Tuesday, June 7, 2016

One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid



Atria/Washington Square Press Paperback | ISBN: 9781476776903 | On sale: June 7, 2016 | 352 pages | $16.00
eBook: Atria/Washington Square Press | ISBN: 9781476776910 | On sale: June 7, 2016 | 352 pages | $11.99



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.




When I requested One True Loves I decided not to read the blurb. I knew TJR writes a good story and I wanted to be surprised. You can understand my shocked face when in the first few paragraphs she says something like: I was with my fiancée when my husband called." Of course, I reread this sentence a couple of times until I realized there were no mistakes. I thought to myself: TJR sure can grab a reader's attention from the get-go. What follows was a story of loss and rebirth. It was a love triangle with features of Cast Away. I was thinking that Jesse probably was feeling like Tom Hanks when he comes back to land to find out his woman is with another man. 

I love how involved I became with these characters and their back stories. I could divide the story into three parts: Emma with Jesse, Emma with Sam and then Emma, Sam, and Jesse together. I was torn between both guys. They truly were nice guys who loved her and they were perfect for her during a certain time in her life. I did have a favorite and I was hoping he was the last man standing.

Emma was a good character too. She spent the first few decades of her life trying to move away from her family and her town. When she loses Jesse, she finds comfort returning to her family and their bookstore. Her character evolves and she discovers she can be happy again. Meeting Sam again confirms it. But, when Jesse is back in her life, she has no idea whom her true love is. It's a road to self-discovering. 

My only complaint with this book is that I felt like their conflict was solved to easily and Emma kept on going back and forth between both guys. Overall, it was a good book!

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs 
A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

ONE TRUE LOVES is an eye opening story with writing that compels you from the first line. 

“I am finishing up dinner with my family and my fiancé when my husband calls.” 

That first line drew me so deeply into Emma’s life and struggles, and her life is anything but perfect. Her husband, the love of her life’s, plane crashes and the body is never found. After years of loneliness Emma begins to live again. She’s now engaged and is finally happy when she gets a phone call that changes her world. Her husband has been found, and he’s coming back for her. 

**

ONE TRUE LOVES isn’t your typical love story. It’s not a happy fairy tale where boy meets girl and then boy and girl fall in love and live happily ever after. ONE TRUE LOVES is a story about first loves and the realization that there are ways to love more than one person. 

I truly love Taylor Jenkins Reid. When I read a book by her, I always know the story is going to leave me thinking about it days after I finish. Her writing is poetic and easily read, not to mention the effortless way she flows the story and builds her fictional world that pulls me in until the very end. 

Obviously by reading the synopsis everyone can tell this will turn into a bit of a love triangle. Anyone who knows me knows I HATE love triangles, but Taylor Jenkins Reid took this sensitive subject with the angst and hurt and made it okay. So if you’r like me and the love triangles make you anxious, give this one a shot! You won’t be disappointed! 

I’m not going to say anything else because I think people who read TJR should go in some what blind, it makes for a much better reading experience! 


4/5 FANGS




Taylor Jenkins Reid is an author and essayist from Acton, Massachusetts. She is the author of Forever, Interrupted, After I Do and Maybe In Another Life. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband, Alex, and her dog, Rabbit. You can follow her on Twitter @TJenkinsReid.






2 comments:

  1. This is the only book that I've read by this author so far and I really enjoyed it! Great reviews!

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    Replies
    1. I'm glad you liked it!! This was my first one too.

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