Author: Colleen Hoover
Genre: New Adult, Contemporary Romance
Source: Simon & Schuster Australia
Goodreads
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.Review by Nara
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.
You know, initially while I was reading (and indeed for most of the book), I thought that I wasn't going to give this one more than five stars. I was really liking it, but it was missing that little something to boost it up that extra notch. But I should have known better. It's a Colleen Hoover book. I should have known that at some point, she would pull out a massive feels inducing reveal that would just shatter my initial feelings about the book.
The last few chapters of the book were just. Incredible.
So. Many. Feels.
I must say, I didn't actually cry (that's not saying much, since I can count on my fingers how many books I've cried in) but wooooow. Sweet Jesus.
I'd say that the reason that I didn't like the first half of the book as much as other books by this author (that being said I still did like it overall) was probably because the sex to actual plot ratio was a bit too high for my liking. It's certainly a heck of a lot more than is usually present in Colleen's books (which is why I usually like them so much. They're not too explicit for New Adult). Personally, I'm not entirely comfortable with reading explicit sex scenes, so I tend to skim them when they pop up. I suppose, considering the whole "friends with benefits" premise of the book, I probably should have expected the sex, but doesn't necessarily mean I liked it.
Ugly Love has a lot less of the signature Hoover humour, but that actually fits the tone of the book a lot better- this book didn't need the same level of humour. Although, of course, this is Colleen Hoover, so Tate is still incredibly snarky and the sort of humour that fits her character does emerge from time to time.
Miles' POV is written rather unconventionally, with each chapter initially starting out with prose and then switching to verse. Couple that with the fact that his chapters are flashbacks to when he first fell in love, and that makes for a rather interesting narrative technique. Miles' story, my god, feels. FEELS.
A note on the cover: the cover doesn't look like much by itself, but in the context of the book- dayum, it's perfect.
Well, apart from the high level of sex scenes, this book had the perfect balance of angst, humour, character growth and romance development found in all of Colleen Hoover's books. If you're a fan of her works, this one will not disappoint.
Incredible
RatingsOverall: 9/10
Plot: 4/5
Romance: 4/5
Writing: 5/5
Characters: 4/5
Cover: 4/5
