Common Sense Media Review
By Andrea Beach
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Mature, uneven, steamy romance takes on tough issues.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 16+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
Parent and Kid Reviews
Based on 11 parent reviews
Based on 50 kid reviews
Kids say the book has a powerful emotional impact, tackling heavy themes like domestic abuse and trauma while featuring complex characters. However, many reviewers criticize it for excessive graphic content, including sex and violence, making it unsuitable for younger readers and raising concerns about its portrayal of serious issues.
- emotional impact
- heavy themes
- graphic content
- unsuitable for youth
- complex characters
Summarized with AI
Summarized with AI
What's the Story?
IT ENDS WITH US tells the story of Lily Bloom, a 23-year-old who recently moved to Boston after graduating college. One night she meets Ryle, a handsome 30-year-old who's almost completed his neurosurgery residency. As Lily is getting to know Ryle and trying to figure out her feelings for him, she's also trying to understand her past and find the courage to pursue her dream by reading the diary she kept when she was 15, in high school, falling in love for the first time, and bearing witness to her father's physical abuse of her mother. When she coincidentally runs into her first love again, a lot of feelings come back to the surface. Feelings that threaten everything Lily is building with Ryle.
Is It Any Good?
The writing in this contemporary romance is a bit uneven, with corny, overused phrases and predictable cliches. Author Colleen Hoover is at her strongest, though, in the diary entries the narrator reads from when she was 15 years old. They add a lot of emotional honesty to It Ends With Us, and make narrator Lily easy to understand and root for.
Of course the sexy stuff has built-in appeal, but teens will also enjoy imaging what their own lives might become after high school. And the author's honest treatment of tough subjects like being unhoused and domestic violence will foster empathy and understanding, and add depth to what would otherwise be a pretty standard romance novel.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the sexy stuff in It Ends With Us. Is it too much? How much is OK in books and other media? Is it a big deal?
What about the violence? Domestic violence is a difficult subject. Does the author handle it well? Did you learn anything about it? Check the author's note in the back if you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence.
Was there anything about Atlas' housing situation as a teen that surprised you? How does being 18 and still in high school make it harder for him to find help?
How is Lily a model of compassion, perseverance, and empathy? How is Atlas is a good model of humility and integrity? Why are these important character strengths?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Romance
- Topics : Friendship , School ( High School )
- Character Strengths : Compassion , Empathy , Humility , Integrity , Perseverance
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Atria
- Publication date : August 2, 2016
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 18 - 18
- Number of pages : 384
- Available on : Paperback, Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : October 9, 2025
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