Daydream By Hannah Grace – Complete Summary & Guide

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Welcome back to the University of California, Maple Hills! This is the third installment in Hannah Grace’s Maple Hills series. If you’ve followed my blog at all, you know I’ve written about the first installment in the series, Icebreaker by Hannah Grace and how it’s one of my fave romance books.

However, today we’re talking about Daydream, so buckle up cause we’re going chapter by chapter through this book (with my thoughts at the end)!

What Is Daydream by Hannah Grace About?

This book focuses on Henry Turner who we first met as Nate’s roomie in Icebreaker. Henry is currently the team captain, but only if he can make up his grades. When he meets Halle Jacobs, who just got dumped by her total jerk of a boyfriend, they make an arrangement to trade tutoring for the relationship experience that Halle never had with her ex.

They quickly become best friends as Henry shows Halle that sometimes she has to put herself first and Halle helps Henry, not only with his grades, but also by seeing him in a way that no one else does. As they navigate the difficulties of college, they learn to lean on each other and just maaaaybe fall in love 😉

So, walk through each chapter of Daydream by Hannah Grace!

(Also, all spicy chapters are marked with a 🌶️…enjoy!)

Chapter One

Daydream starts with Halle (our FMC) being broken up with by her boyfriend Will. Before they were bf/gf, they were childhood neighbors and family besties. Halle feels very mid about Will, so she isn’t that upset when he breaks up with her. Her not being upset, however, makes him upset. We learn that a large part of why he broke up with her is because she isn’t ready/doesn’t want to have sex with him.

We also learn that Halle attends UCMH. Will plays hockey for San Diego, so you just know it’s going to be a throw-the-book-across-the-room moment when he interacts with our Maple Hills hockey boys.

Halle has spent their whole relationship (and the majority of her life) putting everyone’s needs above her own, so our aspiring writer decides that if Will is going to put himself first then she’s going to start doing that too!

Chapter Two

This chapter introduces our first POV from Henry, one of my favorite characters from Icebreaker by Hannah Grace! We learn a lot about the way Henry thinks and feels and gain a better insight into his neurodivergence.

It’s the beginning of the new school year, and Henry is the new team captain. Unfortunately for Henry, he is already in trouble. Henry failed an assignment for class (due to the professor’s teaching style clashing with Henry’s learning style), and his coach, Faulkner, will not accept anything except academic perfection from his captains.

Back at the house (now occupied by Russ, Robbie, and Henry), Aurora (Russ’s girlfriend) convinces Henry to go with her to the bookstore Enchanted to get books on leadership. Really, she just wants some company, and everyone else is busy. After some light bribing, Henry is convinced to go.

Chapter Three

Halle is busy setting up an icebreaker (hehe) session for the new romance book club she’s running at Enchanted, which is the book store she works at! She notices Henry and is taken aback by the super hot guy who she presumes is joining the book club.

She introduces herself to him and quickly learns that he is, in fact, not here for her book club. Also, she realizes that she’s seen him play against her ex. Once this common ground is established, Henry, in his classic brash manor, informs Halle that Will is not as good of a player as he thinks he is. If Henry’s face wasn’t doing it for Halle already, this dig at her ex has her fully interested!

Henry invites her to join him and Aurora (who Halle sort of knows from class) to join them, but Halle has to get to her new job after book club.

Before Halle heads to work at Huntington Hotel, Inayah, the owner of Enchanted, gives Halle a flyer for a writing competition through a publishing house. Halle immediately decides she is going to enter because, after all, post-Will Halle is all about putting herself first and using her time to do the things she wants to do!

Halle goes to her first shift as a receptionist at the Huntington Hotel, where she meets Cami and becomes fast friends with her.

Chapter Four

Well, I said fast friends but actually Halle is very insecure about making friends. Even though she is getting ready to go to a party that Cami invited her to, she still isn’t sure if they are friend-friends, work-friends, friends-who-work-together??? Basically, adult friendships are hard.

On a video call, Gigi, Halle’s little step-sister, tells her that her party outfit is giving Miss Honey and that she must change. Halle borrows clothes from Cami’s roommate, and they are off to a party hosted by the basketball team!

At the party, Halle bonds with her new friends and plays a drinking game. Henry is there, and she asks the girls about him. They tell her that he is sweet and very popular with the women on campus.

Chapter Five

Henry has been forced into a study group by Stassie, and at said group, Russ gets a text from Rory saying that the book club has been canceled because of a broken pipe at the bookstore. Henry suggests that the book club meet in the backyard of their house because he’s hoping to see Halle.

Halle comes up to Henry’s room to thank him for letting them have their book club in the yard. They have a cute conversation, during which Halle admits to him she doesn’t really have any friends. Henry responds by saying that he’s her friend and inviting her to their party this upcoming weekend!

Chapter Six

Halle goes to the hockey party with Cami. When Cami has left her alone for a second, Mason (a guy whose number she got at her last party as a dare) asks her to dance and is all up on her and clearly into her.

Henry interrupts their dance and gets Halle to join his friends in a game of beer pong. When Halle is pressed up against Henry, she feels the spark which she lacked with her ex, Will (or anyone else).

Chapter Seven

Henry is reading through a book that Halle gave to him the night before (post beer pong), which she annotated for him. Halle spends the night in Henry’s room even though nothing happens because Henry is a consent king. Halle was too drunk to leave, and there were no available rooms, so Henry set up an air-mattress. However, Halle is embarrassed because she drunkenly decided to sleep in the buff, which means Henry saw her naked.

After she’s showered and clothed in Henry’s sweats, Halle is feeling less awkward and also so excited to see that he is reading the book she gave him!! She highlighted and marked it in the way she does for her ADHD little sister, and Henry feels very seen and understood by Halle.

They talk about his struggles in Thornton’s class, and she offers to help him with his upcoming essay.

Once they finish the essay, Henry asks her to stay over and watch a movie. They cuddle up on his bed and watch a horror movie!

Chapter Eight

Henry stops by Enchanted to give Halle a bouquet of flowers as a thank-you for helping him with his essay, which Thorton gave him good feedback on. Halle is so touched by the flowers. Not only did Henry pick her favorite (daisies, because she wore a dress printed with daisies), but he is the first person to ever give her flowers.

Henry asks for help with his next assignment. He assures her that not only can she say no, but he also checks to see if she has already established plans. Halle feels very seen because it’s the first time that someone doesn’t just assume that she has nothing going on or that she will just bend to fit others’ needs. They plan to work on his essay over the upcoming weekend because Halle needs to bake a cake for her friend tonight.

Henry texts Halle asking if she wants help with her cake, and he comes over to her place for the first time. Halle lives in her late Grandmother’s old house which is a little outdated. Henry points it out and apologizes and explains to Halle that he struggles to not just say what he thinks.

She tells him about her dream of going to school in New York but how that didn’t happen when her Grandma got sick. She then decided to move in to take care of her and go to UCMH. However, her grandma died before she graduated high school. She still went to UCMH, partly to be close to Will.

Chapter Nine

Before Henry goes over to Halle’s to work on his essay, Faulkner gets in his head about “abusing Halle’s kindness,” which makes him feel like he’s taking advantage of Halle’s help.

When he gets to her home, Halle is clearly not in a good mood. She tells him it’s because she’s been playing mediator to family drama all day. Halle has a lot of oldest daughter burdens with her family dynamic, which she explains to Henry. She also tells him that, when she broke up with Will, she wanted to start doing things for herself.

One of those things is the writing competition, but she feels like she’s missing so much life experience from always putting others’ needs above her own, especially Will. She wants to write romance, but she has never been in love, never gone on a real date, never had sex (though Henry doesn’t know that yet), SO Henry offers to help her in that department by asking her on a date.

They agree that she’ll help Henry pass his class and that he will help her with her lack of romance experience. It’s not exactly fake dating, but there is definitely a grey area of whether it’s just because of their unique situation or because they like each other.

Chapter Ten

Halle is waiting for her first date and is nervous but excited. Will texts her, “Have fun on your date,” which he learned about from Halle’s mom. Halle hasn’t told her parents yet that her and Will broke up, so when she told her mom about the date, she had to hang up because the date her mom assumed she was going on was with Will (but in reality it’s with Henry!!) Then, her mom texted Will about it. Yikes!

Will gives Halle ‘tude about having not told her parents yet. When he tells her that he can’t wait to meet her new guy, she simply tells him, “You already have,” then turns her phone off, which had me giggling in my local coffee shop!

Henry picks Halle up looking (duh) super hot and takes her to a fancy restaurant. He asks about the progress of her book, and she is very excited to tell him about the plot. After the date, Henry drives Halle home and ends the night with a kiss on her cheek at her front door.

Chapter Eleven

Henry is starting to feel a lot of pressure from being team captain and develops some serious superstitions and routines. The UCMH hockey team wins, and though, in previous years, they went to the Honey Pot to celebrate the team, Henry’s friend group goes to a new bar next to Enchanted. It totally has nothing to do with the fact that that’s where Halle and her friends are going 😉

Henry is getting heckled by his friends for constantly checking his phone while waiting for Halle. When Halle gets there, she can tell that Henry is overstimulated and suggests that they leave the loud bar.

Henry tells Halle that he’s sorry for not inviting her to the game but that he wanted to. He explains that he just got distracted by something else (the superstitions).

Chapter Twelve

Halle and Henry have been regularly hanging out and have slipped into a nice routine of late-night baking reality TV shows and sleepovers (Henry on the couch, of course) after their date. On the first night they don’t spend together, Halle has a saucy dream about Henry and is now flustered by his presence.

Halle, our over-committed queen, needs to finish her essay, finish her book club book, help Henry with his essay, and MORE. When Henry suggests they take a nap, she gives him her laundry list of things she needs to get done. He surprises her by telling her he already did his essay (he used the tips from the last one she helped him with) and tells her to write her essay. Then, he will take her on a date!

Once Halle finishes her writing, Henry drives her to a nice view with a cozy car picnic. He tells her to put on her audiobook so she can listen while they eat, but when she goes to put on the book, she accidentally plays her audio erotica and is hella embarrassed.

Henry (because this book is written by a woman) is all “Don’t be embarrassed, now I know your preference,” which leads Halle to tell him that she is a virgin. Once again, because Henry is written by a woman, he tells her that virginity is a social construct. He makes Halle feel very comfortable and un-judged compared to the other reactions from people in her life learning that she has yet to do the deed.

Chapter Thirteen

Henry is greeted by Nate back at the house for a little encouragement from a past captain to the current one. While Nate is there, he mentions to the boys in the house that Stassie is struggling with college and the distance, and Henry feels bad because he hasn’t checked in on Stassie in a while.

The boys go to a bar, and Chris (Henry’s teammate) points out that Halle has arrived with her friends. Henry goes over and tells one of his teammates, who is not as respectful towards women as Henry, to “leave.” Brody (the not le epic gentleman like Henry) apologizes to his captain, saying he didn’t realize Halle was “his.”

Halle gives Henry a pair of Loops earplug so that Henry can be less overly stimulated.

Chapter Fourteen

They are still at the bar, and while Henry is helping Halle find the bathroom, they find Ethan, Russ’s brother, doing drugs in the bathroom. Russ has been worried about his brother, but he didn’t suspect that things with Ethan were this bad.

Henry doesn’t want to tell Russ and Aurora about what they saw in the bathroom and shuts Halle down she says she wants to tell Aurora. They both leave the party, and things are definitely weird between them.

Henry internally is struggling with whether or not he should tell Russ what he saw. On the one hand, he thinks Russ will be upset if he learns about Ethan being on drugs and finding out that Henry already knew. However, Henry feels like he is bad at communicating, so he doesn’t want to make Russ’s family situation worse. But, like, duh you should tell Russ…

It’s the next morning, and Russ wakes Henry up per Aurora’s request to check on Halle, as people got roofied at the party, and Halle didn’t show up to class. Henry rushes to Halle’s house and is so relieved to find her at home and okay. However, she’s crying. She was worried that Henry wouldn’t want to be her friend anymore because of their tension last night. Henry assumes that he’s in the wrong about not telling Russ.

Halle tells him that she doesn’t like to drink, but that she does it so people won’t think she is boring. Henry tells her that no one would think less of her for not wanting to drink and that she shouldn’t do things for other people.

Henry texts Aurora that Halle is fine and that he needs to talk to her about Ethan, but Rory tells him that Russ already found out last night.

Chapter Fifteen

Henry is hanging out with Stassie, who seems not great. She brings up Halle cause she’s trying to get the tea from Henry. He tells her that they aren’t dating and that they’re just friends, but he knows that he doesn’t feel like just friends with her. He invites Stassie to meet Halle at their group date in Santa Monica.

The group date has turned into a huge group, but Henry is still planning on ditching the group quickly. At the pier, the two split from the group hand-in-hand, which Halle points out. Henry hadn’t noticed that he had grabbed her hand, so he went to pull away, but Halle told him that she liked it.

Their experience dating has been very confusing to me, I can’t lie.

Anyways, Halle thinks the hand-holding is Henry committing to giving her the full experience, and Henry just goes along with it.

Later, Halle really wants to win a stuffed animal at the carnival games, but our girl is lacking the hand-eye coordination needed to accomplish this goal. Henry gets a turn at the games and wins her stuffies from every game she could possibly want.

Henry tells Halle that she is beautiful and then asks if it’s okay for him to tell her that. When she says yes, he goes to kiss her. UNFORTUNATELY that is right when their friends from the group date find them and kill the moment.

Chapter Sixteen

Halle and Henry go to lunch after his class, and on their walk, Halle tries to convince him to tell her what his art piece is. He tells her that it is a reimagining of a famous sculpture, but he won’t tell her which one. It’s driving her crazy because she can tell how passionate he is about this class!

Henry gets food poisoning and goes to Halle’s to recover, and Halle learns that he is a very big baby when it comes to being sick. He tells Halle about his mom and why he is an art major and not working on a sports-focused degree. Halle loves learning more about him, but their conversation is interrupted by Gigi’s FaceTime for help with homework.

Chapter Seventeen (TW: SA)

The Titans have just won their game, just like Henry said they would if Halle wore his jersey. After the game, Halle goes to visit Cami, who is home sick. Cami has been off lately, and Halle is worried that something is wrong with her or their friendship.

Cami tells her that her drink got spiked, and though nothing happened, she was triggered by it. She had another experience where she was roofied and didn’t get away safely, though she tells Halle that she doesn’t want to talk about it.

Will calls Halle right when she gets back to her house. He tells her that Gigi lied about trying to go on a campus tour and that her and her friend drove to San Diego to go to a party. While there, they got in a fight which left Gigi stranded and reaching out to Will for a place to stay. Halle is pisssssed but she drives to San Diego anyway, telling Henry she will call him from the road.

When she gets to Will’s, he pretends they’re still together for the benefit of Gigi, but Halle quickly tells Gigi that they’ve broken up. It’s too late for them to drive back to Maple Hills, so they have to spend the night at Will’s. Gigi apologizes for being irresponsible and tells Halle that she is sorry about her breakup with Will, but Halle tells Gigi that she isn’t sorry about it.

Chapter Eighteen

It’s Halloween, and though this chapter isn’t as iconic as the minion sex scene from Icebreaker, you KNOW a UCMH Halloween party is going to be good.

Halle is dressed as Lola Bunny from Space Jam, and it has unlocked something in Henry that he didn’t know was there. Henry is flustered by both her utter hotness and by the fact that he hasn’t gotten a chance to talk to her about what went down at Will’s the night before. Rory and Stassie are both grilling Henry about admitting his feelings for Halle.

They’re all at the Honey Pot, and though Henry is not into the whole clubbing thing, he’s braving the overstimulation in the name of being a good leader to his team. When they get in, Daisy (Briar’s little sister and a previous hookup of Henry’s) whispers in Henry’s ear, inviting him to find her if he’s still around at closing. When he looks over at the booth Halle and their friends are in, he sees Halle giving him a hurt look and Poppy giving him an I-will-hurt-you look.

Ryan Rothwell shows up, and Rory introduces him to Halle. Henry is watching them chat. To make things worse for Henry, Ryan is also wearing a Bugs Bunny Space Jam costume…

Side note, but can we get a Ryan book? I am literally begging at this point. Okay, back to the chapter.

Henry’s teammates chastise him about not making a move with Halle, and he finally goes over to Halle to ask her to dance. She is taken aback by the un-Henry-like request but joins him on the dance floor nonetheless. They talk about how this is her first Halloween party and first time at a nightclub club, as well as how it’s a perfect night out because it’s just like the scene she is working on in her book!

After a night of dancing, Henry and Halle go back to Halle’s home. After Halle makes a joke about Henry being charming, he tells her that he hasn’t even tried to be charming. She asks him what he would do if he were trying to charm her, and he tells her:

“I’d tell you how f*cking beautiful you are. That when you laugh, I want to listen to it forever. I’d tell you that when I daydream, I think about us. All the things I want us to do. And all the things I want to do to you.”

He tells her that this isn’t for her getting dating experience, and that if she wants him to, he wants to kiss her. She tells him that she does, and they have their first kiss!!

Chapter Nineteen 🌶️

They are making out and Halle feels INTO IT, which she hasn’t really experienced before.

Henry suggests that they go to bed…but don’t get too excited. Yes, we are like 200 pages into this book, and we have gotten a two-sentence make-out scene, and that is about it, but whatever.

Henry tells her they don’t need to go too fast. But PSYCH, as Halle’s getting into bed, she is emboldened and starts feeling up Henry. She tells him she isn’t ready to go all the way but has never felt like this with someone else. She admits that Will was never able to…uh…how should I say this…he couldn’t ever make her…umm….feel good all the way??

Henry asks her if he can accomplish what Will never could, and the kinky little freak has her pull out her voice memos on her phone so she doesn’t have to use her audiobook smut in her alone time. Henry does a good job! Go read it yourself!!

Halle is late to breakfast with Cami and Rory, and they can tell that there is a GLOW to our girl Halle. They immediately need the deets from her.

She tells the girls what went down and also that she hasn’t gone all the way with anyone before. She’s relieved when they don’t care about her “level of sexual experience” and reassure her that other people judging her for where she is at sexually is rude, not their business, and weird. Halle realizes that, up until this point, she hasn’t had good friends.

Chapter Twenty

Halle gets a call from her mom trying to get intel about her upcoming Thanksgiving plans while also guilt-tripping Halle about not coming home for the holiday. Halle finally comes clean that she and Will broke up, but her mom doesn’t exactly accept that truth.

Yucky!! Hate the way her mom treats her.

Later, Halle is setting up for Aurora’s birthday party at the hotel when Henry stops by. As they get into their matching pink pajamas (all for our queen Rory’s bday), the two talk out their feelings. Halle explains to Henry that her desire to have sex is a new feeling for her, so she’s trying to figure that out. Also, she’s unsure of what all they can do together because they’re “friends.”

Honestly, I had forgotten that they were still calling each other friends. I really want them to just be dating already AHHH!!!

They end their conversation with a kiss, and Aurora and the rest of their friends walk in at that exact moment.

Chapter Twenty-One

Halle is stressed because they walked in on her. She tells Henry that they didn’t technically lie to their friends (who for sure already knew they were into each other) because they are “just friends.” This statement bugs Henry, but he isn’t really sure what to do with it. Though I am sure what to do with it (which would be date…

Henry texts JJ to get advice. JJ had heard about the kiss, even though Aurora threatened everyone at the party to not give Halle and Henry crap about the kiss. He asks JJ how to get out of the friend zone, and JJ tells him that he needs to communicate with Halle.

Halle tells Henry about the annual trip she plans for her and Will’s family in March and that she hopes her mom is over the breakup by then. She confesses to him that she really wants to go on the girls’ trip that Aurora invited her on but that it’s not worth the pushback she will get from her mom. Henry tries to challenge Halle on how much her family relies on her without giving the same effort in return.

Chapter Twenty-Two

After a bad loss, Henry is greeted by Halle. She doesn’t try to assure him that all teams lose. Instead, she gives him baked goods and tells him that she’s there for him. Henry is surprised that Halle is able to support him in just the way he needs.

Henry struggles to write his paper, so he calls Halle for help. Halle comes to the house with lots of supplies, because all the boys have decided that tonight is a full-on study party. This, however, overstimulates Henry, and he has to go to his room and crash. Henry starts to stress about his unfinished paper, but Russ tells him that they spoke to their coach and he was able to get him an extension on his paper.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Halle is stressed about how the previous night ended with Henry. He shows up late to their study session, giving her extra time to dwell on everything she wishes she had done differently the night before.

Henry admits that he’s not in the mood to study, but that it is in no way a reflection of how he feels about Halle and that it’s just how overwhelmed he is. Halle offers to go with him to the sports building as moral support for his meeting with his coach, and he tells her that would be nice.

He goes into his meeting, and Halle is surprised by how fast it is given how concerned Henry was about potentially losing his captain status. However she is not pleased when Henry recounts the meeting: though his coach wasn’t hard on him for the loss, Henry didn’t really tell him about anything he’s actually stressed about and the pressure he’s under.

Chapter Twenty-Four 🌶️

Halle is in the middle of an overcommitment spiral about all the things she has taken on (planning family vacation, calling Gigi, planning her sister’s science fair project, baking for book club, work, studying, and so on!) when Henry walks in.

He finds her crying on the floor and, after comforting her, sends her upstairs to shower and change into something cozy. When she comes back down, she finds Henry baking the cookies she needed to make. He tells her that between him and their friends, her whole to-do list is done with the exception of calling her sister.

As they wait for the cookies to bake in the oven, Henry tastes Halle’s cookie, if you will, and now she is SUPER relaxed…

Chapter Twenty-Five

After a win and a party to celebrate, Henry tells the team he is staying in with Halle, and the two of them head to his room. She works on her laptop while Henry works on his art. Halle hasn’t seen any of Henry’s art yet, and when she asks to see, he replies by asking her to lift her shirt up so he can paint on her.

Henry paints a purple meadow on Halle’s stomach, and it’s described as taking kinda a long time; she is loving every minute of it and loves how pretty he makes her feel. But I can’t lie, this chapter did not do it for me. I know this is supposed to be romantic and cute, but it sounds really itchy and is giving 2016-VSCO-girls-tease to me.

If you loved this part, I am so sorry to be yucking in your yum.

Chapter Twenty-Six

Henry is working on his Christmas gift for Halle (which I am guessing is some sort of art 🤔) when Halle calls in a panic about her missing laptop charger. It turns out she left it at Henry’s. She is in the zone with her book so she asks him to bring it to her.

Henry arrives at Halle’s house to find her surrounded by papers. Once she has gotten her ideas all jotted down, she shares the romance she’s been writing with Henry.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Henry takes Halle out to celebrate him making it through his class. He surprises her by starting the evening off with a drawing of her and then takes her to The Byrd & Bolton art gallery, a place she has always wanted to go but never had anyone to go with.

The biggest surprise, though, is that Henry’s art is featured in the current show at the art gallery! His piece, titled “Two Women in Love,” is a painting of his moms. Halle feels so excited to be welcomed into the world of his art that. They stare at the painting together, and I like to imagine it like that scene in Bridgerton where the Duke and Daphne’s hands touch hehe.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

It is the classic house Christmas party held by the hockey boys, and this year Henry is more excited about it than normal. Girls keep coming up to Henry, hitting on him, but he turns them down because “He does not have a girlfriend, but he’s not available.”

Honestly at this point I am so confused by the relationship dynamic between Halle and Henry. They’re not fake dating, but there isn’t really a miscommunication trope keeping them from just going out either, so I’m like, what’s the holdup, people??? Okay, back to the chapter.

Everyone at the party is upset that Robbie hasn’t planned a game for this party, but Chris shows up with UNO. However, Halle and Henry don’t play.

And noooothing else happens in this chapter…

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Halle is packing for a night away Henry planned for her because she is working doubles from Christmas Eve to the day before NYE.

(and sorry, but this feels like lazy writing to set up a location for a sex scene)

The night away is Friends-mas with Russ and Rory. They have dinner with the other couple then go up to their room in the hotel. Halle is met by the Christmas gifts Henry got for her, and it turns out he didn’t follow the one-gift rule they had made.

Henry’s three gifts to Halle are a panda adoption/donation certificate, a digital recipe book of her Nana’s recipes full of his drawings, and the treasured book of her late Nana. Lastly, a necklace with an H.

Chapter Thirty 🌶️

It’s now Henry’s turn to open his gift! Halle got him noise-canceling headphones and a naughty audio of the two of them. But looks like Henry isn’t the only one breaking the one-gift rule. Henry opens the second box to find an empty box of lingerie that, of course, Halle is wearing.

She removes her dress, and then they bang! It’s her first time, but she feels ready.

I felt like this scene was kinda awkward but maybe at this point I’m just a hater. So, sorry if you love this couple. I am struggling to like them guys!!

Chapter Thirty-One

It’s New Year’s Eve, and Henry is at Halle’s watching her work on her book. He notices her blush and, of course, has to know what exactly she is writing about.

Halle tells him that she is writing about the moment after the couple in her book sleeps together for the first time. This leads to Halle and Henry finally sort-of having a conversation about the status of their relationship.

Halle tells him that when she and her ex, Will, started calling each other boyfriend and girlfriend, it ruined their relationship, and she doesn’t want that to happen with her and Henry. She tells him she wants to be exclusive and that she doesn’t want things to change between them.

Halle and Henry go to the boys’ house to hang out with their friends for a chill NYE, and they kiss at midnight.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Halle wakes up sick. Henry tries to get her to rest, but she keeps overworking herself. Henry takes her to his mom’s for some backup so Halle will take care of herself, and also because his mom is a nurse.

Henry’s mom makes her chicken noodle soup and diagnoses her with a straightforward illness, and Halle agrees to take care of herself!

Chapter Thirty-Three 🌶️

Henry has spent the last week taking care of Halle, but she can now sense a weird tension in the air and knows that Henry is on edge. He admits that not only is he stressed about playing against her ex, Will, this weekend but also that her parents are traveling to visit (though it’s no coincidence it’s the same weekend as Will’s game). Henry wants to beat Will (not literally, but like, at hockey) and is worried that her parents won’t like him as much as Will.

Halle convinces him to do something to take his mind off of the game, and he takes her to his art studio, and they decide to body paint…aaaaand let’s just say this leads to a sexy art time. Personally, the hygiene aspects of this worried me.

Halle is on cloud nine when she leaves Henry’s. However, when she gets back to her house, she sees a car she doesn’t recognize. She walks into her home to find her parents along with Will and his parents!

Chapter Thirty-Four

Let’s just say this surprise visit is not well received. Halle immediately panics, thinking of all the things that she would have cleaned or put away if she knew people would be at her home. As she runs to the bathroom to hide the box of condoms, which she finds empty (not how she left it), she is confronted by Will.

Will rips Halle a new one about how her new friends don’t know the real her and that she’s being fake. He tries to convince her to go back to normal between them and tells her that she needs to be honest with herself.

What he really is upset about, though, is that she’s clearly sleeping with Henry even though she never felt comfortable sleeping with him. He tries to make her insecure about her relationship with Henry, telling her that he only cares about her since she’s putting out.

Halle tells Will that her new friends know her more than he ever did in their whole relationship. She goes on to say that the only things he knows and likes about her are things that she would do for him and the parts of her that she gave up to put him first. Also, super awkward, but her parents are staying at the house with her without checking in to see if it was okay.

Chapter Thirty-Five

Now, the whole UCMH team is united in their desire to beat Will. Will tries to goad Henry before the game by calling Halle his leftovers and a bunch of other nasty things about Halle’s body. Then, Will hits Henry outside the locker rooms!

Henry’s coach tries to get Henry to tell him what just happened, but Henry feels like it would embarrass and compromise Halle, so he doesn’t tell his coach. Henry gets benched from the game but feels relieved. He doesn’t want to let his teammates down, but he has been stressed all year about being good enough to be the captain.

Chapter Thirty-Six

Halle is at the game with her parents and her friends (who switched seats so she wouldn’t have to deal with her mom on her own). Her mom gives her a hard time about not wearing Will’s jersey but Henry’s instead.

Halle starts to panic when she notices that Will and Henry are not on the ice with the rest of their teams. Her mom tries to stop Halle when she gets up to check on Henry and accuses her of not caring about her “real family,” and Halle finally pops off.

She tells her mom that she hates being the “family manager,” that her relationship with Will was miserable because he was pressuring her, and that her mom doesn’t even know what’s going on in her life because she never asks about her and only asks her to do things. Halle says that she loves Henry and she needs to go find him to make sure he is okay. Her mom tells her they will talk about everything more later and that she never meant to put so much on her and hugs her.

Halle finds Henry, and they go home before they talk. He tells her about what happened between him and Will, but he doesn’t want to tell her exactly what Will said about her body. Halle is disgusted but tells him to tell his coach so he can get his spot back. Henry tells her that he felt relieved about not being captain and that he wants time before he decides what he is going to do. To do this, he decides to go to his parents for a bit.

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Someone is at Halle’s door whom she doesn’t recognize at first. However, once Anastasia introduces herself, Halle recognizes her from pictures! Stassie is worried about Henry and apologizes for not getting to know Halle yet.

Aurora, Cammie, and Amelia arrive at her door to cheer her up, and Halle feels so relieved to have friends, especially after Will told her that her new friends are really Henry’s friends and would never choose her.

She tells them about the arrangement between her and Henry: how they started their whole relationship to get experience for her book. She thinks he probably just felt sorry for her. The girls tell her that Henry always liked her, encourage her to finish her book, and put together a plan to make sure she makes the deadline for the contest. We see the growth of Halle when she accepts help from her friends!

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Henry, after two weeks of hiding at his parents’, is back at his house on campus, though he’s still avoiding everyone and all his responsibilities. He is surprised when Nate shows up at his door. He tells Nate that he feels like he failed everyone and that he has spiraled so much he doesn’t know how to come back from it. Nate tells Henry that he will go with him to talk to Faulkner and convinces him to come out with him and the guys to dinner.

At dinner, he admits to the guys that he felt relieved to not be captain. His teammates tell him that they don’t care if he is captain and that they want him to be happy.

Henry goes to his meeting with Faulkner. Faulkner asks him why he didn’t tell him that he never hit anyone and that Will was the one who attacked him. After he tells Faulkner he doesn’t want to be captain anymore, his coach helps him come up with a plan to make up for the workouts he’s missed and right things with the classes he’s behind on. He also encourages him to find someone to talk to when he’s overwhelmed. Faulkner says when they’re done with these things, they will find someone new to be captain.

When Henry gets home, he feels like his life is getting back on track and he finally texts Halle.

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Halle is with her friends, and they’re worried that she is still going on the trip with her family. Halle, though, decides she still wants to go. Her mom and her had talked everything out, with her mom saying she doesn’t have to go on the trip if she doesn’t want to and that she supports her.

Halle finishes her book with her friends’ help, and she feels so happy to have leaned on them when she needed them.

Halle arrives home to Henry being at her house. She is surprised that, after so desperately wanting to hear from him, she feels guarded around him. He thanks her for being patient with him and gives her a wrapped gift with instructions not to open it till she receives a specific email. Halle’s ride for the airport arrives, and she leaves with a kiss on the head from Henry.

At the airport, she gets the email with an audio file: it’s Henry reading her author biography! He calls himself her boyfriend and says that he hopes to be the love of her life. She opens the gift to find her book will illustrations made by him with his inscription, “This might be my favorite romance novel, but we’re our favorite love story.”

Chapter Forty

Henry has accepted that Halle will need some time, but he also recognizes that the time they spent apart ended up being best for both of them.

Henry is shocked when Halle appears outside his room, thinking she would be boarding her flight right now. Halle tells him that there was a mistake in the audiobook he made for her because no one had asked her to be their girlfriend.

Henry asks her what made her change the ending, and she tells him that she couldn’t imagine an ending where two people who love each other don’t end up together. She tells him that she told her mom she didn’t want to go on the trip with her ex’s family, and her mom tells her she’s happy for her to be setting boundaries and that their next trip will be just their family. Henry thinks this means he is staying home with her, but she tells him that she is actually going to go on the girls’ trip with Rory!

Before she leaves the house he asks her to be his girlfriend, and she very happily says yes.

Epilogue

Halle is surrounded by all her friends crowding around her phone for the results of the writing competition. Though she doesn’t win and is placed as a runner-up, she still gets to go to the course! Her brother arranged for their parents to pay for the course as well as a place for her to stay, so she still gets to follow her dreams.

She is even more excited because Henry is also going to NY for the summer taking art classes, so they will get to spend the summer together.

Daydream by Hannah Grace – My Thoughts & Review

I don’t know if I just didn’t notice this in the other Hannah Grace books I have read, but I really struggled with how much happened off page in this book. It was a lot of tell and not show. I’d get to the next chapter and there would be a big time jump followed by a lot of exposition to explain what they’re about to do. It made me really not care about this couple compared to the other UCMH pairs.

I’m not sure what it was about this book, but I just did not vibe with this couple at all. With the other two Maple Hills books and with Hannah Grace’s Christmas book, I could not put them down and ended up reading them in like, a day. With Daydream, I really had to force myself to read this one. I just could not connect to Halle and Henry, and it felt like there was almost no plot in this book.

I am still holding out for a Ryan book though……..

What did you think of this book? What were your favorite Halle and Henry moments?? I must know!!

Happy reading xx

-Paisley

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