How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang

A Four-Star Book Review

In my quest to read as many books from my Book of the Month backlist as possible, I chose How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang for an end-of-the-year read and was not disappointed. This book is full of heart and a unique spin on the traditional enemies-to-lovers trope. How to End a Love Story is Ms. Kuang’s debut novel, which gives a glimpse of her talent that’s to come. It was named one of Time’s 100 Must-Read Books of 2024 and the Goodreads Choice Awards 2024 Best Debut Novel award winner.

Note: This blog post talks about suicide and trauma. If these are sensitive topics for you, or you don’t want to read any spoilers, I recommend you stop reading now.

Summary of How to End a Love Story (Some Spoilers)

Helen Zhang is a successful YA author whose wildly popular series is being green lit  for TV. Determined to maintain the integrity of her characters and storylines while bringing the young adult series to life, Helen insists on being part of the Writers Room and moves from New York City to Los Angeles. But before the project begins, she’s in for the shock of her life: Grant Shepard, Mr. Popular from high school, is the Number 2 in the Writers Room.

Helen freezes in Grant’s presence because he was involved her sister’s death 13 years ago. Helen has not reconciled her emotional trauma from her sister’s death, and it turns out that Grant, now a cynical but successful screenwriter, hasn’t either. But, neither enemy will back away from the Writers Room, and soon they find more in common than expected.

What I Enjoyed about How to End a Love Story

I have high standards for contemporary romance novels. Most I’ve read rely too much on antiquated tropes, predictable third-act break-ups, and characters who lack dimension. How to End a Love Story is different. Here’s why:

• Enemies-to-Lovers Trope: Helen and Grant don’t hate each other because they’re jealous of each other’s writing skills or because of some forced misunderstanding. Michelle, Helen’s sister, died while they were in high school, and both Helen and Grant place some blame on him, even though they know that rationally it was Michelle’s choice to die and Grant carries no fault. Still, their emotions run high, and it’s only when Grant decides to win over Helen with his professionalism and charm that she starts to relent. I appreciated how they went from enemies to friends first and then fell into romance.
• Third-Act Break-Up: Yes, there is a third-act break-up, but this one felt necessary. Helen and Grant needed to separate to deal with their emotions and their past. Without that work, they couldn’t move forward into a solid relationship.
• Multi-Dimensional Characters: Helen and Grant are layered with motivations and reactions to situations, showing plenty of realistic behavior. Ms. Kuang’s side characters are multi-dimensional as well, from the other members of the Writers Room to Helen’s parents who remain grief-stricken over the loss of Michelle.

My Final Thoughts about How to End a Love Story

How to End a Love Story is an original, heartfelt contemporary romance novel that exceeded my expectations for the genre. I greatly enjoyed the characters and their story, and I can’t wait to read what Ms. Kuang writes next.