Unfortunately for my roommate, I started Reminders of Him at 11 p.m. and finished at 4 a.m., sobbing into my pillow uncontrollably as Lookalike by Conan Gray played on repeat. If that’s not indicative of the rating I’ll be giving this novel at the end of this review, then I don’t know what to tell you.
Colleen Hoover’s new novel, released on Jan. 18, follows Kenna, a young mother recently released from prison after a tragic accident as she fights for a place in her daughter’s life. Our other narrator Ledger, who filled the father role for Kenna’s daughter Diem, displays conflicted feelings throughout the novel, torn between protecting Diem from the woman who took her father’s life and helping a grieving mother reunite with the child she never got to meet.
Reminders of Him is a beautiful portrayal of grief, heartache, redemption, and love. Everyone in this novel is filled with love — for the ones they lost, for the ones who are still there, and for the life they have built despite the carnage.
One of the best quotes I can attach to the emotion of this novel is one by Andrew Garfield. In an interview with Stephen Colbert, Garfield defines grief, stating: “This is all the unexpressed love, the grief that will remain with us until we pass because we never get enough time with each other, no matter if someone lives till 60, 15, or 99.” As the quote says, the grief of those impacted by Scotty’s death in Reminders of Him is only expressing the love they were never able to give to him, no matter how much they showed it before.
In regards to expressing emotion, if Hoover is known for anything, it’s for the letters she incorporates into every novel. In Reminders of Him, these letters take form in Kenna's writing to her late boyfriend, Scotty. The “Dear Scotty” letters, as I like to call them, show so much of Kenna’s journey that no one in her life ever got to witness. From detailing the love Kenna and Scotty shared to the pain of losing both him and her child, the grief and suffering Kenna went through are visible on the page.
As a reader, it’s infuriating to read these letters then watch as the people in Diem’s life continuously push Kenna away, making her out to be a villain, a monster. Yes, Kenna deserved to serve time for her actions, as the accident could have been prevented. But she served her time. She suffered alone, in prison, knowing that she was the sole reason her love had died. She wasn’t a cold-blooded, unremorseful murderer like they wanted her to be — she was a young woman who made a tragic mistake and she suffered the consequences. Alone.
Everything about Kenna’s story hurt, especially when she reminisces on her time in prison. She talks about how women who are released from prison are given an unescapable label, are seen as less of a person, but in reality, they’re just humans: mothers, daughters, sisters, people. Kenna became a mother just to have her daughter stripped away from her before she could even see her.
Kenna’s friend, Ivy, helped Kenna through her pain, showing her how to keep going. “She wasn’t saying I would move past what I was feeling, or that things would get easier. She was telling me this was it — the misery I felt was my new normal. I could either learn to live with it or I could let it consume me.” Kenna chose to live with the misery. She moved forward, suffering in silence, doing her absolute best to make it through until she could finally meet her daughter.
Now that we all know my deep attachment and emotional connection to this novel, I asked our Shameful Book Club co-founder, Grace, to weigh in on the discussion. (Disclaimer: this was not an SBC read, but we are part of Colleen Hoover’s cult, so it’s almost the same thing.)
Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover had me nauseous, and I expected nothing less. I felt so much for all of the characters involved and the conflicts that they all had with themselves was so heartbreaking to witness. Kenna’s thoughts and letters had me sobbing almost immediately. She deserves so much and I’m so glad that she got what she worked so hard for in the end. She and Ledger together are honestly so perfect especially considering that they have the opportunity to bond over a shared loss.
I genuinely waited for this book for months and then finished it in 24 hours, thus leading to an immense longing for death immediately after I finished it. Needless to say, 5 out of 5 stars. No surprise here. Colleen, please keep hurting me. Please. Thanks.
Just as Grace said, I was longing for death immediately after finishing this novel. Therefore, I had to give it five stars. There was no way a book could produce this much emotion from me and not immediately be put on the (not-so) exclusive list of five-star reads.
I highly encourage everyone to read this book. Reminders of Him is easily one of Colleen Hoover’s best works, and it’s a story that everyone deserves to read, enjoy, and learn from.
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