The work follows a nonlinear timeline, switching between the past and present for Emma, sorting through what it has been like to love Jesse, her husband, once presumed dead on a deserted island as a result of a work trip gone wrong, or the man she has come to love since, Sam. 

Taylor Jenkins Reid is exceptional, and I am no doubt a huge fan, but she has outdone herself with this one. The way in which she presents the dilemma for Emma is only to be outdone by the ending, in which readers find out the path in which Emma chooses to take. The stylistic choices of Reid are evident— the passion that Jesse and Emma both share for the spontaneity of their jobs as well as the comfort of stability provided by Sam are put on full display as the story plays out. These choices made it almost impossibly difficult to choose a guy (think Team Edward vs. Team Jacob, shoutout to my early 2000s romance readers that stuck with it even when it wasn’t as cool as Booktok makes it seem), but in the end, I am a sucker for a second chance romance and fell in love with Jesse from page one.  

Ultimately, I was on the wrong team for this one. Emma does end up choosing to move forward with Sam, but I can’t blame her for grieving the way she did, given that readers find out early that she gave up her life on the road to manage the family bookstore, something she swore up and down she would never do. Reid even gives Jesse a happy ending, albeit not with Emma, but the book closes in a happily ever after fashion, when Jesse calls Emma to talk about this new girl he met. 

Overall, this book is a quick and easy read, but it might be a tearjerker for those who have lost a loved one, or even those who have had to make choices similar to Emma’s in regards to their own love life. Either way, this book is a well deserved 5-star read, and I can’t wait to see what Taylor Jenkins Reid has to offer after this.