28 Jul Book Review: Regretting You by Colleen Hoover

Colleen Hoover has a real talent for digging into the raw, tender places inside relationships—the places people usually try to avoid. With Regretting You, she turns that lens toward one of the most volatile and emotionally rich bonds there is: the relationship between a mother and her teenage daughter. Instead of her usual romantic pairings taking center stage, this book weaves romance into a broader story about grief, identity, and what happens when the truths we’ve built our lives on get suddenly yanked out from under us.

What’s it about?

At its heart, Regretting You is about the messy, often painful love between mothers and daughters—and how grief can redraw those emotional maps. The story begins with Morgan Grant, a thirtysomething mother who gave up her own dreams when she became pregnant with her daughter, Clara, at a young age. Morgan’s life has been one of stability, quiet sacrifice, and trying to do the right thing—often at the expense of her own happiness. She’s married to Chris, her high school sweetheart, and has always tried to provide Clara with the kind of structured, predictable life she never had.

Clara, now sixteen, is headstrong and bright, but increasingly frustrated by what she sees as her mother’s suffocating rules and outdated expectations. She doesn’t want to be the version of Morgan’s younger self—obedient, cautious, and always playing it safe. She wants passion, freedom, and experience, especially when it comes to her relationship with a rebellious boy named Miller.

Just when tensions between mother and daughter are bubbling, tragedy strikes. Chris dies suddenly in a car accident—one that leaves not just heartbreak, but confusing questions in its wake. Morgan learns that Chris wasn’t where he said he’d be… and he wasn’t alone. That revelation shatters the version of her life she thought she knew, and sends her into a spiral of grief, betrayal, and introspection.

The shockwaves ripple through Clara, too. Losing her father devastates her—but her mother’s increasingly secretive and seemingly cold behavior afterward only intensifies her feelings of alienation. Clara begins acting out: skipping school, lying, getting closer to Miller against Morgan’s wishes. She doesn’t understand why Morgan won’t let her grieve on her own terms—or why she seems to be hiding something so important.

Meanwhile, Morgan is struggling to hold herself together for Clara’s sake, all while processing her suspicions about Chris’s true final moments. She starts to question the choices she made—particularly giving up college and marrying young. At the same time, Johna, Chris’s best friend—and Morgan’s own teenage crush—reenters her life. Their growing connection forces Morgan to reckon with feelings she’s long buried and to decide whether starting over is an act of betrayal… or survival.

The emotional core of the novel deepens as both women are forced to confront hard truths—not just about Chris, but about each other. Morgan must learn to stop controlling Clara out of fear, and Clara must see her mother as a person, not just a rule-maker. The climax builds to a gut-wrenching confrontation where Morgan tells Clara the truth she’s been withholding, and the fallout is emotional, raw, and ultimately cathartic.

By the end, Regretting You doesn’t offer fairy tale resolutions—it offers something better: understanding. Mother and daughter begin to find common ground, not by reverting to who they were, but by learning who they might become.

What This Chick Thinks

A Refreshing Focus on Family First

I love that this book centered the mother-daughter relationship. It’s rare in contemporary fiction—especially in books marketed as romance—to see such care taken with generational conflict. Morgan and Clara’s relationship felt alive in all the best (and most frustrating) ways. It’s like watching your own teenage fights in the mirror, but written better.

Hoover’s Signature Emotional Wallop

As always, Colleen Hoover knows exactly when to twist the knife. The grief in this story isn’t flowery—it’s abrupt, weird, uncomfortable. Morgan’s inner conflict about her marriage and her future is so well drawn, and Clara’s emotional swings are completely believable. The dual POV lets you root for both, even when they’re butting heads.

The Romance? Subtle but Sweet

Johna and Morgan have this quiet, slow-burn chemistry that doesn’t overwhelm the rest of the story. It’s not central, but it gives Morgan a second chance at choosing herself, which felt earned and gentle. Meanwhile, Clara’s teenage romance with Miller has that messy, heartfelt energy you’d expect—but without overshadowing her own emotional arc.

Sometimes Predictable, But Still Compelling

There were a few moments where I could see the emotional beats coming—especially the big reveal—but honestly, it didn’t take away from the payoff. The journey still felt rich, and the writing stayed engaging throughout. Hoover’s dialogue is always snappy without being too “TV teen,” which is a fine line to walk.

Final Thoughts

Regretting You is one of those books that gives you exactly what you need without pretending life’s messes are easy to clean up. It’s full of heartbreak, but also growth. I didn’t always agree with the characters, but I believed in them—and that’s what matters most. If you’ve ever loved someone fiercely and misunderstood them just as hard, this book will hit you right in the heart.

Rating: 8.5/10

Try it if you like:

• It Ends With Us by Colleen Hoover – Another story where love and family history intertwine in complicated, emotional ways.
• The Last Letter from Your Lover by Jojo Moyes – For dual timelines and deeply personal reckonings with past relationships.
• One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid – A different kind of grief and love triangle, but the emotional complexity and second chances feel familiar.