Reviews with content warning for Grief - One True Loves

This book is pretty good. It’s casually written and easy to read but not overbearing, which I think is the point. The premise is interesting, and its execution is well-done; none of the characters felt too shallow for its well-rounded plotpoints and the conflict at its heart. I liked what it had to say about loss and change, and I felt like it gave the characters a decent amount of space to explore its themes in depth. It was a solid contemporary romance with a fresh, healing take on moving on.

I didn’t really love it, though. I didn’t feel strongly about it at all. Mostly I was underwhelmed. I’ve read three of TJR’s other books-- Malibu Rising, Daisy Jones & The Six, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo-- and I adored them all. I consider them to be some of my favorite books of all time. I think what drew me to them was their more literary and historical aspects, the extent of the worldbuilding in them, and the deeply compelling characters and plotlines that interweave with each other throughout them. One True Loves is not that, and maybe I shouldn’t have expected it to be, but I couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed. I’ve never liked reading romance, so maybe I should’ve predicted that I wouldn’t adore this book, but I thought the fact that TJR wrote it would save it for me.

To its credit, I didn’t actively dislike this book, which is a feat knowing how difficult I tend to be with romance novels-- I actually quite enjoyed the nuance with which it approached grief and the idea of moving on and how its scope was philosophically broad enough to be applied outside of just romance, and a few moments stood out to me in the writing as particularly striking (the comparison Emma makes of Jesse’s expectations for her to Penelope waiting for Odysseus was outstanding; it complemented her intelligence as a character and her background growing up around literature as well as thoughtfully communicating the themes of the novel, and also I really like Penelope so maybe I’m biased)-- but I think I just expected it to be more special than it was to me. The fact that I didn’t absolutely hate it is a testament to its merit in this genre. As I wrote, it’s a solid contemporary romance. It’s a pretty good book. I just wish it had been as exceptional as TJR’s more literary works, which is maybe not a fair expectation, but I have it nonetheless. It just wasn’t for me.

Content Warnings

rachael_jo's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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agnesbebon's review against another edition

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fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

A really beautiful love story. I loved reading this, I loved the story and the characters, but after finishing it I feel like I needed more in depth character development and relationship development.

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abitofapoet's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring sad

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Wow. A stunningly beautiful portrayal of loving and grieving. There wasn’t a moment of this book I didn’t enjoy. 💛

Content Warnings

megwilli's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted sad medium-paced

5.0

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