True Love; Breaking the Cycle of Failed Relationships

Fried, in her first self-help book, promotes self-love before seeking romance, with plenty of mental exercises, self-affirmations and personal anecdotes along the way.

Fried places great emphasis on her personal journey in finding a soul mate, and this book seems to serve as a kind of catharsis after years of heartbreak and rejection. A strong personality shines through her writing; each page is doused with exclamation marks and sprinkled with sentences in all caps pleading with readers to seek out the best of life: “THE VERY FIRST RELATIONSHIP THAT OFTEN NEEDS TO BE FIXED IS THE ONE YOU HAVE WITH YOU!” This approach gives her book a somewhat unpolished feel that still comes off as endearing, even maternal. In the start of her work, Fried speaks of her influences, from Pavlovian and cognitive behavioral psychology to other self-help authors. She tells readers, “[R]emember that some of what you read will apply to you, and some will not. Use what works for you.” Each chapter features a “visualization” and an “affirmation” focusing on the chapter’s theme. Her main focus is on the benefits of these affirmations and visualizations in achieving the life you desire—namely, finding the partner of your dreams. For the comfort segment, she suggests readers mentally remain in their ideal places of comfort for 15 minutes; somewhat confusingly, however, she doesn’t give a suggested time for the remainder of the visualizations. As the work continues, more inconsistencies appear, and the book becomes a bit too personal. Much of her advice flip-flops between making yourself more—or less—available in order to find a nurturing spouse. Better structuring would have been helpful, but the care and empathy Fried delivers will nonetheless leave her readers with a more positive outlook on love and life.

Earnest advice on finding true love.