

Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment.


But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk-“So she can tell me if something happens”-but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
