A review by yuxuannn
One True Loves, by Taylor Jenkins Reid
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
this was amazing. the first person pov was abit weird at first (maybe just bcos i don’t really like it) but i got used to it and it sounds like emma is addressing you (the reader) directly, telling you the story herself. i’ve only read one other tjr book (seven husbands of evelyn hugo, amazing book everyone should read it) and i think she has this ability to write the story as if it’s not fiction, like emma is just recounting her whole experience to someone else and it’s not done fiction book telling a thought up story. idk if i make sense 🙃 while it’s amazing and made me a sobbing mess there’s some stuff that doesn’t really sit well with me and hence the not 5 stars
The thing that didn’t sit well with me was the physical relationship between Emma and Jesse after Jesse came back. As much as it was conveyed about the guilt/ disloyalty she felt ‘betraying’ Jesse, i think the opposite (‘betraying’ Sam) was not shown in the same degree. Like girl you’re engaged and then straight on went to have sex with the man you didn’t see for 3 years, although yes he is your husband and the love of your life but girl?!? I just felt a little icky reading it but again, probably a me problem.
The other thing is that I don’t like Jesse (i’m sry team Jesse) although at the end I found myself feeling sad for him and realising that I cannot imagine what he went through. But I’m team Sam the moment he appeared like right from the start and I never liked Jesse even during the Jesse part HAHHAH idk if it’s deliberately written this way but it was very obvious to me even during Jesse’s part that he was not going to be the one to grow old with Emma, that Jesse was a teen/twenties, adventurous, rash decisions, all-or-nothing type of love. Maybe I’m older and know what type of love is lasting, so I find myself rooting for Sam. But tjr really did bring the message across: even if the love isn’t lasting, it doesn’t mean that it was not true love. I think it’s a really beautiful message and she really did convey it very well. I guess that’s why I couldn’t bring myself to give it a lower rating.
Spoiler
firstly the first person pov but i think it’s a me problem cos i don’t really like it it’s a personal preference hhaha.The thing that didn’t sit well with me was the physical relationship between Emma and Jesse after Jesse came back. As much as it was conveyed about the guilt/ disloyalty she felt ‘betraying’ Jesse, i think the opposite (‘betraying’ Sam) was not shown in the same degree. Like girl you’re engaged and then straight on went to have sex with the man you didn’t see for 3 years, although yes he is your husband and the love of your life but girl?!? I just felt a little icky reading it but again, probably a me problem.
The other thing is that I don’t like Jesse (i’m sry team Jesse) although at the end I found myself feeling sad for him and realising that I cannot imagine what he went through. But I’m team Sam the moment he appeared like right from the start and I never liked Jesse even during the Jesse part HAHHAH idk if it’s deliberately written this way but it was very obvious to me even during Jesse’s part that he was not going to be the one to grow old with Emma, that Jesse was a teen/twenties, adventurous, rash decisions, all-or-nothing type of love. Maybe I’m older and know what type of love is lasting, so I find myself rooting for Sam. But tjr really did bring the message across: even if the love isn’t lasting, it doesn’t mean that it was not true love. I think it’s a really beautiful message and she really did convey it very well. I guess that’s why I couldn’t bring myself to give it a lower rating.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Injury/injury detail, and Death