One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid on June 7, 2016
Genres: Fiction / General, Fiction / Romance / Contemporary, Fiction / Romance / General, Fiction / Romance / Romantic Comedy, Fiction / Women
Pages: 352
Format: Paperback
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“I don’t think that true love means your only love. I think true love means loving truly. Loving purely. Loving wholly.”
In her twenties, Emma Blair marries her high school sweetheart, Jesse. They build a life for themselves, far away from the expectations of their parents and the people of their hometown in Massachusetts. They travel the world together, living life to the fullest and seizing every opportunity for adventure. On their first wedding anniversary, Jesse is on a helicopter over the Pacific when it goes missing. Just like that, Jesse is gone forever. Emma quits her job and moves home in an effort to put her life back together. Years later, now in her thirties, Emma runs into an old friend, Sam, and finds herself falling in love again. When Emma and Sam get engaged, it feels like Emma’s second chance at happiness. That is, until Jesse is found. He’s alive, and he’s been trying all these years to come home to her. With a husband and a fiancé, Emma has to now figure out who she is and what she wants, while trying to protect the ones she loves. Who is her one true love? What does it mean to love truly? Emma knows she has to listen to her heart. She’s just not sure what it’s saying.
This book was devastatingly beautiful in a way that only Taylor Jenkins Reid can do. I couldn’t bring myself to decide who I wanted Emma to end up with? I felt like no matter who she chose, I would always be a little sad and hoping for the other. In the end, this had all the elements of a great romantic drama. I laughed, I cried, I felt inspired and heartbroken exactly when Reid wanted me to. I loved the writing, the characters and the story – all of which were grounded in reality and incredibly well-developed. There were a couple of little implausibilities (like Jesse’s survival) that ultimately weren’t enough to sway my overall enjoyment but were there none-the-less. The more works I read by Reid the more I enjoy her masterful story-telling and I’m so excited to continue to read more by her.
I gave this novel a four star rating. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time, and I couldn’t do anything until I finished it. I loved the ending, and the story, and the lesson it conveyed. Will TJR ever write a book that doesn’t make you wanna scream, smile, and cry all at the same time?