Book Review: It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover

It Ends With Us is about falling into and surviving domestic violence. Amazon has it listed as the eighth most sold book of 2023. Circana had it as the number one bestseller of the year until November 2023, and it's also being adapted into film. Colleen Hoover herself was the UK’s 2022 bestselling author (Writers' & Artists' Yearbook 2024) and has even been labelled “the writer that is redefining New Adult Fiction”. So the million-dollar question is… Is It Ends With Us as good as the hype?

BOOK SPECS:

• Number of pages: 376

• Format: Paperback

• Genre: Contemporary Romance, New Adult

• Tropes: First Love, Falling for the Wrong Person, Emotional Scars, Unexpected Pregnancy

SHORT BOOK REVIEW:

I read the first paragraph of this book in a bookshop, then took it straight to the till. The first chapter had me hooked, and the rest of the book had me reading till five in the morning because I couldn’t put it down. Overall, I did really enjoy this book and would recommend it to anyone who loves romance with a pinch of dark themes. I'm scoring it three hearts because there were a few things in the plot and ending that didn't quite make sense to me. See my full review below for details. But otherwise, a good, smooth read.

HEART RATE:

SMUT SCORE:

Buy it on Bookshop.org

Buy it on Amazon

---

FULL REVIEW:

Plot

Inspired by Hoover's own experience as the daughter of an abusive father, this novel's storyline is interesting and controversial. Lily, the MFC, is the child of an abusive home. In public, her father is a respectable man in the community. Behind closed doors, he's a wife beater. Unlike Coleen's mother, Lily's mother never leaves.

Then Lily falls for Atlas, a relationship that on the surface has no future, as he too comes from a broken home. They're forced to part ways, but their love leaves a deep mark. Fast forward, and as an adult Lily falls for Ryle - in public, a talented brain surgeon in training; behind closed doors, a man with a very short fuse. The pattern of abuse is set to repeat itself.

WARNING: SPOILERS – jump the following paragraphs if you don’t want to read them

There are only three things I would point out as not being as smooth in this book for me. The first one is the diary entries. I loved the book, but I caught myself skimming over them and finding them a little too long-winded.

The second was that, despite Ryle’s trauma being quoted as the reason why he behaves the way he behaves, the whole scene where he tells Lily about it it’s only two and a half pages long. Apart from that, it gets fleeting mentions. But if it’s such a poignant factor, it really should have been explored.

And finally, things resolve quite quickly and painlessly for a violent relationship. An abuser is very unlikely to seriously recognize the error of his/her ways and let the object of his/her attention go so easily. Ryle’s family is also incredibly supportive of Lily and her struggle, which wouldn’t be the case in real life. Most families wouldn’t want their son to lose the medical career they paid so much for or for the story to get out. And Ryle’s sister definitely seemed to know he had a violent streak, as she wasn’t happy when she found out Lily and Ryle were dating, but she never really elaborates on why she feels this way.

SPOILERS FINISHED

Characters

The characters have a deep enough backstory to make them interesting and believable. In an interview, Hoover stated that, although the book is about a very black and white subject – domestic violence is never ok, she didn’t want anyone to outright call one of her main characters evil, as that would be too clean-cut. She explained that she wanted the line to be blurred enough for the reader to experience how easy it’s to fall into an abusive situation, and how difficult it can be for victims of abuse to leave. She most certainly delivered that for me. Up to the last violent episode, I was still very much in love with Ryle.

Lily, the main character, also didn’t make my decision any easier by holding momentums of her ex in very public view and domain. And I get it, your exes are part of your history – the biggest reminder of your relationship with them actually being the person you became after being with them. But if my partner had something from his ex stuck to my fridge, I would have a fit of jealousy too. He’s more than welcomed to keep it at the back of his wardrobe, out of my hair, though. After all, it’s his history, not mine or ours.

Romance & Smut Score

There are hot scenes, and they are scalding, but not overpowering. This is a hard balance to achieve in romance novels. Sometimes smut is all a romance book has to offer. Not that there is anything wrong with that, as long as that is its premise.

Writing

Written from Lily's point of view, this book has a nice pace and a dual timeline - if flips in between past and present by using diary entries that Lily is re-reading. There is no elaborate or clever use of English, long or vague words you will have to Google, it's a really easy to read, mass market, accessible novel. And in a way, its simplicity is perfect and fitting. All in one, no literary fiction, but a really enjoyable read.

Buy this book on Bookshop.org

Buy this book on Amazon