Review: It Ends with Us

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

This was a really great read. I passed through many heavy emotions and a new perspective that, to be honest, still has me contemplative. This wasn't what I expected. Re-reading the synopsis now, it was a great leeway into the plot, but not nearly telling enough for the reader to understand what they are about to endure when they open up this book. There's a lot of sensitive material that I don't feel is often discussed; A lot that is important to be talked about.

(view spoiler)[ It's easy to say that you won't follow the same abusive cycle you played witness to. But as an outsider, you can't comprehend the mixture of emotion that threatens to persuade your decisions.
You can compare and contrast the differences and similarities. You can argue pros and cons. You can convince yourself that it's all in your head because you did all of the above.
Whether you are like Lily and grew up in that type of home, you were like her mother whom had to experience the physical and mental abuse, a bystander that witnessed or saw the signs, or none of the above, we can't fully understand the internal battle, the process of determining the best option, etc unless you are experiencing it.

This book really had me introspect on my past experiences, big and small, and see it through different eyes. I appreciate the honesty and the trueness to the characters by taking them down this shunned/ undiscussed path. Like Colleen Hoover mentioned in her note at the end of the book, "I wanted to hit the Delete button and take back the way Ryle had treated Lily. I wanted to rewrite the scenes where she forgave him and I wanted to replace those scenes with a more resilient woman—a character who made all the right decisions at all the right times. But those weren't the characters I was writing. That wasn't the story I was telling." It's hard to read these experiences because I whole heartedly believe Lily was written to be in true form of many people's experiences. Her story is raw. Filled with emotion and impossible decisions. As a reader, you want to help. You want the situation to be different. You want Lily to be strong, stand up for herself, be independent and in charge, not standing for the abuse she receives like her mother did. But you don't always make that decision in the moment. Colleen further explained, "I wanted to write something realistic to the situation my mother was in—a situation a lot of women find themselves in. I wanted to explore the love between Lily and Ryle so that I would feel what my mother felt when she had to make the decision to leave my father - a man she loved with all her heart."

How many times have I said the phrase, "If it were me, I would have ..." Or " If it were me, I wouldn't have let ..." But when you take in their whole perspective; the investment of love and time, circumstances, everything. Can you really make that statement with conviction?

This book plays on the concept. One can hope for the best, resilience and strength, but nobody knows what they would do in certain situations unless you find yourself facing them.
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