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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
4.75
Debido a tiktok y instagram por alguna razón cuando empecé a leer este libro pense que tenía una idea clara de lo que se trataba la historia... Me equivoqué completamente.
Es primera vez que leo acerca de abuso/maltrato entre pareja y dejenme decirles que la manera que la autora escribe te hace entender el razonamiento de una persona en esa sitiación, como se sienten y principalmente porque no salen de esa relacion tóxica.
La dedicatoria hizo que lo llorara todo.
Debido a tiktok y instagram por alguna razón cuando empecé a leer este libro pense que tenía una idea clara de lo que se trataba la historia... Me equivoqué completamente.
Es primera vez que leo acerca de abuso/maltrato entre pareja y dejenme decirles que la manera que la autora escribe te hace entender el razonamiento de una persona en esa sitiación, como se sienten y principalmente porque no salen de esa relacion tóxica.
La dedicatoria hizo que lo llorara todo.
do not read i wish i could scrub from my brain. better than ugly love which is not really saying much i fear
Little re-read for me before our new movie to brush up because it has been two years. Not a Colleen Hoover fan at all, but I do like this book. So 5 stars. It is a great standalone (it isn't anymore, but it could have been) and I think it's a great easy book for someone just getting back into reading. It got me back into it. Atlas and Lily break my heart and make it happy at the same time. My book was misbound. Worst mistake I have ever seen. Repeated like 40 pages over. oh well!
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book makes me very confused. And concerned.
While it hurts me to admit, I enjoyed reading this book. I blame it on circumstance: I read it after exam week, running on little to no sleep, at the airport waiting for my delayed flight. A perfect setting for me to turn of my brain and read the words without much thought. Of course, after finishing, once I actually thought about what CoHo had written, my opinion of the book changed a bit.
So, let's begin with what slightly delusional me thought while reading this book. First, it really tapped into the romantic and naive 14 year old hiding in my weathered old body; the writing was very simple and very poetic, and it read a bit like a fanfiction, so it transported me back to simpler times, which was nice.
Of course, there's nothing wrong with reading simple books if that's what you enjoy. This is a very easy to digest book but it does have many problems, namely shitty characters (both because they're bad people and poorly characterized); unlikely scenarios; unrealistic dialogue; and of course, sketchy behavior parading as romantic. Basically: this book is for all you fanfic lovers who want to read a y/n story in public.
Now for a more in-depth review. Beware: this is shallow spoiler territory.
TL;dr: terrible, terrible book. Read only if you have a single brain cells bouncing around in your head or if you like to leave critical thinking at the door. In these cases it's actually a decent book. It tried to do something so it gets a participation ribbon for that.
The romance itself, in my opinion, was gross from the beginning. Once again, it read like a fanfiction: two people meet on a roof and immediately start talking about "hard truths" or whatever and flirting intensely. If I was on a roof alone and a man came up to me, no matter how hot he was, I would run away. In short: very unrealistic dialogue, but perfect fanfiction.
Of course, the romance only goes downhill from there; even before the "plot twist" it is a weird relationship. The main guy (Ryle? I'm writing this from memory, all I remember is his name is odd) is... Honestly quite gross. A typical "I'm a bad boy with #trauma I'm no good for you". And of course the main girl (lily bloom? That makes easier to remember because it's so ridiculous) immediately decides "I can change you". The guy is also disgustingly desperate to sleep with the girl. Is this supposed to be romantic? Are we supposed to be rooting for these two? How is his behavior not a giant, giant red flag? (Are we sure this is not Delena fanfiction?)
Okay so basically our romantic setup is: Chad the Broken Smart Dude and Flower the Spineless Girl. Two very typical characters with very little novelty. Now, Ms Bloom has a friend who just so happens to be Ryle's sister; I suppose I can appreciate the fact that there's a decent female friendship in the book. Well, decent up until the big "plot twist" after which I no longer like the friend.
Now, woven into these stories about the present, are flashbacks to Lily's past, in the form of diary entries. Except because little Lily thought diaries are cringe she decided to write letters to Ellen instead (which she never sent). I've heard some mixed reviews about these; one issue that people have brought up is that this was a lame attempt by CoHo to seem like an ally. I can't speak much to this criticism; I don't know enough about CoHo to judge, so I don't want to deny or agree with this opinion. That being said, the idea that a teen is writing to a talk show host to deal with her trauma is one I like and that I find realistic. Writing in a diary seems incredibly cringy when you're young, and Lily watched Ellen's tapes as a coping mechanism to deal with her life. I think this was a nice thing to include and a creative way to add flashbacks. I also think it's quite realistic; it's not like parasocial relationships are unheard of, and once again, she was just a kid dealing with stuff, so I think that plot point worked well.
The past storyline is important because it shows us her father's abuse towards her mother, and her first love interest. Now, while I think the device used was good, I don't think the flashbacks were necessary. The previous love interest (Atlas?) Doesn't add more to the story, except for a jealousy-thread which is honestly super unnecessary. As for the abuse, that could have been communicated to us in other ways. So I think Atlas/the past could have been removed.
Back to the present. Warning: "plot twist" spoilers ahead.
So, turns out, Ryle is abusive. Who would've known? Okay, in all honesty, I didn't know; I knew he was a shit guy (begging to have sex with someone and stalking them is NOT hot, it's creepy, please stop CoHo) but I didn't think the book had it in it to portray him as bad. I was expecting a super shallow "but he's hot
While it hurts me to admit, I enjoyed reading this book. I blame it on circumstance: I read it after exam week, running on little to no sleep, at the airport waiting for my delayed flight. A perfect setting for me to turn of my brain and read the words without much thought. Of course, after finishing, once I actually thought about what CoHo had written, my opinion of the book changed a bit.
So, let's begin with what slightly delusional me thought while reading this book. First, it really tapped into the romantic and naive 14 year old hiding in my weathered old body; the writing was very simple and very poetic, and it read a bit like a fanfiction, so it transported me back to simpler times, which was nice.
Of course, there's nothing wrong with reading simple books if that's what you enjoy. This is a very easy to digest book but it does have many problems, namely shitty characters (both because they're bad people and poorly characterized); unlikely scenarios; unrealistic dialogue; and of course, sketchy behavior parading as romantic. Basically: this book is for all you fanfic lovers who want to read a y/n story in public.
Now for a more in-depth review. Beware: this is shallow spoiler territory.
TL;dr: terrible, terrible book. Read only if you have a single brain cells bouncing around in your head or if you like to leave critical thinking at the door. In these cases it's actually a decent book. It tried to do something so it gets a participation ribbon for that.
The romance itself, in my opinion, was gross from the beginning. Once again, it read like a fanfiction: two people meet on a roof and immediately start talking about "hard truths" or whatever and flirting intensely. If I was on a roof alone and a man came up to me, no matter how hot he was, I would run away. In short: very unrealistic dialogue, but perfect fanfiction.
Of course, the romance only goes downhill from there; even before the "plot twist" it is a weird relationship. The main guy (Ryle? I'm writing this from memory, all I remember is his name is odd) is... Honestly quite gross. A typical "I'm a bad boy with #trauma I'm no good for you". And of course the main girl (lily bloom? That makes easier to remember because it's so ridiculous) immediately decides "I can change you". The guy is also disgustingly desperate to sleep with the girl. Is this supposed to be romantic? Are we supposed to be rooting for these two? How is his behavior not a giant, giant red flag? (Are we sure this is not Delena fanfiction?)
Okay so basically our romantic setup is: Chad the Broken Smart Dude and Flower the Spineless Girl. Two very typical characters with very little novelty. Now, Ms Bloom has a friend who just so happens to be Ryle's sister; I suppose I can appreciate the fact that there's a decent female friendship in the book. Well, decent up until the big "plot twist" after which I no longer like the friend.
Now, woven into these stories about the present, are flashbacks to Lily's past, in the form of diary entries. Except because little Lily thought diaries are cringe she decided to write letters to Ellen instead (which she never sent). I've heard some mixed reviews about these; one issue that people have brought up is that this was a lame attempt by CoHo to seem like an ally. I can't speak much to this criticism; I don't know enough about CoHo to judge, so I don't want to deny or agree with this opinion. That being said, the idea that a teen is writing to a talk show host to deal with her trauma is one I like and that I find realistic. Writing in a diary seems incredibly cringy when you're young, and Lily watched Ellen's tapes as a coping mechanism to deal with her life. I think this was a nice thing to include and a creative way to add flashbacks. I also think it's quite realistic; it's not like parasocial relationships are unheard of, and once again, she was just a kid dealing with stuff, so I think that plot point worked well.
The past storyline is important because it shows us her father's abuse towards her mother, and her first love interest. Now, while I think the device used was good, I don't think the flashbacks were necessary. The previous love interest (Atlas?) Doesn't add more to the story, except for a jealousy-thread which is honestly super unnecessary. As for the abuse, that could have been communicated to us in other ways. So I think Atlas/the past could have been removed.
Back to the present. Warning: "plot twist" spoilers ahead.
So, turns out, Ryle is abusive. Who would've known? Okay, in all honesty, I didn't know; I knew he was a shit guy (begging to have sex with someone and stalking them is NOT hot, it's creepy, please stop CoHo) but I didn't think the book had it in it to portray him as bad. I was expecting a super shallow "but he's hot
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
CoHo re-read #3
Next up on the CoHo re-read tour! It’s no question that I devour anything CoHo writes, but I have to admit that It Ends With Us is one of the lower books on my list. Let’s get into it:
(+)
-This book has such an important storyline and I think it shows that abuse can come in many different forms and not every toxic relationship has the same formula
-I absolutely adore Atlas and the innocence of his relationship with Lily
-It beautifully shows how you can talk yourself in and out of anything if you love someone enough and how quickly that mindset can turn toxic and dangerous
-Atlas being a consistent safe haven for Lily is beautiful
-Atlas’ friends were the perfect dose of happiness this story needed
-The ending dialogue between Lily and Ryle at the end of the book was incredibly moving and an important message that absolutely made me cry
(-)
-The journal entries are incredibly annoying. I love the idea of them, but them being written to Ellen along with the ‘just keep swimming’ quote being repeated at nauseam started to grate on my nerves after a while. Once the journal entries ended, the book got exponentially more enjoyable
-Overall, most of it was too corny for me
-I think a large issue I have is we didn’t see enough of the “good” parts of Ryle for me to get attached to him or like him in the slightest
I’m torn on this book, but the second half turned it around enough for me to give it four stars. I typically skim the authors notes section, but this is one that is incredibly important to read in full. Read it, process it, and digest it. While it’s not my favorite CoHo book, it brings light to a difficult and important subject in a real way. Please read trigger warnings before reading.
Read more at:
Website: https://bookblurbs13.wixsite.com/reviews
Instagram: @bookblurbs13 - https://www.instagram.com/bookblurbs13/
Next up on the CoHo re-read tour! It’s no question that I devour anything CoHo writes, but I have to admit that It Ends With Us is one of the lower books on my list. Let’s get into it:
(+)
-This book has such an important storyline and I think it shows that abuse can come in many different forms and not every toxic relationship has the same formula
-I absolutely adore Atlas and the innocence of his relationship with Lily
-It beautifully shows how you can talk yourself in and out of anything if you love someone enough and how quickly that mindset can turn toxic and dangerous
-Atlas being a consistent safe haven for Lily is beautiful
-Atlas’ friends were the perfect dose of happiness this story needed
-The ending dialogue between Lily and Ryle at the end of the book was incredibly moving and an important message that absolutely made me cry
(-)
-The journal entries are incredibly annoying. I love the idea of them, but them being written to Ellen along with the ‘just keep swimming’ quote being repeated at nauseam started to grate on my nerves after a while. Once the journal entries ended, the book got exponentially more enjoyable
-Overall, most of it was too corny for me
-I think a large issue I have is we didn’t see enough of the “good” parts of Ryle for me to get attached to him or like him in the slightest
I’m torn on this book, but the second half turned it around enough for me to give it four stars. I typically skim the authors notes section, but this is one that is incredibly important to read in full. Read it, process it, and digest it. While it’s not my favorite CoHo book, it brings light to a difficult and important subject in a real way. Please read trigger warnings before reading.
Read more at:
Website: https://bookblurbs13.wixsite.com/reviews
Instagram: @bookblurbs13 - https://www.instagram.com/bookblurbs13/
I'll have to check later [b:The Lesser Key of Solomon: Goetia|34682577|The Lesser Key of Solomon Goetia|S.L. MacGregor Mathers|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1490483643l/34682577._SY75_.jpg|422265] to find out what exactly possessed me into giving Colleen Hoover a second chance after the [b:Hopeless|15717943|Hopeless (Hopeless, #1)|Colleen Hoover|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1353489892l/15717943._SY75_.jpg|21389085] fiasco.
There's only one good part about this book, and that is the only well written character, Atlas, not ending up together with Lily and moving the f**k on with his life. I would have listed the depiction of domestic abuse as the second good part of it, buuuuut yeah no. CoHo is clueless to how to properly handle serious topics. It's not even the fault of the characters, it's just that the plot is dumb. The fact that this story is based on Hoover's mother's abusive relationship doesn't change the fact that this plot was eventless and stupid. It would've been so much better if she'd discarded it and kept only Lily's journal entries.
The only thing I'll say about Lily is that, aside from her Stockholm syndrome, Hoover failed to do her justice as both a victim and as a strong, independent woman. There are people who are genuinely in love and then there are people who are genuinely dumb. Hoover wants us to believe Lily is among the former, but the way she's written her places her among the latter.
And don't even make me start on Ryle and how Hoover turned him into a victim of his own "bad" temper. This was not a story about abuse, nor was it an attempt to make us understand the abuser, oh no, this was an apology for the abuser. Because Hoover loved his terribly written ass that much.
Consider this: "There is no such thing as bad people. We're all just people who sometimes do bad things."
Sure, except, that's actually bs, especially when you're voicing your main message as one of the abuser's lines.
Anyways, while I can understand why people enjoy her books, Hoover is a hopeless case for me. It ends with this one.
There's only one good part about this book, and that is the only well written character, Atlas, not ending up together with Lily and moving the f**k on with his life. I would have listed the depiction of domestic abuse as the second good part of it, buuuuut yeah no. CoHo is clueless to how to properly handle serious topics. It's not even the fault of the characters, it's just that the plot is dumb. The fact that this story is based on Hoover's mother's abusive relationship doesn't change the fact that this plot was eventless and stupid. It would've been so much better if she'd discarded it and kept only Lily's journal entries.
The only thing I'll say about Lily is that, aside from her Stockholm syndrome, Hoover failed to do her justice as both a victim and as a strong, independent woman. There are people who are genuinely in love and then there are people who are genuinely dumb. Hoover wants us to believe Lily is among the former, but the way she's written her places her among the latter.
And don't even make me start on Ryle and how Hoover turned him into a victim of his own "bad" temper. This was not a story about abuse, nor was it an attempt to make us understand the abuser, oh no, this was an apology for the abuser. Because Hoover loved his terribly written ass that much.
Consider this: "There is no such thing as bad people. We're all just people who sometimes do bad things."
Sure, except, that's actually bs, especially when you're voicing your main message as one of the abuser's lines.
Anyways, while I can understand why people enjoy her books, Hoover is a hopeless case for me. It ends with this one.