pikaellie's review
emotional
sad
medium-paced
3.5
This is the last Colleen Hoover book I'll read. I think this is her best book, but I'm getting tired of her writing style. I loved the plot of this book, and I thought the ending was great, but if I had to read one more sex scene, I was going to puke. The sex in this book just felt unnecessary, because I felt like the story shouldn't have focused so much on I just felt like this book would be a lot better if the focus was less on the romance, and more on Kenna and her daughter, or even Kenna having friendships with other people. Other than that, the plot of the book was honestly very good, and I teared up towards the end.
Like I said, this is the last book I'll be reading by Colleen Hoover. Too much forced sex, not enough time on the plot of the book that is actually very good. I don't want to be distracted by gagging about the sex scenes that felt forced, and the disgusting thoughts that the men always have in CoHo's books. (Seriously, November 9 had the same problem with just the perverted thoughts that Ben had about Fallon. Gross.)
Read this book if you are okay with random sex scenes in the middle of the interesting plot.
Spoiler
Ledger and Kenna's relationship. I liked that they got together in the end, but every freaking time there was a serious moment between them, like Kenna telling her story, it ended in sex. Seriously, if I had just poured my emotions out the way that Kenna did, the last thing on my mind would be having sex. Also, again, Kenna had just poured her emotions out, then she and Ledger had sex, and then all Ledger could think about was the cleavage that her shirt showed. It made me want to vomit.Like I said, this is the last book I'll be reading by Colleen Hoover. Too much forced sex, not enough time on the plot of the book that is actually very good. I don't want to be distracted by gagging about the sex scenes that felt forced, and the disgusting thoughts that the men always have in CoHo's books. (Seriously, November 9 had the same problem with just the perverted thoughts that Ben had about Fallon. Gross.)
Read this book if you are okay with random sex scenes in the middle of the interesting plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Cursing
mags88's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Death, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Mental illness, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, and Drug use
brandie_abbie19's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Medical content, Alcohol, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Drug use and Violence
annabananadel's review
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
"There was before you and there was during you. For some reason, I never thought there would be an after you."
Another impressive Colleen Hoover novel that I should be thanking her for writing. My best friend (the same person who introduced me this amazing writer on my 18th birthday 10 years ago) and I decided it was time for us to start reading this book at the same time. So we did. We just forgot to explain the details and set the rules and boundaries upon reading this book. Suffice to say, I devoured the book in 2 days and when I told her I finished it already, she had just finished a few chapters because she was so busy. It's a book to really devote a day or two maybe 2-3 hours each day because it's something I had a hard time putting down.
Saying that this book is about Kenna and Ledger is something I'd be lying about. It's more of Kenna-Diem-Scotty, Ledger-Diem and maybe a little bit of Kenna-Ledger. It's sad to say that I fell in love with Scotty too whilst reading this and later had a thing with Ledger. But it's a Scotty love story for me. The love story between Kenna and Scotty is amazing and something I was devastated for knowing it had ended. I can't even say I was rooting for Scotty because we know he's already gone with the pigeons, maybe, and that's the devastating part. You can also see how Kenna is as a mother. Someone who'd do the very best thing for her daughter, even when that would mean her going away and never seeing her. I cried and felt for Kenna and I don't even have a child (aside from my dogs). For a minute or two, I even thought it would be a sad ending where something bad would happen to Kenna... I'm so happy it wasn't. I would be so devastated.
The reason why it's only a bit of Ledger-Kenna was because it was a hate to love situation. Their relationship only progressed more during the third of the book and I'm not even mad about it. Because we need to see how much Kenna love Scotty and why she's the way she is as a mother. The love story between Ledger and Kenna is an added bonus, in my opinion. It made me see that even after experiencing that kind of love and being heart-broken from it, one can still move on. You can also see them fighting their will to be with the other because there are in such situation. I would love to reread this someday for sure. Maybe once I had a child, I'd better understand Kenna.
(me when I read this line: "OHHHH. So that's where that Colleen Hoover line was from!!!")
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Alcohol, Pregnancy, and Sexual content
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
y3llow_umbr3lla's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, Alcohol, Car accident, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual content
Moderate: Violence, Blood, and Cursing
Minor: Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, and Infertility
adrialucilfer's review
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Pregnancy, Car accident, Blood, Alcohol, Drug use, Suicide attempt, Death, Cursing, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent
alyssaa04's review
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Car accident, Grief, Death, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Blood, Body horror, Pregnancy, and Medical trauma
Minor: Confinement, Kidnapping, Alcohol, Drug use, Pregnancy, and Vomit
lynini's review
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
Minor: Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
juliamb's review
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Blood
Moderate: Alcohol, Cursing, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Violence
micaelamariem's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I was a little nervous to read this because last summer I read Maybe Someday and hated it but thought this time could be different. Every author deserves more than one chance.
This time was...slightly better.
Reminders of Him is about Kenna, a young woman who made a tragic mistake that landed her in prison and caused her to lose everything she loved--including custody of the life she didn't even realize she was carrying. This is the story of after her prison release, how she found her way back to loved ones in her search for redemption and a way to forgive herself.
And look, put like that, it sounds good. But Kenna's tragic mistake--and this isn't really a spoiler as it's mentioned in the first chapter--involved drunk driving. And while I can empathize with some of her situation, and wholeheartedly agree that there needs to be a better system in place that helps rehabilitated convicts enter into a more accepting world, I still find it hard to agree the stupid decision to get behind the wheel while intoxicated. There's not really any excuse for that and I can understand why people hated her in the aftermath.
Another thing that disappointed me was how quickly people's opinions and moods changed. Realistically, acceptance and forgiveness is more of a slow burn thing, but this happened way too quickly, without a middle it felt like.
All this negative stuff really affected my enjoyment of the reading. However, I can admit the writing style has really improved since Maybe Someday. And I actually did like Ledger, though he seemed a bit too perfect for a character, if you know what I mean. I wouldn't have minded seeing more flaws in him. But the romance was good, and I mostly enjoyed that aspect.
In the end, I think the book could've been improved with more of a slow burn to forgiveness--even if that meant the book had to be longer. It would've also given me more time to come to terms with the mistake Kenna made.
That being said, this is a highly rated book and I know I'm in an unpopular opinion here. I would rate the book between 2.5 stars to 3 stars, and probably wouldn't recommend it, but that doesn't necessarily mean you wouldn't like it!
This time was...slightly better.
Reminders of Him is about Kenna, a young woman who made a tragic mistake that landed her in prison and caused her to lose everything she loved--including custody of the life she didn't even realize she was carrying. This is the story of after her prison release, how she found her way back to loved ones in her search for redemption and a way to forgive herself.
And look, put like that, it sounds good. But Kenna's tragic mistake--and this isn't really a spoiler as it's mentioned in the first chapter--involved drunk driving. And while I can empathize with some of her situation, and wholeheartedly agree that there needs to be a better system in place that helps rehabilitated convicts enter into a more accepting world, I still find it hard to agree the stupid decision to get behind the wheel while intoxicated. There's not really any excuse for that and I can understand why people hated her in the aftermath.
Another thing that disappointed me was how quickly people's opinions and moods changed. Realistically, acceptance and forgiveness is more of a slow burn thing, but this happened way too quickly, without a middle it felt like.
All this negative stuff really affected my enjoyment of the reading. However, I can admit the writing style has really improved since Maybe Someday. And I actually did like Ledger, though he seemed a bit too perfect for a character, if you know what I mean. I wouldn't have minded seeing more flaws in him. But the romance was good, and I mostly enjoyed that aspect.
In the end, I think the book could've been improved with more of a slow burn to forgiveness--even if that meant the book had to be longer. It would've also given me more time to come to terms with the mistake Kenna made.
That being said, this is a highly rated book and I know I'm in an unpopular opinion here. I would rate the book between 2.5 stars to 3 stars, and probably wouldn't recommend it, but that doesn't necessarily mean you wouldn't like it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Cursing, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Grief, Addiction, Alcohol, Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content