Walking into bookstores can be overwhelming due to the shelves filled with thousands of different genres and authors. However, one author that stands out to many is Colleen Hoover.

As an avid reader, I have read a few of her books because they are often recommended to me by others because they are considered quick-reads. Having listened to the advice of my peers,  I can confidently say I would not recommend her to anyone. Yes, her stories have interesting plots and are always easy because of the page count, but oftentimes her stories are just cliche. I could make a multi-page list of other authors besides Hoover to someone who needs recommendations.

Some of her popular books such as “Ugly Love” and “It Ends With Us” are fan favorites and were some of the first books that got me to enjoy reading because they are not difficult to understand. Hearing that they are easy reads may be a positive thing to others because who wouldn’t want a book that they can finish in a few days? At the same time, her stories just don’t give the same feeling that other stories give. Her plots are very predictable and are basic for a romance novel. I want to read a book with interesting tropes and story lines: a book that I don’t have already.

Hoover is popular for her romance books, but she also has a few books that are of the mystery genre like “Verity” and “Layla.” I can admit that “Verity” was a good read and had me on the edge of my seat at times because it had me thinking about more than just what was written on the pages. I was trying to figure out the mystery as I was reading and that’s how I want to feel every time I start a new book. “Verity” is the only book of Hoover’s that I can confidently say is an okay story.

There have been a few times I have started her books and couldn’t get through more than 50 pages just because they are so predictable. When I start a book I want to keep reading and be able to imagine what I’m reading and not be able to figure out what the next page is going to say. With Hoover’s books, I’m not able to do any of that. While romance books often have the same story line, there are so many other authors that are able to add something different to their stories and make me want to reread their books. I would never want to reread any of Hoover’s books after finishing them, I want to read a story that makes me sad to finish.

If you are someone who is just getting into reading, I would recommend straying away from  Hoover’s stories. There are so many other authors like Chloe Walsh and Freida McFadden who have so many different books, such as “The Boys Of Tommen Series” and “The Housemaid” that are one hundred percent better reads than a Hoover book.