As mentioned, I’ve been in a mood to read contemporary romance novels recently, particularly those of the NA genre. Colleen Hoover’s books are thus really easy for me to delve into.
Maybe Series
by Colleen Hoover
New adult, Contemporary, Romance
☆ ☆ ☆
This is not a spoiler-free review.
3 out of 5 stars. That’s how I would rate the Maybe series as a whole. I liked the books – after all I did finish the series, but I didn’t love it. (Perhaps I had higher expectations after reading Ugly Love – check out my review for that here.)
This series comprises of 2 novels and 1 novella. Maybe Someday follows Sydney and Ridge, Maybe Not focuses on characters Warren and Bridgette and Maybe Now is a mix of everyone and new pairing Maggie and Jake.
Book #1 Maybe Someday had lots of potential. It started simple and well-reasoned throughout the building of the emotional affair between Sydney and Ridge. I truly enjoyed the first part of the story because I felt that the pace and the romance was believable. I didn’t like the cheating trope but every moment and obstacle was explored slowly and realistically. I was more disappointed with the end of the book. I believe that Ridge and Maggie should definitely break up, but not for the reasons that they did – these reasons were not explored sufficiently throughout the book. The break-up was hence expected but considerably abrupt to me. I give Maybe Someday a 3 stars rating.
Maybe Not is a novella, considered book #1.5 of the series. It was my favorite book of the series though. I found Warren and Bridgette to be funny, interesting, sexy, and very compatible with each other. Because Maybe Not is sold as a novella, I didn’t rate it based on its plot since I know there isn’t space for a complex backstory. Even then, Colleen Hoover still gave the characters and the relationship sufficient depth to be compelling. For her efforts, this novella deserves its 3.5 stars.
Finally, we have Maybe Now – the last book of the series (3rd book but 2nd novel). I didn’t like Maggie much in the first book because I was inclined to support the main couple. But this book changed my opinion of Maggie. Maggie was the saving grace of Maybe Now. She was smart, beautiful, strong-willed and so much more, and even then she had amazing moments when she was forced to be vulnerable and insecure in relationships, her illness, her life. I was happy to read about her facing her fears and also very glad that she found Jake – who is a much better fit for her than Ridge. While I did enjoy Sydney and Ridge’s POV in Maybe Someday, I would have rather that this book be entirely focused on Maggie. I found Sydney and Ridge’s viewpoints to be repetitive because it was mostly about them reaffirming their love for each other and facing issues that they had already conquered. But for Maggie and the Sydney and Ridge moments that were necessary to the book, I give this novel 2.5 stars (maybe 3 on a good day).
Ultimately, I liked this series enough to finish it and award it 3 stars. At the very least, the characters and couples definitely had huge potential and there were numerous redeeming moments. If you’re ever in the mood for a series that you can read without being super emotionally invested, while still wanting your characters to suffer just a tad – the Maybe series is one that you should definitely consider.
nerissa wanders 