A review by princess_peach
It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover

dark reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? N/A
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

0.5

This is frequently cited on social media as a "must read," so we read it for a book club one month. It was one of the worst books I've ever read. Within the first few pages, I already hated the two main characters Lily and Ryle. People rave about how young people should read about abusive behaviors and relationships, but the problem was that the red flags or instances of emotional abuse, love bombing, manipulation, and control were NOT actually called out or addressed in anyway. As an adult who frequently reads YA, it took about half way through the book for me to finally realize that the author wasn't glorifying this behavior or making it seem like this was a good relationship.
I was yelling at Lily to get off of the roof within the first few pages when Ryle was 30, she was 23 (red flag 1), he was already physically attacking the chair (red flag 2), he physically got close to her when she didn't want him to (red flag 3), was asking her basically if she would consider having sex with him after knowing each other for 10 minutes (red flag 4), and played "naked truth" with her because it implies that he's always going to think she's lying, which he does as their relationship progresses (red flag 5).
Even in the author's note, the author doesn't actually name or call out the abusive tactics as a way to educate young (or older) readers about red flags or signs of abuse. She just says, (paraphrasing) "My parents had an abusive relationship, so I know what I'm talking about."  If you want young people to actually learn something/be exposed to toxic characters to show them what toxic and abusive behaviors look like, there HAS to be other options.
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