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It Ends with Us
By Colleen Hoover
Fiction
384 Pages
Published August 2 2016, by Atria Books
I picked up Hoover’s “Verity” a few months ago (the first book of hers I’ve read) and was instantly wowed by the way she writes. Her words flow easily– which makes for a fast read– and she is able to convey a message without being wordy.
This story was no exception. It centers around 3 main characters through then and now: Then, main character Lily and a young homeless man named Atlas, who share experiences that she takes with her when she graduates from college and moves to Boston. Now, as an adult, we fast forward and are introduced to Ryle, an oh-so-pretty neurosurgeon (because….of COURSE he’s a doctor) for whom Lily falls. HARD. They begin their own story that flows relatively smoothly…. for awhile. Then, in a chance meeting, Atlas comes back into Lily’s life. The sequence of events takes us back and forth, both stories coming together with an ending that was both realistic and satisfying.
Tackling some very emotional issues, from domestic violence-and how it can affect multiple generations- to homelessness, shame, fear and first loves, this story runs the gambit with all the feels.
While I find any kind of domestic abuse abhorrent, I was surprised that I wasn’t angrier while reading the sections where this occurred. Lily’s love for this man and subsequent rationalization for his actions seemed believable and warranted. The author had a wonderful gift of being able to flaw her characters but not to the point where we hate them.
As a teenager who expresses herself through letters to Ellen DeGeneres and befriends young Atlas, Lily shows an empathy that most teenagers do not posses. She takes chances to help someone who needs help and that attribute follows her into adulthood, when we see her trying to help Ryle through his own demons.
Ultimately, Lily will find that one can only be helped if they want to change, which will bring her to sacrificing everything for one special person. In doing so, she breaks a dysfunctional cycle to make a better life for all involved.
This was a good read, with an easy to follow storyline.
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