Mazey Eddings is a neurodiverse author, dentist, and (most importantly) stage mom to her cats, Yaya and Zadie. She can most often be found reading romance novels under her weighted blanket and asking her boyfriend to bring her snacks. She's made it her personal mission in life to destigmatize mental health issues and write love stories for every brain. With roots in Ohio and Philadelphia, she now calls Asheville, North Carolina home. You can find Mazey online at MazeyEddings.com. You can find more of my reviews of Mazey's work here.
Some facts are indisputable. The sun rises in the east. Sets in the west. Gravity exists. Indira doesn't like Jude. Jude doesn't like Indira. But what happens when these childhood enemies find the only thing they can rely on is each other? On paper, Indira has everything together. An amazing job, a boyfriend, and a car. What more could a late twenty-something ask for? But when she walks in on her boyfriend in an amorous embrace with a stranger, that perfect on paper image goes up in flames. Jude has nothing together. A doctor that's spent the last three years traveling the world to treat emergencies and humanitarian crises, a quick trip home for his best friend's wedding has him struggling to readjust. Thrust into an elaborate (and ridiculously drawn out) wedding event that's stressing Jude beyond belief and has Indira seeing her ex and his new girlfriend far more frequently than any human should endure, the duo strike a bargain to be each other's fake dates to this wedding from hell. The only problem is, their forced proximity and fake displays of affection are starting to feel a bit . . . real, and both are left grappling with the idea that a situation that couldn't be worse, is made a little better with the other around.
Where to start with everything I loved about The Plus One—let's start with the humor! Indira and Jude's chemistry is so off-the-charts, and it absolutely helps that their banter is hilarious. I found myself laughing at the jokes on the page, and literally biting the inside of my cheek while in public because the banter was so fun. I have a hard time reading books with heavy content that don't have these types of moments to break it up, and I'm so happy to say that Eddings perfectly balances the exploration of heavy topics (explained more below) with the moments that build the characters' chemistry.
Mazey Eddings is focused on destigmatizing mental health issues by writing love stories for every brain, and I absolutely love and support that mission. In The Plus One, the main explorations include PTSD and the effects of having divorced parents/a messy parental divorce. Not only do we get really in-depth and personal looks at Jude's and Indira's mental health through their narration and details about their pasts, but what I also really loved was how we even get looks inside their therapy sessions. I felt throughout the book that Eddings wasn't only destigmatizing mental health, but also healing—promoting therapy as an option, and using language that highlighted the need and desire for healing after traumatic events. None of this felt forced as it sometimes can in other novels, making for a read that was natural, heartfelt, and emotional, all in a really powerful way.
Lastly, what I also have to say I loved was how there was no break-up-with-only-20-pages-left scenario. I always hate those, because even though I can feel them coming, I always get so much anxiety, and the subsequent getting-back-together never feels as fully resolved as it could be. But Eddings does not give this outcome to Jude and Indira, focusing instead on how people can devote time and energy to their relationships to help them grow. I really loved this focus, as it aligned with everything Eddings had been building to so far regarding her characters' healing journeys, and it made for an altogether stronger ending for the narrative. I truly believe that Jude's and Indira's relationship will survive long after Eddings wrote the last word, and that type of ending and relationship on the page is so hard to craft—and Eddings seems to pull it off so effortlessly! I am in awe.
Also, a shout out to Collin and Jeremy, whose wedding I wish I could have attended! I loved their roles in the novel, and will definitely be taking some of their wedding planning as future inspiration! Also loved Harper's, Thu's, and Lizzie's cameos! Getting to see how all the characters got through their journeys at the end was such a sweet addition to the story, and a wonderful ending to the series as a whole.
I really can't wait to see what Mazey writes next. Until then, you can find her online at MazeyEddings.com. Thanks again to the publisher and Goodreads for providing me with an ARC!
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
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