Title: It Ends With Us
Author: Colleen Hoover
Series: It Ends with Us #1
Length: 386 pages
Release Date: August 2, 2016
Genre: Contemporary Romance / Family Drama
****Review****
Literary prejudices….. Do you have them??? Not that I have many, but I’m open to a colorful selection of styles and genres. Throughout my many years of reading experience, I have gone through all possible genres with works of various qualities. But I have to admit that Colleen Hoover has been one of my literary prejudices for the past couple of years.
To be perfectly honest, the more people talked about her books, the more I seemed to avoid them. But as part of a challenge with my reading buddies, I had to read one of her books. Therefore I read It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover and I survived. And not only did I survive, but I also enjoyed the book a lot.
Honestly, in the beginning, I thought it would be some cheesy romance with few to no literary values. Evidently, I was wrong. It Ends With Us has a deeper note and very skillfully describes some of the problems that arise in a family.
In the beginning, we meet Lily, the main protagonist, a woman who has experienced a lot in her life. It is more than evident that her family life is far from rainbows, pink flowers, and happiness. The blackness of her thoughts slowly suffocates her, and suicide is imposed as one of the solutions, but persistence still wins. Ryle appears to offer a bit of stability in all that uncertain fate. And a new happier chapter of her life begins. Unexpectedly, Atlas returns, the memory of former childhood love that brings new hope. But which is the right choice?
Besides the refreshing plot, the characters are quite solidly built. The author manages to bring Lily closer to the readers, especially with the entries in the diary. All her thoughts are precisely conceived and somehow realistic enough to make us believe and feel.
Also, the problems with family violence are well presented and expertly integrated into the whole story. Unquestionably it makes the reader think carefully about the whole issue that is becoming a serious problem in society.
Without a doubt, Colleen has an easy-to-read style but is not naive at all. In the very beginning, it seems to us that this book is just another in a series of pathetic love dramas where neither the beginning nor the end is known. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. – for those lemonade-flavored romance cliché romances. A very beautiful successful girl falls in love with a handsome, successful, and extremely rich guy, blah, blah blah…..
Indeed the start indicates a relaxing journey, without the need to strain the brain. Or a teenage fairy tale about the naïve lady and her knight in shining armor with their enchanting “happily ever after”. But as the story develops, the topics become more thought-provoking, more complicated, and deeper. Inevitably, we discover that the fairy tale is not so fairy tale. It Ends With Us is much more than that.
Facing the truth in all her glory seems more appropriate. How much do the truths from the past define what kind of person we will become in the future? How ready are we to admit the whole truth to ourselves, accept it and live with it? Can we muster the strength and courage to reveal our truths in front of others? Should we even consider baring our souls in front of others? Should we judge the actions and decisions of others or is it different when we are faced with the same? Many questions and dilemmas for which there is no right and correct answer. There is no magic formula that can solve personal life problems.
And precisely because of all these questions that tormented me while reading this book, I realized that I was wrong when it comes to the hype of It Ends With Us. I thoroughly enjoyed the mental work-out I had with this book.
Furthermore, It Ends With Us describes family dramas, and love moments in a very clear way and proves that a true person in life will always come back no matter how far the paths are separated. I will not discuss the love aspect, because somehow I neither felt it nor was it something special to delight me.
Finally, with It Ends With Us I erased my prejudices about Hoover, and I will continue to read her books. And whether she will justify the trust I give her with her other works remains to be discovered.