Starting Things with Colleen Hoover

You didn’t think I would get sucked into Colleen Hoover world and not read the 2nd installment, did you? As a reminder, I was completely consumed by its predecessor, ‘It Ends With Us’ so I immediately download ‘It Starts With us’ to fill that gap. It picks up immediately where Lily left off, which is where I warn you that spoilers are ahead!

With Lily giving birth to her and Ryle’s daughter in a less than stellar place in their relationship, they now are in the fun new territory of trying to co-parent while still not completely over one another. Lily finds herself constantly trying to navigate Ryle’s advances and temper while trying to not hinder her daughter’s relationship with her father. If that isn’t complicated enough, a chance run in with Atlas only adds fuel to that fire. This book follows this very uncomfortable threesome and seeing if starting something new is even possible in the most volatile environment.

This book desperately tried to hold its own, but did fall a bit short. I consumed it in only a matter of days, yes, but it left a lot to be desired. This was an interesting book in the sense that it was told in two voices - Lily’s and Atlas’, which chapters constantly switching between one another. Good side note that whoever voiced Atlas in the audio book sounds damn good, 10/10 choice. This book really built up a big issue on Ryle’s end, but didn’t end up delivering on that suspense. Look, I don’t want to give attention to a violent character, but that tension build up originally dangled in front of me just didn’t deliver, and it was missed. There was almost more drama with Atlas and his long lost brother than with the infamous instigator, which was absurd.

This wasn’t a bad book by any means, but it was really hyped up in a way that sadly didn’t align with the final result. It does provide a romantic happy ending though, so if you are a sucker for closure, I say go for it - lord knows I am, no judgement. ‘It Starts With Us’ is a good read, but can’t hold a candle to the OG. I’m not here to discourage you from reading it, just to keep your expectations realistic. This is one of those that reinforce the idea that a sequel can never compete with the first, and that’s okay, can’t all be winners. That being said, get your closure with ‘It Starts With Us’ by Colleen Hoover.