Colleen Hoover Books Ranked: Quick Answer
Verity, It Ends with Us, and Reminders of Him consistently sit at the top of reader rankings, with Verity holding the strongest overall reader rating in her catalog. Slammed, her 2012 self-published debut, still ranks near the top for readers who want to start at the beginning.
Here’s the master ranking, built from a mix of Goodreads reader scores and independent list comparisons.
| Rank | Title | Year | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Verity | 2018 | Psychological thriller |
| 2 | It Ends with Us | 2016 | Contemporary romance |
| 3 | Reminders of Him | 2022 | Contemporary romance |
| 4 | Slammed | 2012 | New adult romance |
| 5 | Ugly Love | 2014 | Contemporary romance |
| 6 | Heart Bones | 2020 | Contemporary romance |
| 7 | It Starts with Us | 2022 | Contemporary romance |
| 8 | Regretting You | 2019 | Family drama/romance |
| 9 | November 9 | 2015 | Contemporary romance |
| 10 | Confess | 2015 | Contemporary romance |
How These Colleen Hoover Books Ranked: Facts vs. Opinion
The fact layer here comes from Goodreads ratings and confirmed publication data, the same numbers you could pull up yourself. The opinion layer is genre fit and reader mood, which is subjective and labeled as such throughout.
That distinction matters because most Colleen Hoover rankings online blur the two completely. A blogger says a book is “the worst one” and never tells you if that’s a personal reading experience or an actual reflection of how the broader readership rated it. This list keeps those separate so you can weigh them differently.
Colleen Hoover Books Ranked: #1 Through #10
#1: Verity (2018) — the one that made people question her genre entirely
Verity follows a struggling writer hired to finish a bestselling author’s series after that author is left incapacitated, and what she finds in the unfinished manuscript changes everything. Goodreads reviewers rate this her highest scoring novel, landing around 4.6 to 4.7 depending on which snapshot of the platform you check. This is the book to hand someone who insists Colleen Hoover only writes romance, because it’s a full psychological thriller with a twist ending that regularly gets flagged as one of the more polarizing in her catalog. Spice level: low, this one is plot-driven, not romance-driven. Content warning: depictions of a character who may have harmed her own children, discussed in flashback.
#2: It Ends with Us (2016) — the one everyone’s heard of
This is the book about Lily, a woman falling for a surgeon whose behavior starts echoing patterns from her own childhood, and it’s the title most responsible for Hoover’s mainstream breakout. Goodreads puts it around a 4.07 rating, lower than several less famous titles in her catalog, a mismatch between fame and score that trips up a lot of first-time rankers. It’s ranked this high in reader mood because of cultural impact and because it’s the book most new readers ask about by name. Spice level: low to moderate. Content warning: this book centers on domestic violence and is not a light read despite the romance-novel packaging.
#3: Reminders of Him (2022) — the one that will absolutely ruin your day
A woman recently released from prison tries to rebuild a relationship with her deceased boyfriend’s family and the daughter she’s never been allowed to know. This is consistently cited as one of her top-rated books on Goodreads and is frequently the title readers describe as her most emotionally devastating. Spice level: moderate. Content warning: grief, addiction, and incarceration are central themes, not background details.
#4: Slammed (2012) — the self-published debut that started it all
Slammed follows a teenager who falls for her new neighbor, only to discover he’s her poetry teacher, and it was the book Hoover self-published before any traditional deal existed. It holds a Goodreads rating around 4.14 from hundreds of thousands of ratings, an unusually strong number for a debut. If you want to read her chronologically and understand the arc of her career, this is genuinely the correct starting point. Spice level: low. Content warning: minimal, this is one of her gentlest titles.
#5: Ugly Love (2014) — the one people quote out of context on TikTok
Ugly Love pairs a woman avoiding real intimacy with a pilot who’s sworn off relationships entirely, and it’s frequently cited on independent “best of” lists alongside her top titles. Spice level: high, this is one of the more explicit entries in her catalog and gets flagged that way constantly in fan discussions. Content warning: grief and past trauma inform the male lead’s arc throughout.
#6: Heart Bones (2020) — the one with the messiest publishing history
Heart Bones started as a self-published title before Atria picked it up, and it holds a Goodreads rating around 4.2. It’s a slower burn romance about a girl spending one summer in a town she never expected to land in. Spice level: moderate to high. Content warning: minimal beyond standard romance content.
#7: It Starts with Us (2022) — the sequel, not a new story
This is the direct continuation of It Ends with Us, picking up Lily’s story rather than introducing a new plot. It ranks lower on most reader lists specifically because it’s a sequel filling in gaps rather than a fresh narrative, a pattern that shows up repeatedly in her lower-ranked titles. Spice level: low to moderate.
#8: Regretting You (2019) — the mother-daughter one
Regretting You centers on a mother and teenage daughter coping with grief after a family tragedy reshapes both their lives. It’s frequently cited on independent best-of lists as one of her stronger standalone titles. Spice level: low, this one skews toward family drama over romance. Content warning: sudden death of a family member is the inciting event.
#9: November 9 (2015) — the “meet once a year” premise
Two strangers agree to meet on the same date every year without exchanging contact information in between, a premise that’s divided readers between “romantic” and “deeply impractical.” Spice level: low to moderate.
#10: Confess (2015) — the artsy one with the audio confessions gimmick
Confess follows an art student who falls for a stranger recording anonymous confessions in his gallery, and it’s a smaller, quieter entry compared to her bigger hits. Spice level: moderate.
The Worst-Reviewed Colleen Hoover Books (And Why Fans Still Read Them)
The lowest-rated titles in her catalog are almost always alt-POV companion books, not weaker original stories. Losing Hope retells Hopeless from the male lead’s perspective, Maybe Now retells Maybe Someday from a different angle, and This Girl does the same for Slammed.
Readers go in expecting a new plot and instead get the same events filtered through a second narrator, which scores lower because the surprise is gone. Fans still read them for emotional completeness, not new twists, and that’s worth knowing before you buy one expecting a sequel.
Colleen Hoover Books Ranked by Spice Level
Ugly Love and Heart Bones consistently get flagged by readers as her most explicit titles, while Verity, Slammed, and Regretting You stay on the tamer end of her catalog. There’s no official spice-rating system attached to her books, so this reflects aggregated reader consensus rather than a publisher-issued scale.
| Title | General Spice Level (Reader Consensus) | Content Note |
|---|---|---|
| Ugly Love | High | Explicit scenes, grief themes |
| Heart Bones | Moderate to High | Slow burn, some explicit content |
| Confess | Moderate | Emotional intensity over explicit content |
| November 9 | Low to Moderate | Romance-forward, not explicit |
| It Ends with Us | Low to Moderate | Domestic violence is the heavier content |
| Regretting You | Low | Family drama forward |
| Verity | Low | Thriller pacing, minimal romance |
| Slammed | Low | Gentlest entry in her catalog |
What Is the Best Colleen Hoover Book to Start With?
Start with Slammed if you want the origin story of her career, or start with Verity if you want proof she can write outside straight romance. Both function as strong entry points because neither requires you to have read anything else first.
If you specifically want the heartbreak-romance experience she’s best known for, It Ends with Us is the correct starting point, even though its Goodreads score sits lower than several less famous titles. If you want mystery and a genuinely surprising ending, skip straight to Verity and save the rest of her catalog for after.
What Is Colleen Hoover’s Most Successful Book?
It Ends with Us is her most culturally successful book by a wide margin, based on its sustained bestseller presence and the volume of reader engagement it generated across platforms. Exact sales figures shift depending on the source and year, so treat any specific number you see elsewhere with skepticism unless it’s cited to a dated report.
Verity edges it out on pure reader rating, but It Ends with Us is the title that turned Hoover into a name recognized outside romance readers entirely, largely through word of mouth on social platforms.
Colleen Hoover Reading Order: Which Books Are Actually Connected
Most of her catalog is standalone, but four pairs of books are directly connected, and confusing them for new content instead of companion perspectives is the single most common mistake new readers make.
| Series | Books in Order | Connection Type |
|---|---|---|
| Slammed | Slammed, then This Girl | Alt-POV companion, not a new plot |
| Hopeless | Hopeless, then Losing Hope | Alt-POV companion |
| Maybe Someday | Maybe Someday, then Maybe Now | Alt-POV companion |
| It Ends with Us | It Ends with Us, then It Starts with Us | True sequel, new plot events |
If you want the fragmented, contradictory version of this question fully untangled, Colleen Hoover reading order breakdown covers every pairing in detail.
Are Any Colleen Hoover Books Becoming Movies or Shows?
Multiple Colleen Hoover titles have been reported as film or television projects in various stages of development, though the exact release timelines shift frequently enough that they’re worth confirming with entertainment trade coverage before you plan around them. It Ends with Us has already made the jump to screen, and further adaptations connected to her catalog have been discussed in industry press since.
FAQ
What is Colleen Hoover’s most successful book?
It Ends with Us is her most commercially and culturally successful title, driven largely by sustained bestseller list presence and viral word of mouth on social platforms. Verity actually holds a higher reader rating on Goodreads, but It Ends with Us is the book most responsible for turning her into a household name outside dedicated romance readers.
Which is Colleen Hoover’s spiciest book?
Ugly Love and Heart Bones are the two titles readers most consistently flag as her most explicit. There’s no official publisher spice rating attached to her books, so this reflects aggregated reader consensus rather than a formal scale, and readers sensitive to explicit content should check chapter-level content warnings before starting either one.
What is the best Colleen Hoover book to start with?
Slammed works well if you want her career origin story, since it was her 2012 self-published debut. Verity works better if you want proof she writes outside straight romance, and It Ends with Us is the right pick if you specifically want the heartbreak-romance reputation she’s best known for.
Are Colleen Hoover’s books connected to each other?
Most of her catalog is standalone, but four sets of books connect directly: Slammed and This Girl, Hopeless and Losing Hope, Maybe Someday and Maybe Now, and It Ends with Us and It Starts with Us. The first three pairs are alt-POV companion books retelling the same events from a different character, while the It Ends with Us pair is a true sequel with new plot events.
Why do people say they hate Colleen Hoover’s books?
The most common criticism centers on how her books handle heavy themes like domestic violence or trauma inside a romance-novel packaging, which some readers feel undersells the seriousness of the content. Others push back on prose style or plot predictability. Both critiques show up regularly in reader discussion, alongside equally strong praise for her pacing and emotional impact.
Verity earns its top spot honestly. It’s the rare Colleen Hoover book that doesn’t rely on the “this romance is secretly about trauma” formula her other bestsellers lean on, and readers reward that with the highest rating in her catalog. If you’re new to her work, that’s the single most useful thing to know before you pick a starting point.
Skip the companion books until you’ve read their originals, and don’t assume a lower Goodreads score means a worse reading experience. Some of her most polarizing titles, including It Ends with Us, sit lower on the rating scale precisely because they tackle harder subject matter head on. Read Slammed first if you want the full arc of her career, or jump straight to Verity if you just want to see what all the noise is about.
Her catalog keeps expanding, and screen adaptations are pulling older titles back into search results right alongside anything new she publishes. That’s likely to keep reshuffling this exact ranking for a while yet.
