CoHo Hate Club

her plotlines, quoted profound dialogue, fell in love with the characters, and cried over endings.

As a romance novel consumer myself, it seemed I could not scroll far on TikTok without seeing Hoover’s name at least once, largely in reference to her 2016 bestseller, It Ends With Us. Filled with shocking flashbacks to her protagonist’s teenage past, Hoover tells a tale of domestic violence and the journey to recovery. Surely this engaging story, with its meaningful message and personable characters that skyrocketed Hoover to stardom, is universally recognized as one of the best young adult novels of all time and has made Hoover beloved by countless fans across the world. That couldn’t be more wrong. Now that Hoover’s rise to stardom is over, the rising number of Hoover’s haters are beginning to overwhelm “CoHorts,” the name given to her die-hard fans. This negativity is so widespread and extreme that some critics have even gone so far as to proclaim they will never touch one of her books in their life. While critics denounce her immature, clichéd, and shallow writing style, others despise her sex scenes, common tropes, and the overrated quality of her books.

As for myself, I enjoyed Pingry’s American Literature course and am an avid reader outside of school. I also have a deep appreciation for classics and sharply criticize books in lengthy reviews on my GoodReads profile. So here’s the kicker: I’m writing this article in defense of Colleen Hoover.

Let me clarify. This is not a fan article, nor am I giving her any sort of superlative like “Best Author of Our Time.” Her novels are nowhere near literary masterpieces, but they’re dramatic, easy reads and, although filled with scenarios that might be unrealistic, they are entertaining to many. Not every book has to be the most profound, life-changing piece of literature on the planet. Instead, they’re just your classic in-onesitting novels with a message. With simple and easy-to-understand storylines, many have said that Hoover helped them get back into reading for pleasure. Someone who hasn’t willingly picked up a book in years isn’t looking for a The Great Gatsby or a Jane Eyre . Maybe a collection of slightly cringey stories is just what they need.

Many also criticize Hoover for her glorification of abusive relationships in It Ends With Us (For those who have not read it yet, there are major spoilers ahead in this paragraph.) The way I see it, she is just being realistic. She lets the reader fall in love with Ryle and his charismatic character alongside Lily so they can understand Lily’s internal conflict once the abuse begins. Hoover’s “glorification” of their relationship when it was healthy depicts the actual struggle of women deciding whether or not to leave their toxic partners, whether the reason to stay is their children, security, or simply love. People express their frustration over Lily constantly justifying Ryle’s actions time and time again, but unfortunately, that is what happens in real life. Life is filled with twisted characters, bad decisions, and trauma. Books with these themes help us see different perspectives and confront uncomfortable truths about society. Ultimately, Lily breaks up with Ryle once and for all. She becomes firm in her rejection, finally overcoming a period of emotional turmoil to obtain a positive and relieving outcome. You can question her execution, but her intentions are crystal clear.

The current overwhelming hate towards Hoover is simply another example of a societal phenomenon that happens again and again. Anything hyped up, especially to the degree of Hoover’s books, eventually receives a lot of backlash. After all, the one-star reviews only started piling up once millions of five-star reviews came in. When an author has such success—especially since there is nothing extraordinary about her writing—people are quick to exaggerate every negative element. If you’ve read Hoover’s books and hated them, then all the power to you. No book can be for every person. If you liked them, however, then that’s all that matters. They’re just fiction. Books are meant to be read, and some are written to be enjoyed, not analyzed.