Love of My Life book review

Imagine you fall in love with someone and you are just over the moon happy… and then you find out they’re sending messages to someone on social media. And then -- oh my god -- they’ve changed their name, they have a record, and an adult child? What?

Today we’re talking about Love of My Life by Rosie Walsh. This is a fiction novel with strong literary, thriller, and suspense elements, and honestly… it delivers on all of that.

We’re following Emma, who is in love with Leo. They have a daughter together, and everything seems perfect. They’re happy, raising their child, living their life. But Leo is a journalist, and he starts to notice something off -- Emma is sending messages to men on social media. Specifically Facebook.

Girl… what is going on?

That curiosity turns into a full-on rabbit hole, and suddenly Leo is uncovering things Emma never told him. She changed her name. She used to be Emily. She has a permanent record. And, this is the part: she has an adult child.

So now I’m sitting here like… I have a toddler with you, and you’ve already raised an entire 18-year-old? Who are you?

I picked this up thinking it would be something light. “Love of my life,” right? Cute. Easy.

Stressed. Immediately stressed.

Emma’s current life looks stable: She has her daughter Ruby, her relationship with Leo, everything feels normal. But when she was Emily, her past was anything but. She experienced severe postpartum psychosis after having her first child, Charlie.

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There was manipulation, there was lying, and all of it contributed to what she was going through at the time. That’s really where the thriller and suspense comes in, because you’re not just uncovering secrets, you’re trying to understand how everything unraveled in the first place.

What I loved most about this book is how it handles the twists and turns. There are so many, but you’re never lost. The story moves between Emma and Emily, past and present, and it just flows. You’re following along, piecing things together, meeting new people, getting more context, and it keeps you locked in.

When I tell you edge of your seat… I mean it.

You’re reading like, “What is going to happen next?”

And then you find out the truth: Charlie, her son, is the one sending all those messages. He’s been trying to reach her using different accounts and names because he learned a huge secret 18 years ago and wants answers.

You meet people, you take them at face value… and they have a whole life you know nothing about.

But of course, it’s not that simple. Emily is now Emma. She’s married. She has another child. She’s built an entirely new life.

And now the past is knocking.

This was such a fascinating read. Truly.

Even the setting adds to it. The marshland, coastal vibe on the cover of the book? That plays a role too. It all ties together in a really immersive way.

Now, I will say, the scariest part for me wasn’t the suspense in the usual sense. It was reading about Emily’s postpartum psychosis.

The idea that your body could turn on you like that… that your brain might not do what you want it to do… that part is terrifying. We wake up every day trusting that we’re okay, that we’re of sound mind, that our bodies will cooperate. And during that phase of life, you can’t fully trust that.

If that’s not something you personally relate to, it might not hit as hard, but for me, that was the most intense part of the whole book.

Overall? Very, very good. So many twists, super engaging, and just a really solid thriller.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2kTRG3hdm4

Until the next book review, 

Kyla