Review | Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover

When Tate Collins meets airline pilot Miles Archer, she knows it isn’t love at first sight. They wouldn’t even go so far as to consider themselves friends. The only thing Tate and Miles have in common is an undeniable mutual attraction. Once their desires are out in the open, they realize they have the perfect set-up. He doesn’t want love, she doesn’t have time for love, so that just leaves the sex. Their arrangement could be surprisingly seamless, as long as Tate can stick to the only two rules Miles has for her.

Never ask about the past.
Don’t expect a future.

They think they can handle it, but realize almost immediately they can’t handle it at all.

Hearts get infiltrated.
Promises get broken.
Rules get shattered.

Love gets ugly.

Review

Rate: ★★★★/5

Colleen Hoover is an author who you can trust to write a riveting novel. To put it simply, she can do no wrong. I had high expectations for this novel as all previous books that I've read, I had completely fallen in love with - the characters, every word and thought  was laced with something special .

I first read this when it was newly released in 2014 and it had hundreds and hundreds of rave reviews fueling the bonfire of excitement that was already ignited. When I flipped to the last page of the book, I was confused. Did I read the same book as others who were raving and singing their praises? Did I miss a couple of chapters? It dawned on me that I was disappointed and frustrated. It was thrust into the back of my kindle however, I had a change of mindset, determined to give this book another chance because I refused to believe the outcome and here I am. 

On the second reading, I was familiar with the plot, characters and initial themes so upon the latest reading, I was able to concentrate on the finer details and things which may have been carelessly overlooked. I was so so so glad that I decided to venture into a second reading! The subtle details were  highlighted and gave a greater depth to the novel which made me feel more connected to the characters and their feelings. Another point is that I finally understood the importance of the formatting of the texts and how it is used to convey Mile's love by being the centre of his world whereas before I had thought little of it. With that understanding, it made the epilogue even sweeter  than fudge to read and I had this massive Cheshire grin plastered onto my face. 

The alternating perspective between Tate's which take place in the present and Mile's which takes place in the past was a little confusing in the beginning of the novel but each chapter is titles with whose narrative perspective we are in so it makes it clearer. Although I wasn't to keen on Mile's narrative perspective, I came to accept the importance of it of unraveling his mystery. 

All I want to say is that I owe Hoover a massive cuppa tea and biscuits to compensate for my careless reading and that I really enjoyed this book!

A notable mention is the 'Ugly Love' Single which goes with this book. Griffin Peterson has sang several tracks to accompany Colleen Hoover's books which are all absolutely beautiful. When I first discovered this song, I had this on repeat all day and all night and to this day it is still one of my favourite songs where I am instantly transported back into this story with a growing fondness.