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Meet Colleen Hoover, the controversial author of ‘It Ends With Us’ taking BookTok by storm

August 9, 20240

Colleen Hoover attends the New York premiere of “It Ends With Us.”

John Nacion/Variety via Getty Images

Colleen Hoover is the bestselling author of over 20 books, including “It Ends With Us.”
The film version of “It Ends With Us,” starring Blake Lively, premieres Friday.
Hoover is beloved by millions, but she has also been embroiled in controversy as her fame has grown.

If you’ve been in a bookstore recently, you’ve likely seen one of Colleen Hoover’s books.

Hoover is the prolific and widely loved author of over 20

A post shared by Colleen Hoover (@colleenhoover)

Hoover’s relationship with her readers has been more intimate than the average author since she self-published her books and could therefore cater directly to her audience. But her massive social-media presence makes her even more connected to her readers — and more successful.

Hoover has 1.3 million TikTok followers, though she made her account private, and 2 million Instagram followers. TikTok, in particular, has contributed to Hoover’s success, as she became massively popular on BookTok during the pandemic.

But some think Hoover’s works are problematic.

Colleen Hoover planned to release an “It Ends With Us” coloring book.

Collen Hoover/Instagram

Social-media users found the idea of a coloring book based on a novel about domestic abuse “tone-deaf,” with people commenting their criticism on Hoover’s Instagram post announcing the book and posting TikToks about it.

“This is so gross. Why make a book about literal abuse into something as lighthearted as a coloring book?” one user wrote.

Another TikTok user, who described herself as a former fan of Hoover, said she was “disappointed to say the least” in the project and that she hoped the coloring book wouldn’t end up being released.

The day after she announced she was publishing the coloring book, Hoover shared on her Instagram story that she asked her publisher not to release it following the negative reaction she received.

“The coloring book was developed with Lily’s strength in mind, but I can absolutely see how this was tone-deaf,” Hoover said in the statement.

Representatives for Hoover did not respond to Business Insider’s previous request for comment on the matter, but a spokesperson for Atria Books confirmed to BI at the time that the publishing house would not be moving forward with the project.

Despite the controversy, Hoover continues to win accolades and garner more commercial success.

Colleen Hoover and Blake Lively at Book Bonanza in June 2024.

Eric Charbonneau/Getty Images for Sony Pictures

In addition to the success of her books, Hoover will soon add film credits to her lengthy résumé.

Wayfarer Studios and Sony Pictures adapted “It Ends With Us” into a film starring Blake Lively as Lily Bloom and Justin Baldoni as Ryle Kincaid. The film premieres on August 9, and Lively has been wearing a slew of floral-inspired looks in the lead-up to its release.

The star-studded cast is sure to bring Hoover even more success, though some fans are skeptical of the film.

Lively and Baldoni are much older than the characters in Hoover’s book, so some fans are concerned about how it will compare to the novel. In addition, others were skeptical of Lily’s wardrobe in the movie based on the first images shared from the set of Lively.

But others are brimming with excitement for the release. In just 24 hours, the first trailer for the film released in May amassed over 128.1 million views, outpacing “Barbie” and “Wicked,” according to Deadline.

People may have mixed feelings about Hoover, but the author’s rise to fame is hard to ignore. As Jenna Bush Hager said when Hoover was named to Time’s 100 Most Influential People list in April 2023, “Whether you count yourself a Colleen Hoover fan or not, her influence on the publishing industry is undeniable.”

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source:https://www.businessinsider.com/colleen-hoover-tiktok-author-books-controversy-2023-5