Name: Ian Brakspear's review of The Burnout by Sophie Kinsella
Item: The Burnout
Rating: 4
Author: Ian Brakspear

Sophie Kinsella

Sparks fly in this delightful novel about two burned out professionals who meet at a ramshackle resort on the British seaside—from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Party Crasher. She can do anything . . . just not everything. Sasha has had it. She cannot bring herself to respond to another inane, “urgent” (but obviously not at all urgent) email or participate in the corporate employee joyfulness program. She hasn’t seen her friends in months. Sex? Seems like a lot of effort. Even cooking dinner takes far too much planning. Sasha has hit a wall. Armed with good intentions to drink kale smoothies, try yoga, and find peace, she heads to the seaside resort she loved as a child. But it’s the off season, the hotel is in a dilapidated shambles, and she has to share the beach with the only other occupant: a grumpy guy named Finn, who seems as stressed as Sasha. How can she commune with nature when he’s sitting on her favorite rock, watching her? Nor can they agree on how best to alleviate their burnout (Sasha: manifesting, wild swimming; Finn: drinking whisky, getting pizza delivered to the beach). When curious messages, seemingly addressed to Sasha and Finn, begin to appear on the beach, the two are forced to talk—about everything. How did they get so burned out? Can either of them remember something they used to love? (Answer: surfing!) And the question they try and fail to ignore: what does the energy between them—flaring even in the face of their bone-deep exhaustion—signify?

A Novel

The Burnout

Beth Bartholomew

You have to enjoy the ride. Why else are you learning to surf? The ride is it. 

“Enjoy the ride,” echoes Lev, and a strange half-smile spreads across his face. “Of course. How did I forget that?”

Joy Xie

I loved the premiss of this book and it sounded like a book for a perfect autumn evening and after being kindly gifted this one for my Birthday I knew that November was the perfect month to pick it up. This book had more of a serious undertone to it than I expected and touches on some serious topics that become normal to middle aged adults: heart break, career/life burnout, health scares, loss, etc but it’s done in a way that makes it hard to put the book down.

Sasha is overwhelmed and exhausted from her demanding job and disconnected from her personal life. Seeking peace, she goes to a seaside resort from her childhood but finds it rundown and nearly empty, except for one other guest, a stressed man named Finn. Despite their initial differences, the two find themselves forced to communicate when mysterious messages addressed to them appear on the beach. Their conversations touch on their burnout, forgotten passions (including surfing), and their undeniable connection. As they navigate their exhaustion, they confront questions about their relationship and the meaning of the energy between them.

This book is for anyone who has just felt overwhelmed with life. It is a great reminder that you need to put yourself first.

Ian Brakspear

I loved the premiss of this book and it sounded like a book for a perfect autumn evening and after being kindly gifted this one for my Birthday I knew that November was the perfect month to pick it up. This book had more of a serious undertone to it than I expected and touches on some serious topics that become normal to middle aged adults: heart break, career/life burnout, health scares, loss, etc but it’s done in a way that makes it hard to put the book down.


Sasha is overwhelmed and exhausted from her demanding job and disconnected from her personal life. Seeking peace, she goes to a seaside resort from her childhood but finds it rundown and nearly empty, except for one other guest, a stressed man named Finn. Despite their initial differences, the two find themselves forced to communicate when mysterious messages addressed to them appear on the beach. Their conversations touch on their burnout, forgotten passions (including surfing), and their undeniable connection. As they navigate their exhaustion, they confront questions about their relationship and the meaning of the energy between them.

 

This book is for anyone who has just felt overwhelmed with life. It is a great reminder that you need to put yourself first.

This book is amazing, as someone who just recently went through burn out, it was such a refreshing read with a romantic twist 

Kelly Maher

Janice Walker

This wasn't my kind of book. The writing, the slow pace, and so many other things. However, the whole book was like reading the FMC's inner monolog and I've never seen it done so realistically. I gave this book 4 stars because despite it's flaws it really spoke to me and had a truly beautiful message. I could so easily put myself in the FMC's shoes and it was super addictive tbh

Manda

radhika dhawan

this is not the best book i have ever read. i don’t even see myself recommending it to people. but i so badly needed this right now. the way she described being burnt out, like living your life like a robot, and then all the mistakes you make while trying to recover from it - latching onto other people, either idolizing them and wanting to be them, or making it your mission to fix them instead of work on yourself. 
i also think this book is a great example of how you can write in a modern way without littering your book with pop culture references. she created extensive lore for the town they were in, from life stories about all the citizens and employees to even minute details about the art history. it felt like being dropped into a gilmore girls-esque town and it was cozy and eccentric and completely unrealistic and exactly what i wanted to read right now. 
so, if i read this even a few months ago, i might’ve hated it. my 5 stars are more for my relationship with the book than the quality of the book itself. hope my word vomit makes sense to the one (1) person who maybe reads all of this.

sani

sigh reading this made me so comfy i might reread it again just for the vibes

I reallllllyyyy loved this book! For a contemporary romance, it gives a lot of plot and character development, which I was pleasantly surprised by. I loved the tension and the way the characters decided to work on themselves and not just their relationship. 

Paige Leitner

I absolutely love this one! A quick read about a fairly serious topic with the perfect amount of humor thrown in. I really enjoyed that this story had so many aspects to it including work, family, vacation, personal relationships, history of a town and even a little mystery thrown in. I truly flew through this one and I feel like it really does have something that would appeal to every reader. Huge thanks to aardvark for choosing this title, I may not have heard of it or picked it up if it weren’t for them!

Kerry Kalinoski

Funny and silly and sweet. Although I enjoyed it as a nice easy read there were a few plot holes/ plot lines that just fizzled away rather than being concluded. 

Joy Xie &
The Burnout by Sophie Kinsella

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Joy Xie &The Burnout by Sophie Kinsella

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Joy Xie &
The Burnout by Sophie Kinsella