Short synopsis: Right before graduation Helen’s sister jumps in front of Grant’s car, now 13 years later they are forced to work together in a script for a tv series.

My thoughts: This starts off so tragic, and there are so many heartbreaking moments sprinkled throughout as each character is grieving from that night. Everything felt so real in this, the grief, hurt and pain, the tension, the family issues, the growth, the budding romance.

My favorite part was definitely the growth that each character went through towards the end of the book. I think they both needed to work through their grief separately, then together. It just felt so much more organic.

This was such a beautifully written book with soo much depth. What a great debut!

Read if you love:
- Enemies to lovers and forbidden love
- Workplace romance
- Complicated family situations
- Personal growth and forgiveness
- Hollywood setting

This is a very well written book. For the most part the story is good, our characters are interesting enough and it’s a pretty enjoyable read. I just get kind of stuck on the premise? It’s made to be such a huge life-altering deal, it’s a genuine reason for these two characters to not be together and it feels like it gets resolved too quickly? I’m really not sure how it should have gone, maybe just a chunk of pages more, but that would maybe be dragging it on? I don’t know but the resolution is kind of sticking in my mind.

I’m definitely going to read more from this author, her writing is so good.

EDIT a few minutes after writing and posting this review I’ve lowered my star rating from 4 to 3. I want to give all the credit to the writer for being a good writer! But! I just cannot believe they would end up together. I truly cannot. I have a personal similarity here, and I just cannot fathom falling in love or staying in love under these circumstances. That part just feels so disrespectful. It can certainly be framed as acceptance and moving on, and it certainly is attempted that way, but I just cannot believe this is what happened. I’ve never been so torn over a book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'd like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me a chance at reading this.

Goodness.

I have faith in the screenplay and direction of Emily Henry's books. I think Yulin KNOWS how to write dialogue and full rounded characters. The main characters Helen and Grant felt real, defined, and relatable. I enjoyed reading Helen have / keep Chinese traditions and her family life was well represented (even in the flashbacks with her sister). The grief aspect was also well defined, too. Greg on the opposite side of the grief line in regards to the situation was sad, broken, and lost. So having them come together was an interesting twist to a sad situation.

However, there is a catch to all this:

- The Hollywood aspect could work for both characters just not at the same time. Either one or the other must have the Hollywood connection and I vote for Helen. Helen channeled her grief into writing, which lead to a book and her notoriety as a writer. Greg... was a football star and homecoming king, popular jock. Where on earth would he wind up working for Hollywood? Where is his connection? Nothing in his backstory lead me to believe that this would be the route he would go. So the COINCIDENCE they BOTH from the east coast end up with stellar jobs and in Hollywood was a STRETCH. Therefore, with me not believing this plausibility of Greg's Hollywood life. Sorry, not sorry.

Which then lead to the whole dating... I could SEE them grief bonding, I've seen in happen via my time in the medical field. HOWEVER, the rate and the interactions in which they came together was really sudden and at one moment it was a slow build and then somehow the veil was lifted and the wall came down and they were already touching, cracking jokes, and then fucking. The fucking was good, but I just felt that it was too much and it was just unimportant to the story. Sex needs a good build up and a reason to make it to the page, and for me, the build up and the relationship that got them there ... if it was non-existent to me, if made me feel nothing.

- I felt that I craved more of the Hollywood world, more pitfalls, road blocks, an issue to crop up. There was none. Nothing. It was so EASY. This must be in that alternate reality which gave birth to two people from the same school making their rounds in Hollywood at the same time. There should have been a villain, or the grief should have been more heavy - SOMETHING. It was all a garnish to the plot,

I really think the author has potential, I just think that this book could have (should have) been better than what ended up. People will love it, and people may dislike it. But in my eyes, I'm in the camp of 'I see the product, and understand the product, but I think that the experience was not as what I hoped it would be'.

I applaud the author for writing the book and giving a good female poc, and I'm excited for her adaptations of Emily Henry's books.

How to End a Love Story was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024. I very much liked this book - the core of the story, the core of what Yulin was potraying to readers was so good and strong, but some of the execution fell flat.

I am not sure this book knows what it wants to be. I actually think this is why the book fails to be 5 stars for me. This book is filled with funny and charming parts and there is definitely a sexy romance here, but the heart of this story is the grief, trauma and aftershock of a life altering event.. We get such emotional displays and then it feels like that when we should dive deeper into them, we almost move on too quickly.

Helen and Grant have so much to overcome. And its like we started to walk through the door to see more of it before it was shut on us. Helen's anger. Grant's panic attacks. We understand why it's happening but it feels disjointed. The relationship with Helen and her family feels too important to be rushed through and yet I feel like that's what happened here.

I found a lot of charm in the writer's room. I found a lot of charm in the romance of Helen and Grant. I was happy that I read this book.

I think I put too much pressure on this book, which may be unfair. It still moved me. It was still a lovely romance. It still checked a lot of boxes and I am very confident that if Yulin decides to write more books, I would happily pick it up. I am going to round up to 4 but I'd place it at around 3.75.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

How to End a Love Story is not your typical romance. This one has themes about grief, suicide, and anxiety interlaced throughout.

I loved the Hollywood and writing aspects of this book, it was fun to see insight into that process especially since the author has adapted books into screenplays. I also really enjoyed both of the main characters and getting to know them throughout the book.

There were a few things about this one that did bother me a bit. I couldn’t quite get behind the fact that the popular homecoming king football player had self esteem issues. I just would have liked more insight into that piece and how that came to be. The third act break up was also super long which is never my favorite trope in a romance.

Overall, I’d recommend this one. It was very sweet and the writing sucks you in and I had trouble putting it down. I’m excited to see what the author does in the future!

Thank you NetGalley for the arc in exchange for my review

3 stars
I went through a lot of ups and downs with my enjoyment of this book. It was just like very suddenly they were in love and obsessed with each other but I didn’t see how they got to that point. I didn’t like the 3rd act break-up scene or the whole scene in the hospital. It felt way out of character, especially for Grant. Through the whole book, except for the last like 2 chapters, it also felt like he wasn’t very understanding of why Helen felt they she did about their situation, it felt very dismissive and he was just thinking about himself. I wasn’t really rooting for them and just felt like “okay” about their relationship. There were parts I did enjoy and I really like the found family aspect with the writers room. I enjoyed seeing that development of friendship. Overall it was just fine.

Helen is a writer whose popular young adult books are being made into a TV series. It's been 13 years since she's seen Grant Shepherd. But when he is hired to work as a screenwriter for her series, they are forced to confront the past and the heartbreaking way they are connected.

The relationship between Helen and Grant evolved into many different stages from start to finish. As their feelings grew, so did the sexual tension and vulnerability. The forbidden aspect created so much angst.

This author was a fantastic storyteller. I enjoyed how the deeper issues alternated well with the lighter scenes. I found myself rereading lines where I felt the chemistry between Helen and Grant was so strong. Some with their dialogue and other times with the affection they showed towards each other. The tender moments they shared are ones I continue to think about.

There was an emotional depth that went beyond Helen and Grant's shared trauma. The exploration into both characters flaws and how they could grow from that was written quite brilliantly. Navigating the relationship between Helen and her parents was an essential part of their journey as well.

I loved being in the writer's room and getting a behind the scenes look into what it's like to work on a TV series. It was fun with all the different personalities in the room and how they interacted with one another.

What a magnificent, stunning debut. I knew I was going to love this from the moment it was first announced but I am honestly just sitting here in such awe of Yulin Kuang right now. I want to live in this book hangover and these feelings forever.

This is such a caring examination of grief and pain, while at the same time a masterpiece of a love story that absolutely crackles with chemistry and banter. This is the epitome of a forbidden romance and Helen and Grant both have my complete heart. (I even used my "book boyfriend" tag on goodreads for the first time in ages!)

The writing is beautiful and cinematic, and the romance is so tender and intimate, so full of tension and longing and hurt that I could hardly even stand it. There's a couch scene that is one of the sexiest non-sex scenes I've ever read. The whole book is just incredibly slowburn and steamy and achy.

Yulin has proven without a doubt that she's a master of the genre and I am SO ready for whatever she writes next. I can't recommend this highly enough!

This book was everything. I started reading it at 6 pm and finished it on my lunch break the next day. It was so hard to put down. This was an amazing romance with high stakes. I absolutely adored Helen and Grant. The chemistry just leaps off the pages. I liked the background of the writers room. There was just so much to love about this book!

My experience reading this book was a mixed bag. The storyline was appealing to me. Grant and Helen are bound together in a shared tragedy from HS in which Helen's younger sister was killed in an incident that Helen and her parents unfairly blamed Grant for. Thirteen years later they are both writers (she, an author, he, a Hollywood screenwriter), and find themselves working together on a TV series adaptation of her bestselling YA fantasy series. I found both of them to be sympathetic characters as it was clear they were both deeply affected by and still trying (and in Helen's case, completely failing) to deal with the accident. I also loved all of the insider details about how the writer's room works on a TV series.

On the other hand, it seemed like all of the trauma and issues that they had were treated almost as window dressing - briefly raised as motivation for their actions, but then never really explored in depth. For example, Grant is shown having a panic attack once or twice, but the rest of the time any anxiety he may have is just ignored and never resolved. Helen initially hates Grant because of his role in her sister's death and tries to guilt him into quitting the TV show, then all of sudden, she's attracted to him, lusting over him, even in love with him, and it's like the antagonism that has driven her for the last 13 yrs just vanishes, poof, gone without a trace. I gather the author is a director and screenwriter and I think this was a good debut effort. It will be interesting to see what she comes up with next. My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

I absolutely adored this book! Without a doubt, it is one of my new favorite reads of all time. Yulin Kuang has such a magnificent way with words and I was immediately wrapped into this book.
I know some people weren't the biggest fans of Helen, but I could not disagree more. She felt like a very real person with real life problems and flaws. Her romance with Grant was complicated, but it really made me cheer them on more. There were multiple times where I gasped or blushed while reading their scenes.
Overall, I know that this is a book that I will keep going back to. I cannot wait to read more from Kuang in the future.

3.5/5 stars

I wanted to read this debut contemporary book because the author is the screenwriter of one of my favorite books (People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry).

This book is actually quite different from typical romance books that I read. There is very little romance in the first 40%. Also the tone is quite different from the books that I'm used to reading.

The main character here is 31 year old Helen Zhang. Her sister died tragically at 16. And the male lead was involved in her death. I really liked the Asian rep. And I was fascinated by what happened to Helen's family. But it was a difficult topic to read about.

Helen wrote a best selling series of Young Adult books that are being turned into a television series. And she is one of the screenwriters. I did really like this part of the story. And since the author is also a screenwriter I am guessing that her portrayal was very accurate. However until Helen became friends with the screenwriters that part of the story dragged a bit for me.

I'm not completely sure how I feel about the romance aspect. I did like Grant. But for them to go from enemies to lovers did seem a bit extreme. Most times when this trope is used it's not for a very serious reason. But in this case getting involved with someone who your family despises was interesting. Helen's hatred for Grant was quite intense.

I also can't decide how much I liked Helen. I love writers as the main character's job. She did spend much of the book dealing with grief and loss, which was fine. But the way she acted towards Grant, especially more towards the end seemed hard to grasp.

Overall this book had a very interesting premise and it definitely takes the reader on an emotional journey. The story was heavier than I expected. It has romance but I'm honestly not sure that I would classify the book that way. It's more of a literary fiction/women's fiction book that features romance.

This was such a wonderful book. I love when my romances are a bit more heavy and our main characters seem like real people. Kuang created two realistic, complex characters in Helen and Grant, and it made it so easy to root for their love story. I felt all of the feelings while I read How to End a Love Story, both the happy and the sad.

This book is a romance, but it tackles so much more. We follow Helen and Grant as they both work through their grief and the guilt associated with the loss of Helen’s sister. Helen’s family dynamic is already complicated, but add in romantic feelings for the man who (involuntarily) killed killed her sister? I felt so much for Helen as she struggled to take what she wanted without hurting her family or Grant.

In terms of what tropes you’ll find here it’s not quite enemies to lovers but moreso I know I shouldn’t love you, but I can’t help it. The yearning in this book - wow! You can really feel how badly these characters want eachother, despite knowing it’s not the best idea to get involved. I loved the forced proximity with Helen and Grant working together in the writer’s room and enjoyed the secondary characters we meet along the way.

I know Yulin Kuang is a screenwriter, but I am so impressed that this is a debut! I can’t wait to read more from her on the future and see her adaptations come to life. Thank you to Avon and NetGalley for a review copy.

Oh. My. God. I’m a literal mess right now and the tears have finally stopped enough to write my review.

I don’t think I’ll ever find the right words to describe how much I loved this book and how it resonated with me. This is easily hands down without hesitation one of the best love stories I’ve ever read (even though a majority of it made me so emotional that I was at my desk crying into my ramen). How to End a Love Story is more than just a romance book and it doesn’t have your typical meet cute. ***Please note that this story deals with grief after losing a family member from suicide and begins with the funeral scene. After that, we jump over a decade later into the rest of the story.***

Helen and Grants story is unique and complex and full of traumatic history. From the start, I was hooked and fully immersed and couldn’t stop reading. But I also had to pace myself because of certain topics and I wanted to really take my time to enjoy it. And you’re telling me this is a debut?? I was truly blown away with Yulin’s writing and the way she was able to dive head first with such great care of topics covering depression/grief, suicide and anxiety. It was overall beautifully written and I just knew that the bright pink cover was going to make me cry (and it did…multiple times).

Also, as someone who has done a lot of film and written scripts, it felt so good to be back in that atmosphere and reminisce. And not only was the tension between Helen and Grant phenomenal, but the way they become so vulnerable with each other and overcame their mental obstacles made me sob. Just this line alone should convince people to read this book:

“The kind of ending where someone else sees the best and worst of me and loves me back. We’d be happy together, we’d be sad together, we’d be everything together. And when it’s all over and we’ve reached another ending, my ashes would be scattered over the tree that grows from his body because till death do us part wouldn’t be enough, because I’d need more than one brief eternity with him.”

The fact that the same author, who wrote said beautiful and heartbreaking lines above, is writing and directing Emily Henry’s books make me want to cry and throw up with excitement and fear because I just KNOW Yulin will do a fantastic job at wrecking me and I’ll thank her for doing so.

Thank you Avon and Harper Voyage and NetGalley for an arc in exchange for me honest review. This one truly hurt and I loved every second of it!

4.5/5 stars
2/5 spice

Tropes:
Acquaintances to lovers
Workplace romance
Forced proximity
Writer MCs
Trauma Bonding
Mental health topics
Dual POV

I took my time with this one, and I'm glad I did. The heavy topic was really well done. Even though it was hovering in the background as a main conflict, it wasn't overlooked. I enjoyed the progression of Grant and Helen's relationship. It wasn't forced, which made it more enjoyable. I really liked the other writers in the story. They added a fun dynamic and comedic relief. Overall, I really enjoyed this story and the author's writing style. I would definitely read more from this author. Highly recommend for fans of angsty romances.

Thank you to Netgalley and Avon/ Harper Voyager for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own and offered voluntarily.

Trigger/Content warnings:
Suicide, mental health topics, grief, anxiety/panic attacks, sexual content and explicit language

The tropes that are in this romance book are very different from my usual reads, but the plot was enticing and beautifully written. Grant Shepard and Helen Zhang have known each other since high school; Helen’s sister died when she ran towards Grant’s car. For thirteen years, Helen’s whole family disliked Grant.

Helen’s YA books have become a huge success, and she lands a TV adaptation on them in LA. Grant decides to take the job as a screenwriter for the TV adaptation for his career success. At first, I thought Helen and Grant’s chemistry were a bit rocky. It felt like Helen HATED him, and I thought I would never see them romantically together…ever. However, the slow burn in this book helped me understand what Helen and Grant were personally going through. As an Asian-American, I can relate to Helen’s relationship with her immigrant parents, and imposter syndrome. The sexual tension between Helen and Grant is very prevalent in this book. I’m not used to reading third-act breakups in books, but there is one in this book and I think it makes the plot realistic (and relatable for some readers). This is an emotion heavy book that touches on topics such as substance abuse, grief, and panic attacks.

Thank you Netgalley and Avon for this arc in exchange for a review!

This was AMAZING!!!! Yulin did a wonderful job with this story and these characters. I related to them and I fell deeply for them as well. It was everything I wanted and more. I am so excited for her future work

get this on your tbr, your libby loans, wishlist noww📝

a sad book 🤝 a sad reader

☀️ sunny entertainment industry LA setting
🎬 not sunny vibes between Helen + Grant. avoiding each other since experiencing a traumatic tragedy in high school, they’re now forced to work in an intimate writers room for Helen’s book turned tv series
💔 how grief + love are so intertwined & how it’ll change you again and again
⚠️ be sure to check content warnings
🗣️ had to get used to the dual POV in third person
❤️‍🩹 first daughters and tortured lovers, this is the book for you!
📖 not your average romance novel! you’ll feel it all, it has wit, tension, spice, heartache

I read this over a few days mostly in bed & it’ll forever have a place in my heart. it met me in my sadness, helped me fall into its storytelling, and wholeheartedly let me be messy with its characters. thank you Avon and HarperCollins for the gifted e-ARC + the speedy physical copy🥹💖

verrry much looking forward to Yulin Kuang’s next books & her screenwriting + directing for Emily Henry’s Beach Read film adaptation!!

I was so excited to read this book but ultimately it just wasn’t for me. However, everyone else loved it and I can’t put my finger on why I didn’t connect with it. I loved the characters growth throughout the book and the tidbits about Helen’s family. Learning about screenwriting was amazing and kuang definitely writes like a screenwriter. Ultimately, I didn’t get butterflies from the couple and I was not excited to pick it up. However, this is a very unpopular opinion everyone else loves it. Can’t wait for kuangs next work. Thank you to the publisher for the earc.

Helen was pretty relatable as a socially anxious introvert and second generation immigrant with complicated relationships with her parents, her sibling, and herself/grief. I liked that the author didn’t try to force a “happier” resolution to her relationship with her parents, it felt pretty realistic the subtle acceptance in the end (but left a little something more to be desired).

Grant was clearly written by a woman as they say. He’s a perfect blend of vulnerable and real with his emotions, respectful with a dash of appropriate caveman, and the epitome of respecting Helen’s boundaries while making it abundantly clear what his emotions and wants are.

Had a hard time putting it down to do adulting things. Ending felt a smidge rushed and anticlimactic for me, felt something was missing.

This debut novel had a fresh new spin on romance from the typical adaptations and tropes (which I still love and enjoy). Definitely worth the read!!

Be sure to check the trigger warnings before reading!!!