big Beautiful Life feels like Inception—it’s a story within a story. Yes, we have a current timeline that includes a hint of romance, deals with emotionally impactful topics, and the fear of not measuring up to your peers, but overall it’s about uncovering the truth about Margaret’s life and what happened to make her choose to abandon the spotlight, bit by bit.
You as the reader often feel like a bit of a detective alongside Alice and Hayden. Every new insight or memory relived sparks questions that make you want to see the whole picture immediately. Part mystery and party character study, this may not be the romance you expect but it holds just as much emotion as you’d expect from an Emily Henry novel. So while this veers away from Henry’s recent novels, to me what stood out is this: Henry’s unparalleled ability to turn words into magic. Margaret’s story is filled with so much—from the media’s wrong image of her, from scandals that shouldn’t be ones to grief and love lost and the strength of a woman to persevere through it all.
I loved how this book not just made you as the reader experience catharsis as you learn what shaped Margaret, but also how heavily it focuses on the cost of reinventing yourself time and again. The quiet strength a person needs to simply survive what others could have not, all while being bogged down by expectations and a legacy they might not want was wonderfully done.
While I admit that I struggled at times with the pacing of the story, as is so often the case when there are two timelines and you as the reader clearly have a favourite and just want to get back to that one, I still found myself entranced throughout the book. It’s a hard feat to make the present storyline still fit in a novel that is so heavily focused on uncovering the past and for the most part, Henry excels at it. There are only a few moments where you can tell that the present timeline could have used more oomph—and that is most clear in the romance subplot.
As mentioned, if you expect a romance-driven novel á la Funny Story or Happy Place, this might not be the one for you. Alice and Hayden’s romance takes a backseat as Margaret’s past gets to shine and while I definitely was fine with that, I also think that a slightly more balanced portrayal of Alice and Hayden’s rivalry and eventually blossoming friendship (and more) could have made the book even stronger. As it is, we sometimes get nothing in terms of relationship building for a whole chapter and then are hit with a slew of—albeit well-crafted—banter and tender moments that unfortunately made their connection feel a tad underdeveloped and abrupt. Still, I appreciated how what Alice and Hayden learned about Margaret’s life somehow shaped their own present and how they interacted with each other.
Overall, I think this book will be a win for anyone who enjoyed The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo or is looking for a story that is character-driven and layered beyond measure. While venturing away from the usual romance-heavy narrative, this book truly proves that Henry has the magic touch when it comes to entrancing writing.
Perfect for readers who cherish intricate prose and emotional complexity and are fine with romance taking a step back in favour of that will devour Henry’s heartfelt story Great Big Beautiful Life.
Great Big Beautiful Life is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
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.
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.
