Book Review: Maybe in Another Life

Wow! This book killed me. If you've been following me for awhile you know that this is my second Taylor Jenkins Reid book. My first by her was Daisy Jones and the Six and that one also blew me away. It was such a quick read and I felt like I was watching a VH1 rock doc. Anyways, I've actually had Maybe in Another Life sitting on my shelf for awhile and still hadn't picked it up. I have no idea why I waited so long to read anything by her honestly. 

Maybe in Another Life follows 29-year-old Hannah as she moves back to Los Angeles after living in NYC for some time as well as traveling around the US. Hannah is staying with her best friend Gabby and her husband Mark when upon her return they all go out to meet with some friends. One of those friends happens to be Hannah's high school boyfriend who has always been kind of lingering in the picture, but the timing was never right. At the end of the night, Hannah must choose between going home with Ethan and just going back home with her best friend and the consequences of both of those decision. 


What I love about Taylor Jenkins Reid is her writing style and how she toys with the conventional linear storyline and format of the stories she writes. I've only read two of her books, but both of them have been written in completely different styles. With Maybe in Another Life, Reid gives us two different story outcomes woven together to make one narrative with the same essential themes. She does it in a beautiful way that doesn't confuse the reader and keeps us engaged throughout the whole story. Oftentimes with multiple narratives, one falls short of the other, but Reid does such a good job at writing both stories that I didn't know which outcome I wanted more. What I loved the most is that there were bits and pieces of the same ideas and themes in both storylines. Little hints that tell us these certain elements were meant to be part of our protagonists journey, and part of our supporting characters journey's as well, no matter how heartbreaking the outcomes are. 

One theme that really stuck out to me was the bond of female friendship. Hannah and Gabby have been friends since high school and no matter what happened in each others lives, they were always there for each other. In both storylines, when something bad or hard happened, the other was standing right there supporting her friend no matter what. Either lying on the floor with her or telling the other to "divide the pain in two, and give half of it to me." The bonds of their friendship outlasted everything, and that to me is a triumph.

This book was a beautiful exploration of the "what if's" of the multiverse and I would recommend it to anyone who likes a little romance and drama told in an unconventional way. 

Happy Reading!