If you’ve gotten a tip from the TikTok community about Colleen Hoover’s new book, It Starts With Us, then you’re not alone. The author’s popular books have been translated into short gifs and emotive videos by the app’s devoted community.
Her first novel, Confess, won the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance and was filmed as a series by Awestruck. It Ends With Us was the sequel to the same story and has since become a best-seller.
Lily Bloom
Lily Bloom is a 23-year-old college graduate who moves to Boston with dreams of opening a flower shop. She meets neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid, whom she is instantly enamored with. He is assertive and stubborn, but also sensitive and brilliant. He seems to have a total soft spot for her, and the way he looks in scrubs doesn’t hurt either.
After a chance encounter on an apartment rooftop, Lily and Ryle start chatting, and the two exchange naked truths that ignite a spark in both of them. Eventually, Lily and Ryle become a couple.
However, things start to get a bit more complicated for Lily when she comes across Atlas Corrigan, who was her first love and her kindred spirit. She never forgot his kindness and protection, but when he suddenly reappears, everything Lily has built with Ryle is threatened.
As a child, Lily had a terrible relationship with her father, who was violent towards her mother. It was a hard time in her life, and she felt like her only option was to live differently than her mother, and never to compromise her desires or safety for a man.
When her father died, Lily moved to Boston with hopes of starting her own business. It was a tough time for her, but she kept fighting and made the most of it.
She started her own flower shop, and she was successful at it. She also met a woman named Allysa, who turned out to be Ryle’s sister.
In the present, Lily is running her flower shop and she is living her dream, despite an accident in her shop that left her with an injured ankle. She also hires Allysa’s brother, Ryle, to help her run the shop.
Lily and Ryle quickly fall in love, but they are both struggling with anger issues, and Lily is concerned about her safety. When Ryle pushes her, she realizes that she has to make a difficult decision.
As the book goes on, we learn more about Lily’s past, and her relationship with her father. This is a very powerful story of abuse and survival. It is also a great reminder that it’s not always easy to choose your path in life, and sometimes you have to let go of your ideals in order to find the one that’s right for you.
Ryle Kincaid
The novel starts with Lily Bloom who runs a flower shop on the top of an apartment complex. After her father’s death, she runs into Ryle Kincaid who is a neurosurgeon. Immediately the two find chemistry and sparks fly.
He is handsome, brilliant and charming with a strong physical attraction for Lily that she can’t help but feel. Unfortunately, Ryle’s aversion to relationships leaves her confused and worried about his character, especially after he tells her that he experienced something no one should ever experience as a child which left him with a temper that could ruin their relationship.
Despite her fears, Lily decides to give Ryle another chance. She is determined not to let Ryle hurt her again or cause her pain.
When she does give him a chance, however, they fall deeply in love. Their relationship grows and evolves over time, allowing Lily to finally realize her dream of owning a flower shop.
She also meets Ryle’s sister Allysa who becomes a big part of their life. Eventually, they meet each other’s families and get married.
But as their relationship continues, things from Lily’s past come rushing back to her and she is not sure what she should do. She isn’t ready to end her relationship with Ryle and the thought of Atlas Corrigan, her first love, has her thinking about a past she doesn’t want to remember.
At one point, Ryle even tries to rape her. He also physically and emotionally abuses her.
As much as I would have liked to see Ryle get some justice for the way he abused her, it wasn’t realistic. The abuse didn’t change him as a person, and divorce wouldn’t fix it either.
The book does a good job of showing readers that the solution for domestic violence isn’t always a divorce. It doesn’t have to be a permanent break, it can also mean finding a safe place to live and having support from friends and family.
The book is a great read for anyone looking for a fast-paced romantic story with lots of twists and turns, but with a strong emotional core that will have you cheering them on from the beginning to the end. It is also a must-read for any fan of Colleen Hoover’s books, as she never disappoints with her perfect book boyfriends and consistent chemistry.
Atlas Corrigan
Lily Bloom is a college graduate who is moving to Boston with dreams of opening her own flower shop. However, she is struggling to come to terms with her recently deceased father’s abusive behavior towards her mother. In her effort to understand her feelings, she begins reading through her childhood diaries, and recalls her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy who made her feel protected.
After meeting neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid, Lily feels a strong attraction to him but does not pursue a relationship, as she is looking for commitment rather than just a casual fling. But as their relationship develops, they become close friends and share a common interest in cooking.
When Lily is reminded of her past, she finds herself struggling with whether she can be happy with Ryle. She then begins to think about her first love, Atlas Corrigan, who had made her feel protected in times of trouble and was the only person she could truly trust.
It Starts With Us is a book by Colleen Hoover that was published in October 2022. It is the sequel to her 2016 best-selling novel It Ends With Us and is her most highly anticipated release.
The story follows Lily as she struggles to build a happy life after her graduation, and eventually meets neurosurgeon Ryle Kincaid. Though the two are attracted to one another, they do not pursue a relationship as they both have different tastes and values in a partner.
They eventually meet again, and Lily finds that Ryle is not what he once was. She is happy with her new life with Ryle, but she still misses Atlas.
Throughout the book, Atlas shows his care for Lily and how much he protects her. He also demonstrates his loyalty to her when Ryle attacks her. He also helps her through a difficult time and is a great friend to her.
Atlas is a very good friend to Lily and makes her feel safe. His caring nature is important to her because neither Ryle nor her father ever protected her, so Atlas’s actions are very significant in this novel.
Emerson Kincaid
Colleen Hoover has a lot to say about the aftermath of domestic violence in her book, It Starts With Us. She handles it delicately enough to make her readers feel like they are living through the story themselves, even if they have never experienced anything like this themselves.
The first part of the book is about Lily Bloom, a flower shop owner who has come from an abusive family to become successful in Boston. Her life seems to be heading in the right direction when she meets a neurosurgeon named Ryle Kincaid.
As their relationship heats up, they begin to notice that they have a connection. It is a feeling that they both try to ignore, but it continues to grow stronger and stronger over time.
Their friendship is the basis for their romance, which grows even more when they meet Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family. The two of them decide to start dating and hope that it will turn into something more.
After they meet, they continue to talk on the phone and share a few days together. Then, they run into each other again at a popular restaurant that she visits with her mom.
When she sees him, she thinks he is the most beautiful man she has ever seen. But he also seems to be quite shy. She feels awkward around him, but she doesn’t let it bother her too much because she is still in love with him.
They have a date that night, but it doesn’t go too well. She has to leave her daughter with her friend and Emerson’s aunt, Allysa. She falls asleep and starts reading a journal that Allysa had given her.
On their next date, they run into each other again at he restaurant. When she runs into him, she remembers all the memories they shared.
In the end, they have a happy ending. They are together and have a daughter named Emerson, who they are co-parenting with Ryle.
I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to any Colleen Hoover fans. It is a heart-warming story about overcoming abuse and finding love again. I also liked the way she handled domestic violence, which was a very sensitive subject to tackle in such a delicate manner. I was impressed with how she wrote the book so perfectly, and it really touched me.
