Step into the world of Colleen Hoover with her newest book “Reminders of Him.” PHOTO CREDIT: lowplexbooks.com
The New York Times bestselling author Colleen Hoover who wrote books such as “It Ends With Us,” “Verity,” “Ugly Love” and “November 9” released her newest book, “Reminders of Him” on Jan. 18, and it does not disappoint.
“Reminders of Him” follows the story of the main character Kenna Rowan, a 27-year-old woman who just got released from a five-year prison sentence for a drunk driving car accident that killed her boyfriend, Scotty. Rowan, searching for answers and peace, moves to Scotty’s hometown trying to find her 5-year-old daughter that lives with his parents.
On her first day in town, she stops into a local bar, where she meets Ledger, the bar owner and a former NFL player that instantly catches her attention. Amidst a makeout session, Kenna realizes that Ledger is Scotty’s best friend from childhood, connecting him to her daughter whom she never got to meet.
I am obsessed with Colleen Hoover’s other books. After reading “It Ends With Us” over the summer, I was addicted to her characters, her plotlines and her novels. Each of her characters is extremely flawed and human, making them more relatable and likable.
Hoover is known to have insane plot twists in the middle of her stories. The one thing that disappointed me about “Reminders of Him” was that it lacked the plot twist I was so accustomed to. I feel like I spent the whole time waiting on something that never came.
Despite the lack of a plot twist, this book was raw and detailed, which made it one that I couldn’t put down. It was heartwarming, suspenseful and heartbreaking all at the same time. Watching Kenna struggle to meet her daughter, Diem, while trying to piece her life back together is extremely human.
Ledger, on the other hand, is another undeniably flawed character who has his own struggles. Between grieving the loss of his childhood best friend, attempting to raise Diem alongside Scotty’s parents and calling off an engagement, he definitely has his own trauma that he carries with him day-to-day.
In an attempt to remain loyal to Scotty and his parents, who filed a restraining order against Kenna, Ledger meets with Kenna in private, offering her a job at his bar and picking her up from her other job at the local grocery store.
As Ledger gets to know Kenna more and more, you can see his initial feelings about her slowly changing and melting away as he begins to understand her side of the story of Scotty’s death and Diem’s life. It’s beautiful to watch the two fall in love in this Romeo and Juliet-esque forbidden lovers trope.
Kenna is a character who is so full of regret and guilt for the death of Scotty. The small glimmer of hope, that one day she’ll be a part of her daughter’s life, is the only thing that keeps her going. In a series of letters she writes to Scotty after his death during her time in prison, the reader learns more about the couple’s past and the regret she has for driving drunk that night.
To avoid spoilers, I won’t be talking in detail about the ending and the epilogue of the book, however, it ties everything together perfectly and is definitely a happy ending that we were all waiting for.
Colleen Hoover is just an incredible author, and if you don’t like reading or are looking to get back into reading, I would definitely recommend her books to start with. Once you read one, you won’t be able to stop reading all of her books.