In the world of readers, there is an elephant in the room, Colleen Hoover, an author who has created a loyal fan base and work that is both loved and despised. Hoover creates work that is both adored and disliked. These beliefs are based solely on a reader’s liking of Hoover’s writing style of romance, and how she interprets relationships to advertise toxic relationships. “Heart Bones”, differing from the rest, starts as a novel concentrated on a young girl suffering financially and emotionally her whole life. As this concept drastically changes, the book is soon turned into a romance.
The protagonist, Beyah, is fresh out of high school and has only known one world. This life consists of living in poverty with her mom in rural Kentucky. Due to her mom being an alcoholic and a drug addict, Beyah has grown up in her own hands, figuring out how to survive alone with no money. She was looking forward to getting out of her horrible situation with her full ride to play volleyball at Penn State in the fall. At the beginning of summer, a drastic change leaves her homeless and more alone than she has ever been. In order to survive, she finds herself in Texas, at a beach house with her absent father and his family.
Hoover focuses the first portion of the book on the independent main character, Beyah, who works hard to maintain survival. This is where I find “Heart Bones” unique when comparing it to Hoover’s other books. The start of the novel has next to no mentions of romantic relationships, which isn’t common in Hoover’s books. Even though I’m a sucker for romantic novels, having zero talk of romantic relationships to start made the book more enjoyable to read. An unexpected death during Beyah’s summer leaves the reader wanting more, so they continue to read. The abrupt death Beyah experienced left me wondering, “Where will she go?” “How will she live alone?”. These questions became my motivation to keep reading. This is an extremely important concept because getting into a book is a hard thing to do. I think Hoover did an excellent job getting the reader hooked by using real-life deprivation rather than an intimate relationship.
As the book progresses, a relationship with a brief “enemies to lover” trope is introduced. This changed the novel for the better. Hoover does a great job introducing the two main characters, Samson and Beyah, to create a build-up to their romance. Hoover makes their characters complete opposites who would appear as two that would never attract. Both individuals are private and find it hard to open up to others. This makes it hard for the reader to believe a spark will ever form between these two. Once the reader loses hope in the relationship between Samson and Beyah, things start to look up. Hoover creates this relationship to be a mysterious one. There are a lot of missing pieces that both the reader and Beyah don’t know about Samson. Along with the unexpected turns, this adds another concept of mystery that leads the reader to continue.
The reason I find “Heart Bones” to be an outstanding and entertaining read, is because of the descriptive technique Hoover uses. The reader is constantly informed of where the scene is set and what is going on. Hoover sets the scene well to make the reader feel as if they are there too. When they are in Samson’s house, Hoover makes sure to set the scene. Within the conversations, Hoover implies that the house is empty. Not only does this give us an idea of the setting, but it also gives us more information about Samson as a person. This aspect of writing makes a book more enjoyable as well as easy to follow.
Throughout the book Hoover includes constant jaw-dropping moments. New information about the characters comes out constantly, leaving the reader shocked. This is a great concept to have in a book because it keeps the reader hooked. In Hoover’s books, there usually is a time when it gets boring, but in “Heart Bones”, that is never the case.
Another unique quality of this novel is the fact that it has so many hidden lessons. “Heart Bones” taught me that no matter your past, there is always a chance for your future to look up. Beyah faces constant sorrow but soon realizes there’s more to life than what she has ever experienced. I also learned the importance of peeling back my layers of complexity. It will not only help me love and care for myself but also others.
I definitely recommend “Heart Bones”, although it is catered to romance lovers, others will definitely enjoy it as well. If you’re looking for a book that is hard to put down, “Heart Bones” is the one to read. With the reader being left in constant disbelief, wonder, and shock, there is not a chance to get bored while reading Hoover’s novel.
