And it's hard to read because as a bystander I just wanted to help Lily and tell her that she didn't have to forgive him and that she deserved better than that. But that's how the story goes.. She forgave him and told him that if he ever did that again that she would know it wasn't an accident and she would leave him! Even after almost being raped, leaving him and being mad at him, she can't help but want to be with him even though she knows it's not right. As she gets to know him, she starts falling for him and it gets harder and harder to leave. Even when he pushes her down the stairs or pulls her hair with the intent to hurt, she can't just leave because by that point she loves that man. Her heart makes excuses for him and she forgives him again and again.

The there's also the fact that he tells straight away that he doesn't want a relationship and is only looking for a one night stand but then ends up pressuring her and manipulating her into having sex with him. He begs her for it because he says he can't concentrate at his job so he just wants to get it over with so that he can get her out of his head. I was never in this situation so I can't speak from experience but now I understand the women who stay.. It's not because they like being slapped or punched or beat up. It's because they love that person with their whole heart! And even if he doesn't know how to love her the right way, she does! Rather than trying to sugarcoat my thoughts, I'm just going to be completely honest. I was 100 percent team Ryle from the very first time we met him. Just like Lily, I fell in love with every word and every gesture that rolled off of his body. I. WAS. HOOKED. It also didn't help that I kept fantasizing Doctor Mike as Ryle Kincaid. *heart eyes emoji* I loved his ambition. His personality. His confidence. To be honest, I think I might've loved Ryle even more than Lily did but that's another story for another day. That more than likely explains why I took the second half of this book like a blow to the gut.

As the story progresses, we start to see little things here and there that makes us, or at least made me, see why she loved him. 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. Lily's story is one that I never wanted to stop reading. If I know that I'm going to need to read a book in multiple sittings (which was the case with this book), I usually try to find a good place to stop. One in which, nothing major is happening and nobody is facing some drastic/perilous moment. Well you see the problem with this book is the fact that there is literally NO. GOOD. STOPPING. POINT! None! There was never a part where I felt safe in letting this book sit overnight because I knew that the story and the what if's would play endlessly in my mind. So I stayed up and read it all in one sitting because I simply couldn't stop. Lily was someone that I connected to right from the get go. I knew as soon as the book started that I would like her, and that never once stopped while I was reading. However, I didn't realize how much her character would affect me while I was reading. As I said before, after I was finished reading, I couldn't have been prouder of her decisions. The strength she had throughout the story to go through what she did, but also her resolve and conviction just made me constantly cheer her on. Lily is truly one of the most admirable characters that I have ever had the pleasure of reading about, and that admiration goes extraordinarily deep. I wish cutting my feelings off for the person who hurt me was as easy as I used to think it would be. Preventing your heart from forgiving someone you love is actually a hell of a lot harder than simply forgiving them.' Obviously it was no secret that domestic violence is a huge topic in this book. I didn’t know what to expect after reading some controversy online over this topic in the book. As a Social Care Worker, I’ve studied the reality of domestic violence and was interested to see how it was portrayed in the book. I believe Colleen represented the delicate subject very well and I don’t believe she “romanticised domestic violence”.

Did not like that at all and definitely did not like how she just gave in and basically gave him what he wanted. That being said, I wish I had gone blindly into this book because I would like to see if I would fall in love with Ryle just like many people did. The truth is that I didn't like him at all right from the beginning. I want to believe that I would still feel the same way if I didn't find out previously about him because his actions are what made me dislike him so much. I have the upmost respect for Lily. She is definitely one of my favorite female characters that Colleen has ever created because she did what a lot of us would've struggled to do in the end: walk away. Lily was such a strong character and I admire her so much for having the strength to stand up for herself. There were numerous times towards the end of the book where I knew I probably would've gave in and forgave Ryle for his actions but Lily was inflexible. She was in a tough position but she put her foot down and demanded better for herself. In the end, no matter if I ship Ryle/Lily or Atlas/Lily, I'm glad that Lily was able to find peace for her and Emmy. 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. In the future . . . if by some miracle you ever find yourself in the position to fall in love again . . . fall in love with me.”Eventually when she does leave him she decides to tell her mother what happened and there's this thing that her mother said to her that moved me.. she said "I know you believe he loves you, and I'm sure he does. But he's not loving you the right way. He doesn't love you the way you deserve to be loved." 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 where she grew up--she graduated from college, moved to Boston, and started her own business. And when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid, everything in Lily's life seems too good to be true. This is honestly not only one of the best reads of 2016, but also one of the most (if not the most) empowering. I want to give this book to every man, woman, and even teenager (it's definitely a NA/adult read) and tell them... READ THIS NOW! Do you want to know why? Because this book carries with it a very strong message, one that shows strength and courage that many people might not have at the time, but after reading will understand and gain. I honestly don't know if there has ever been a time when I was prouder to be reading the heroine's story due to her choices. Ultimately though, Colleen Hoover wrote a book that everyone can take something away from. Colleen always writes such unique stories, and this one is certainly no exception. But the one thing I will say is that this is truly her best book yet.

All humans make mistakes. What determines a person's character aren't the mistakes we make. It's how we take those mistakes and turn them into lessons rather than excuses.” I fashioned Ryle after my father in many ways. They are handsome, compassionate, funny, and smart - but with moments of unforgivable behavior." Life is a funny thing. We only get so many years to live it, so we have to do everything we can to make sure those years are as full as they can be. We shouldn't waste time on things that might happen someday, or maybe even never.” I did not go into this book blindly.. I had seen some tik tok's about it and I knew this was a story of abuse and so, when I saw people saying they didn't like Ryle I immediately put 2 and 2 together and figured it out the reason why.From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of It Starts with Us and All Your Perfects , a "brave and heartbreaking novel that digs its claws into you and doesn't let go, long after you've finished it" (Anna Todd, New York Times bestselling author) about a workaholic with a too-good-to-be-true romance can't stop thinking about her first love-- soon to be a major motion picture starring Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni. The first incident where he pushed her and hurt her was heartbreaking and I got so sad because she forgave him. Even after seeing her father do that to her mother, she still forgave him. The author's note was even more heart breaking than the entire book. Colleen tells us a little bit about her and her mother's experience with domestic abuse. She says "My father regretted the way he treated my mother his entire life. Mistreating her was the worst mistake he had ever made and he said he would grow old and die still madly in love with her."

It Ends With Us was beautifully complicated. It was hot and cold. Up and down. Good and bad. Beautiful and ugly... I'm still trying to figure out how I really feel about it all because I'm genuinely torn on how I want to perceive this storyline. I loved it but in all honesty, I really do think I hate it as well. Not the "I-hate-you-Colleen-Hoover-stop-writing-books-and-find-a-different-career" type of hate but rather "I-hate-you-Colleen-Hoover-for-making-me-hate-everything-that-I-came-to-love" kind of hate because it pretty much summarizes all my thoughts and feelings about It Ends With Us in one sentence. Just because someone hurts you doesn't mean you can simply stop loving them. It's not a person's actions that hurt the most. It's the love. If there was no love attached to the action, the pain would be a little easier to bear.”To be honest, I was actually feeling a bit more bitter than I'm making it seem after that ending. But after reading the author's note, it really put things in perspective for me and made me look at the story with brand new eyes. I developed a new understanding and appreciation for the story behind the story.