Introduction
When Colleen Hoover published It Ends With Us in 2016, few could have predicted the cultural phenomenon it would become. Years later, fueled by the BookTok community on TikTok, the novel exploded into mainstream consciousness, becoming one of the best-selling books of the decade and sparking conversations around the world about domestic violence, love, and survival.
It Starts With Us, published in October 2022, picks up exactly where that story left off. Lily Bloom has made the painful but necessary choice to leave her husband Ryle. She is healing, rebuilding, and cautiously opening her heart to the possibility of a new love with Atlas Corrigan — the boy from her past whose kindness once saved her life.
But starting over is never simple. Ryle is still in the picture as the father of their daughter Emmy. The co-parenting relationship is fraught with tension, lingering feelings, and complicated history. And for Lily and Atlas, beginning something beautiful while processing so much pain requires a courage that neither of them fully knew they had.
This review explores the story, its characters, its emotional impact, and how it compares to the unforgettable first novel in the series.
About the Author: Colleen Hoover
Colleen Hoover, known affectionately to her fans as CoHo, is one of the most beloved and commercially successful romance and new adult fiction authors of her generation. Born in 1979 in Sulphur Springs, Texas, she self-published her debut novel Slammed in 2012 and quickly built a devoted following through word-of-mouth and social media.
Hoover is known for writing emotionally intense stories that tackle difficult real-world topics — domestic violence, grief, mental illness, addiction — with a compassion and authenticity that resonates deeply with readers. Her books are frequently described as simultaneously heartbreaking and hopeful, a balance that few authors manage with such consistency.
The BookTok explosion on TikTok, which began around 2021, transformed Hoover from a beloved indie author into a global literary phenomenon. It Ends With Us, originally published in 2016, spent over a year on the New York Times bestseller list as a result of viral recommendations, making Hoover one of the rare authors to achieve that kind of sustained resurgence years after a book's initial release.
Hoover has published over 20 novels, many of which are interconnected through shared characters and settings. She is known for deeply engaging with her fan community, sharing personal stories, and advocating for causes including education and domestic violence awareness. It Starts With Us, published in 2022, was one of the most anticipated books of the year.
Plot Overview: Lily, Atlas, and a New Beginning
It Starts With Us begins in the immediate aftermath of It Ends With Us. Lily Bloom has left her husband Ryle Kincaid and is rebuilding her life with their newborn daughter, Emerson — Emmy. She is running her beloved flower shop, navigating co-parenting with a man she still has complicated feelings for, and slowly allowing herself to hope again.
Entering her life with warmth and patience is Atlas Corrigan, the now-successful chef and restaurateur who has quietly loved Lily since they were teenagers. Their reconnection is tender and cautious — both of them aware of how much pain Lily carries, and both of them determined not to rush what is just beginning.
Hoover tells the story from multiple perspectives. Lily's first-person narration captures her internal world with remarkable intimacy, while Atlas's perspective — a new addition in this sequel — offers readers a window into his thoughts and feelings that deepens the emotional impact of their relationship.
The tension in the novel comes not only from Lily and Atlas's developing romance, but from Ryle's continued presence. He loves his daughter and, in his way, still loves Lily. He is not a cartoonish villain — he is a complex, wounded man who is capable of both real love and real harm. This ambiguity, which made It Ends With Us so powerful, continues in the sequel, though with a different emotional register.
Subplots involving Atlas's estranged younger brother Josh and the young woman Lily hires for the flower shop add texture and warmth to the story, providing moments of lightness amid the heavier emotional work.
Key Themes: Healing, Second Chances, and Healthy Love
While It Ends With Us is primarily a story about recognizing and escaping abuse, It Starts With Us is about what comes after — and that territory is equally complex and emotionally rich.
Healing Is Not Linear: Hoover portrays Lily's recovery with honesty. She still has moments of doubt, grief, and complicated feeling for Ryle. She does not emerge from her previous relationship fully healed and ready. She is a work in progress, as real survivors are, and Hoover refuses to minimize this reality.
What Healthy Love Looks Like: One of the book's most important contributions is its portrayal of Atlas as a contrast to Ryle. Atlas is patient, communicative, emotionally aware, and consistently safe. Their relationship develops slowly and respectfully. For many readers, especially those who have experienced unhealthy relationships, the Atlas-Lily dynamic offers a powerful model of what love without fear can feel like.
Co-Parenting After Trauma: Hoover tackles the genuinely difficult reality that leaving an abusive partner does not mean they disappear from your life, especially when children are involved. Lily must find a way to be civil with Ryle for Emmy's sake while protecting her own emotional health — a balance that many readers will recognize from their own lives.
Chosen Family and Community: The friendships and new connections in the novel, including Atlas's brother and Lily's employee, demonstrate that healing happens in community, not in isolation. Hoover values these quieter relationships as essential parts of Lily's journey forward.
Writing Style: Emotionally Intelligent and Deeply Immersive
Colleen Hoover's writing is defined by its emotional intimacy. She writes from the inside of her characters' experience — their anxiety, their hope, their confusion, their desire — with a directness that makes readers feel as though they are thinking and feeling alongside Lily rather than observing her from the outside.
One of the most notable stylistic choices in this sequel is the dual point of view. Alternating between Lily and Atlas's perspectives gives the story a satisfying completeness. Readers who fell in love with Atlas in the first book finally get to hear his voice, understand his inner world, and see just how deeply and consistently he has cared for Lily. Many readers report this element as one of the book's greatest pleasures.
Hoover writes dialogue that feels genuinely real — messy, layered, and occasionally indirect in the way real conversations between complex people are. Her romantic scenes are tender and emotionally charged without being gratuitous.
The pacing of It Starts With Us is somewhat more gentle than its predecessor. It Ends With Us built toward a devastating emotional climax; this sequel is more of a sustained emotional exhale — the careful, hopeful process of putting yourself back together. Some readers may find this quieter pace slightly less gripping, but for those who emotionally invested in these characters, it is deeply satisfying.
Who Should Read This Book?
It Starts With Us is primarily written for readers who have already read and loved It Ends With Us. Starting with this sequel without reading the first novel would rob you of the full emotional experience — the characters, their history, and the events that shaped them are essential context.
For those who have read It Ends With Us, this book is a must-read:
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Readers who loved Lily and Atlas and wanted more of their story will find this sequel deeply satisfying. It delivers the hopeful conclusion many felt the first book left open.
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Readers who appreciated the first book's honest portrayal of domestic violence and its aftermath will find equally thoughtful territory here: the complexity of recovery, co-parenting, and moving forward.
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Romance readers who love emotionally layered relationships built on mutual respect, patience, and genuine connection will find Lily and Atlas's dynamic immensely appealing.
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BookTok and literary fiction communities who enjoy books that generate conversation about real-world emotional and social issues.
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Anyone who wants to read a story about what it looks like to choose yourself and then, carefully and bravely, choose love again.
Note: If you have not read It Ends With Us, read that first. The sequel is far more powerful with that foundation in place.
Final Verdict: Is It Starts With Us Worth Reading?
It Starts With Us is a worthy, emotionally satisfying sequel to one of the most talked-about novels of the decade. It does not try to replicate the devastating power of It Ends With Us — instead, it offers something different and equally valuable: the tender, complex story of what healing looks like, what healthy love feels like, and what it means to build a life on your own terms.
Colleen Hoover delivers exactly what fans of the first book were hoping for: more time with characters they love, a deeper understanding of Atlas and his world, and the hopeful resolution that Lily's story deserved. The dual POV is a genuine strength, and the quieter emotional register of this book is a deliberate and fitting choice for a story about rebuilding.
Is it as gut-wrenching as It Ends With Us? No. But it was never meant to be. It is the exhale after the storm, and it does that beautifully.
Rating: 4.5 / 5
For readers who have already walked through the difficult journey of It Ends With Us, It Starts With Us is the hopeful continuation that Lily — and many of its readers — needed. Read it with the first book close at hand, and prepare to feel everything all over again.