I Loved You in Another Life by David Arnold

I Loved You in Another Life by David Arnold
UK Publication:  October 2023
Reviewed by: Book Worm
Rating: [★★★]

This ARC was provided by Bonnier Books UK (via NetGalley) in exchange for an honest review.

Phone home…

Synopsis from Goodreads: Evan Taft has plans. Take a gap year in Alaska, make sure his little brother and single mother are taken care of, and continue therapy to process his father’s departure. But after his mom’s unexpected diagnosis, as Evan’s plans begin to fade, he hears something: a song no one else can hear, the voice of a mysterious singer . . .

Shosh Bell has dreams. A high school theater legend, she’s headed to performing arts college in LA, a star on the rise. But when a drunk driver takes her sister’s life, that star fades to black. All that remains is a void—and a soft voice singing in her ear . . .

Over it all, transcending time and space, a celestial bird brings strangers together: from an escaped murderer in 19th century Paris, to a Norwegian kosmonaut in low-earth orbit, something is happening that began long ago, and will long outlast Evan and Shosh. With lyrical prose and original songs (written and recorded by the author), I LOVED YOU IN ANOTHER LIFE explores the history of love, and how some souls are meant for each other—yesterday, today, forever.

My Thoughts: This is a sweet book about love, about chance and about finding the one. While the whole premise is that Evan and Shoosh have been in love many times and in many lives the narrative largely concentrates on the present and personally I would have liked a more in depth exploration of the past lives. All we really see of the past is the moment when the lovers are separated by death. I would also have liked to know more about Night Singer but again that is really limited to music and lyrics heard only by the 2 protagonists.

The real strength of this book lies in the family relationships and true friendships, rather than the love affairs, Evan and Shoosh are both dealing with the s**t life has thrown at them and while Shoosh may not be coping particularly well, Evan has a great support network. A network who exultantly embrace Shoosh when they realise her importance to Evan.

There was one character in this who will stay with me for a long time and that is Evan’s neuro-diverse younger brother Will. Will is adorable and like Evan I would protect him from anyone who hurt that innocence. Plus he loves pizza and ET he will be a heartbreaker one day.

Who would like this? I would recommend this to readers who enjoy stories about strong friendships; about forgiveness and love; and most importantly about family biological and found. Those who want an in depth story about previous lives and finding love again may I suggest Katherine Kerr’s Deverry series.

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