Wordless Wednesday

A Book Review- It Ends With Us

I read this book back at the beginning of August. I figured I'd start at that point, and work my way forward maybe once or twice a month for my posts. If you want to keep up-to-date with what books I read, as I'm reading them, you can find me on GoodReads. :)


It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was amazing! Forget reading anything about it. Go in blind. You won't regret it. There are very few authors who can really draw me into a story the way Colleen does with hers. It's hard to explain, but it's in the way that you can feel the emotions coming off of the pages. I still have yet to find many other writers who can do this as effectively as she can, and usually within the first few paragraphs. The only other author I can think of is Gayle Forman. But with It Ends with Us I feel like Colleen is setting the bar even higher. She's taking us to a whole other level. And to you Colleen, I just want to say: Thank You.

The story: First let me just say that Colleen gave us a really big part of herself in this book guys. It will stay with you, I promise. I dove into this book without reading the blurb, or any reviews. I saw the cover, read Colleen's name, and clicked buy. Best. Decision. Ever. This story sucked me in within the first page, and I'm still recovering from it now that I'm done. I'm recovering from the choices these characters were faced with as well as the ones that eventually had to be made. I'm recovering from what was brought to light by Colleen with this book. It's a voice, y'all. One that needed to be heard. And that's all I'll say about the story because as I stated before you should definitely walk into this one blind. The epilogue did tie things up nicely for us, and even though it rounds the story out I do hope we get a little bit more of that particular story one day. (Pretty Please?!) Still, if this is all we get then just know that the journey comes full circle.

Now onto the characters: Ryle made me feel butterflies. He exuded confidence, and also made me grieve for what he went through. His character went in a direction that I kept begging for it not to. But I understood why it did. I knew that his story, though it made me a bit uncomfortable, was necessary for the readers to see. I fell in love with him right along with Lily. Lily brought goodness with her character. A little naive at times, but her heart was in the right place. I understood why she felt the way she did, and I commended her for sticking up for herself. But I also felt the love she had. I felt the confusion, the heartbreak, the sorrow, the hesitation, and the joy as if it were my own. And finally, Atlas. The character who is in this book from start to finish, but not necessarily in the way that you would think. Atlas is the boy who turns into a man, and we know that it wasn't the easiest journey for him to end up where he finally did. His presence is felt throughout it all even when he's not in it if that makes any sense? He is just...he is amazing, and I have no idea how Colleen pulled that off? We do get a nice handful of side characters to really round out the story and give it more depth. Allysa and Marshall were adorable, and Lily's mother I knew from the beginning was a strong women despite her actions (or lack of). Now, maybe it's because I've been in similar situations or have known others that went through what some of these characters did that makes it feel more personal, I don't know? But I felt it all. It was relatable, and understandable with just a "hint of fiction" to bring you back when you felt like things were getting "too real".

So, I'm giving this book 5 stars. There was very little, if anything at all, that I didn't like. This was a book I couldn't put down. It was a story that I know all too well, though not exactly in the same way, as it's stated "Every situation is different." However, it's a story that needed to be told. It was a glimpse that needed to be shown of just how gray this world can be for us. We don't know the circumstance of anyone else's story but our own, and because of that we shouldn't always assume that others are better or weaker. It's not always black and white. And ultimately, we have to decide what we want, and what we won't accept from others as well as ourselves.

Listen