Ugly Love

'Sometimes a man's spirit just ain't strong enough to withstand the ghosts of his past. Maybe that boy just lost his spirit along the way.'

Plot

When Tate Collins comes home to her new apartment and finds Miles Archer passed out in front of the door, it definitely isn't love at first sight. Tate and Miles wouldn't even consider themselves as friends, but they do have an undeniable attraction for each other.

Miles doesn't want love, and Tate doesn't have time for a relationship, but the chemistry between them cannot be ignored, and it won't go away. As long as Tate can stick to two rules, they have the perfect set up; Never ask about the past and don't expect a future.

As they spend more time together, Tate tries to convince herself that show more she's ok with their arrangement, but soon realises that it's a lot harder than she thought. How can she say no to Miles Archer when he lives next door?


My thoughts

To anyone that reads my reviews, it's probably obvious how much I love Colleen Hoover's books by now. I didn't even read the synopsis of this book before I bought it, all I knew was that there was a character called Miles. I didn't need to know what this book was about before I bought it, because I always love Colleen Hoover's books with their heartbreaking and beautifully written stories.

You can see from the five stars that I've given this book, that I loved every page, every moment between the characters, every twist and every shocking revelation. And they really were shocking and heart-wrenching.

The story was told through alternating points of view, between Tate in the present, and Miles in the past. I loved the way this book was written, as it kept Miles' past a mystery until the end and kept me coming back to discover just what could have made Miles so incredibly stone-hearted. Miles' chapters are from six years ago, a time when he was a completely different, happier person. The chapters slowly build to a heartbreaking moment, a moment that changed Miles for the rest of his life.

As usual with Colleen's stories, the relationship between the two main characters was beautiful. I loved seeing how Tate was slowly but surely making a dent in Miles' armour.

I highly recommend this book, but I also recommend that if you're going to read it, have tissues close by, because this book may very well reduce you to a blubbering mess. show less

This book wasn't what I was expecting. What I mean by that is, between the name and Colleen, I expected some ugly tears. Now, don't get all disappointed by this. I am not saying there aren't parts that won't make you cry, there are. It's just I am a tougher cookie to crack. I was almost there a few times. I just needed more for the tears to fall.

I love how this book starts out. Tate and Miles' meeting isn't very typical or romantic. I couldn't help but chuckle a little. I found myself doing that periodically throughout the book. The slow friendship/relationship that builds between these two is bittersweet. It isn't instant and it is heartbreaking at times.

Colleen always seems to get me so far into her characters' heads that I can't seem show more to escape them for some time. I still catch myself sitting here thinking about them from time to time. That doesn't always happen!

Per usual, I am not going to go into the plot. You read the blurb. I am sure there are many reviews out there already that have delved into the plot and dissected it for you. I will tell you that the story has its own uniqueness that will keep you reading. I didn't want to put it down! show less

If you haven’t laid hands on the book yet, here’s your clue to stop reading. This review has spoilers.

“Love isn’t always pretty, Tate. Sometimes you spend all your time hoping it’ll eventually be something different. Something better. Then, before you know it, you’re back to square one, and you lost your heart somewhere along the way.”

This book has been something I will continue to possess as a treasure, for the rest of my life. How the emotional failures of one person can hurt another with wounds deeper than a sword, and how past trauma can ruin the best of us, is something that the book exceptionally discovers, scarring every reader with an ugly love for it.

“That’s how it is when a person develops an attraction show more toward someone. He’s nowhere, then suddenly he’s everywhere, whether you want him to be or not.”

When Tate moves in with her brother Corbin, she isn’t looking for love, she’s just preparing for her master’s. And the day Tate moves in, Miles isn’t looking for love either, he’s just drunk, heavily drunk, Miles-never-ever-drinks-so-much drunk because his past with Rachel and the loss of Clayton is eating at him. The kind of loss you don’t wish on anyone, especially not a teen.

“Don’t ask about my past. And never expect a future.”

The two rules that as per the complex mind of Miles, define their relationship. It’s not a common arrangement, you can’t even call them friends with benefits because they weren’t friends in the first place. Despite Miles’ want and Tate’s compliance, they fall in love, hard, harder than they’ve ever felt. But that’s not the happy ending for them, because Miles is a master of denying his emotions, and in the process of what he thinks is saving Tate’s heart, he shatters her ever so more than he would if he were with her.

“Some people, they grow wiser as they grow older. Unfortunately, most people just grow older.”

Miles however, grows wise in other terms than his heart. He thinks he is protecting himself and others from his past when all he needs to do is face his past. Sometimes, the only way to escape a stance is to face it, and Miles’ predicament is an unparalleled one.

The story alternates between present experiences between Miles and Tate and his past with Rachel, peeking ever so carefully into the different sides of Max and the walls he has built around himself after all the time. The book is filled to the brim with emotions and remorse, memories and experiences, and all along the journey of reading the book, I cried, not once but numerous times, because even though I don’t know much about love, I knew about Tate and Miles. I don’t believe in soulmates but it was hard not to believe in them, even harder to think they didn’t deserve each other, because they did, they deserved the love, the new experiences and they deserved a fresh start at life. And so they got. show less

These characters need therapy and A relationship with Jesus! 3.5 and well written though

Ugly Love is a rollercoaster of emotion, and Colleen Hoover definitely knows how to tug on the heartstrings. The writing is engaging, and the chemistry between Tate and Miles is intense. The alternating timelines give a deeper insight into Miles’ backstory, which is heartbreaking and adds depth to his character.

However, the book leans heavily into emotional trauma without offering much balance or growth for the characters, especially Tate. Her passivity and constant acceptance of Miles’ cold treatment made it hard to root for the relationship at times. The "friends with benefits" setup felt more damaging than romantic, and the ending wrapped show more things up a little too neatly given all the pain that preceded it.

Overall, it's a compelling read if you're into angsty, emotionally heavy romances, but it might leave you feeling a bit hollow rather than hopeful. show less

Four hours. That’s how long it took me to consume every word of “Ugly Love”. I poured out every emotion I think I’ve ever felt in my whole life into tears and my ugly crying face. Four hours that had me feeling like I’ve lived an entire lifetime in between the pages of that book. I met Tate and fell in love with her snarky personality and sarcasm. I followed along on Miles’ journey, begging to know his secrets. I begged him and begged him to share his life with us. I yearned to see a relationship form, for hearts NOT to get broken and for a happily ever after. However, it’s called “Ugly Love” for a reason. Sometimes love isn’t pretty and all sunshine and flowers. In fact, more often than not, it’s ugly. It’s also show more what we do with the ugly that matters. It has a certain beauty about it when you can show the ugly parts of who you are not only to the ones you love, but also to yourself. If you hide away the ugly, you’ll never be able to fix it. You’ll live forever in a state of denial and frustration. You owe it to yourself to be honest, to love and to communicate. You owe it to yourself to have an Ugly Love.

I leave you with this; go read “Ugly Love” by Colleen Hoover. Then I want you to analyze what might be ugly in your life. Think about it long and hard and then work on it. You owe it to yourself. show less

Actual Rating: 3.75/5
There ARE MAJOR SPOILERS throughout most of this review! Take heed.

Let me start out by saying that this was SO FUN to read! I had started and been in the process of reading three other books before this one, but I put those on hold for a couple days so I could keep reading "Ugly Love". I was just completely engaged and curious to see a) what happened between Miles and Tate, and b) what had happened in Mile's past. In my opinion, that's one of the strongest parts of the book: it's fun, it's different, and the urge to find out "What happens next??" is very prevalent, both with the secrets and the sex.
Another very notable aspect of "Ugly Love" is the array of emotions that saturate the novel. There are, of course, a show more plethora of "loving" moments: the sibling love between Tate and Corbin; the sexual love/desire between Tate and Miles; the brotherly love between Miles and Ian; the family love in both Tate and Miles' families; and the heartbreaking love between Rachel, Miles, and their lost baby. It was super interesting to look at all these kinds of love and see how each character suffered and grew through them. Hoover has done a great job of taking the audience through an exploration of what love means to different people. Then there are the funny moments (read: any scene Cap is in!), the tense emotions (Miles and Rachel telling their parents), and the shattering, rip-my-heart-out emotions (the car crash D: ). Hoover takes readers on a complete emotional rollercoaster in "Ugly Love".

These were the things I think Hoover could have worked on a bit more:
Throughout the whole book, Tate and Miles would be in a "happy" state for a bit, but almost immediately after, something would be brought up about Mile's past that would send their relationship into a headspin again. I felt like this constant back-and-forth was a bit tiresome, and the emotions from this just kept getting too angsty. These instances happened enough through the middle of the novel that I felt it was lagging a bit, or just getting a little repetitive.
In addition, I felt like I didn't get to KNOW the characters as deeply as I could have. Readers learn about Miles and Tate's jobs, schooling, and some family stuff, but it felt a bit superficial. I wanted to know more about them as people, and I feel like readers only get to know them through their sexual relationship and how they percieve each other.
Lastly (and I believe I said this about "Slammed", too), I really wish there was more creative imagery in Hoover's novels. Sometimes I feel like the characters are just floating around because the reader has been given little if none scene building or descriptions of areas, room, cities, or even just the people! I think that if there had been more imagery and description, this would have been a solid 4/5 for me.

I am a sucker for a happy ending, so the last couple chapters of the book (from Rachel and Miles finally meeting after 6 years, to Cap flying for the first time, and finally the proposal EEP!), really made my mushy gushy heart happy. I was worried Hoover would leave the ending too ambiguous, but she pulled through and wrapped it up nicely. show less

Tate Collins doesn't have time for a boyfriend and Miles Archer is too emotionally damaged to want a girlfriend, so all that leaves is sex.

Tate thought it would be easy, simple even. They have rules and when they stick to them no one gets hurt. But Tate finds herself wanting more from their arrangement and Miles keeps giving her hope that there might be something more to them then their physical connection.

But in order for Tate to break down Miles' walls and make him open up to her she has to learn about his past, the one he keeps guarded, the one that she swore never to ask about.

Love is a lot of things and Colleen Hoover does a spectacular job of showing us all the ugliest parts of it.

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I blew show more through this book, it probably took me less than 6 hours to read it start to finish and when I did finish I was wrecked.

I can't even tell you how much I love Colleen's ability to take a story such as this one, one about 'friends with benefits' and tell it in a way that's completely unique and (thankfully) lacks all of cliches.

I loved Tate as a character and (of course) I instantly fell for Miles and his puppy dog eyes.

I really enjoyed the lack of other characters, yes there were small bits and pieces with other people passing through but for the most part it was solely Miles and Tate and I feel like with anyone else's characters it would've gotten old real fast but Colleens characters are so lively and so complex that the whole book could have been set in an 8x10 room with just the two of them and it still would've been amazing.

I don't want to go into too much detail about the book because I feel like if I do I'll give something away so I'll just end by saying that Colleen has this magically way of tugging on your heartstrings and forcing you to believe in true love, even the ugly kind.

Until next time,
Ginger show less