Title: IT STARTS WITH US
Author: Colleen Hoover
ISBN: 9781398518179
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Pages: 336
Source: Jonathan Ball Publishers
Before It Ends with Us, it started with Atlas. Colleen Hoover tells fan favorite Atlas’s side of the story and shares what comes next in this long-anticipated sequel to the “glorious and touching” (USA TODAY) #1 New York Times bestseller It Ends with Us.
Lily and her ex-husband, Ryle, have just settled into a civil coparenting rhythm when she suddenly bumps into her first love, Atlas, again. After nearly two years separated, she is elated that for once, time is on their side, and she immediately says yes when Atlas asks her on a date.
But her excitement is quickly hampered by the knowledge that, though they are no longer married, Ryle is still very much a part of her life—and Atlas Corrigan is the one man he will hate being in his ex-wife and daughter’s life.
Switching between the perspectives of Lily and Atlas, It Starts with Us picks up right where the epilogue for the “gripping, pulse-pounding” (Sarah Pekkanen, author of Perfect Neighbors) bestselling phenomenon It Ends with UsNew York Times bestselling author).
Official Summary
04 November 2022
I would just like to thank Jonathan Ball Publishers for sending me a copy of this book on the release date!
I think we all know by now this book was CoHo’s trying to make more money after the hype that It Ends With Us got. The book itself just feels like a very long epilogue. Not to mention that there were multiple extracts from Lilly’s journal that were literally copied and pasted from the first book. However, despite all that I enjoyed the overall story.
This book picks up right where it left off in the previous one. You see how Atlas and Lily reconnect a year after their last encounter and how they both are ready to move forward with their relationship. You watch as the two of them go through life trying to make things work. Lily dealing with her abusive ex-husband Ryle and how she tries her best to co-parent with him. You also watch Atlas try to deal with someone constantly vandalising his restaurant and trying to catch the culprit.
There were two things that I could not stand in this book; one was Alyssa. I get that she is Ryle’s sister and all but she was way too casual about everything. I didn’t like that the only friend Lily had was Ryle’s sister, it just made Lily seem so isolated. Then the second thing is, I am still not over the names of the character…I mean Lily Blossom Bloom will never not be funny. However, Emerson Dory Kincaid…Colleen Hoover did these girls dirty.
It was so nice to get to know Atlas as a character, I feel like that was something lacking in the first book. I felt that in the first book because we only ever saw Atlas through Lilly’s point of view, I never really got to get into his character as much as other people did. However, because this book is a dual point of view we get to see both Lily’s and Atlas’ points of view. I think Atlas is my favourite character in this book but in the series as a whole Lily will always be the best. Purely because we have seen Lily go to hell and back and she is an amazing character however she did not stand out in this book as much as Atlas did.
I loved this series and would recommend everyone who enjoyed the first book to pick this one up as it gives you a lot of information and character development you never knew you needed. I recently found out that they are turning the first book into a movie and I cannot wait to watch it. Overall this book is a solid four out of five stars from me.
Also by Colleen Hoover
IT ENDS WITH US
Sometimes it is the one who loves you who hurts you the most.
Lily hasn’t always had it easy, but that’s never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. She’s come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up
— she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. So when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily’s life suddenly seems almost too good to be true.
Ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. He’s also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft spot for Lily. And the way he looks in scrubs certainly doesn’t hurt. Lily can’t get him out of her head. But Ryle’s complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. Even as Lily finds herself becoming the exception to his “no dating” rule, she can’t help but wonder what made him that way in the first place.
As questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of Atlas Corrigan — her first love and a link to the past she left behind. He was her kindred spirit, her protector. When Atlas suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.
About The Author
Author Bio from the Author’s Site
Colleen Hoover is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-two novels and novellas. Hoover’s novels fall into the New Adult and Young Adult contemporary romance categories, as well as psychological thriller. Colleen Hoover is published by Montlake Romance and Atria Books. Colleen also has several indie titles, including her psychological thriller, Verity. In 2015, Colleen’s novel CONFESS won the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance. That was followed up in 2016 with her latest title, It Ends With Us, also winning the Choice Award for Best Romance. In 2017, her title WITHOUT MERIT won best romance. Her novel CONFESS has been filmed as a series by Awestruck and is available on Prime Video via Amazon and iTunes. Katie Leclerc and Ryan Cooper star in the series. Colleen founded The Bookworm Box, a charity subscription service and bookstore, with her family in 2015. The Bookworm Box is a subscription service that provides readers with an exciting opportunity to receive signed novels in the mail each month from authors all over the world. All profits from the subscription service are donated to various charities each month. The Bookworm Box has donated over $1,000,000 to help those in need.
Thanks again to Jonathan Ball Publishers for sending me this review copy! Let me know what you think in the comment below.
