Colleen Hoover fans from “BookTube”, “BookTok”, and just about any book store you can imagine have been anticipating her newest release, “It Starts With Us,” since it was announced in February 2022. This book topped the charts for the publishing company, Simon & Schuster, for the most pre-ordered book of all time.
According to Simon & Schuster, her most famous novel, “It Ends With Us,” has over 4 million copies sold, and has been on the bestsellers list for 76 weeks, which leads many to be yearning for a sequel.
I, along with many, enjoy “It Ends With Us” and Hoover’s writing in general. She writes in a way that gets readers so wrapped up in her stories, many finish them in just a few days. Upon seeing the release I added to that overwhelming statistic and also pre-ordered this novel. As a seasoned Colleen Hoover fan, having read 7 of her books, I was enthusiastic to read her next release. Especially because it was a sequel to one of my favorite reads, in general.
On October 18th I received my pre-ordered copy of “It Starts With Us” and began reading it that day. I had not read a Hoover book in a while and was ready to read it from start to finish! I did not do much research on the book prior to receiving it, so I was interested in where the plot would go.
* I’m going to give a mostly spoiler-free review for those who haven’t read “It Starts With Us,” but there will be some spoilers for “It Ends With Us” going forward. I also recommend referring to the trigger warnings of both books before reading them, as there are some very heavy topics in both. *
The book picks up right where “It Ends With Us” leaves off. We see Lily, a single mother amid her recovery after her traumatic experiences with domestic violence and abuse. Lily has begun rebuilding her self-worth and confidence on her own with the help of her mother and Alyssa, all while still running her floral business and raising a child. Lily finally seems to have a steady balance in life and with Ryle and appears content. But, conveniently enough, she runs into Atlas… again.
The novel tells the story of her and Atlas rediscovering their attraction and falling in love all over again. However, it seems that the universe is against them. Atlas is juggling his own drama and past trauma, all the while Lily is still seeing and co-parenting with her previous abuser, Ryle.
This novel is perfect for Atlas fans from, “It Ends With Us.” It is written from a dual perspective, so the reader gets to see both Atlas’s and Lily’s thoughts. The structure of the book is very similar to “It Ends With Us,” even to the point that some of the diary entries are repeated in this novel.
THE REVIEW:
This book has a 4.09/5 star rating on GoodReads, with 292,416 ratings. If you are an avid user of the site, you know that getting above a 3-star rating is not an easy task. Personally, I disagree with this high rating of the book.
“It Starts With Us” is a continuation of the first novel that I honestly do not think was necessary. Colleen Hoover herself said she didn’t originally plan on turning “It Ends With Us” into a duet. The overwhelming amount of popularity that the book received enticed her to create a second novel. With the book blowing up on “BookTok,” specifically, everyone had theories and inferences as to what happened once that last page turned.
In my honest opinion, I could have lived without the second novel. This book was the definition of “if it’s not broken, don’t fix it.” While I was also very inquisitive about what happened to Lily after the book closed, I did not care to see what truly happened. I felt my interest and care for Lily was depreciating as the book went on. The repetition bored me, and I didn’t finish the book as quickly as I typically finish Hoover’s novels.
I rated this book 3/5 stars on GoodReads. Not my lowest-rated Colleen Hoover book, but definitely is not my favorite. If you are truly a fan of “It Ends With Us,” I would not recommend reading the sequel. I wish Lily, Atlas, Emerson, and even Ryle would have stayed where it ended.
Have you picked up Colleen Hoover’s latest read? Let us know on @hercampusmiz Instagram, and make sure to tell us what you think!