It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover. October 1 marks the start of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, so we thought we'd release the sequel discussion to our It Ends With Us episode.
In this follow-up book, one year has passed and Lily has to balance her divorce from Ryle, co-parenting with him, and navigating her complicated, newfound relationship with Atlas.
Like so many mothers who escape their abusive relationship, the challenge then becomes grappling with the guilt and shame of dating again and feeling deserving of love while their ex does everything they can to interfere with that happiness and independence. In Lily's situation, she learns that Ryle isn't progressing at all with his anger management and is still very much struggling with his childhood trauma.
Meanwhile, Atlas steps up into his new role as a father figure, not just for Emerson, but for his little brother he never knew existed.
It Starts With Us is filled with heartfelt moments and feel-good growth, and readers get to finally see Lily and Atlas's long-coming happily ever after, wrapping up their story beautifully.
For domestic violence resources: https://www.thehotline.org/
National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1.800.799.SAFE (7233)
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