51 pages • 1 hour read
Taylor Jenkins ReidForever, Interrupted: A Novel
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2013A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Background
Authorial Context: Taylor Jenkins Reid
Taylor Jenkins Reid is an American author who specializes in romance novels and women’s fiction. The romance novel Forever, Interrupted launched her writing career and established her as a beloved voice in her genre. She has gone on to publish seven more novels, including the bestsellers After I Do, Maybe in Another Life, One Loves, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Daisy Jones and the Six, Malibu Rising, and Carrie Soto Is Back. The latter four publications are part of Reid’s "famous women quartet,” four books that each follow the story of a famous fictional female character. These novels have earned Reid much acclaim. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Daisy Jones and the Six, and Malibu Rising respectively won the 2019, 2021, and 2022 Goodreads Choice Awards. In 2019, the audiobook edition of Daisy Jones and the Six was named one of the year’s best audiobooks by Apple Books. In 2020, the novel won the Goldsboro Books Glass Bell Award, and in 2021, it was named a finalist for Book of the Month’s Book of the Year Award. In 2023, Daisy Jones and the Six was also adapted into a miniseries by Amazon Studios.
Reid has attributed her own romance with her husband, Alex Reid, as the inspiration for her now-famous romantic plot lines. Her first four books are known for their passionate characters and heated romantic entanglements. However, with the publication of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Reid shifted away from romance “to juicy, page-turning historical fiction” (Donnelly, Elisabeth. “The Unapologetic Ambitions of Taylor Jenkins Reid.” Vanity Fair, 29 Aug. 2022). This title and her subsequent three works of historical fiction have widened her readership and expanded her literary relevance, earning spots in Reese Witherspoon’s Book Club and a place on the 2021 New York Times bestseller list.
Genre Context: Contemporary Romance and Women’s Fiction
Forever, Interrupted is a contemporary romance novel. The novel can also be categorized as a work of women’s fiction as the novel is written from the first-person point of view of a female character and touches on themes of women’s empowerment, independence, and friendship. In contemporary romance novels like Forever, Interrupted, the overarching plot surrounds a romantic relationship. The narrative tension, conflicts, and action all arise from this primary relational dynamic. In the case of Forever, Interrupted, Elsie Porter and Ben Ross’s sudden and intense romance inspires the narrative.
Throughout the novel, Reid both satisfies and subverts genre tropes. Elsie and Ben do have a meet cute, fall in love unexpectedly, and pursue a rapid, impulsive relationship. However, they don’t get the traditional fairy tale ending that the genre normally dictates. Rather, Ben dies only nine days after they marry and just six months after the lovers meet. The real thematic heart of the work emerges as a result of Ben’s death and Elsie’s subsequent attempts to heal from her loss. The female friendships that Elsie pursues and cultivates in the wake of losing her husband ultimately prove to be her salvation. In this way, Forever, Interrupted balances the beauty of romance with the power and possibility of female friendship. This latter notion particularly lands the novel in the women’s fiction category, as its pervasive themes teach women of all ages that while romance might offer excitement and possibility, friendship promises fulfillment and renewal.
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