Reviews with content warning for Drug use - How to End a Love Story

It’s been a long time since a book has truly surprised me, and I commend Yulin Kuang’s debut (!) for doing it. This novel was a doozy, folks, and I loved it very much.

I think, if you’re looking for a modern book that has the vibes of Jane Austen when it comes to YEARNING and dramatic romance, this one has to be it??? That may sound crazy to say. But I couldn’t help feeling that familiar great tug and ache of Georgian-era stories. Okay, maybe this one has more of the tragedy synonymous with the Brontes. In any case, Kuang’s writing swept me away. The desperation on the pages gripped me to the bone. The way Grant wanted and needed Helen was so TANGIBLE.

“How To End A Love Story” was much more romantic and sexual than I thought it would be, especially considering the cold beginning and introduction to these two characters with the worst kind of shared tragedy. It worked so well obviously because one second I’m like okay and then I’m obsessed with the way they sink deeper into each other’s orbits and forgive themselves for being who they once were. I love that Grant falls first and isn’t afraid to tell Helen what he wants. It’s so genuine and so soft. Helen is more the stand-offish unsure one and their pairing doesn’t feel forced at all, even with the circumstances of their past and present. Kuang’s writing is harsh in a whimsical way, somehow an oxymoron of sweet subtle sentences and hard honest dialogue. There are heavy overall themes of suicide, grief, panic attacks. The story is very demanding of all of your emotions. It is definitely not a romcom. It’s a romantic drama for sure, with lots of deep trauma and healing.

THIS is how you do the grumpy x sunshine trope. It’s not too much of either, one character being a little ball of rainbow and glitter, the other the grim reaper who hates children and animals. It’s just the right amount of give and take, of one falling first and the other afraid to admit it. That’s that on tortured slow burns, baby. Lololololol the head of The Tortured Poets Department will see you now.

“Loving can hurt, and I want to do it anyway.”

READ THIS BOOK!!!!! Sorry if you cry but actually not really because crying is HEALTHY!!!!

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hellarachel's review

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emotional funny medium-paced

3.25

this book was set up to fail by pitching it as ‘written by emily henry’s screenwriter.’ which is true but still disappointing. the conflict was forced and despite “going to therapy” these characters had no self-reflection or awareness of boundaries. a prime example that (un)happiness is a choice <3

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lisacanteven's review

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I did enjoy this book. The plot was very unique and moved at a great pace. I loved hanging out with these characters. I just didn't love the writing style. It felt a little too screen writing and not enough like a novel. It was the same reason I don't care for Emily Henry's books. They feel like they are only written to become the next Netflix hit.
I'm also surprised the editor didn't make the author remove the use of "tattoo of his heartbeat" about 3 times. The fact that it appeared in the books 4 times (or more if I missed one) is outrageous.
I did really love the look into Helen and Grant's jobs. I would love to have that job if it didn't mean living in LA, so I really appreciated how much detail the author went into the scenes surrounding their jobs.

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btwnprintedpgs's review

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challenging emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

This book was a mixed bag for me. The beginning was a five-star, the middle was a three-star, and the end was a five-star again. So I'm landing on a 3.5 for this book as a whole.

I found Helen so relatable. There was one part in particular that was so familiar. She talks about picking up her feelings and putting them aside for others, which made her more fragile as an adult. That was 100% me in university. It got to the point where I was so damn depressed, emotionally repressed, and unable to process my own feelings that I was crying on a daily basis without a full understanding of my own feelings. Some of the stuff her parents say to her felt like they'd been pulled from my life. That side of things was written to perfection.

What lost me was the romance. She spews venom at him, she gives him a panic attack, then nothing happens, she has a sex dream, and suddenly they're doing it everywhere. It was not the vibe for me and came out of left field. The build up felt like an attempted montage of nothing that should've been comraderie where there was none. They lacked the communication I needed to buy into their relationship and that was a huge disappointment. Even at the end of the day, I didn't fully understand their love for each other and why it should've worked. This felt the same for most of Helen's and Grant's outside relationships. There never felt like there was a foundation of something stronger than convenience or a passing moment at a bar or cafe. I wanted more substance there, and never got it.

I'm keeping this book because I felt seen by it, but I think that my least favourite part of this romance was the romance, so I don't quite know what to do with that. All in all, I see why people love it, but I also see why people didn't.

TW: death of a sibling/child, car accident, panic attack, sexual content, alcohol consumption, grief, drug use, suicide

ARC gifted by HarperCollins in exchange for an honest review. Audio ARC gifted by Libro.fm in exchange for an honest review.

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silverhill's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

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cathyo_113's review

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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meredith_williams_'s review

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emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I have incredibly mixed feelings about this book. I was really excited to read this author’s debut because she’s the screenwriter on Dollface, one of my favorite shows (that was unjustly canceled after two short but perfect seasons!) I know she has also garnered a lot of attention for her upcoming work with Emily Henry as the screenwriter for her book to film adaptations. I think my expectations were too contingent upon my own preconceived notions, because the story was much less whimsical, lighthearted, romantic comedy, and much more dramatic, emotionally heavy exploration of the concept of love in all its forms. While I’m normally a fan of both of those things, this one just felt a little too melodramatic and messy in places.

While I really loved FMC, Helen’s, journey to finding peace after the trauma of losing her sister, the fact that MMC, Grant, was the one driving the car that accidentally caused her death was simply too much for me. I liked that it allowed them to both related to one another in a meaningful way, but the trauma bond of it all took me out every time. Especially when it came to Helen’s relationship with her parents. I related in a lot of ways with her compartmentalization and the way she tried to preserve peace in their relationship, but the way they reacted to her dating Grant was so hard to read. The character of Grant was a well rounded romantic hero and I liked that he had his own emotional journey. (My only complaint about him is they way he rudely asked his mom to make him coffee and bring it to his room that one time he brought Helen to his childhood home!) There were a lot of romantic moments between him and Helen that were well written and very sweet (the flea market coat rack date, the train scene, the library proposal) but, unfortunately, a lot of the writing in the spicer scenes made me cringe. Also, the nickname Cracker Jack was weird and unnecessary.

Overall, I feel like this book would have been better edited for and marketed as contemporary fiction instead of romance. I will definitely pick up whatever Yulin Kuang puts out next, but this one was not an all time favorite for me.

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stephrand's review

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emotional funny reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

I always love a book that entails the behind-the-scenes of some kind of entertainment production and enjoyed the cast of characters that came from the writing room.

Helen is a bit hard to root for/like at times, but it makes sense from all of the family trauma and drama she has endured. Parts of her and Grant’s story seemed a bit choppy at parts (how quickly they went from enemies to friends to more) but I did enjoy this overall.

A lot of serious topics, but also a lot of spice (if that’s not your thing, I’d skip this one).

TW: death, suicide, substance abuse

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