Reading: One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Instead of stars, I give this one FIVE boxes of tissues.

My reading habits this past summer consisted of a lot of nonfiction and memoirs. But recently, a coworker/friend shared with me how tired she was. I, being the long-time Queen of Seekers for Work-Life Balance, asked her if she was working too much. She admitted, “Yes, but that’s not why I’m so tired. I stayed up past 3 a.m. reading a book that totally wrecked me.”

We all know I don’t shy away from books that open my heart wide open, so I insisted she tell me what book had her reaching for tissues in the middle of the night, and I immediately downloaded the audio version of One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid.

Maybe you’ve already read it. It’s not a new release. I came to know Taylor Jenkins Reid’s books because Daisy Jones & The Six has been in my To Be Read (TBR) pile all summer. But as I said in sentence one, my reading habits have leaned away from fiction lately.

Until now.

I adored One True Loves. It was just the heart-wrenching, sad, yet uplifting, keep-you-up-all-night kind of read I needed to hurl me back into the realm of fiction reading.

It reminded me how much I enjoy fiction when I’m working the CPA job, which I do mainly in the busy months of January-April and August-October.

Reid’s writing is breathtakingly beautiful and brutally honest. She takes the reader on a journey of deep introspection. She forces us to ask, “How would you feel in this situation. What would you do?”

I found myself sobbing during many parts of the book. And let’s face it, you know from chapter one the kind of read you’re in for.

The first sentence tells you a lot:

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

And if that’s not enough to pull you in, the last couple of paragraphs of the very first scene goes like this:

The man I loved since I was seventeen years old. The man who left me a widow when his helicopter went down somewhere over the Pacific and he was gone without a trace.

Jesse.

“Emma,” Jesse says. “It’s me. I’m alive. Can you hear me? I’m coming home.”

My heart seized up just reading those tiny excerpts, reminding me of this story and the feelings I had when I read it several weeks ago already. Reid’s story is still with me, and will probably make my list of favorite fiction I read in 2022.

I mean, any book that has me snot-crying into my pillow (ew, gross, right?) is going to make some sort of “Best of” list, right?

Clearly, I loved One True Loves, a book that forces the reader to ponder the question: Is it possible to have more than one soulmate? And I can 100% recommend the audio version read by Julia Whelan (an incredible narrator!).

I give this read FIVE tissue boxes. 🤧🤧🤧🤧🤧

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