A Supernova Kind of Love

"Have you ever heard of supernovas?
They shine brighter than anything else in the sky and then fade out really quickly, a short burst of extraordinary energy.
I like to think you and Ben were like that...
in that short time, you had more passion than some people have in a lifetime."

--Taylor Jenkins Reid, Forever, Interrupted

Genre: Adult Contemporary
Publisher: Washington Square Press
Pages: 352
Publication Date: July 9th, 2013
Source: Borrowed from library
Find on Goodreads

Goodreads Description

Elsie Porter is an average twentysomething and yet what happens to her is anything but ordinary. On a rainy New Year’s Day, she heads out to pick up a pizza for one. She isn’t expecting to see anyone else in the shop, much less the adorable and charming Ben Ross. Their chemistry is instant and electric. Ben cannot even wait twenty-four hours before asking to see her again. Within weeks, the two are head over heels in love. By May, they’ve eloped.

Only nine days later, Ben is out riding his bike when he is hit by a truck and killed on impact. Elsie hears the sirens outside her apartment, but by the time she gets downstairs, he has already been whisked off to the emergency room. At the hospital, she must face Susan, the mother-in-law she has never met—and who doesn’t even know Elsie exists.

Interweaving Elsie and Ben’s charmed romance with Elsie and Susan’s healing process, Forever, Interrupted will remind you that there’s more than one way to find a happy ending.

The Feels I usually don't like to talk about my emotional response to the book before telling you what I liked about the content or characters but this book doesn't only bring the feels, it smacks you in the face with them. I contemplated saying the feels hit you like a Mack truck but that would just be insensitive to the book. Anyways. The story of this book is heart-breaking. No, like it might actually break your heart in the most literal sense that a heart has the capability of being broken without actually having something physically defective about it. It is just so sad. And while the context of the story is pretty clear via the synopsis, sudden death of husband after a week and a half, it is the subtle moments of Elsie's journey to recovery that had me BAWLING. Like out of nowhere! I thought I was over the sad and then BAM, crying. All over again. Taylor Jenkins Reid writes in such an honest way that what Elsie's is thinking feels so completely real that I found myself thinking, 'this is exactly what I would say or do or feel in this situation.' Her writing style, well, see below, let's go on to the next Belle...

The Writing The ebb and flow of this story is incredible. Alternating between  Ben and Elsie' meeting/courtship and after Ben's death. I was literally laughing out loud in one chapter and crying in the next. The story flows seamlessly and I just found myself relaxing and reading this book as if I were watching a movie. Effortless involvement and the story unfolded in front of me.It was a quick read and I needed it to end soon because my poor face hurt from holding in the tears.

The Characters Oh my gosh. Elsie will make you cry and laugh and rinse and repeat. She is an incredibly written character. Equal parts strength and vulnerable. Elsie is a woman who didn't know she was missing her place in the world until she found Ben. And NO, I do NOT mean that in a 'we are only half people until we find a partner to validate us.' I mean that she was perfectly content with her drama-free and normal existence and then this extraordinary love happens to her and it changes her. She realizes how much you have to grab life and be spontaneous. Ben brings out the absolute BEST in her and I believe she does that for him as well. Ben...BEN! Where do I begin about Ben. If I wasn't so upset he dies in the first two pages, I would have allowed myself the ultimate swoon. But he is SO totally swoony-worthy. Witty, sarcastic, smart, and always quick with a comeback AND ladies, he love to read YA. Uh, hello new best friend. Susan's character was one I wasn't sure what to think of at first but she grew on me and I loved her by the end. She has a lot of issues to work out and my poor heart goes out to her. AND GEORGE?!!? I die...I just die a little with how much I loved him as a secondary character.

The Beliefs I will so NOT get totally emo on this but I won't lie, and this isn't totally a Beast it is just MY  Beast, it broke my heart to read this story. It made me really contemplate how horrible this world can be sometimes and how utterly awful this would be to happen to somebody. I truly believe everything happens for a reason and everyone is entitled to their belief but it really, really broke my heart that Elsie and Susan both don't believe in Heaven or a higher power. The desolation they must feel at the thought of nothing coming after death was something I really struggled to understand and sympathize with. I wanted them so badly to have a belief in something greater than themselves to find some sort of peace in this horrible situation.

Yes! While this was another recommendation from Hannah, I wasn't sure while reading if I wanted to tackle-hug or tackle-hurt her. A little of both but tackle-hug was clearly the winner. I loved this book and how emotional it was. It hurt so good to read and was cathartic to read about somebody working through the grief process and finding her way. A quick-read that will have you both laughing and crying with a lot of depth and beautiful writing to boot.