All Your Perfects

Well that was a ride. I don't even know what rating I want to give this. It was a solid 5-star read at first. Then at one point, I was so angry that I was ready to give it 1 star because COLLEEN WHY DID YOU DO THAT??

All Your Perfects is a gritty, emotional portrayal of life AFTER the HEA we're so accustomed to getting in romance novels. It alternates between Then and Now chapters, telling the story of how Quinn and Graham met and fell in love to where they are seven years later, seemingly broken beyond repair.

I went into this blind, expecting from the blurb a book about a couple that are having your typical marital issues with a few sexy times thrown in as they try to find their way back to each other. What I didn't expect was to relate to Quinn and Graham on so many levels. Let's be real, marriage is hard work. Every couple goes through their fair share of struggles. It was nice (in a sort of morbid way) to see a romance novel go down that road and to show that it's not all butterflies and rainbows after the epilogue. I know part of the reason why we read romance novels is because we want to believe in the fairytale but sometimes that's just not realistic.

What Quinn and Graham face is so common yet rarely discussed. It can make or break a relationship and in their case, I wasn't sure if they were going to make it. There were times in the book that I was so angry at each of these characters for one reason or another. I was ready to put my Kindle down on multiple occasions because how can two people come back from that?? But of course I kept reading because it's books like this, ones that give you whiplash and a metaphorical punch to the heart that are some of my favorites.

“Our marriage hasn't been perfect. No marriage is perfect. There were times when she gave up on us. There were even more times when I gave up on us. The secret to our longevity is that we never gave up at the same time.”

This book is sad, it's probably the saddest thing I've read since Zlata's Diary. Heart-breaking page-turner is an apt description; I didn't put it down until I was done. That said, if I am honest with myself, I wish I could unread it. That's not to say that this book is bad, there are strong characters and a gripping premise, it's well written, sweet, and profound, but it's also a devastating exploration of subjects I prefer not to grapple with (namely infertility).

I'm not sure if I have this right since I am essentially a virgin to contemporary romance novels but it seems to me that the genre is split down the middle. There's spicy romance replete with extended and explicit sex scenes, then there's whatever this book was. Let's call this other half sad romance, where the sex is beside the point, and it seems like the author is doing their best to make you cry. I am sure some readers really appreciate emotional catharsis, and I'm guessing that those people are die-hard Colleen Hoover fans. Call me out of touch with my feelings, but I don't really enjoy books whose main purpose is to make me sad regardless of quality. It seemed to me to be sadness for sadness' sake, I read depressing and bleak stuff all the time but I guess it hits differently when it's grounded in reality like this book is (as opposed to more cosmic/general sadness, or the horrors of a bleak future, etc.).

Let's talk tropes. It seems to me that when it comes to Romance novels the quality of the writing isn't the main appeal, there's a baseline for quality obviously, but what separates these books from their peers is largely a question of which tropes and themes the author chooses to incorporate. This applies generally, across most genres, but when it comes to Romance the tropes are the MOST important indicator of whether or not a reader will like the book. If I had to tag this novel I would probably say that this is a “love-conquers-all” story with a little bit of “second chance at love” mixed in there. There is also an undercurrent of “fated lovers” going on here which is a trope that personally hate because of how it undercuts the believability of the story. Thankfully it's only mentioned a few times and is never a viewpoint that the narration adopts.

I read this book because of Fourth Wing. It was mentioned in a discussion that there was a correlation between people who thought that book was average and the male audience. The implication is that boys + romance is the reason it was mid and not a reflection of the quality of the book. I chose this Romance novel from the Best of booktok list at random and gave it a read. I can safely say that I didn't have an issue with the quality of the book at all, this is head and shoulders above 4W in almost every way. The characters are real, the premise is grounded, the prose is consistent and unambiguous, and most importantly the whole scenario is generally believable. The difference between this book and 4W is stark, where this romance is carefully crafted and well thought out, 4W was lazy, horny, and all too fond of taking shortcuts.

This is a sad romance. If you like sad romance you're probably the reason Colleen Hoover keeps making the best-seller list and you don't need me to plug this. If you're in the mood for a good cry, or the idea of a grounded romance about two people working their way through something awful sounds amazing to you, give this a read. Points for quality, but I didn't really enjoy it.

PS: This book is set in new england, the MC is the estranged daughter of an irascible and wealthy mother who really only cares about wealth and standing. If this is ringing any bells it's because this is the setup to Gilmore Girls. The MC is Loreli, Graham is Luke, and her mother is Emily.

[b:All Your Perfects 38926487 All Your Perfects Colleen Hoover https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1531682842l/38926487.SY75.jpg 58113564]Did you ever feel like you broke off pieces of your heart as you turned the pages in a book? Each turn of the page tears a little more away. The words grind into your heart causing what's left intact to fissure. You start to choke from all of the feels and contemplate giving up because it's all too much. The book you're reading is so real and relatable that you feel the characters' pain. In reality, it's too late to stop reading since you have become so emotionally invested in the story. You know there is no way you are giving up. That was my experience with All your Perfects. I started it this morning and by 5pm I was done. Quinn and Graham met in unusual circumstances but it was evident fate meant for them to be together. Their love was a fairytale until the happily ever after turned sour. Their perceptions of a perfect relationship and perfect family evolve into an obsessive and destructive obstacle that is destroying their lives. This book took me on such an emotional rollercoaster that I don't even know where to begin on trying to explain the complexity of it all. Colleen takes us readers inside a broken marriage of two imperfect people trying to hold on to their happily-ever-after in the midst of devastating circumstances. I loved the alternating Past and Present chapters because we the readers got the complete picture of how beautiful they started and how beautifully broken they became and the journey in between. This is not my first emotional roller coaster by Ms. Hoover however this is the first I have devoured in a day. So, thank you for breaking my heart and showing your readers that there may be beauty in imperfections.

Coming back to review this book properly, i loved this book and the story. I loved how the issues were presented and how they were taken care of, i loved that if one was straying, the other was understanding. However, cheating is never forgivable. I loved that they understood it was not something that is a “mistake” and that the blame for cheating should be on the one who committed it. I appreciated colleen so much in this book.

Every time I pick up an author who leans toward (or is firmly planted) the romance genre, I think maybe this one will click. Maybe I won't hate every character. Maybe I won't need to bring the sarcasm when doing updates or writing a review. Most of the time - probably good 95% - my optimism plummets and the sarcasm knows no bounds. Such is the case with All Your Perfects. I had a feeling I wasn't going to be a fan just from skimming through all the reviews that were all “I'm crying” “went through a whole box of tissues” and “this one crushed my soul and than ran over it with a mac truck.” mmmhmmm. Yep. Look at all those red flags waving in the wind. But I tried to keep an open mind. And at first I admit I was doing ok with it. Particularly the early meet cute for Quinn and Graham. And then whiny, should be talking to a psychologist about her depression Quinn showed up in the present day. After that it was struggle for me to get through all the suffering done by Quinn, because why give your heroine one problem when you can give her five horrible, awful things she doesn't want to deal with (and don't get me started on the polar opposite support characters used to prop up and tear down the main couple). All this seemed to go on and on until the last 30 or so pages, where suddenly glittery rainbows and oozy cheesiness dripped all over everything in order to wrap up every story thread in a cute, happy little bow.

This one just wasn't for me.

I promise that I will love you more during the storms than I will love you during the perfect days.
I promise to love you more when you're hurting than when you're happy.
I promise to love you more when we're poor than when we're swimming in riches.
I promise to love you more when you're crying than when you're laughing.
I promise to love you more when you're sick than when you're healthy.
I promise to love you more when you hate me than when you love me.
And I promise . . . I swear . . . that I love you more as you read this letter than I did when I wrote it.
This poem just fills my eyes it's so perfect.
This book has its flaws but felt so soothing to read.