littleacorn10's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
SPOILER REVIEW:
First Colleen Hoover book. Figured it was time to see what all the hype was about. I certainly wasn’t expecting to enjoy it as much as I did.
Although the writing itself, minus the explicit content, could be considered YA in dialect and style, I didn’t find myself too distracted by it. I was invested in the story, not the writing.
The switching POVs was enjoyable and kept the plot moving at a good pace as it allowed for time gaps between chapters. I also enjoyed the prose inspired chapters. Some might say it was a tad overdone, but I liked it because it got to the *point* of those moment. It told us exactly what we needed to know without buffering it with unnecessary details.
Finally, I did like the message of the book That part resonated for me and will certainly stick with me.
All in all, I enjoyed my day binge-reading this book. Maybe I will pick up another Hoover book sometime in the future.
First Colleen Hoover book. Figured it was time to see what all the hype was about. I certainly wasn’t expecting to enjoy it as much as I did.
Although the writing itself, minus the explicit content, could be considered YA in dialect and style, I didn’t find myself too distracted by it. I was invested in the story, not the writing.
The switching POVs was enjoyable and kept the plot moving at a good pace as it allowed for time gaps between chapters. I also enjoyed the prose inspired chapters. Some might say it was a tad overdone, but I liked it because it got to the *point* of those moment. It told us exactly what we needed to know without buffering it with unnecessary details.
Spoiler
The happy ending was a tad corny, but I wouldn’t have liked a non-happy ending. I just personally didn’t think we had to see the proposal or any of that, it could have been open ended.Finally, I did like the message of the book
Spoiler
that love is worth the pain.All in all, I enjoyed my day binge-reading this book. Maybe I will pick up another Hoover book sometime in the future.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Car accident, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Abortion, Cancer, and Alcohol
julianxiv's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
actual rating: 2,5 stars
edit 3: the more i think about it the more i hate it. 1,5 stars
god cishets r so boring
edit: i have way too many thoughts about this book that idk if i can keep to myself anymore. every time i see this book i feel violent. i feel a sudden urge to appear on international news. seeing this cover pisses me off. the only reason this is 2 stars instead of 1 is because, somehow, colleen hoover has a way of dragging you into her books and holding onto you for dear life, i swear she does not let go before you've turned the very last page.
regardless of how badly i was sucked into this story, i HATED it. hated every second. the characters had to have been the worst part of it all.
on the top of my list for Doormat Female Characters i've read about in my life, is tate. she is the textbook definition of a doormat. not only does she get stomped on all over during the whole book, she is also really flat and has no defining characteristics. seriously, who is this girl, and why is the main character? all i know about her is that she's a nurse and that her name is tate. now it's been a little while since i read this book, but i can guarantee that's all there was. every time she spoke i wanted to just skip ahead to the next miles chapter. "but what if i wanted more than sex" this, "i think i'm catching feelings for him" that, literally shut the fuck up, he told you multiple times that he didn't want anything serious, it's time to take no for an answer. and it's because of this persistence that she lets miles stomp all over her. its because she seemingly has NO sense of what's best for her personal wellbeing that she lets herself be used and tossed by him (almost literally. if you know you know).
miles's chapters were mildly interesting. i didn't get as attached to him as everyone else seemed to be, and so his "tragic backstory" wasn't all that tragic to me. i mildly enjoyed the way his chapters were written, but mostly because the short lines made it faster to read. i just wanted it over with, if i'm being honest. he definitely made an ... interesting ... choice by sticking with rachel. when it comes to tate, i think his treatment of her is about as close to abuse as it can get. he treated her as if she was a piece of garbage stuck under his shoe. i know that women seem to love the tall, dark, tortured type, but god please have some self respect. him being tortured doesn't mean he has to be an asshole.
i also feel obligated to say something about corbin. first of all, what kind of name is corbin? why would a parent ever look at their newborn baby and decide that CORBIN was a fitting name??? i guess colleen hoover has a history of silly names, though i have to say corbin is less silly than the Monstrosity lily blossom bloom. what i actually wanted to say is that this guy treats his sister as a child. he seems to think that this grown woman cannot choose for herself who she wants to have sex with (which, to be fair, is partly true, considering who she actually chose) and ends up seeming a bit too much like a brotherly knight in shining armour. maybe that's why tate has no personality, she's just been decided for by corbin her whole life, which i would think is true considering tate mentioned he was doing the same thing in high school. i understand not wanting your guy friends to be groping on your sister, and i can understand why he would do it in school, but she is a grown woman and she is never going to learn to be good to herself if corbin is constantly choosing for her.
i was promised emotional damage in this book. i did, in fact, get none.
anyways. i only wrote all this because i've been angrily thinking about this book for 2 months now and felt as if holding it in any longer would make me explode.
edit 2: i can't believe i forgot to mention the smut, it's so horrendous, i usually get turned on pretty easily, but these scenes had me feeling completely normal, if a bit disturbed. maybe it's colleen hoover, maybe it's just the fact that they're cishet. regardless, legs stayed together, back stayed straight, and toes did not curl in the slightest. not even the littlest grab of the sheets happened.
that's all, for real this time
edit 3: the more i think about it the more i hate it. 1,5 stars
god cishets r so boring
edit: i have way too many thoughts about this book that idk if i can keep to myself anymore. every time i see this book i feel violent. i feel a sudden urge to appear on international news. seeing this cover pisses me off. the only reason this is 2 stars instead of 1 is because, somehow, colleen hoover has a way of dragging you into her books and holding onto you for dear life, i swear she does not let go before you've turned the very last page.
regardless of how badly i was sucked into this story, i HATED it. hated every second. the characters had to have been the worst part of it all.
on the top of my list for Doormat Female Characters i've read about in my life, is tate. she is the textbook definition of a doormat. not only does she get stomped on all over during the whole book, she is also really flat and has no defining characteristics. seriously, who is this girl, and why is the main character? all i know about her is that she's a nurse and that her name is tate. now it's been a little while since i read this book, but i can guarantee that's all there was. every time she spoke i wanted to just skip ahead to the next miles chapter. "but what if i wanted more than sex" this, "i think i'm catching feelings for him" that, literally shut the fuck up, he told you multiple times that he didn't want anything serious, it's time to take no for an answer. and it's because of this persistence that she lets miles stomp all over her. its because she seemingly has NO sense of what's best for her personal wellbeing that she lets herself be used and tossed by him (almost literally. if you know you know).
miles's chapters were mildly interesting. i didn't get as attached to him as everyone else seemed to be, and so his "tragic backstory" wasn't all that tragic to me. i mildly enjoyed the way his chapters were written, but mostly because the short lines made it faster to read. i just wanted it over with, if i'm being honest. he definitely made an ... interesting ... choice by sticking with rachel. when it comes to tate, i think his treatment of her is about as close to abuse as it can get. he treated her as if she was a piece of garbage stuck under his shoe. i know that women seem to love the tall, dark, tortured type, but god please have some self respect. him being tortured doesn't mean he has to be an asshole.
i also feel obligated to say something about corbin. first of all, what kind of name is corbin? why would a parent ever look at their newborn baby and decide that CORBIN was a fitting name??? i guess colleen hoover has a history of silly names, though i have to say corbin is less silly than the Monstrosity lily blossom bloom. what i actually wanted to say is that this guy treats his sister as a child. he seems to think that this grown woman cannot choose for herself who she wants to have sex with (which, to be fair, is partly true, considering who she actually chose) and ends up seeming a bit too much like a brotherly knight in shining armour. maybe that's why tate has no personality, she's just been decided for by corbin her whole life, which i would think is true considering tate mentioned he was doing the same thing in high school. i understand not wanting your guy friends to be groping on your sister, and i can understand why he would do it in school, but she is a grown woman and she is never going to learn to be good to herself if corbin is constantly choosing for her.
i was promised emotional damage in this book. i did, in fact, get none.
anyways. i only wrote all this because i've been angrily thinking about this book for 2 months now and felt as if holding it in any longer would make me explode.
edit 2: i can't believe i forgot to mention the smut, it's so horrendous, i usually get turned on pretty easily, but these scenes had me feeling completely normal, if a bit disturbed. maybe it's colleen hoover, maybe it's just the fact that they're cishet. regardless, legs stayed together, back stayed straight, and toes did not curl in the slightest. not even the littlest grab of the sheets happened.
that's all, for real this time
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, and Incest
Minor: Abortion
modjeskapup's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident, Child death, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Abortion
filipa_maia's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Colleen Hoover is a great story teller. I've read enough of her books to know it and to keep reading everything that she writes. With that being said I did not fell in love with this story as I usually do.
Tell me you live a very toxic relationship without telling me that you live a very toxic relationship. This is the story behind Ugly Love. I understand Miles tragic past and in no way, shape or form I'm undermining the pain that something like that must change your life forever... and I also know that he defined pretty simples rules... but he is just a very idiot of a man. And Tate is a woman that can't stand up for herself and that annoys me. No man in this world is that good looking or that good in bed to make her endure such things. Tate is a cliche of a woman that sees a broken man and wants to help him, change him... Girl, he told you exactly how things would happen and you got mad when things happened the ways he told you they would.
Ugly Love indeed.
Tell me you live a very toxic relationship without telling me that you live a very toxic relationship. This is the story behind Ugly Love. I understand Miles tragic past and in no way, shape or form I'm undermining the pain that something like that must change your life forever... and I also know that he defined pretty simples rules... but he is just a very idiot of a man. And Tate is a woman that can't stand up for herself and that annoys me. No man in this world is that good looking or that good in bed to make her endure such things. Tate is a cliche of a woman that sees a broken man and wants to help him, change him... Girl, he told you exactly how things would happen and you got mad when things happened the ways he told you they would.
Ugly Love indeed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Cursing, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Grief, Pregnancy, Car accident, Child death, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual harassment, and Cancer
Minor: Abandonment, Abortion, and Alcohol
s_elsted's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Sexual content
Moderate: Child death, Pregnancy, and Car accident
Minor: Homophobia, Infidelity, Injury/injury detail, Medical content, Abortion, Blood, Cancer, Death of parent, and Violence
froggybex's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
2.0
ok i HATED the first half. ironically started getting into the story halfway through (u know when u watch a bad tv show just bc it’s bad *cough* r*v*rdale). the end made me cry but i think i just got too invested in the characters.
like a great idea, poor execution.
also oh no stepbro.
like a great idea, poor execution.
also oh no stepbro.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Grief, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death of parent and Cancer
Minor: Abortion
__helena__'s review against another edition
challenging
emotional
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
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent, and Car accident
Moderate: Cancer, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Blood
Minor: Abortion and Alcohol
sofhaz's review against another edition
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Abortion
maddys_daisy's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Emotional abuse, Car accident, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Child death
Minor: Blood, Abortion, Cancer, and Chronic illness
gothmiku's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
This book… it’s not very good… people on booktok are filthy liars, never taking another recommendation from them again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Child death, and Incest
Moderate: Alcoholism and Child abuse
Minor: Acephobia/Arophobia, Sexual harassment, Abortion, Death of parent, and Outing