**SPOILERS, TW: ABUSE** 

“You can stop swimming now, Lily. We finally reached the shore.”      I have a lot to say about this book, I don’t even know where to start. Giddiness, butterflies, pain, shock, hurt, emptiness… these are all emotions I experienced while reading this book. This is my first Colleen Hoover book, and I will definitely be reading more. The writing in this book is absolutely beautiful. I have yet to read a book that has as much beautiful writing as this: “You’re only human. And as humans, we can’t expect to shoulder all of our pain. Sometimes we have to share it with the people who love us so we don’t come crashing down from the weight of it all.” Wow. The writing was so STRONG that I felt all of Lily’s pain, her love, her happiness, her contemplation—everything. I have never experienced abuse personally, but I found myself thinking of Ryle the way Lily had thought of him even after everything; essentially catching myself up in that cycle Lily had been caught up in, just by reading. I found myself thinking…. Why did Lily hide that, or why didn’t she say this? I found myself thinking…. Ryle just had a bad past, he can’t control his emotions, he loves her. The way Ryle’s character was developed made this book that much more impactful. I felt Lily’s betrayal when he first did something, and I felt her sympathy afterwards when she forgave him. I loved Ryle. I really thought he loved Lily, and maybe he did. But in the end, just as Lily’s mom had said, he didn’t love her the right way. If he truly loved her, he would have let her leave without any pleading because he knew how much he hurt her. I felt her waves of emotions while deciding what to do near the end, and I think that’s the whole point of this book. That cycle of abuse that, unfortunately, some people can never break. When you love someone and build this facade of how they were when you first met VS how they are now, it makes it hard to leave. I’ve never had to experience anything like that firsthand, but I’ve seen it happen to others, and reading this book has shown me just how hard it is to leave. Lily is so strong for coming to her decision. Furthermore, I found myself frustrated and empty when Atlas and Lily never saw each other before they did later in his restaurant. I was frustrated because I wish Lily could have experienced and felt what love truly feels like and looks like, and with Atlas, she would have. Atlas loved Lily a lot , so much so that he put his strong emotions towards her aside in the past, all because he didn’t feel that just loving her was enough. He wanted to give Lily the world, and spent years working his way up to create a life that was perfect for her. I wish Lily, and all women out there who are stuck in the cycle of abuse, were able to experience the love Atlas was willing to give Lily sooner—to see that there is someone out there that will love them the way they deserve to be loved, someone that will grimace and have nightmares at the thought of ever hurting them, someone that will give them the love—the healthy love—they deserve. The end made me cry. I was proud of Lily, and I was happy that she finally found someone who will take care of her and love her the way she deserves to be loved until the day he dies… Atlas. I’m happy that Lily finally reached the shore and can breathe now. I loved this book a lot, and it made a really big impact on me. I truly believe EVERYONE should read this book. Not to mention a film adaptation of this book is in the works and will be directed by Justin Baldoni!

Justin Baldoni with It Ends With Us

 author, Colleen Hoover