REVIEW: Happy After All by Maisey Yates

Happy After All by Maisey Yates: Amelia has packed up her big city life and is heading for the relaxing slow pace of small town living. So far her new life as romance novelist and budding motelier has been going pretty well, that is until Nathan Hart checks in… While Nathan might have the face of a heartbreaker, he also has the sour attitude of a lemon and for some unknown reason to Amelia, he just seems to hate her! What starts as instant dislike slowly begins to turn into something more understanding, just maybe Amelia and Nathan have more in common that they both realised…

Happy After All was a lot deeper than I had expected, this book while a bit long winded, was actually a really touching story of how different people deal with loss and grief. I have to say going in just looking at the cover of this book, I had expected a cute funny romcom and yes there were plenty of cute moments, this book had a deeper feeling to the over all story. While Yates touches on a number of sensitive topics I really liked the fact that overall feel that you get from this book is a feeling of hope. This truly was a beautiful story of second chances, found families and to never give up hope. I will say that this book did feel a bit drawn out at times and the fact that it took place over multiple summers, both helped build the characters but also made it feel a bit to drawn out.

I really liked our leading lady, Amelia had so much of heart and the more we got to know her the easier it became to love her character and root her on. While she might come across as this happy and easy going gal, Amelia has really had a lot of grief to deal with and my heart really broke for her. Firstly I hated the fact that her ex cheated on her while she was already going through a rough emotional patch, but what really broke my heart was when she opened up about the loss of her baby girl, this was just heartbreaking to read but so incredibly well written. The way Yates wrote this scene was just so well and carefully thought and the care in which she delivered this was just beautiful, it really was an emotional gut punch. While the majority of the story is based on our girl Amelia, I really did enjoy getting to uncover bits and pieces of Nathan as the story progressed. He to has been dealing with his fair share of grief and loss. While we don’t get to see things from his pov, my heart did break for him when we learn about the passing of his wife.

The actually connection between Nathan and Amelia takes a lot longer to happen then I had expected. These two dance around each other for a good portion of the book, with a bit of interaction in-between. While you could feel the slow build up and the intrigue from Amelia, we really didn’t know what was happening with Nathan. Though I think once these two started to slowly warm to each other and Nathan allowed Amelia a small look into his world, this is were the relationship turned. I will say they did have one very slow burn romance but more than this I really liked the emotional connection that they formed. Both of them were dealing with grief and more than anything understood this lost feeling they were feeling and getting to see them work through this and lean on each other was what I liked about their connection.

The Flamingo Hotel was just the cutest! I loved this almost retro style motel in the California desert, with all its senior longterm residents. If you know me then you would know that I’m a total sucker for a meddling senior and this book definitely delivered in this aspect. I loved the sense of found family that came with Amelia and the Flamingo clan, this was just heartwarming and cute.

All in all I enjoyed reading Happy After All, this book is filled with emotion, but also some cute and silly moments. If you are looking for a book that is cute but also full of hope then this is the book for you!

Book Info:

Publication: January 1, 2025 | Montlake |

A city girl leaves her life behind in LA to start over in a small town…

It’s a cliché, but it’s also Amelia Taylor’s life. And her new life as a romance novelist and motelier is going great—until Nathan Hart checks in.

Of course he’s disastrously handsome, thoroughly disagreeable, and seems to be set against Amelia on sight. Of course there’s smoldering tension between them that can’t be ignored. They’d make the perfect enemies to lovers story. It’s one of Amelia’s favorite tropes.

But the man in room 32 seems genuinely broken, and it’s going to take more than romance tropes and wishful thinking to get past his wounds. As a tentative friendship grows into a deeper connection, Amelia and Nathan both realize that facing each other’s painful secrets takes courage. Do they dare take the risk and hope it ends happily after all?