One True Loves: A Novel

I fell in love with Taylor Jenkins Reid's writing the first time I read her debut novel, Forever, Interrupted, and have since read every book she's written as soon as I can get my hands on them. Needless to say, I had her newest, One True Loves, pre-ordered and dove right in as soon as it was delivered. I was once again absolutely delighted with the complex, emotional story she presented, one that had me not only eager to see how the characters would react to the impossible-seeming situation but questioning how I would react given the same. I think for me the best part of the story (save the interesting dilemma it presented) was the time taken to fully develop these characters. Without it, I don't think I would have cared as much about Emma's love story and, other than still being an entertaining story, it wouldn't have had the emotional impact on me it did (really as all her books do). As it is, Reid crafts these characters that are funny, flawed, emotive, and as relatable as they come. She then takes the time to really develop their relationships and experiences, making everything feel that much more understandable. Giving the reader a clear view into how Emma lived with and loved both men made it that much more complicated when trying to decide (or figure out) who she would end up with. I did, however, know who I wanted her to pick about half way through, and I somewhat surprised myself since it wasn't whom I initially thought I would have selected. I think that just speaks to how much she had me invested in each of their lives. While this is heavily a story about a woman figuring out which of the two loves of her life she should end up with, that isn't all this story has to provide. There's a complicated relationship between Emma and her sister (which most people with siblings will be able to relate to), a look at how grief and hardship changes people, as well as the idea that you never quite know where your life might take you, which might include going back to the very places you try so hard to get away from. There are a number of interesting threads running through the story, giving plenty to enjoy and ponder as the story progresses and long after it's done. I'm clearly a huge fan of this author and recommend her all the time. I'm always surprised at the complex situations she puts her characters in and the way they, somehow, find a logical and very satisfying conclusion. I laugh, I get a little misty, and I completely fall for her characters and their dilemmas every time. One True Loves and really all her books are perfect, especially for this time of year, and I can't recommend them enough if you want a thoughtful, satisfying read.

Good story with underlying themes of grief, love, change and growth. Could have used a spicier ending but the message of the book was clear.

4.5/5--This was an absolute gut punch and I could not put it down. I flew through it and loved every second. I didn't care for many of the choices Emma made because someone always ends up devastated in love triangle-y books and it ends up devastating me too. I was pulling for the one that she didn't choose to stay with. But once I realized the rationale Emma was using to make her Big Decision (between Sam or Jesse), I understood why things had to play out the way they did. An impossible choice to have to make! I think this could have been outstanding as a duology or even one much longer book, just so everything didn't seem to happen so quickly. A lot of things happen in this book, but the book's length made it feel like everything happened in very rapid succession. Imagine if each of these scenes in Emma's life had sufficient page-space to be developed, so that our emotions as readers could develop too? I would like to think that Emma was less flippant and wishy-washy than she came across here, but the length of the book didn't give her enough space to have deeper thoughts or fully weigh out the consequences for her choices. Still, a brilliant story, and another one by TJR that really made me think.

Format: Audible/Paperback/Kindle ⭐⭐⭐Enjoyed, would recommend 🌶️ Rating: 1 This is my 6th Taylor Jenkins Reid book, and it is a rounded 3 for me. I’d say more of a 2.5ish. I think the problem is I know the power of Reid’s talent, and it just did not shine through in this book. It’s not a bad book, it’s not a bad story. Did it grip me, not really. Throughout my reading journey I kept forgetting the name of the book. The characters are cute, the storyline seems rushed. I definitely did not give me “all the feels” like I’m use to with her books. It’s a fast read for sure, but you can skip this one and try The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo or Daisy Jones & The Six.

I have found that I really enjoy TJR’s style of writing so I’ve been trying to read through her list of books. This one doesn’t disappoint. It starts off telling you the story from a teenage point of view when she meets and falls in love with her eventual husband. Then you read about their marriage and how he eventually goes missing on a work trip. He’s gone for 3+ years and you hear a lot about her grief and how she tried to get through it. Eventually she takes a chance on an old dorky highschoool friend and ends up getting engaged to him. Then the husband miraculously comes back and she’s faced with deciding between the two. The good stuff: 1. The writing about grief was excellent, even if you haven’t lived through a loved one dying or going missing, most people have experienced grief and the description was spot on. 2. The love story of how she met her husband was sweet and it immediately transported me back to highschool crushes and best friends that you think matter more than family. 3. The relationship with her parents was great - they were supportive even when they didn’t understand her choices and welcomed her back when she needed them. The not so good stuff: 1. She had a strained relationship with her sister for seemingly no real reason which was a recurring theme but didn’t have much substance. 2. The husbands survival story was so ridiculous and implausible it was comical. They also only discussed what he actually went through for like 1 paragraph…. This was the major pivotal moment… wish it had been better thought out and described. Wish we could have heard his point of view. 3. The book focuses heavily on how a person can fundamentally change after a tragedy.. but I seriously doubt a girl who was desperate to travel the world, moved across the country, and married a trouble making jock, would suddenly decide she wants to move back home permanently, run a small family store, and marry the band geek from her highschool. That sounds like a rebound move while picking up the pieces… not how she would permanently shape the rest of her life. 4. I personally think she picked the wrong guy in the end (don’t come for me on this). I think her decision will leave her unhappy and bored in the long run. To be fair, I think the best ending of all would have been her picking herself and starting her life fresh over going back to traveling and writing. I loved the sister telling her it wasn’t about the men, she had to figure out herself. Wish they had stuck to that theme! In sum, it’s the typical good read by TJR but I wish the ending had been better with the main tragedy better thought out and addressed. Maybe one day she will write a book from Jesse’s POV or Marie’s POV and I would love to read those!

"I am finishing up dinner with my family and my fiancé when my husband calls." What an opening line!! What would you do if the person you loved and thought was gone, suddenly re-appeared in your life, after you had moved on? This is the center of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s fantastic new novel, ONE TRUE LOVES. From this powerful beginning, this story follows Emma as she must reconcile finding her long-lost first love with her new life and her new fiance, Sam. Emma and Jesse had been crazy in love and absolutely devoted to each other. They met as teenagers and ended up married and moving away from their small New England town to California. A tragic accident takes Jesse away, and after an agonizing period of mourning, Emma finds herself opening up to the possiblity of loving another man again. "I think that perhaps everyone has a moment that splits their life in two. When you look back on your own timeline, there’s a sharp spike somewhere along the way, some event that changed you, changed your life, more than the others. A moment that creates a “before” and an “after.” " Told from Emma’s POV, this book tells the story of how Emma and Jesse first fell in love. The author does an amazing job of creating very memorable characters who seemed very real. I felt like I knew Emma, Jesse and Sam and their friends and families. It is very important for me to feel connected to the main characters and I absolutely connected with all of the characters in this book. I loved how Emma grew and matured throughout this book and how her relationships with those around her changed and evolved as well. "Good things don’t wait until you’re ready. Sometimes they come right before, when you’re almost there. And I figured when that happens, you can let them pass by like a bus not meant for you. Or you can get ready. So I got ready." I cannot think of enough to say about this gorgeous book!! Emma, Jesse and Sam’s story is so totally engrossing, you will feel like you are reading about your good friends. I cared deeply about what was going to happen to these three and was completely blown away by the direction this book took. This is a richly written, detailed story about first love, family, friendship and growing up. The ending is enormously satisfying and I found myself re-reading passages this book after I finished. I was not ready to say goodbye to these characters! ONE TRUE LOVES is certainly one of the best books of the year and one of new top favorite books ever. Don’t miss this one!! Favorite quote: "I don’t think that true love means your only love. I think true love means loving truly. Loving purely. Loving wholly."

Taylor Jenkins Reid has never let me down with any of her novels. Each one is written in an extremely easy to read style that ensures readers will fly through the pages; each one also happens to be laced with themes that are universal and thought-provoking. One True Loves is certainly no exception, as Reid seeks to present her own answer to one question: Is it possible to truly love more than one person? Now, I know my answer to this question, but I was eager to discover how Reid would endeavor to address it in this novel. And quite frankly, I thought she did a spectacular job. Writing about something this complicated requires a capable, confident hand, and that is precisely what Reid possesses. One True Loves tells the story of Emma Blair. In her twenties, she marries her high school sweetheart Jesse, and together, they make a life for themselves that involves all sorts of spontaneous adventures. It is on their first anniversary when Emma’s life changes forever – because Jesse goes missing on a trip for work. In an effort to regroup, Emma quits her job and moves back home where she begins working at her family’s bookstore. It is there she runs into an old friend, Sam, and she finds herself doing the impossible: falling in love a second time. But when Jesse is found alive, Emma now has to face an impossible choice. It sounds really dramatic, and yet, Reid handles the entire plot with a surprisingly light touch. Don’t get me wrong – there’s plenty of heartache and sorrow to go around, which is not surprising considering the plot. But, as with her other novels, Reid injects humor and joy into the tale, and that certainly balanced things out. It helps that Emma is a likable character, and I immediately felt a kinship with her. Her struggles were really hard to read about, her triumphs were easy to cheer for and I really found it easy to understand and relate to her. And I liked the secondary characters – adventurous Jesse, thoughtful Sam, Emma’s sweet family specifically – a whole lot too. But more than anything, I really appreciated Reid’s approach to the romance. Readers are treated to time with both of the men in Emma’s life – from the start of the romance to the state of these relationships in the face of the current conflict. I loved the perspective that this provided when considering how Emma should react, and it was incredible how Reid managed to also make me like both men (as individuals and for Emma) for different reasons. It was such a raw, honest portrayal of what such a situation could mean for everyone involved! I’m really impressed by how Reid navigated her story, and even more impressed by how she wrapped it all up in the end. (And no, I’m not giving you even a hint. Or telling how I felt in particular about these guys. You’ll need to read it for yourself, and then we can talk about it.) Reid continues to put out novels that are guaranteed to be reads that are impossible to put down, extremely compelling (in spite of the emotional turmoil) and extremely thoughtful explorations of some big, personal questions. I really admire her ability to get me to see so many different aspects of any given situation her characters find themselves in, and the way that she constantly challenges me to really think about things when I finish one of her stories. I’m definitely a fan of One True Loves, and will certainly say that it’s an excellent addition to the already published work from Reid. (And I’m very much looking forward to the next one, whatever it may be about!)

I am literally trying so hard right now to put my emotions into words for you guys. But before I do that, I think I need to break this book up into 3 parts. For arguments sake, we’ll just call it the ‘before’, ‘middle’ and ‘end’. As the synopsis says, Emma marries her sweetheart and on their first wedding anniversary, Jesse goes missing and is presumed gone forever. Three years later she meets Sam, another man she went to school with and he almost heals her heart. They get engaged and are planning a life together. Until Jesse is found alive and returns to Emma hoping to put their lives back together. “Do you ever get over loss? Or do you find a box within yourself, big enough to hold it? Do you just stuff it in there, push it down, and snap the lid on it? Do you just work, every day, to keep the box shut? The ‘before’ part of this book is setting the scene. You know from the first line that Jesse is alive so you are well prepared for what is coming. You get to know how Emma met Jesse and their life together. And then he goes missing. Insert the ‘middle’ part of the book. Where you fall in love with Sam. And then you live through Emma’s emotions of coming to terms with having a fiancé and having her husband back after thinking for three years that he has been dead. Now, those of you who are worried about a love triangle. I just wanted to clear up that it’s not your usual triangle. Yes, she loves them both, but when Emma is with Sam, she thinks Jesse is dead. And she never cheats on Sam. So it’s definitely safe for you to read if cheating is something you don’t like! The ‘before’ and ‘middle’ parts of the book are so great. I would give the first 2/3s of the book a 4.5. Even up until the end. I was really loving the book and a 4.5 it was. That is until the epilogue. “Don’t ever let anyone tell you the most romantic part of love is the beginning. The most romantic part is when you know it has to end.” Okay, so that quote isn’t from the epilogue but I wanted to add it there because it so fits this story. I love it! But the epilogue. Omg. I was completely satisfied with how the book ended. But that epilogue was just absolutely perfect. I cried. I cried happy tears, sad tears, beautiful tears. I cried all the tears. I cried for Emma, I cried for Jesse and I cried for Sam. It was probably the most perfect epilogue I’ve read in a long time and I’m so glad it ended that way. And because of that, it pushed this book right up to a 5 star and straight into my best reads of 2016 list. What a stunning story of self discovery. Of who you are and who you want to be. It’s beautiful, it’s powerful and it’s heartbreaking all at the same time. But I cannot recommend it enough. What an absolute pleasure it was so be able to experience this book. I’ll definitely be holding it close to my heart <3 5 stars