Two teens who are feeling stuck find in each other what they need to move on. Shosh Bell and her sister were best friends. Her sister’s death turned Shosh’s life upside down, putting her promising acting career on a sudden stop that she wasn't sure would ever start again. Evan Taft has been avoiding finishing his application for the six-month wilderness education program in Alaska that he’s been dreaming of for ages. He’s worried about leaving his mom, who’s being treated for cancer, and even more so his 7-year-old brother, who is obsessed with ET. An almost overwhelming adoration for their siblings isn’t the only thing that Evan and Shosh have in common...they both can hear music that no one else seems to be able to, and it's pulling them together. When they finally meet, they have an immediate connection and a feeling that they’ve known each other before.... but how is that even possible? Their alternating points of view are interspersed with stories from the past and the future and many timelines in between...1832 Paris...1953 Tokyo...2109 Oslo. They start to believe that maybe their souls are destined to find each other across many multiple lifetimes. The prose and dialogue of this story helps to build two beautiful and sympathetic characters, adding layers that make the story special in spite of the almost overabundant pop-culture references that quickly date the book. It's the first time I have read this author, but he did a magnificent job of completely capturing the intensity of first love. ( )

Good Writing, Very Sincere

The concept behind I Loved You In Another Life is intriguing and romantic. The writing is similarly romantic and dreamy, bordering on the poetic. In that sense, the writing is lovely, it is very thoughtful and a very different tone to any other young adult novel I have read. I would say however that I think there is a reason for that. I find the intensity of sentiment and the curated language to be discordant with the age and life-point of the characters involved. I myself was a very dreamy teenager, with lots of romantic ideas about tragedy and romance and poetry, but at no point in my mid-teen years was I genuinely profound and mature in the ways that these characters, particularly Evan, are shown to be. I'm not claiming that every teen is the same or that it's not possible for them to be mature or profound, I'm just saying that to me these characters do not sit as entirely realistic.
For my personal tastes, the overall sincerity of this book is exhausting. I find the intense yearning tone to be dull after a prolonged period, and the truth of every line to be tiring.

Personal feelings aside, I do recognise that this book is well written, and the story is moving. The characters are all interesting, and even though I don't fully believe them I like them. I am no great fan of nostalgic or sentimental literature, but even still I would be interested to read more by David Arnold. ( )

Consider all the people you will never meet. It can make you feel a sense of awe at how random it can be for you to meet any single person, even when you know of them. Enter Taft stage left and Sosh, stage right. Both are feeling a sense of loss and are hurting to the point where each has chosen to walk away from a promising possibility. For him, it's a six month highly competitive school in remote Alaska, for her a slot at a performing arts college in Los Angeles. His decision is fueled by his mother's illness, coupled with his father abandoning the family. Hers by the devastating death of her older sister and best friend who was killed by a drunk driver.
Their chance meeting is brought about in part by a mysterious bird and series of songs no one else seems to see or hear. Fueled so nicely by a supporting cast that includes his seven year old brother who has an ET fascination, her performing arts teacher and a mix of peers, all with unique personalities, the story is further enhanced by what at first seem like short vignettes featuring other people from various time periods. Everything fits incredibly well and is, I think, a testament to the author's own experiences which are described so clearly in the acknowledgments. This is a book that is challenging to categorize, so don't try, just savor it. ( )

I had a hard time rating this book. There were parts that I absolutely loved and that I felt very deeply. I even cried a little, the emotions were so strong and there are some amazing quotes that made me pause. There were also a lot of moments where I didn't understand what was going on and I was taken completely out of the story. I know the star rating system is flawed and some sites may consider 3 stars a bad review, but to me it's neutral.

For the good parts of this book - Evan and Shosh have both gone through so much already as teenagers, more than people so young should have to go through. Parents divorce, death of a sibling, parent with cancer, alcohol abuse....I could feel the emotions and their struggle in their individual situations. The moment that hit me the hardest was the story of Frog and Toad. The memory of the sisters discussing who would be which, the quote unknowingly said by Evan, and Shosh getting the tattoo. I loved how it was all tied in and it held the pang of loss. Evan and his situation with his mom had me calling my own mother just to talk. Appreciate the people you have while they're still around!

For some "meh" parts of book - there were a lot of inside jokes told between friends that completely flew over my head. Maybe the purpose was for readers not to understand, but when entire chapters consist of them, I was taken out of the story. I tried to reread to see if I could figure it out, then just gave up. When it came up again, I just skimmed. There's also a lot of references to pop culture that I don't think a lot of people would understand, and maybe not even the teenagers today. If these are supposed to add layers to the story, it won't hit the mark for a lot of readers. I also wasn't sure about the ages of the characters and the things that were happening. Even though I know that's a huge part of the story, teenagers going through way more than they should ever have to, I almost think the story would fit better if the characters were a little older. Something about it just didn't feel right.

I always enjoy books that explore the idea of reincarnation and it was such a great idea to have past lives scattered throughout the book. The way the ending tied in was brilliant. But I will say that the way some of the past lives were written were a little too vague and confusing. I would have also liked for some of the past lives to be a little longer.

I know a lot of people will eat this up and they'll connect with it more than I could. As I said, there were a lot of beautiful moments, I just couldn't go in all the way. ( )

I liked this book! I hate to admit that this one is probably the least favorite out of the books by this author that I have read so far. But it is still a very solid read. I loved the idea of two people drawn together again and again during different lifetimes and I am always a fan of books that involve music. I am glad that I gave this one a try.

Evan is dealing with the fact that his father left and his mom has cancer. He is very close to his brother and wants to be there and be strong for him. Shosh’s life has taken a wrong turn after she lost the sister that she was extremely close to after she was hit by a drunk driver. Both of these characters hear a song that nobody else seems to hear which brings them together.

I really liked Evan and Shosh. They both have so much to deal with and I loved that they were able to connect so completely. I really wanted to see good things happen for both of them. I did get a bit confused at times when the narrative switched to a point in a different time but I eventually came to expect and look forward to those glimpses of different lifetimes.

I listened to the audiobook and thought that Carlotta Brentan, Michael Crouch, and Sigrid Zeiner did a great job with this story. I thought that each of the narrators had a very pleasant voice which was easy to listen to for hours at a time. I liked the way that they were able to bring this poetic story to life. I believe that this is the first time that I have listened to at least two of these narrators but I am certain that their narration only added to my enjoyment of this story.

I would recommend this book. It wasn’t my favorite but it was a solid, although sometimes confusing, story. I definitely feel like this one was worth the read and look forward to reading more of David Arnold’s work in the future.

I received a review copy of this book from Penguin Teen and Penguin Random House Audio. ( )