Another day, another disappointing Colleen Hoover book.
Synopsis: November 9. The day Fallon almost died in a fire, suffering serious damage and ruining her promising acting career. November 9. The day Fallon meets Ben, an aspiring writer who wants to show Fallon she is beautiful despite her scars. November 9. The day before Fallon leaves to move across the country and the day Fallon and Ben strike up a deal to meet every November 9–with no other communication–to keep to their promises of following their dreams and in hopes of one day not parting November 10.
Plot: When it started, I was really into the plot. I thought it was a unique take on a romance to only meet one day a year but fall in love anyway. However, by the end, and with the number of times Hoover reiterates that they've only been around each other for around 72 hours before they fall in love, it seemed ridiculous and completely unrealistic. Fallon says multiple times, as a romance reader herself, that she hates instalove...but here we are. So much of this relationship is very much not okay. The domineering personality of Ben mixed with the trauma-ridden and submissive Fallon is not a good mix. I was super uncomfortable for the majority of the read as I watched Ben take advantage of Fallon's confidence issues. And that "healing" that Fallon goes through was also not believable in the slightest. For YEARS, she is embarrassed by her scars, but one sentence from Ben and her mind is completely changed which just furthers the unrealistic plot. The relationship was just too disjointed and problematic for me to like this as a romance. Story wise it was okay, which is why it isn't a one-star, but Hoovers "twists" are really not my favorite when they are used solely as a plot device and a clear attempt to grab attention with a shock factor.
Characters: Fallon is generally okay and I really did enjoy her scenes and attempt to find what will make her happy. But, Ben really shadowed any entertainment I could have had. Can we please set the bar a little higher than a manipulation? Fallon is clearly suffering from severe trauma and self-confidence issues and Ben takes advantage of her from his page debut. I cannot root for a relationship that stems from lying, manipulation, and on-page sexual assault. Colleen Hoover, please stop teaching impressionable young women that this is what romance should be like. I was told the on-page SA scene would be removed in future printings but as of this reading, it was still very much on-page. Note: There is no such thing as non-verbal consent. Thank you.
2/5 stars.
TW: Sexual assault.
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