Scan barcode
A review by jennirocket
It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This book has so many issues I had to close it and take a breather every 5 pages or so. There are some good things as well, but they are few and far between.
The good stuff: The insidious blurring of lines as one stumbles into an abusive relationship is portrayed relatively realistically.
The bad stuff: Ryle is an abusive, manipulative monster but Hoover still attempts to redeem him on several occasions throughout the book. He “deeply suffers” for what he has done to Lilly. He is a “good father”. This was so hard to read I can’t really put it into words.
The quote “There is no such thing as bad people. We’re all just people who sometimes do bad things.” is so harmful, it made me physically shudder when I read it.
The subtle misogyny weaved into the book was also a turn-off.
Almost every single character is so wildly problematic that it’s hard to get invested in any of them. They just seems like a bunch of terrible people.
I wanted to give Colleen Hoover a try despite the negative things I’ve heard about her books, maybe I started with a bad one, maybe they’re all similar to “It Ends With Us”. Either way, I don’t think I’ll pick up another one.
The good stuff: The insidious blurring of lines as one stumbles into an abusive relationship is portrayed relatively realistically.
The bad stuff: Ryle is an abusive, manipulative monster but Hoover still attempts to redeem him on several occasions throughout the book. He “deeply suffers” for what he has done to Lilly. He is a “good father”. This was so hard to read I can’t really put it into words.
The quote “There is no such thing as bad people. We’re all just people who sometimes do bad things.” is so harmful, it made me physically shudder when I read it.
The subtle misogyny weaved into the book was also a turn-off.
Almost every single character is so wildly problematic that it’s hard to get invested in any of them. They just seems like a bunch of terrible people.
I wanted to give Colleen Hoover a try despite the negative things I’ve heard about her books, maybe I started with a bad one, maybe they’re all similar to “It Ends With Us”. Either way, I don’t think I’ll pick up another one.
Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship