My friend and TikTok made me read this.

In summary, Lily Bloom meets Ryle, a neurosurgeon that only does one night stands and doesn’t believe in marriage and having kids. Lily wants the opposite and eventually as they start dating, Ryle starts changing his view on things because he loves Lily so much. Everything is going so well until the relationship takes a nasty turn and becomes violent. When Lily’s first love, Atlas, reappears in her life, it further complicates things.

Spoilers Ahead!

I was not expecting the domestic violence and the first accident left me a little stunned. If I recall, a total of 3 incidents occur before Lily decides to leave Ryle. I have never been in an abusive relationship but I know that it’s not an easy thing to walk away from. It’s a lot more complex. Lily definitely took control and handled it well despite my dislikes on certain parts. She got out before it got bad. She did not want to repeat the cycle and end up like her mother. I do have some thoughts though.

In the beginning, Ryle does not sound like a violent person. He’s very charming, charismatic, funny, and a dork. In simple terms, he wasn’t a toxic person. I think once he got with Lily, he fell really deep and hard for her and when he found out about Atlas, jealousy, which I think he’s unfamiliar with, took over and it made him act in an unfamiliar way. The guy had childhood trauma but that and Lily’s diary about her past with Atlas, does not give him an excuse or justifies his actions to hit her.

I’m a little conflicted in all honesty when Lily decides to leave her relationship with Ryle, the time I mean. Towards the end of her pregnancy, everything seems okay between them and right when she gives birth to their daughter, she decides to end it with him and I felt so bad for him. I found that it was kind of a petty move in her part ruining such a beautiful moment and tarnishing it by breaking his heart right then and there. Ryle practically changed for her. In the beginning of the story, this guy said he only did one night stands, doesn’t wanna get married, and doesn’t wanna have kids. He ends up doing the complete opposite because he loves her. If Lily would’ve just been straightforward with Ryle and tell him about the history she had with Atlas, I don’t think the relationship would have turned violent. A fight or argument is bound to happen if your spouse finds any sort history from an ex. And why would you keep stuff like that around unless you’re not ready to let go. Just lock it up somewhere if you don’t want to get rid of it.

I still have unanswered questions. What was Allysa, Ryle’s sister, going to say to Lily regarding her brother when they were in the kitchen? Is Ryle’s childhood trauma really the cause of his anger issues or is there something else? What’s Ryle’s history with relationships? I hope these questions get answered when the second book comes out.

Overall, it was a nice read. I didn’t cry though. Ryle and Atlas are okay and Lily kinda pissed me off in certain parts.