All Your Perfects by Colleen Hoover: a book review

Disclaimer: There will be spoilers, and also potentially typos. I have so much to say and I'm trying to get it out in a timely manner.


Whoa.

Considering I pulled yet another all-nighter for a Colleen Hoover book, I don't think I can stress enough how amazing her writing is. Even if she's pretty humble about it, I hope she realizes how talented she is.

I'm sixteen, so maybe I don't have a lot of life decisions to write about, but one of the best ones by far must be preordering this book. I got it at midnight last night, and stayed up until five in the morning to read it. All Your Perfects may not be my new all-time favorite, sorry to say, but I definitely believe that it is one of the most touching books written by Hoover and, quite possibly, one of the most touching books written this year.

Quinn and Graham experience a failing marriage, and in a parallel storyline, they experience a beautiful romance that becomes an all-consuming, passionate love. Both storylines are incredibly emotional in different ways. Both storylines present these vivid characters experiencing real-world problems.

I've come to realize that one does not simply read a Colleen Hoover book. A person embarks on a journey, immerses themself in a world. You breathe with her characters, because they jump right off the page in every way. You cry with them, you laugh with them, you fall with them, you feel with them. To say Colleen is remarkable doesn't feel accurate enough.

Now from this point on, I'm gonna be getting specific. If you've already read the book or don't mind spoilers, please feel free to continue reading.

The way Colleen tackles infertility in AYP was what really made this book so authentic. I related to Quinn in ways I didn't know possible. I myself want to be a mother down the road, and I know that not being able to have the chance would break my heart. The way that desire to try for children affected their marriage was heartbreaking, but incredibly well done. I felt the frustration of both Graham and Quinn, I felt the despair when Quinn talked about having sex and it leading to devastation. I felt the distance between her and Graham as if it were distance between me and the love of my life.

"I used to believe if you loved someone enough, that love could withstand anything."

This book was heavy. Not literally, because I was reading it on my phone, so it wasn't like I was really holding a weight. It was heavy emotionally. The chapters set in the present were what really got to me. After breaking my heart, Colleen would switch to chapters set in the past, and give me a chance to rest, breathe, and put myself back together.

I cried a lot to say the least. Coho makes me cry with every book, so this isn't anything unusual.

I cried when Graham had an affair. I was so in love with him, just like Quinn, that it made me angry. I felt her frustration, the dread. I wondered how they could get to that point. Truth be told, I was so glad he didn't sleep with the other woman. I was so glad he showed remorse and quit his job, and took responsibility for his mistake. It was another barrier in their marriage that really hit me in the heart. There's no quick solution for what to do when your husband is unfaithful, which is why this was so well-portrayed.

I started really sobbing when Quinn had her miscarriage. My whole body started shaking, my stomach sinking, my tears coming out before I even realized I was crying. The hysterectomy destroyed me as much as it did her. It was one of my greatest fears come to life on page. Never being able to have kids would break my spirit, and overcoming that is so strong and beautiful. I have to applaud these characters for their fierceness, for their resilience.

And of course, I cried when they opened the box full of love letters. I cried when they read the letters, because I really fell in love with Graham in that moment. I felt everything he felt, and I understood that he really, truly loved her with his whole heart.

Truth be told, I'm gonna make a box like that for my husband and me when I get married. It was a brilliant idea, and I only hope that other people take this as an idea for withstanding category 5 moments. Sometimes, you need to remember why you love someone, especially when you feel like your relationship is falling apart.

"Those are the days I want you to feel the absolute weight of my love for you. I promise that I will love you more during the storms than I will love you during the perfect days." -Graham

What made Graham such a great love interest was how much depth he had. By no means was he perfect, as no man is, but he tried to be perfect for Quinn. He continued to love her, and he continued to work at loving her more and more each day. He put her first, as every good husband should. Because of this, and despite his imperfections, he really was a well-rounded character.

Quinn was a great protagonist. I understood everything she felt, everything she wanted, everything that made her feel like she had failed Graham. I understood why she couldn't feel his love for her, even when it was there for her.

The side characters were just as great. I loved their families, even Quinn's mom, as frustrating and rude as she could be. I loved Ava, and her relationship with Quinn. I loved it all, really.

Colleen makes a brilliant point with the fortune that started it all; “If you only shine light on your flaws, all your perfects will dim.”

This is true with anything in life. The more you fixate on what's wrong with the picture, the more you forget about all the amazing, beautiful things that are just sitting right under your nose, waiting to be acknowledged. If you only shine light on the flaws, everything else will fall into the background. 

The ending really got me in the feels. In a world where many are so quick to end their marriages, forget why they were in love in the first place, it's pretty damn hard to believe in true love. Love is work. Love is a choice sometimes; you have to choose to love someone, even when you're angry and resentful. Watching Quinn and Graham decide to make themselves, and their marriage, better was beautiful. It showed that true love still exists, even when you have to really work for it. I'm optimistic for their future, just as they are. And even if this, at the end of the day, is just a book, it restored my faith in soulmates, and all the other romantic things I sometimes I have trouble believing in.

I really can't think of anything I wanted more of, or anything I would change. This book was brilliant and told a realistic story with great characters, great plotlines, and great emotion. I know this review has been really long, I'm sorry, I just loved it so much. 

5/5 perfect stars.

I'll leave you with another one of my favorite quotes:
"Gratitude is born in the struggle. And we have definitely struggled."