It Ends with Us is a romance novel written by Colleen Hoover and published by Atria Books on August 2, 2016. The story follows Lily Bloom, a florist who faces challenges in her relationship with Ryle Kincaid, a neurosurgeon, and later deals with the return of her high school boyfriend, Atlas Corrigan. The book discusses serious topics such as domestic violence and emotional abuse. Hoover explained that writing this book was very difficult for her, as it was inspired by her own parents' relationship.

By 2019, the novel had sold more than one million copies worldwide and been translated into more than twenty languages. In 2021, the book became popular again on TikTok and reached the top of sales lists in 2022 and 2023. A sequel titled It Starts with Us was released in October 2022. A movie version came out in August 2024. The film was written by Christy Hall and directed by Justin Baldoni. The main actors include Blake Lively, Baldoni, and Brandon Sklenar.

Plot

Lily Bloom, a 23-year-old college graduate, moves to Boston to open her own floral shop. She grew up in a family that was not happy—her late father, Andrew, hurt her mother, Jenny, physically, which made Lily dislike him. She also disliked her mother for staying with him. Recently, Lily gave a speech at Andrew’s funeral in Plethora, Maine. During the speech, she listed five things she loved about him and then stood in silence before leaving.

While reading her old diaries, Lily remembered her first love, Atlas Corrigan, who left to join the military but promised to return. Later, she met Ryle Kincaid, a 30-year-old neurosurgeon who was charming and driven. They were attracted to each other, but Lily wanted a serious relationship, while Ryle preferred casual connections. After Lily successfully started her business, they continued to meet and eventually began a relationship.

One night, Lily laughed when Ryle accidentally dropped a casserole. He became angry, slapped her, and quickly apologized. Lily felt reminded of her childhood but decided their situation was different from her parents’. She accepted his apology but warned him she would leave if he hurt her again.

While dining with Ryle, Lily discovered that Atlas was the owner and head chef at the restaurant. She reconnected with him, which made Ryle jealous, even though she insisted Atlas was only a friend. Atlas noticed Lily’s bruised eye and Ryle’s injured hand, and he suspected Ryle might be hurting her. He asked Lily to leave Ryle in the bathroom, but Ryle found them, and the two men fought. The next day, Atlas visited Lily’s flower shop, and she told him she was happy. He left but gave her his phone number.

Later, Lily and Ryle impulsively married in Las Vegas. Their marriage was stable until Ryle found Atlas’s number and pushed Lily down the stairs. He then admitted he had accidentally killed his brother as a child, which caused him to have uncontrollable anger. Lily forgave him, but later, Ryle found and read her childhood diaries. He believed she was having an affair with Atlas and tried to rape her, knocking her unconscious when she resisted.

Lily woke up, escaped the house, and called Atlas. He took her to the hospital, where she learned she was pregnant with Ryle’s child and decided to keep it a secret. She stayed with Atlas for a few days while Ryle left for a fellowship in England. Eventually, she returned home while Ryle was away. Atlas admitted he still cared for Lily but had hidden his feelings because of her marriage. Lily finally understood her mother’s experience and told her mother, Jenny, about the abuse. Jenny encouraged Lily to leave Ryle and avoid repeating her mother’s mistakes.

When Ryle returned, Lily agreed to a temporary truce and let him help her during the final months of her pregnancy, though she stayed emotionally distant. She later gave birth to a daughter, named after Ryle’s late brother. After the birth, Lily realized she did not want her daughter to witness Ryle’s outbursts and asked for a divorce. Ryle begged her to stay but eventually agreed to separate after she asked how he would feel if their daughter told him she was being abused. Lily hoped she had finally broken the cycle of abuse in her family, telling her daughter, “It ends with us.”

In the end, Lily, who is co-parenting with Ryle, finds Atlas and tells him she is ready to restart their relationship.

Background and publication

It Ends with Us was published by Atria Books on August 2, 2016. The author, Hoover, said the book was "the hardest book I've ever written" because it was inspired by her parents' relationship. The story focuses on topics like domestic violence and emotional abuse. However, the book is still described as a "romance novel." The publisher called it a tale about "a workaholic who has a perfect romance but keeps thinking about her first love."

On April 18, 2023, a special "collector's edition" of the book was released. This version includes a Q&A between Hoover and her mother. It is a hardcover book with a foil-embossed jacket, foil-stamped binding, and new endpapers that wrap around the front and back covers.

Reception

In a special review, Kirkus Reviews wrote, "The relationships are shown with care and truth" and said the novel "clearly shows the harm caused by abuse and the strength of those who survive." Romantic Times stated: "It Ends with Us is a great example of the author's writing skills and her ability to combine happy, romantic, and serious storylines. Readers will care about the main character, Lily, and learn from her challenges, no matter how familiar they are with the author's work."

As of 2019, the novel had sold more than one million copies worldwide and been translated into more than twenty languages.

In 2021, the novel—and the author's other books—became more popular because of interest from the #BookTok group on TikTok. In January 2022, It Ends with Us reached number 1 on The New York Times combined fiction best-seller list. It was number 1 on the Publishers Weekly adult list and number 1 overall in the first six months of 2022, selling a total of 925,221 copies. It was also number 1 on the Publishers Weekly annual list, selling 2,729,007 copies. It was the best-selling novel of 2023, with 1,292,733 copies sold. The book has more than one billion tags on TikTok.

After the film adaptation's trailer was released, the novel returned to number 1 on Amazon. On August 11, 2024, two days after the film's release, the novel returned to number 1 on The New York Times best-seller list.

The novel won the 2016 Goodreads Choice Award for Best Romance.

Sequel

In February 2022, Atria Books announced that it would publish a sequel to It Ends with Us in October 2022. The sequel, titled It Starts with Us, was released on October 18, 2022. The book continues the story from where It Ends with Us left off and focuses on the relationship between Lily and Atlas.

Coloring book

In January 2023, Hoover announced plans to release a coloring book based on the book It Ends With Us. After some readers expressed concerns about the book's topic of domestic violence, Hoover canceled the project the next day. Hoover said, "The coloring book was created to highlight Lily's strength, but I understand why this idea might have seemed inappropriate." Atria Books confirmed that the coloring book would not be published.

Film adaptation

In July 2019, Justin Baldoni bought the rights to adapt a novel into a movie through his company, Wayfarer Entertainment. In January 2023, Blake Lively was chosen to play the character Lily Bloom. Baldoni, who plays Ryle Kincaid, directed the film, and Christy Hall adapted the story into a script. In April 2023, Brandon Sklenar was cast to play the character Atlas. Filming started in Hoboken, New Jersey, on May 5, 2023. The movie was released in movie theaters on August 9, 2024. Critics had mixed opinions about the film, but it was a big hit at the box office, earning $351 million worldwide. The cost to make the movie was $25 million.