Love Isn’t Always Easy | Ugly Love Book Review

I hope you’re ready to get emotional, because today’s Ugly Love book review has it all. Prepare yourself for the good, the bad, and the ugly. It’s a rule that Colleen Hoover always manages to tear me apart with her books and Ugly Love is no exception to the rule.

According to my goodreads account, I first read Ugly Love back in February of 2015. I think I must have read it on my kindle. I seem to have enjoyed the romance aspect of the story, but I didn’t really like the chapters from Mile’s POV. Haha. Colleen Hoover has this very particular writing style where she writes very poetically, almost like free verse or something, and I didn’t seem to like that very much.

But this time around I checked the audiobook out from the library. I enjoyed the narrators and listening to someone speak Miles’ chapters made a lot more sense to me. So keep reading for my full Ugly Love book review. I’m excited to share some of my favorite parts on the blog today.

And if you enjoyed today’s blog post, you can read some of my other romance reviews here.

What is the Ugly Love book about?

From Colleen Hoover, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of It Ends With Us, a heart-wrenching love story that proves attraction at first sight can be messy.

When Tate Collins meets airline pilot Miles Archer, she doesn’t think it’s love at first sight. They wouldn’t even go so far as to consider themselves friends. The only thing Tate and Miles have in common is an undeniable mutual attraction. Once their desires are out in the open, they realize they have the perfect set-up. He doesn’t want love, she doesn’t have time for love, so that just leaves the sex. Their arrangement could be surprisingly seamless, as long as Tate can stick to the only two rules Miles has for her.

Never ask about the past.

Don’t expect a future.

They think they can handle it, but realize almost immediately they can’t handle it at all.

Hearts get infiltrated.

Promises get broken.

Rules get shattered.

Love gets ugly. (from Amazon.com)

My Initial Thoughts

Before I started listening to this audiobook, I was dreading it a little bit. I’ve always been a fan of romance novels, but I prefer sweet romances where the characters are nice to each other and their problems are small. Like miniscule. So I remember that back in 2015 I was a little taken aback by Ugly Love. It made me mad because I felt that Miles was being mean to Tate and using her.

But flash forward until now.

First, I have to say that I loved the narrator who did Tate’s chapters. She was so cute. I loved her voice and I loved when she was telling off Miles in the beginning. In my head I was like, you go girl!

Does Ugly Love have spicy scenes?

Yes, Ugly Love has many spice scenes. Main characters Miles and Tate are instantly attracted to each other when they meet. But getting together would be wrong. Tate knows that her older brother Corbin would be against her dating his best friend and across the hall nrighbor. So the two begin to see each other in secret, leading to many hot and intense interactions between the two of them. In my opinion, Ugly Love is very spicy. I don’t know for certain because I haven’t read all of Colleen Hoover’s books, but this might be the one with the most sex.

Maybe.

What Did I Love about Ugly Love?

I loved that Tate’s overprotective brother and all his friends are pilots. That’s such an interesting profession to choose for a lover interest in a romance novel. Who doesn’t love a man in uniform, am I right? Plus Tate is a registered nurse so she kind of has a uniform as well, which Miles enjoys.

I liked that Miles learned to overcome his traumatic past in the end. Well, you don’t ever fully recover from what he went through. But he worked really hard to approach his fears and try to come to terms with them so that he and Tate could have a future together.

The small glimpses we got of their future in the epilogue was so sweet. 

Miles flashback chapters were so jarring because the person who he was in the past was so different from who he was in the future. But flashbacks are very common in Colleen Hoover’s writing. She uses them to help explain her characters and their actions. That’s one of the many beautiful parts of her storytelling.

Did Miles and Tate really hate each other?

I don’t think so. I think that they both just had a lot going on in their lives and weren’t prepared for the attraction that they felt for each other. Tate is a very likable main character, who is honest about the fact that she’s busy and has work and school to keep her occupied. And although in present day Miles is kind of an ass, it’s clear from his chapters that Miles’ past is the reason why he is how he is.

The end of the book was really satisfying because we got to see the characters grow and figure their lives out.

Is this your first Colleen Hoover book?

If this is your first Colleen Hoover book, don’t be scared. I know it was a lot. But the end was worth it, right? That’s kind of how I feel about all of her books. The act of reading is such a rollercoaster of so many emotions but the end of the novel is always worth it.

Although my first Colleen Hoover book was slammed, I’ve really come to love her thrillers the best. So if you’re not sure what you want to read next, I would recommend Verity or Layla.

Miles’ Dark Past

Colleen Hoover books are known for pulling at your heartstrings, so you should prepare yourself now for Miles trauma which involves a car accident and grieving. The first time I read this book I felt terrible for Miles and his situation, and this time I feel the same. It’s difficult for him to open up because of what he has experienced. But sometimes you have to put aside your own feelings for those that you love. Miles’ character is dealing with his past trauma in the best way that he can.

Is Ugly Love a Romance Novel?

Yes, Ugly Love is a romance novel. The main characters aren’t sure that they are cut out for love, so they agree to a physical relationship and nothing else. No talk of a future, and definitely no discussion of their pasts. And Tate is okay with that at first. But as Tate’s feelings change it’s hard to tell if Miles feels the same way or if she is going to get her heart completely broken.

Do I still feel like Miles was using Tate?

No. This time around I’m almost ten years older while reading this book, and I know that Tate and Miles both agreed to their arrangement willingly. Although Tate’s feelings might have changed rather quickly, Tate and Miles’ relationship was completely agreed upon by both of them. But the complicated feelings is what makes this a good book. And although Tate’s actions at time might have seemed like doormat behavior in the past, I realize now that the reason she acted the way she did was because of her feelings. Sometimes we don’t have complete control over the way that we feel.

In Conclusion

Reviewing Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover is confusing because there’s so much going on. This is a book about undying love, second chances, and figuring out what (and who) you really want in life. It may be difficult at times to read because of the subject matter, but it’s also incredibly real. I loved following Tate on her journey as she moved into her brother’s apartment in San Francisco and started her new job. I loved her friendship with Cap, the elevator operator in her apartment building. 

And eventually I loved Miles. He’s a tough character to get to know, but that’s why Colleen Hoover is one of my favorite authors. She writes about imperfect people in imperfect situations and you see some of yourself in their situations.

But wait, there’s more!

If you enjoyed today’s Colleen Hoover book discussion, I’m currently reading It Ends With Us so that review will be coming soon. And make sure you click here for more romance reviews.