Ugly Love: A Novel

feel like crying? need to release a "bazillion" emotions at the bands of a Colleen Hoover read... well idk exactly what you're looking for but Ugly Love did it for me . I cried, laughed, became angry, and fell in love w these characters. Emotion , sexy , funny read that becomes this book its so great . I had wanted to read this for months but was always hesitant. and continuously it put it off. I am kicking myself for not choosing to read this sooner over the other books I read before this one. I must say and confirm that Ugly Love was my first read by Colleen Hoover and grand it was . I read Ugly Love from beginning to end . not wanting to put it down . I made it known when I finished having had to stay up all night . it's been awhile since a book has made me tear up as much as this one. and the cover is beautifully done. the significance of the water and blue tone represents all this book can be. very symbolic and pretty. well done!! I wasn't at all expecting what was thrown at me while reading this. and a lot was. Ugly Love's recent events are told from the perspective of Tate. our main character, a 23 yr old nursing student recently moved to live w her over protective brother Corbin , in San Francisco. meets Miles . Miles is basically described as a man who doesn't know how to love. why ?? stay tuned, everything is revealed. no cliffhanger, all questions are answered. right here. in these 300+ pages. like losing my tears and sanity in a book isn't traumatic enough!! ;) no sequel is needed and I hope Colleen doesn't write one, being that I've noticed it's difficult to feel the same magic for a second book as you did w the first one. the whole story focuses around two facts.... Two rules: "Don't ask about my past, and never expect a future." Whatever that means, later we learn the reason of Miles' pain and sadness and refusal to love someone other than who he wanted. Tate and Miles' relationship is absolutely beautiful. they seem to have it all . if only they'd stop lying to each other . They truly have it all... good looks, great friends. hot sex.. yes sexy, and this book was indeed that. it's more than a great storyline .. being my first Colleen Hoover read I had no clue what to expect with her writing style going into this. I learned so much. I don't usually read the type of books with an obvious man afraid of commitment as Miles was. there was something different about Ugly Love that kept my interest. obvious attraction maybe. but definitely full of wanting to know what was yet to come. Ugly Love is really a story that'll stay with you for awhile and haa earned a place in my personal favorites . im currently suffering from a major book hangover, many more books to read on my to be read list and after finishing this they haven't at all crossed my mind!! Every other chapter (basically the even numbered chapters I've noticed) the POV changes between past, and present. which I must say was really confusing at first . Then it quickly grew on me, the way Miles describes this relationship w his previous girlfriend Rachel, 6 years ago is practically art. it becomes painfully obvious of his attraction and love directed towards this girl. "Rachel, Rachel, Rachel. She's like poetry. Like prose of love letters and lyrics, cascading down the center of a page. Rachel, Rachel, Rachel." .... now, THAT is poetry!! these chapters from a younger Miles, is pure poetry. and I personally loved it! as easily as you fall in love w Tate and Miles you fall in love w Rachel and Miles too. you feel Rachel and Miles' connection towards each other jump off the pages and directly into your heart... with every chapter their story keep you guessing and wondering what happens next. I, however, was not at all prepared for what really does happen. Sympathy, compassion, grief, and sorrow .... cue the tears and the "ugly love" . because things do indeed turn very Ugly. hence the title of the book and the whole reasoning behind Miles and Tate's relationship. I was expecting a love story with a typical storyline.... boy likes girl . girl likes boy. they kiss they hook up fall in love the end. I wasnt at all expecting what I got. I cried, laughed, became angry, and fell in love w these characters and the whole concept and story. soon to become a movie I cant help but be glad I finally managed to read this before then . that is really something i'll be keeping my eyes and ears open for . all i can say is Hollywood ?? PLS dont eff it up !! pls kno a review for a book like this is hard to write without revealing too much away of what's to come. there weren't any unnecessary fillers of information that didn't become of relevance later. everything flowed together perfectly. even w the transitions of past and present. which worked perfectly!! just know you're in for one heck of a ride and one heck of a pool of emotion and love for the character as well as their feelings towards each other. just know by reading this book alone I've learned that Colleen Hoover is a genius and mastermind the conjure up a story as beautiful as this. I commend Colleen for wanting to tackle and write about a level of pain many ppl refuse to believe exist. for this to be my first read by her I will definitely be reading and looking for more recent reads. word of advice .... keep tissues handy !!

Perfection. Absolutely amazing and there aren't enough stars to rate this book. It was an honor to get the chance to read an advanced copy, and I'm still thinking about Miles and Tate's story days after finishing. I always have really high expectations when I pick up a new Colleen Hoover book. She hasn’t let me down once, and it’s no exception with the perfection that is Ugly Love. This book wrecked me and amazed me all at once. It is powerful, sexy, mysterious, emotional & heart-wrenching. I have always said that Colleen Hoover has the best way of pulling you into her stories with her poetic writing, and once again I felt like I was in this book, living this story, with Miles and Tate. The book is told in dual POV’s with most of Mile’s chapters being flashbacks to his past. I love how the story went back and forth, because it made for a suspenseful read that was hard to put down. I also love that she continues to write unique story lines. I have been finding it a challenge to enjoy the NA genre lately, and have been chalking it up to just a phase I’m going through. But, I think my problem is that I needed a book like this to remind me why I fell in love with this genre in the first place. It is books like this that make me love to read and want to recommend her books to EVERYONE I KNOW. The beauty that is this book just solidifies why Colleen is my absolute favorite author. We first meet Tate, who is moving in with her brother with plans to get a new start on life – get her masters, work her butt off as a nurse, and eventually get her own place. And it’s the day she moves into her brother’s place that she has her first encounter with Miles, who is passed out drunk in front of her door. First impressions are sometimes very deceiving and Tate immediately saw there was something painful and sad about Miles. Miles is a pilot – sexy, brooding, and mysterious. He’s suffered something horrible in his past, and we’re given little glimpses of this in each of Mile’s chapters. The build up to figuring out what happened to cause this man so much suffering is intense, and it kept me wanting more, wanting to just finish so I could find out what broke this man. I loved his intensity. It made me want to know more about him, figure out what was going on in his head. Miles is friends with Tate’s brother (who’s also a pilot), and lives across the hall from them, so naturally they start seeing each other more. They can’t deny there’s an attraction between them. But Miles makes it clear that he’s not willing to have any kind of relationship. So, they agree on a sex only arrangement, and he sets two rules: don’t ever ask about my past and don’t ever expect a future. Now, what woman in her right mind would go for that, right? Well, Tate wasn’t looking for a relationship because she was focused on her career and getting her life together. She initially thinks this is a perfect agreement. But things get complicated and Tate finds it’s impossible not to fall head over heels for this man. Because of Miles past, he’s unwilling to move on and refuses any hope for a future that won’t cause him more pain. But Tate starts to get under his skin and makes it harder for him to keep his walls up. It’s all of the subtle moments they have together that melted me. His looks, his rare smiles, the way he was so protective of her. And I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention how hot they were together. Their chemistry was powerful and when they were together, it was scorching. This book was so emotional and intense (but in the best way possible). ‘Intense’ seems to be my theme for the book but I don’t know of any other more perfect word to describe how it felt to me. And not a lot of books can move me to tears, but this one most definitely made me cry. My heart broke for Miles and then in the next minute it was bursting with love and hope for him and Tate. The heartache is worth every single minute of reading. Although I did love Tate, it’s clear that Miles made this book for me. An incredible and beautiful story – I am blown away once again by Colleen Hoover and her ability to write the perfect novel. If you haven't preordered this book - I recommend you do so immediately! Some of my favorite quotes: ”If you love me more today than you loved me yesterday, then I can’t wait for tomorrow.” ”God gives us the ugliness so we don’t take the beautiful things in life for granted.”

Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover - "Some people they grow wiser as they grow older. Unfortunately, most people just grow older." 3.7/5 Honestly, I have mixed feelings about this book. In one sense I love it because of how it was written and how easy it is to get attached to the story but on the other hand the amount of eye-rolling this book calls for should be studied. The main characters Tate and Miles both need help and that's evident in the first chapter, which is nice. It's nice to know early on that your dealing with unstable characters. We'll start with Tate since she's the saner of the duo. Reading Tates chapters brought me back to high school and college when your listening to a close friend talk about their toxic relationship. The number of times she knew she should've left Miles alone but kept falling into his grasp irritated me. And it's clear she develops an obsession with him, and you can clearly as day see why. He's good-looking, mysterious, and does little things to show you he cares but he also ignores you, uses sex as a crutch, and is emotionally abusive. I thought that after the first red flag, Tate would run for the hills but of course, her obsession and the accessibility of him being right across the hall makes that impossible. There were so many times I called her stupid while reading this that by the time they ended and she was crying her eyes out I wanted to read right past it. Now the trainwreck that is Miles Archer. So much of the damage he inflicted on Tate could've been avoided if he got therapy after his tragedy. He puts this giant emphasis on not wanting to hurt anyone or ruin them so he keeps everyone at arm's length but he doesn't. He lies to himself that he doesn't care about Tate, he repeatedly shuts her down and makes her think she's incapable when in reality it's him. He let the pain consume him to the point where he just existed, instead of living and found fault in any attempt of anyone to love or know him. Overall this book is a rollercoaster. Not just the story but reading it as well. The different chapters being narrated by each character were interesting but Miles's chapters annoyed me the most. Firstly, they were written in poem format which was irritating because there was nothing poetic about the amount of times he obsessed over Rachel and begged Rachel to love him. Secondly, his obsession with Rachel was quite unsettling. From the first time he saw her, he took a picture of her, sent it to his friends, and said that she would have all his babies, at seventeen. And how he would stare at her and inwardly tell her that she will love him and she will be his was giving me Joe vibes. All in all, I think I liked this book in terms of I couldn't look away. Sort of like a car crash or a horror film, you want to look away but you can't. You know it can't possibly end well, there are bodies on the ground and creepy music in the background but you can't look away, that's what Ugly Love is and I weirdly ugly loved it. Favorite Quotes: • Love isn't always pretty. Sometimes you spend all your time hoping it'll eventually be something different. Something better. Then, before you know it, you're back to square one, and you lost your heart somewhere along the way. • When life gives you lemons, make sure you know whose eyes you need to squeeze them in. • If I were capable of loving someone . . . it would be you. Favorite Characters: Cap, Ian, and Corbin More reviews and short stories: https://authordanaemorriah.wixsite.com/dmorriah

This is only my second book by Colleen Hoover. When I heard it was released a few days ago I didn't even bother to read the reviews. All I had to do was hear the words "Ugly Cry" from another reader and I was all in. I'm all for a good emotional novel. This book was absolute perfection to me. This book was good for me. And yes, this book made me ugly cry. I can't say anything that hasn't already been said - but I did want to address a few things the "bad reviewers" brought up. 1. "Tate is weak" This was said by multiple people in both the 1, 2 and 3 star review section. Actually, I didn't find Tate weak at all. Just because she stuck around with a guy that was nothing BUT honest with her, doesn't make her weak. It makes her able to see past the surface. It makes her beautiful because she loves, without needing it in return. And also, because I've been there. It doesn't make you weak to love someone so much that you are willing to take whatever they can give you. Sometimes, ugly love, is better than no love at all. I'm thrilled it worked out for her in the end. 2. "There was no connection between Miles & Tate, just sex." Don't get me wrong, there was definitely sex. And the sex was actually believable sex. Not sex like you read in some romance novels where girls are able to get off just by a guy thrusting inside her. No, this sex was gritty and real... and required the use of extra stimulation to orgasm. See? Real. But as for the connection? You must have missed all the small things. The small things are important. They way their eyes connect in the elevator. In the rearview mirror of the car. The way they stand side by side in the candy aisle, saying nothing. The way he thinks she's weird... and her, him. The way things progress, how she says he "invades her space", taking up more and more of it until he is everywhere. Miles & Tate laying in bed, NOT having sex, he asks if her name is really Tate. THOSE things make connections. Not each one separately, but as a whole. And it's not easy to take 330 pages and spread out connections over all of them. Sure, it starts out as sex, but if you are paying attention you know, it becomes so much more. 3. "Miles POV chapters were hard to read." I couldn't disagree more. I think the Miles POV chapters were perfectly written. They were emotionally ridden words sliding down the page. They were fragmented thoughts because the fragment was so powerful the thought didn't need to be finished. They were one word statements in CAPITAL LETTERS meant to convey huge amounts of emotion into that one word. If you had told me Miles had really written those chapters I would have believed you. Because that's how I believe a guy would write when he's experienced love so ugly he doesn't want to experience love again. 4. "The ending was rushed." Again, I couldn't disagree more. There might have been a disconnect between the readers and the story. It wasn't necessary for Colleen to write about Miles telling Tate what REALLY happened in his past. The reader already knows. And the reader also knows that Tate loves Miles so much that whatever he's been through won't change how she feels. Colleen also doesn't need to expand on the chapter where Miles goes to visit Rachel and get closure. That chapter was perfect the way it was. There was no "about face" that Miles experienced, as some readers suggested. Miles was turning around throughout the whole book. His heart was slowly thawing from the moment he first met Tate. By the time he visits Rachel he's already in love, he just needs to hear that it's ok for him to be. So no, he didn't go to Rachel a hardened man and leave 30 minutes later in love with Tate. On the contrary, he went to Rachel loving Tate but fearful that he shouldn't let go of the pain, and then he left Rachel loving Tate but realizing it's OK to move on. 5. "I hated Rachel, why would she let Miles live like that for 6 years?" Have you ever lost someone? Yes? Have you ever lost a child? Have you ever had to watch as someone you love, chose between someone else you love and yourself? And you lived and the other person died? And you regretted it? And you wished you had died instead? No? I didn't think so. In conclusion: This novel is absolute perfection. I wouldn't change a thing about it. Everyone needs to have themselves an UGLY CRY and experience UGLY LOVE. “It’s the beautiful moments like these that make up for the ugly love.”

“If I were capable of loving someone… it would be you.” Colleen Hoover is a genius, plain and simple. I’ve read Slammed/Point of Retreat/This Girl and Maybe Someday/Maybe Not and I’ve loved them all, but after reading Ugly Love I can easily say that this was my favorite CoHo book that I’ve read so far! This woman has such a way with words, her writing is just a joy to read, even when she’s tearing your heart out. I don’t know how she does it, she doesn’t use big fancy words or complicated prose, these are just ordinary everyday words but the way she puts them all together is simply magical. It’s hard for me to describe, but if you’ve read any CoHo books I think you know what I’m talking about. All of her stories are so unique and amazing but one thing they all have in common is Colleen Hoover’s gift with words. I know exactly what I’ll be getting when I pick up one of her books in terms of writing and quality, but I am always surprised with the direction her stories take. It’s always an incredible adventure and I love going along for the ride. I loved how this book was narrated, it’s told from dual POVs, alternating every other chapter between Tate and Miles. The thing that made this book unique is that Tate’s chapters were set in the present day and (with the exception of the last few chapters) all of Miles’ chapters were set 6 years earlier. So we essentially get two separate love stories that are both wonderful and beautiful that come back together in such a great way. I loved getting Miles’ backstory in the form of these flashback chapters, first off they were so amazingly written, they just flowed like poetry and I found myself lost in these simple words: ‘My new favorite flavor is Rachel. My new favorite thing is Rachel. I want Rachel for my birthday. I want Rachel for Christmas. I want Rachel for graduation. Rachel, Rachel, Rachel. I’m gonna fall in love with you anyway, Rachel.’ Secondly, in Tate’s chapters Miles really is an enigma and without his current day POV you really don’t have much clue what’s going on behind that wall he’s put up: ‘Still no smile, though. Jesus Christ, this man. Does he now realize that facial expressions are supposed to accompany speech?’ But reading his flashback chapters really helped understand what Miles’ potential to love was. Before you find out what happened to him in the past that caused him to be so closed off you get to see what a huge heart he has and his great capacity for love. This book was just as much Miles and Rachel’s love story as it was Miles and Tate’s story, you’d think that as a reader you’d have ill feelings towards the “other woman” because you know you should be rooting for Tate but there’s none of that. I felt Miles and Rachel’s story just as fully as I did him and Tate. Colleen Hoover’s characters are always so well written, they are well developed, incredibly detailed and 100% relatable. I totally loved Tate, she was a riot and she said and did things that I could see myself doing in those situations and I connected with her right away. I loved her inner musings as she tried to figure Miles out or tried to soak up any little scrap of hope he threw her way: ‘“You look pretty, Tate.” I want to plaster those four words on a billboard and require myself to pass it on my drive to work every day. I would never take another day off work again.’ There were some times when Miles would do something where Tate totally should have walked away, but I think she reacted how many women would react and I know that she didn’t give up completely on Miles because she knew what was happening between them was real even though he would never admit it. Miles intrigued me from the start and from their first meeting where she witnessed his very private breakdown I knew that I was in for a doozy when his past was revealed. I knew he must have endured some horrible event(s) that caused him to swear off any form of love, and wow was he dedicated to his rules: “Don’t ask about my past,” he says firmly. “And never expect a future.” I’ve never seen a character hold so steadfastly to rules like he did. We got to see moments, tiny glimpses of actions or a slipped word that gave us some hope but just as quickly as we grasped that hope he snatched it right back. I was so sad for him and falling so in love with him at the same time (much like Tate, only with the added bonus of seeing what a wonderful guy he was six years earlier when he was still full of life and love) and I just wanted to hug him. My heart completely broke for him as his full past is finally revealed, and I will say that what actually happened was not at all what I was expecting. But I love how once we hit that point the story shifts to all present day and it’s seamless and I love how it put my heart back together again and wrapped up in a totally believable and satisfying way. In addition to Tate and Miles I loved all of the secondary characters. I’ve already mentioned Rachel and I did really love her. I also loved Corbin and his friendship with Miles and his protectiveness of his sister. I also liked seeing Ian and Miles’ relationship both in the past and in the present day. My favorite secondary character however was Cap, I LOVED Cap! I love how Colleen Hoover can throw in a quirky random character like this and make you totally fall in love with them and have them end up being so important to the overall story. I read this book over the course of a few hours spread out the day, I simply could not put it down. I struggled though because I wanted to read as fast as I possibly could to find out what happens next but at the same time I wanted to slow down to savor every single word on the page! In the end speed won out but I think I highlighted half the book with passages I wanted to always remember! I’m going to have to re-read this book someday because I don’t think one time is enough for something written as well as this was. I’m sad I don’t have more time with Miles and Tate but I am so glad that I was able to spend one wonderful afternoon/evening in their world with them and I know I will never forget this amazing, beautiful, ugly love story! 5+++ stars! ‘But the second she opened her eyes and looked at me, I knew. She was either going to be the death of me… or she was going to be the one who finally brought me back to life.’

There are those handful of authors who manage to undo their readers time and time again and Colleen Hoover sits atop that prestigious pile. I’ve read many books, maybe even too many if my husband has anything to say about it so when I pick up a new read I always come to expect that feeling of getting lost into the story. Enough to pull be out of the daily realities and somehow live vicariously through the many different lives of fictional characters. An expectation that though brings me joy and pleasure is still just that… an expectation. But there are those times you need some sort of fan fair; a defibrillator that brings you back to life even when you’re drowning deep into the pages. Ugly Love did just that for me. A jolt of electrifying goodness that kept me awake for way too late because for the life of me, I couldn’t get myself to put it down. I had to know how ugly love truly was and when those pages began to unravel just how ugly, I was left with a waterfall of tears sitting cross legged on the floor again unable to get myself to move past the heartbreak, unable to physically move; stuffed up nose and puffy eyes and leg cramps me damned. I thought the synchronization between the past and present was flawlessly done, almost like the scenes and the words uttered in the present an echo to the past. Brilliantly done to say the least. With such a well-developed plot and set of characters, Colleen Hoover made this love story come alive. Tate was kick ass. She was so honest with her feelings even when she outwardly denied them. The complicated emotions she warred against should have been enough to make anyone flee but what I admired so much about her was the fact that she didn’t. She instead battled, with invisible bloody knuckles simply for those few moments with Miles. Miles Archer, impenetrable yet completely broken. His story just about broke me in half. Wholly believing that he was irreparable, he sets his life void of any emotion other than hurt and anger. The pain he holds on to, an absolute horror no one should ever have to undergo—brutal. It is Tate who eventually rocks his stable, albeit devoid life and Miles Archer does not take well to it. Trying to keep the emotions out of their “friends with benefits” agreement, lines quickly blur and hearts left broken. I swear, there were a few scenes in this book that just had me by the throat—eyes welling up with heavy tears, lost breaths, and a heavy heart. It was difficult, oh goodness so damn hard to place the blame solely on Miles and hate him because he’d been completely honest with Tate and his reasons behind his actions were justifiable but that didn’t take the pain away for what I felt for Tate. This alone will shred you to pieces!!! Oh, how many times did I have to hold my arms across my stomach to try and alleviate that annoying pain in the pit of my gut; a literary masochist’s dream come true! Ugly Love has a ton of moving parts, a whole lot more to the story than I would have expected and this book is by far a steamier Colleen Hoover read. Miles Archer will have your back arching off whatever couch, or bed, or floor you’re reading on. Holy fried anything—finger lickin’ good!!! The mix of sensuality, tragedy, and love were an overdose of “THE FEELS.” I didn’t expect anything that came at me from this book and that made this whole experience that much better. Ugly love definitely has a lot of ugly but the message behind Miles and Tate’s story is nothing short of beautiful. It’s a sense of redemption which only real love could bring… And you guys, this is one you should definitely not miss out on.

Ahh just an amazing read! This was filled with passion and spice and utter heartbreak and healing. My whole heart cried and smiled with this book! I wish I could rate this wayy more than 5 stars! Highly recommend..one of my fav CoHo books! 1000/10 recommend!

Ugly Love was delivered to my kindle at 12:25 am, and I finished the book around 3:30 am. I couldn’t put it down…. But I wanted to. It is with a heavy heart, that I write my first negative book review on one of Colleen Hoover’s books. It breaks my heart because Colleen Hoover is my FAVORITE author and I never thought this day would ever come. Miles. He is broken. Does not want to love because he experienced the ugliest love possible. But he is described as a sexy pilot and I would love to join the #MilesHighClub any time. He is honest with her with what he wants. Two simple rules, “Don’t ask about my past…and never expect a future.” Tate. She tries to be strong and go along with their agreement, but of course, she falls for him. She has this battle with wanting more, but knowing not to expect more. She keeps hoping that eventually he’ll just, come around. She’s a weak character, letting herself settle for someone that treats her that way. And it doesn’t even phase her when he calls her the wrong name… TWICE! That second time though… In that circumstance, I would’ve been utterly disgusted with him. I get it, the attraction towards him was INSTANT. Supporting characters, Ian and Corbin… they’re just that… supporting characters. I wasn’t able to develop any sentiments towards them because there just wasn’t enough descriptions about them. Cap. I wanted know more about his love story. Colleen has been writing on and on about how she was nervous about how people would find the formatting of the book. I joined the Ugly Love discussion group on Facebook to see if anyone felt the way that I did…and I feel horribly alone. I hated the format. The format is one of the reasons that I did not enjoy the book. I understand what she was trying to do. She was trying to put emphasis on the roller coaster of emotion that Miles was feeling. However, I found him as some weirdo that spoke and thought in poetry verses. “Like prose and love letters and lyrics, cascading down the center of a page.” I feel like this format would’ve been effective in parts on his thoughts, but it took over. It was too much. By the time I got to the part of the book where we finally learn why Miles is so broken, I was So over this format. I wanted to feel the pain, I wanted to cry ugly tears. But I couldn’t. I didn’t shed one tear for what should’ve been the most heartbreaking part of the book. I was heartbroken that I WASN'T heartbroken! The storyline was good. How perfect would it be to hook up with your older brother’s friend that also happened to be a sexy pilot. AAAAND he lived across the hall? But because the story went from Miles to Tate every chapter, the story was entirely predictable. I already knew why Miles found love to be ugly…waaaay before I even got to the chapter. There was no emotional roller coaster for me. There was no suspense for me. I didn’t feel the heartbreak. I wasn’t caught by surprise the way I usually am with Colleen’s books. I wanted to feel the pain that everyone on the Facebook discussion group felt. But I just couldn’t get into the story. I wanted to love this story, I really did. I feel horrible that I didn’t. And I am a LOYAL Colleen Hoover fan. I have all her books on electronically and on paperback. I will still buy Ugly Love on paperback… but this story really just didn’t work for me.