Dan Martin for NME felt that "Love Without Tragedy / Mother Mary" could possibly be the best song on Unapologetic, writing that it moves Rihanna into a "new sonic and emotional space" due to its confessional feel [REF].
Andy Kellman of AllMusic selected the song as one of the album's highlights, noting that it has "a wide theatrical scope akin to that of The-Dream's own 'Nikki, Pt. 2/Abyss.'"