Colleen Hoover

Do not misunderstand my rating, I did not love this book.

I picked it up thinking it’s gonna be another romance novel. I wanted something light after reading a 700 page classic retelling. I picked this up.

There are things that I liked about this book. As someone who can understand the impact domestic violence and abuse can have on someone, I was able to understand why some women (or men or non binary person) find it hard to walk away from their abuser.
I liked that it tried to make us show more understand that we tend to shift the blame towards the victim of the abuse for staying than towards the perpetrator of the abuse. I loved the character Atlas and the protagonist’s relationship with her mom.

My issue however was that, walking away from the relationship, as hard as it could be, is not the only thing that someone on the receiving end has to do. I believe that a victim of abuse doesn’t just magically turn out okay the moment the perpetrator vanishes. Throughout the book, the main character Lily, who clearly has been through a lot in her life as well as her mother, who was a victim of abuse, have not been seeking help from a doctor. Towards the end they just magically get happy by dating “good” guys?

Are emotionally available and kind people equivalent to required mental health?

I believed that Lily, her mom and the male character Ryle, all of them needed help.

I also did not see any sort of depth in Ryle and Lily’s relationship which makes me wonder if Lily is just attracted to his toxic and arrogant personality.

As the author herself is someone who (as she shared in her notes) has been a victim of abuse. I failed to understand how she could be marketing the very trope that mentally breaks children and family members around the world through other books of hers.

Why are toxic protagonists being romanticised to this date?

I do not get it and I do not think I ever will. It makes my blood boil that authors who have the power to shed light on surviving and mental health issues and have a huge amount of impressionable audience fail to nip it in the bud and stop giving out these “toxic baddies” painted in pretty colours one after the other like a vending machine.

It needs to stop. Years ago, if I read this novel or any other work by Colleen Hoover, I would find it okay considering how I had no clue what a healthy male is like, unfortunately. This is exactly why I’m worried about books like this. show less

This is an all consuming book. From the first page to the last. In a way I wish ALL books were.

Such a realness to these characters that each paragraph controlled my breath. From the moments that had me laughing hard, to the ones that gripped the pit of my soul, and my favorites??? the ones that actually stopped my breathing while I experienced Holder and Sky's intoxicating relationship.


Her characters are real. At least you sure as heck wish they were. And lived in your house. And were your show more only friends. ;) I loved Sky from the 3rd sentence. Sarcasm and quick wit~ two things I can't get enough of. And Holder? Holder had me at "Hey." I dare you not to fall in love with him.
Perfectly imperfect characters. And I could.not.get.enough.

The title in itself is packed with irony because every single thing about this book is...more. I felt this book before I even finished the first chapter. Yes, the story is dark, but this type of beauty doesn't need light to be seen. This type of beauty is meant to be felt, experienced. Hopeless is beautiful and I felt every single part of it.

Colleen Hoover's attention to detail develops the story and gives it life. I'm not talking about detailed descriptions; I'm talking about those small personalized touches that make a story real. Those little pieces that seem completely random until you finally realize that they all fit together perfectly, flawlessly.

and before you ask yes I will read book two maybe even tonight! show less

I did NOT expect to love this book. I was none too impressed with November 9, and just knowing Hoover's reputation for writing problematic stuff, I figured this would be another 'meh' read. But....WOW. I loved this more than any other romance novel I have ever read.

This story is heart-breaking, poignant, vivid, and breathtakingly realistic.

So much of this was so close to my heart. I grew up in a very abusive home and my first serious relationship was an abusive one. I've been saying it for show more years: all these novels with domestic violence have these caricature villain male abusers. They are all bad and if the woman doesn't leave, it's usually only because she lacks money/resources or she is afraid of the violence escalating if she leaves. Now, these are valid fears and this is the reality of many women. It just isn't the only reality, and it wasn't my reality. I have been craving a book like this, a book that encapsulates the unique horror of loving a man who hurts you. Hoover shines a light on this, in all of it's gory detail, along with all of the shame and self-loathing that comes with it.

Just...wow. This book is brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I was in tears at so many points while reading this.

And Atlas! I need a sequel with Lily and Atlas so badly! Colleen Hoover! I'm begging you write that sequel!

When he says to her, "If you're ever in a position to fall in love again...fall in love with me."

Ah! My heart! I could scream I got so many feels from that.

And all of the heart-break and angst when she leaves Ryle; this is the angst I need in my life.

Colleen Hoover: You wrote a brilliant and gorgeous book that left me feeling vindicated. I felt so wholly understood. So much empathy for women who have lived through abuse and stayed for longer than they should have (even when they knew they should really leave).

The very worst part of domestic violence is that the person who hurts you is the person you lvoe most in the world.

God bless you for writing this book. It moved me in ways I could never fully explain. This book stirred my emotions so deeply and I wish I could really explain what this book meant to me. It meant so SO much. show less

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I have finally made it! By reading Verity, I joined the club of people who read and enjoyed a Colleen Hoover book!

Synopsis:

Lowen Ashleigh is a struggling writer on the brink of financial ruin when she accepts the job offer of a lifetime. Jeremy Crawford, husband of bestselling author Verity Crawford, has hired Lowen to complete the remaining books in a successful series his injured wife is unable to finish.

Lowen arrives at the Crawford show more home, ready to sort through years of Verity’s notes and outlines, hoping to find enough material to get her started. What Lowen doesn’t expect to uncover in the chaotic office is an unfinished autobiography Verity never intended for anyone to read. Page after page of bone-chilling admissions, including Verity’s recollection of what really happened the day her daughter died.

Lowen decides to keep the manuscript hidden from Jeremy, knowing its contents would devastate the already grieving father. But as Lowen’s feelings for Jeremy begin to intensify, she recognizes all the ways she could benefit if he were to read his wife’s words. After all, no matter how devoted Jeremy is to his injured wife, a truth this horrifying would make it impossible for him to continue to love her.

Thoughts:

Just a side note, there isn’t any special reason why I waited this long to read a book by Colleen Hoover. I just didn’t have her books on my physical TBR and read the ones I did. I’m also not the type of person to jump on a bandwagon, so I wasn’t too bothered to pick up popular books if I didn’t already own them. Anyways, here we are, with me having read Verity! My colleague and good friend recommended it to me, and I had to give it a go. What an incredible book Verity ended up being! I finished it in two days and would have finished it in one sitting had I not had work and real life stuff too.

From the first chapter where Lowen’s story starts to the very last chapter that gives more questions than answers. This book was unpredictable. I loved the plot. I went in blind, and was so excited about Lowen’s deal. Then, once she moved into the house, I was excited to read about every little thing that was going on. Jeremy was an interesting character for me. I had a lot of admiration for him, for everything he went through, but then I also felt some sinister vibes off him. And then we have Verity. A woman who has a passive role in this book, but she is the main character. Despite not having a voice, she ends up being the loudest one.

The house has a weird vibe, from Verity’s writing office, to the nurses. Even the child is traumatised, bless him. And rightly so, as he’s been through so much! We then also have the romance that is starting to bloom between Jeremy and Lowen. And it’s so odd, because I was rooting for their love story, but his wife was still in that house. If anything, this shows how amazing Colleen’s writing is, especially when it comes to taboo topics or situations that don’t fit the normal mould of what’s morally acceptable.
Sinister, but amazing!

My favourite quote is the one below. As soon as I read it, it rang so true to me. And it reminded me of the first sentence of Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy. The same kind of reflection moment hit me, which I know made Verity that more special in my heart:

“Some families are lucky enough to never experience a single tragedy. But then there are those families that seem to have tragedies waiting on the back burner. What can go wrong, goes wrong. And then it gets worse.”

The whole character setup was a paradise for a psychology lover like me. I loved getting inside everyone’s head, trying to figure out what people are thinking and what they’ll do next. I also enjoyed the book within a book part incredibly much – the part where we read Verity’s diary. Verity is a book that will definitely keep you on your toes. A lot of clues and other people’s version of the same events are likely to make you trust no one. In the end, you will have to make your own conclusion on who to believe and who is telling the truth.

It’s been a long time since I’ve enjoyed a book this much, and an ending that made me re-evaluate every opinion I had throughout the book. It’s the kind of book you want to talk about, so it’s no wonder it has become the sensation it is now. This is for sure just the start of my Colleen Hoover journey – what book should I be reading next? And for those of you who have read Verity – what do you believe more? The diary or the letter? show less