It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover
Review by Sofia C-E, Youth Reviewer
Trigger warning: abuse, physical violence, suicide
Lily Bloom moves to Boston shortly after her abusive father is diagnosed with cancer. Lily had watched her father abuse her mother all her life, and after her father would hit her mother, he would treat them to anything they wanted the following week. Growing up, Lily learned how to take care of flowers, to her it felt like she took care of them and grew them, the seeds/flowers gave her a sense of purpose. When Lily was 15 she met a boy named Atlas, he was homeless and living in the unfinished, abandoned house behind her. As Atlas and Lily started talking more, she started to let him shower at her house, and they would hang out before her parents got home. Some nights Atlas would sleep over at Lily's house because it got so cold and they started developing deep feelings for each other. One night Lily forgot to lock her bedroom door and her father came in. He started hitting Atlas, and she declared that was the worst night of her life. After her father's funeral, she went up to the roof of the apartment across from hers, and tried to decide whether she should jump or not. A split second later, she heard a man coming up the stairs throwing and kicking the chairs on the patio. At first, he didn't spot Lily, but when he did Lily was greeted by a gorgeous man. As they started talking, Lily found out that his name was Ryle and that he was a neurosurgeon. They then got to know each other, and learned about each other's past. 6 months pass and they have had no contact at all, until she opens a flower shop and hires a worker that ends up being Ryle's little sister. Lily is met with so many unexpected issues that challenge her and Ryle's relationship. “It Ends With Us” is a jaw-dropping novel and one of my favourites. My favourite thing about this book is how they introduced Atlas through Lily's journals. I thought that it was interesting and different to read. I wish that they added more of Atlas throughout the book and not just short chapters about him.
Find “It Ends With Us” at the Kitchener Public Library!