Happiness by Danielle Steel: Book Review
Looks Like Books contains affiliate links and is a member of the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program. If you make a purchase using one of these affiliate links I may receive compensation at no extra cost to you. See my Disclaimer to learn more.
Happiness by Danielle Steel is exactly the kind of book I hope for when I pick up one of her novels: warm, romantic, emotionally satisfying, and very easy to sink into.
At this point, I keep wondering whether I’m eventually going to find a Danielle Steel book I don’t enjoy. Happiness certainly wasn’t the one.
This story combines family secrets, an inherited English estate, a strong female main character, and a romance that develops after years of disappointment. In other words, it had a lot going for it before I even got very far.
My Take: Happiness was warm, romantic, and extremely easy for me to read. I liked Sabrina immediately, loved the English estate setting, and thought the romance added exactly the right amount of charm without overwhelming the rest of the story. My Verdict? Read – especially if you like Danielle Steel at her most comforting and optimistic.
What Happiness by Danielle Steel Is About
Sabrina Brooks is a successful thriller writer living a quiet life in the Berkshires, far removed from a difficult childhood and an abusive marriage.
Her carefully ordered life changes when she learns that an uncle in England has died and left her his title and estate. Sabrina travels overseas intending to deal with the inheritance quickly, but the estate – and the family history attached to it – begin to change her plans.
As she learns more about her father’s past and the secrets he kept from her, Sabrina also becomes close to Grayson Abbott, the estate attorney helping her navigate the property and her new responsibilities.
What begins as a practical trip turns into a much larger question about what Sabrina wants the rest of her life to look like.
Happiness by Danielle Steel – What I Liked
One thing that still amazes me about Danielle Steel is how many books she continues to publish. I’ve heard her talk about her writing schedule in interviews, and somehow she just keeps producing them.
Even more surprising to me is how often I still enjoy them.
I loved Sabrina Brooks. She felt capable, grounded, and easy to root for from the beginning.
I also liked Grayson Abbott almost immediately. He brings a calm, reassuring presence to Sabrina’s life, and their relationship gave the story a very comforting romantic thread.
The setting was another big plus for me. The Berkshires work well for Sabrina’s quiet life, but England – and especially the inherited estate – is what really gave the book its charm. I could easily imagine how tempting it would be to rethink your entire life after discovering a family property like that.
This was also one of those books that moved very quickly for me. I finished it in a little more than a day, which is usually a pretty good sign.
Happiness – What I Didn’t Like
There wasn’t anything I disliked about the book. But there were some characters that I didn’t care for and of course they were completely necessary for the story to move on as it did.
These characters were Sabrina’s parents – her mother and father, although we don’t really see much of them. But still, I didn’t like what they did to her, so that left me with a feeling of dislike for them.
Happiness by Danielle Steel – Read, Reread, or Reconsider?
And now, for my three Rs of book reviews – should you read, reread, or completely reconsider reading Happiness by Danielle Steel?
Read.
If you enjoy Danielle Steel’s warmer, more uplifting novels with family secrets, elegant settings, and a romantic storyline, this is an easy one to recommend.
Is Happines by Danielle Steel Worth Reading?
For me, Happiness really did feel like putting on a warm sweater on a chilly day.
It was comforting, romantic, and hopeful without feeling overly complicated. I enjoyed Sabrina, the English estate, and the idea of someone being given an unexpected chance to rethink what happiness might look like.
If you already enjoy Danielle Steel’s books, I think there’s a very good chance you’ll enjoy this one too.
