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A review by bookedbyruqs
Regretting You by Colleen Hoover
3.0
3.5
This is a book about grief, betrayal, and heart break. But it’s also a story about love, forgiveness, and moving forward. Life isn’t easy. But there are people in your life that make it easier and all around better. Regretting You is a refreshing story of a mother and daughter. It’s a story about all different kinds of love.
We follow mother/daughter duo Morgan and Clara. Morgan had Clara when she was only 17, and put her dreams on hold to raise her daughter. The two love each other, but often clash due to their strong personalities. When tragedy strikes the family, the two must put aside their differences and try to come to terms with their new circumstances.
Regretting You is a story that depicts family life. It introduces us to four characters Morgan, Chris, Jenny (Morgan's sister) and Jonah (Chris's) best friend. These four have spent every waking hour together as a group since graduating high school. We are taken through their early relationships to the adults they have become. Chris and Morgan are now married and have a teenage daughter, Clara who is 17. Jenny and Jonah are now the parents of a two month old baby boy. You also get the story of Clara and the beginnings of her relationship with Miller.
Morgan and Clara's story are both so different but the way they weave together is not that bad. Colleen Hoover always writes more than just a simple boy meets girl romance book. The main aspect of this book that I liked was the way Morgan and Clara loved and struggled with each other. This book could be read by a father, a mother and a daughter - it has a different tale to tell for each I think. Her writing is exceptional in this especially because she dealt with two completely different characters undergoing two completely different story arcs and developments. I could clearly distinguish between the voices and the separate accounts of grief. You always get a mixture of humor, love and loss with CoHo books and this did not fail to go above and beyond that.
I liked the mother/daughter relationship. Morgan and Clara go through so much, but they go through it together. Morgan is a mom who will do anything to protect her daughter. She’s selfless, unwavering, and so strong. Sometimes life throws a lot at you, and all you can do is get through it. And get through it she does.
This story delves into the complex relationship between a parent and a child, the challenges of growing up and seeking independence, and how to move on after tragedy. It's a rich sketch of the tapestry of life, with the messiness of everyone's feelings and expectations, and what happens when they all collide.
I found the passages around communication and misunderstandings to be particularly poignant and tbh it ruined the book for me. They underscore both how easy it is to let feelings of hurt and resentment build up over time, as well as the difference it can make to approach a loaded interaction with calmness, kindness, and honesty.
The supporting characters in this book are the real highlights. Miller and his gramps are both so sweet and sarcastic, and they steal every scene they're in. They provide the perfect comfort to Clara through her anguish and heartbreak.
The thing with Colleen Hoover's books is that once you start reading it, you just cannot stop no matter what the story is, no matter how flawed the characters are, no matter how gross/cringy some scenes can get to and no matter how toxic the relationships are. I do love the sense of not being able to stop reading her books even though I get to seriously consider why I am reading some of her books.
Spoilers:
- Morgan is married to Chris after getting pregnant at 16-17 years of age. Clara is the daughter. Jenny is Morgan's sister, Clara's aunt. Jonah is Jenny's husband. Elizah is the newborn, Jenny's kid (actually Chris' child. Yes, sisters doing this to each other and their husbands being attracted to the sister of their wives. Wow!).
- There's always a sexual tension between Morgan and Jonah whenever they are together.
- Chris and Jenny die in a car accident all of a sudden.
- Morgan and Jonah discover that they were cheating behind their backs.
- Jonah discovers Elizah is not his child. Morgan gets to know this as well.
- Clara manipulates Miller (the guy she's in love with) to sleep with him (cringy dialogues and sex scenes alert!) when she comes to know of her mother's affair with Jonah. And that too around the time of funeral of both her dad and aunt.
The book sends a very wrong message trying to convince that whatever the heart desires is correct even if it hurts your husband, your sister, your kid and that even cheating/infidelity has its own good reasons. What the hell. Seriously?!
Clara is Morgan and Chris's daughter who was born when they were really young. But her parents never gave up. They worked hard to make her life as normal and happy as possible. Her mom even gave up on her dreams for her. Being a teenager myself I know how sometimes I don't like what my parents do. But that doesn't mean I'm going to start hating them and blaming them for everything that's wrong in my life. My mother gave up on her dreams and her career for me and my siblings too but she was never dependent on us for anything in her life. And that's what I don't like about Morgan. She was totally dependent on Chris for everything.
Morgan really needed a break from everything that was happening. Everyone acting like they were suffering more than her made my blood boil. Jonah fucking didn't even love Jenny that much and he spent 17 years away from Chris without being in touch with him so still calling him his best friend and saying that he was suffering from his loss made me want to commit murder. And then there's this one scene where he gives up on Elijah because apparently he's not his son but then after few days when Clara goes to his house and says maybe 2-3 lines and suddenly he's full of love for this kid just like that. If he loved the kid so much then I don't think he would have abandoned him for so many days. And on top of that forgetting that the woman he gave that kid to was suffering more than him and he never even apologized to her. Like how selfish could someone be?
The story is all about cheating and infidelity in the first place. No. No. No. Do not even try to convince me it's all about the emotional stuff between a mother and her teenage daughter. It's there but the teenage daughter is angry because of all the fking sht her parents and her aunt committed all their lives with all the cheating/infidelity and that too amongst the family. Yes, everything starts from there.
Things I liked:
- I can only say that: I liked Morgan’s strength and standing for her daughter to save her from emotional turmoil even it makes her look like an unlikable mother.
- Jonah was a little doormat hero but he was still adorable, trustworthy, humble guy. I adored how he raised Elijah and how he treated with respect and was caring to Morgan.
- The duo pair romance worked surprisingly well despite one being an adult and the other as young adult.
Things that i didn’t like (spoilers):
- THE MISCOMMUNICATION and misunderstandings WAS THE ABSOLUTE WORST. IT LITERALLY WAS THE WHOLE BOOK AND I JUST COULD NOT GET OVER IT!
- The whole plot was messed up. Everyone ended up with the wrong person because of some shitty circumstances. It was also predictable, but in a way that still took you off guard when the twists happened because they were full of hard truths and just so tragic.
- The characters, despite all the good things being said in other reviews, were flawed (which was a good thing) but also a pain in the ass. Except, for Miller of course.
This is a book about grief, betrayal, and heart break. But it’s also a story about love, forgiveness, and moving forward. Life isn’t easy. But there are people in your life that make it easier and all around better. Regretting You is a refreshing story of a mother and daughter. It’s a story about all different kinds of love.
We follow mother/daughter duo Morgan and Clara. Morgan had Clara when she was only 17, and put her dreams on hold to raise her daughter. The two love each other, but often clash due to their strong personalities. When tragedy strikes the family, the two must put aside their differences and try to come to terms with their new circumstances.
Regretting You is a story that depicts family life. It introduces us to four characters Morgan, Chris, Jenny (Morgan's sister) and Jonah (Chris's) best friend. These four have spent every waking hour together as a group since graduating high school. We are taken through their early relationships to the adults they have become. Chris and Morgan are now married and have a teenage daughter, Clara who is 17. Jenny and Jonah are now the parents of a two month old baby boy. You also get the story of Clara and the beginnings of her relationship with Miller.
Morgan and Clara's story are both so different but the way they weave together is not that bad. Colleen Hoover always writes more than just a simple boy meets girl romance book. The main aspect of this book that I liked was the way Morgan and Clara loved and struggled with each other. This book could be read by a father, a mother and a daughter - it has a different tale to tell for each I think. Her writing is exceptional in this especially because she dealt with two completely different characters undergoing two completely different story arcs and developments. I could clearly distinguish between the voices and the separate accounts of grief. You always get a mixture of humor, love and loss with CoHo books and this did not fail to go above and beyond that.
I liked the mother/daughter relationship. Morgan and Clara go through so much, but they go through it together. Morgan is a mom who will do anything to protect her daughter. She’s selfless, unwavering, and so strong. Sometimes life throws a lot at you, and all you can do is get through it. And get through it she does.
This story delves into the complex relationship between a parent and a child, the challenges of growing up and seeking independence, and how to move on after tragedy. It's a rich sketch of the tapestry of life, with the messiness of everyone's feelings and expectations, and what happens when they all collide.
I found the passages around communication and misunderstandings to be particularly poignant and tbh it ruined the book for me. They underscore both how easy it is to let feelings of hurt and resentment build up over time, as well as the difference it can make to approach a loaded interaction with calmness, kindness, and honesty.
The supporting characters in this book are the real highlights. Miller and his gramps are both so sweet and sarcastic, and they steal every scene they're in. They provide the perfect comfort to Clara through her anguish and heartbreak.
The thing with Colleen Hoover's books is that once you start reading it, you just cannot stop no matter what the story is, no matter how flawed the characters are, no matter how gross/cringy some scenes can get to and no matter how toxic the relationships are. I do love the sense of not being able to stop reading her books even though I get to seriously consider why I am reading some of her books.
Spoilers:
- Morgan is married to Chris after getting pregnant at 16-17 years of age. Clara is the daughter. Jenny is Morgan's sister, Clara's aunt. Jonah is Jenny's husband. Elizah is the newborn, Jenny's kid (actually Chris' child. Yes, sisters doing this to each other and their husbands being attracted to the sister of their wives. Wow!).
- There's always a sexual tension between Morgan and Jonah whenever they are together.
- Chris and Jenny die in a car accident all of a sudden.
- Morgan and Jonah discover that they were cheating behind their backs.
- Jonah discovers Elizah is not his child. Morgan gets to know this as well.
- Clara manipulates Miller (the guy she's in love with) to sleep with him (cringy dialogues and sex scenes alert!) when she comes to know of her mother's affair with Jonah. And that too around the time of funeral of both her dad and aunt.
The book sends a very wrong message trying to convince that whatever the heart desires is correct even if it hurts your husband, your sister, your kid and that even cheating/infidelity has its own good reasons. What the hell. Seriously?!
Clara is Morgan and Chris's daughter who was born when they were really young. But her parents never gave up. They worked hard to make her life as normal and happy as possible. Her mom even gave up on her dreams for her. Being a teenager myself I know how sometimes I don't like what my parents do. But that doesn't mean I'm going to start hating them and blaming them for everything that's wrong in my life. My mother gave up on her dreams and her career for me and my siblings too but she was never dependent on us for anything in her life. And that's what I don't like about Morgan. She was totally dependent on Chris for everything.
Morgan really needed a break from everything that was happening. Everyone acting like they were suffering more than her made my blood boil. Jonah fucking didn't even love Jenny that much and he spent 17 years away from Chris without being in touch with him so still calling him his best friend and saying that he was suffering from his loss made me want to commit murder. And then there's this one scene where he gives up on Elijah because apparently he's not his son but then after few days when Clara goes to his house and says maybe 2-3 lines and suddenly he's full of love for this kid just like that. If he loved the kid so much then I don't think he would have abandoned him for so many days. And on top of that forgetting that the woman he gave that kid to was suffering more than him and he never even apologized to her. Like how selfish could someone be?
The story is all about cheating and infidelity in the first place. No. No. No. Do not even try to convince me it's all about the emotional stuff between a mother and her teenage daughter. It's there but the teenage daughter is angry because of all the fking sht her parents and her aunt committed all their lives with all the cheating/infidelity and that too amongst the family. Yes, everything starts from there.
Things I liked:
- I can only say that: I liked Morgan’s strength and standing for her daughter to save her from emotional turmoil even it makes her look like an unlikable mother.
- Jonah was a little doormat hero but he was still adorable, trustworthy, humble guy. I adored how he raised Elijah and how he treated with respect and was caring to Morgan.
- The duo pair romance worked surprisingly well despite one being an adult and the other as young adult.
Things that i didn’t like (spoilers):
- THE MISCOMMUNICATION and misunderstandings WAS THE ABSOLUTE WORST. IT LITERALLY WAS THE WHOLE BOOK AND I JUST COULD NOT GET OVER IT!
- The whole plot was messed up. Everyone ended up with the wrong person because of some shitty circumstances. It was also predictable, but in a way that still took you off guard when the twists happened because they were full of hard truths and just so tragic.
- The characters, despite all the good things being said in other reviews, were flawed (which was a good thing) but also a pain in the ass. Except, for Miller of course.