Review: ‘Regretting You’ by Colleen Hoover

As an avid reader, I try to read everything I lay my hands on. But in true honesty, what I enjoy reading the most are books that make me feel. And Regretting You definitely made me feel. A lot. (And maybe ugly cry a little).

Regretting You revolves around the relationship between Morgan and Clara, a mother and a daughter that try to be as opposite as they can be. Morgan, like most mothers, wants to prevent her daughter to commit the same mistakes she made when she was young, while Clara just wishes that her mother was a little less.. predictable and way more relaxed.

Things seemed pretty normal and average in their family day to day life, until a tragic accident changes everything by revealing a secret no one saw coming. This tragedy, and the realization that the people Morgan loved weren’t who she thought they were, makes the relationship between Morgan and Clara even more difficult and complicated, since mother tries to protect daughter from a heartbreaking secret that’ll impact Clara negatively.

While this book might talk about first love and teen relationships, this is not your typical romance novel. In Regretting You we get a little bit of a reality check, where we see beyond that “happily ever after” and find out that, in the real world and true life, relationships sometimes just end, and people have to face life changing situations while navigating through all kinds of emotions: happiness, love, pain, heartbreak, grief.

Do I recommend Regretting You?

This was my first Colleen Hoover book. I’ve been seeing her name a lot in readers’ groups, but I didn’t know what to expect from her writing. If I could choose one word, I think it would be intense. Hoover has a way of describing human emotions -particularly pain- in such a way that you almost feel the character’s pain yourself, and I think that’s something in her favor.

While the book falls into some clichés and a few things/dialogues feel exaggerated, I also have to be honest: this book was painful to read, especially as someone who has experienced the hurt and emotional damage that infidelity can cause. Still, I think it is a raw and wonderful story that I truly enjoyed reading (and crying through).

Content warning: death, betrayal and infidelity.

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