Another week another Colleen Hoover novel! I hope ya’ll aren’t tired of these because i’m not even close to done going down my list of her books to review. As the novel that boosted her into a media spotlight, “It Ends With Us” is another that will put you through the seven stages of grief, and end leaving you wanting nothing more than an immediate sequel and conversation with Hoover regarding just how she manages to come up with these plots.

Synopsis- The novel opens following Lily Bloom, a 23-year-old, red-headed woman living in Boston with a dream of simplifying her life and getting out of the corporate world, who meets neurosurgeon Ryle one night on the roof of a high rise, and has an immediate attraction/spark.

Around him constantly due to befriending his sister, Lily can’t seem to get Ryle out of her head, and he is crazy about her, even through his “no dating” rule. After continuous flirting and sneaking around, the two begin dating and sparks fly immediately. At first, their relationship seems stronger than ever, already moving in with each other soon after they begun dating. The honeymoon was going fine, to say the least, that is until Lily runs into her first teenage love.

Through the story, Lily reads her old journals filled diary entries, where she talks about meeting and falling in love with Atlas, a homeless boy who was living in the abandoned house behind her own home. She provided him with food, water, clean

n clothes, and a place to shower and keep warm while her parents were gone. Though she was the one providing him with all these things, Atlas was her savior from her father, who physically abused her mother. The two fell in love and shared countless memories together, all documented in Lily’s journal, as she recounts her first love while falling in love with Ryle. Unfortunately, the couple didn’t get their happy ending, and separated when Atlas moved to Boston to live with his uncle, but they vowed to reconnect someday.

After running into Atlas while on a date with Ryle, Lily begins to question the relationship she has so quickly built with Ryle, and ponders her remaining feelings for Atlas and the relationship they left behind. Ryle notices this shift in Lily’s feelings, letting his anger take over. As her relationship with Atlas begins to rekindle, Lily’s relationship with Ryle begins a downward spiral.. Throughout the novel, the relationship only continues to go downhill, with Lily forgiving some horrible things done by Ryle all in the name of love. Such a contrast from the kind, humorous character introduced at the beginning on the novel, Ryle’s shift in behavior brings a shock to Lily, leaving her helpless, just like she was watching her father abuse her mother as a child.

The novel closes with an extremely unexpected plot twist to end off the already whirlwind of a novel, one that leaves Lily with the ultimate question of whether to stay or leave, prompting her to forever leave behind the chapter of teenage love that she never fully shut. The book highlights abusive relationships Lily experienced and witnessed in both her past and present life, and pushes the theme that the people that love us the most can be the ones who hurt us the most.

First Line- “As I sit here with one foot on either side of the ledge, looking down from twelve stories above the streets of Boston, I can’t help but think about suicide.”

Last Line- “It stops here. With me and you. It ends with us.”

My Favorite Quote- (apologies in advance for the multiple, there’s just too many good ones)

“In the future… if by some miracle you ever find yourself in the position to fall in love again… fall in love with me.”

“There is no such thing as bad people. We’re all just people who sometimes do bad things.”

“Just because someone hurts you doesn’t mean you can simply stop loving them. It’s not a person’s actions that hurt the most. It’s the love. If there was no love attached to the action, the pain would be a little easier to bear.”

Rating- 9/10 As the first Colleen Hoover book I read, this one will always have a special place in my heart! The raw emotions Hoover was able to portray through her writing made the story extremely powerful, sad and painfully truthful. However, after reading many more of her novels, I can say that there are countless others that deserve the same level of popularity and attention this one has receive. Don’t get me wrong, the story is beautifully written, and by absolutely no means even close to bad, I just feel that of all Hoover’s novels, it’s not the one that should be front and center above the rest. With that being said, it is absolutely a must read and does have countless plot twists that’ll have you wanting to throw the book. Hoover will leave you torn between being team Ryle or team Atlas, and has a way of leaving readers pity even the most undesirable characters.