10 Comments
May 17Liked by Harriet Allner

I have some favourite tropes, too, like enemies to lovers and best friends to lovers tropes. They're my comfort reads. And I love your wine reco! I can just imagine reading the book while sipping some rosé—heavenly!

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Those tropes are so golden! With ‘Enemies’ - do you prefer full on nemeses or more rivals? I honestly can never decide myself. I think I just love them all.

And so glad you love the wine rec - it’s a really special one!

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I love both. I can't decide either!

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Jun 4Liked by Harriet Allner

Love your newsletter. Books + wine = happiness! Need to check out previous posts - and fingers crossed for some translated novels matched with a wine from that country. Currently reading something by an Albanian author and have zero awareness of the country's wine scene...

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Oh thank you! And yes I actually have a very good Japanese rosé to pair - I’m just looking for the right book for that one. Do you have any favourite books in translation?

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I will explore Albania for sure too!

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Jun 4Liked by Harriet Allner

Oh, I feel like A Single Rose by Muriel Barbery could work. French but set in Japan and very focused on sensory experiences

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OOOOOO now that I must check out!!

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I read Funny Story on a long plane flight and laughed out loud several times to the annoyance of the passengers around me. Emily Henry offers a master class in how to write a romance (only her novels are so much more than romances, not to diss romances). I was surprised how much I liked it. One of her novels (maybe the road trip one?) was a DNF for me, but I adored this one. So now, of course, I have to go back through everything she's written.

Also, I'm new to your Substack and it's great! I love the book/wine pairings.

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Firstly thank you for restacking - that’s so very appreciated!

I totally agree that Henry offers such a masterclass in writing romance - and that they capture the best parts of the genre. I think it’s because she always weaves in something distinctly human and emotionally real :)

My fave is still probably Book Lovers or Beach Read - my bookish heart is biased like that - but Funny Story really is a delight for sure!

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