TL;DR: One of the most unique and original books I’ve read this year is also one of the best love stories I’ve read in a long time, and one of the more emotional books I’ve read since crying my face off over Ann Napolitano’s HELLO BEAUTIFUL two years ago. That book is Jessica Soffer’s THIS IS A LOVE STORY, which hits bookshelves this week (and was just announced as the Read With Jenna Book Club pick for February!). Yes, the book is centered around the love story of an older married couple looking back on their lives together- but it’s also a multigenerational family drama, and its a really beautiful love letter to Central Park and New York City. Reviewers are calling it “a revelation”, a “lyrical, graceful novel of love and art”, and a “home run of a novel”. It’s clearly resonating with readers and reviewers alike, and I think it’s a very special book, in particular for fans of authors like Napolitano, Ann Patchett, Claire Lombardo, and Chris Whitaker (Soffer actually uses a similar lyrical style in her writing that reminded me of Chris).

I had high hopes for Jessica Soffer's This is a Love Story, but I was ultimately disappointed by it. Sofer is a beautiful writer and the book's premise is good, but I felt that the novel's narrative structure failed it. I wanted to care about Abe and Jane, but the other (beautiful) details about Central Park drowned out their love story. As an avid reader of poetry, I feel this book could have been a series of poems which would have captured what the author wanted to do with this tale.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC; all opinions are my own.

This Is a Love Story by Jessica Soffer is undeniably beautifully written. The prose is lyrical and often quite moving, with quiet observations that feel emotionally true and occasionally profound. Soffer has a real gift for crafting language that feels intimate and reflective, and there were many lines I found myself pausing to reread simply because of how lovely they were.

That said, while I appreciated the writing style and the deeper themes of grief, connection, and longing, I had a hard time fully connecting with the characters or the story as a whole. The structure is unconventional, which I usually enjoy, but in this case it made the narrative feel fragmented and at times emotionally distant. I found myself wanting more momentum, or at least more insight into the characters' choices and relationships as the story progressed.

The pacing also felt slow in places, and though there were beautiful moments scattered throughout, I didn’t feel entirely invested in the outcome. I think this book will resonate more strongly with readers who enjoy introspective, character-driven stories with poetic prose and don’t mind a slower, more abstract narrative.

Overall, it wasn’t a bad read by any means—it just didn’t quite click for me in the way I hoped. Still, I can absolutely see how others might find it meaningful and memorable, especially if they connect more with the style and tone.

Thank you NetGalley and Dutton Publishing for my DRC!

I enjoyed this New York set montage of reflective text. It was an interesting read for me. I’ve never heard anything like it before I would give it for a five stars.

I really wanted to be in the camp of people who loved this book - - I just wasn't.

I will say that this author can write beautiful prose. The descriptions in this book were detailed and lovely. But all of that took away from my ability to connect with the actual characters. There were so many descriptive words flowing that it often felt like too much. Sometimes less is better. For me, I don't need all of that to connect with characters. And I would have really loved to have been able to feel connected with these characters. Unfortunately, I never really did.

I believe that many people will love this book - - clearly many already do. So for that reason, I would never discourage anyone from trying it. A miss for me could be a win for someone else.

Thank you to NetGalley for the early reading copy.

THIS IS A LOVE STORY by is unlike any book I’ve read. The storytelling is unique — there’s both third and second person narrative — and put me out of my comfort zone for sure.

Ultimately, the novel is about a couple’s love story. It’s late in their lives and one of them is dying from cancer. Together, they remember their life together — the good times and the bad.

This wasn’t an easy read — it’s got some heavy topics in here. I kind of loved that? Life ain’t easy either. The observations about being a mother, a husband, a wife, a son — a human in general — it was all really artfully portrayed.

I really enjoyed this! I don't think that this book will be for everyone. Perhaps the style of the writing will turn people off. It's blunt and clipped and to the point. Not lyrical and beautiful. But I think that is what I loved themost about it. In this we follow a family and hear from each of their perspectives; depressed mother, copinp, detached father, impacted over achieving son. It's raw and sad and devestating. Great read!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for the advance readers copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

This was a beautiful love story! Watching the life of two people in a marriage unfold through multiple POVs and moments in time was great. While it wasn't happy the entire time, I think seeing the highs and lows of the marriage and their individual struggles which impacted their family life was important to showing the depiction of a real life love story. I want to read more by Jessica Soffer!

This Is a Love Story reads like poetry. Jessica Soffer’s writing style is one of the most unique I’ve encountered in a long time, seamlessly shifting POVs through memories—especially in the uniquely written Central Park chapters. While I wasn’t the biggest fan of the storyline and actually found it a bit depressing and bland, I’d still recommend it for the writing alone.

Thank you to NetGalley for this free copy in exchange for an honest review. I will admit this book started off well enough but I didn't finish it. I found the back of forth of different perspectives hard to read and follow. I'm sad, because I was truly looking forward to reading it.

I loved the writing style, though I'm not sure it's for everyone. Sentence fragments, stream of consciousness, inner monologue and dialog with no quotation marks. I loved how it was a story surrounding a couple's entire marriage and it's ups and downs and that much of it was centered in Central Park. I thought the story lost the Park thread after starting up with it being really central and brought it back kind of randomly here and there. Generally, I enjoyed the story and found it's depiction of a marriage really beautiful.

This book initially sounded like it would be perfect for my tastes. I tried multiple times to pick it up, but it is not for me. As a general rule I do not share books I DNF'd or books that I do not recommend on my social media channels, so I will not be sharing This Is A Love Story.

This one was really beautifully written - something I don't feel is quite explored in romance is quiet love stories, but these are the ones that usually tend to surprise me the most. It really felt like it sneaks up on you with its tenderness and emotion. This story isn't just about romantic love, but familial love, grief, memory, and healing. It shows the reality of life, and the highs and lows that come with being alive.

It’s definitely not your traditional romance, but that’s what made it so special. This is definitely a story for people who love character-driven stories with rich prose and emotional depth.

DNF @ 20% | This was one of my most anticipated, and I was even more excited when Read With Jenna chose it for the monthly read. However, the writing style and voice did NOT work for me. It was too much like lyrical prose, especially without any dialogue. The story itself sounded like something I would like (an older couple, one of whom is terminally ill, reflects on their life together – say less) so maybe if the writing style had been different I would have been able to stick with it. I even think I would have liked Central Park serving as a character of sorts! (Something I've seen in others reviews that was hit or miss.) The only way to decide if this is for you is to give it a try. If you don't jive with the style within the first few pages, you can safely let it go.

This book is not for me. I tried, but I just couldn't get into the blank verse, repetition, and timeline jumps. Usually, a Read With Jenna book is an indication of a book I'll enjoy, but this one I could not even finish.

This novel is beautifully written – the story of Abe and Jane, a dreamy tour through memories of a life and a love story, told by multiple points of view and interspersed with the story of Central Park and the many other love stories that intersect with it. It’s fairly slow paced but never lost my attention because I was captured by the story, the emotion, and the lyrical writing. The characters are fully formed, complex people, and as such, are not all likeable through all of the book. They screw up, they make mistakes. But especially in the case of the main couple, Abe and Jane, it’s lovely to see how they grow and change and have conflict and through it all, stay together and still in love. Large parts of the book are told in the second person, which I know turns some people off, so if you’re one of them, be warned. If you don’t mind that, though, and you don’t necessarily need a sunny happy ending, and you’re looking for gorgeous writing that will quite probably make you cry, I can highly recommend this book.

CW: Postpartum depression, cancer, mention of suicide

Disappointed in this one-- I found it boring and slow. The writing was fine, but the pacing and the characters didn't draw me in. It was a miss for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This is uniquely written in that it is part journal entry-esque and the other part a record of rights, wrongs, memories, seasons...life really. Chapters switch between cataloging the family life of Abe, Jane and Max now that Jane is dying, the others are an ode to Central Park. The family chapters are a relatable look at love, career, marriage and parenthood. I likely would have rated this higher if I had been a New Yorker or visited Central Park more than the one time I've been there; those who have experienced it will see those chapters as a love letter.

Read content warnings!
Ugly cry of the year.
Beautiful, poignant, heart wrenching then breaking.
The people, the park (Central), the love, the art, the prose, a must read.
Will linger in my heart and soul forever

This is a moving and poignant book, that I know would appeal to a range of readers. The details of place and NYC landscapes are especially well-drawn. Seems better for a book club than university teaching but nonetheless enjoyable.