Book Review: One Plus One

One Plus One

By: Jojo Moyes

Published By: Penguin Books

Publication Date: March 31, 2015 (Paperback Edition)

Page Count: 416

Buy it at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or IndieBound

Source: Kindly Provided by Publisher
Adult Fiction

I loved and adored Me Before You by JoJo Moyes. It completely broke my heart and left me a sobbing mess with a giant book hangover. So naturally when the opportunity to read One Plus One arose, I jumped at it. 

 One Plus One has a very different feel to Me Before You, and of course a very different subject matter, but what it shares is well drawn, realistic characters from different social strata. 

 27 year old Jess Thomas has been on her own since her husband, Marty, went up to his mum’s in Glasgow to recover from his depression two years earlier. Looking after Marty’s 15 year old son Nicky and their 10 year old daughter Tanzie isn’t easy, but Jess works two jobs to make ends meet, and her optimistic outlook on life means they get by, just. 

Ed Nicholls is an IT genius who owned a multi-million dollar company. When he is accused of insider trading he is set to lose everything. Banished to his seaside holiday home while the investigation is underway, he stops on the side of the road to help Jess and her children, and somehow agrees to drive them to Scotland so that Tanzie can compete in the Maths Olympiad. 

 During the road trip that follows, Ed, Jess, and her children will have their world views changed, their priorities rearranged and their lives turned upside down. 

 The story is told through alternating viewpoints, and I loved that we got not only Ed and Jess’ views, but also those of Nicky and Tanzie, who often see things very differently to the adults. Jess is a great character – feisty, independent and fiercely protective of her children. Ed is largely self-absorbed, but does have his redeeming features. The thawing of their feelings towards each other and developing mutual attraction is beautifully told. 

 One Plus One had me in turns laughing, crying and wanting to hit both Ed and Jess over the head to make them see sense. 

 A fabulous summer read for those who enjoy their romantic comedy with a bit of depth.

Summary:

One single mom. One chaotic family. One quirky stranger. One irresistible love story from the New York Times bestselling author of Me Before You
 
American audiences have fallen in love with Jojo Moyes. Ever since she debuted Stateside she has captivated readers and reviewers alike, and hit the New York Times bestseller list with the word-of-mouth sensation Me Before You. Now, with One Plus One, she’s written another contemporary opposites-attract love story.
 
Suppose your life sucks. A lot. Your husband has done a vanishing act, your teenage stepson is being bullied, and your math whiz daughter has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that you can’t afford to pay for. That’s Jess’s life in a nutshell—until an unexpected knight in shining armor offers to rescue them. Only Jess’s knight turns out to be Geeky Ed, the obnoxious tech millionaire whose vacation home she happens to clean. But Ed has big problems of his own, and driving the dysfunctional family to the Math Olympiad feels like his first unselfish act in ages . . . maybe ever.
 
One Plus One is Jojo Moyes at her astounding best. You’ll laugh, you’ll weep, and when you flip the last page, you’ll want to start all over again.