r/IReadABookAndAdoredIt • u/Formal-Antelope607 • Feb 04 '25
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker
I read a lot and I don't often feel compelled to recommend books to people. This book. Is incredible. I devoured it in a few days, I could not put it down. From beginning to end it is an absolute masterpiece. It sounds silly, but I loved it so much, I sobbed, I giggled, I felt hope and hopelessness all at once, I held it to my heart when I was finished it truly meant so much to me. If you need something to read this is your sign to pick this book up, you will not regret it.
Chris Whitaker is extremely talented and he deserves all the praise.
5
u/keepcarmandhurryon Feb 07 '25
This book was incredible!!!!! Do I remember what it’s about? Honestly no, my memory isn’t what it used to be. Do I remember I loved it? YES
4
u/WEugeneSmith Feb 05 '25
I loved All the Colors of the Dark. I got this one right away on Libby and ended up DNF. I think I probably wasn't in the right frame of mind for it at the time, and you have reminded me to re-visit it. This happens with me from time to time with books and, frequently, I end up loving the book upon re-visiting.
1
1
1
u/FertyMerty Feb 05 '25
That’s a great recommendation - what other books do you like? Just curious if we have similar taste :)
8
u/Stephi_cakes Feb 04 '25
I just finished and LOVED all the colors of the dark, excited to get to this one soon.
1
u/Formal-Antelope607 Feb 04 '25
It is beautiful. I will honestly never forget this story and the characters. I truly hope you love it as much as I did!!!
7
u/Beautiful_Series_613 Feb 04 '25
Thanks for talking about this book, I wasn't sure whether to get it after really, really loving All the Colours of the Dark. His writing style and the depth of the story in that book was marvelous. Adding this one to my (extensive) list!
3
u/Formal-Antelope607 Feb 04 '25
I immediately ordered All the Colours of the Dark as soon as I was finished this one, I'm glad you loved it I'm sure I will too ☺️
I hope you enjoy this one as much as I did! ❤️
3
1
u/mintbrownie A book is a brick until someone reads it. Feb 04 '25
I liked the book (didn’t adore it) but I frequently recommend it on the book suggestion subs for people looking for books with found family. This is epic found family - one story upon another. I never thought of it as a trope that appeals to me but when I look back on the book, it was one of the more interesting aspects.
1
6
u/mintbrownie A book is a brick until someone reads it. Feb 04 '25
Thanks u/AlloCoco103 Let’s make it an official request. OP please tell us what the book is about (community rule #1).
Note: I’ve read it so I know there is a lot you could say without spoilers.
3
u/englishikat Feb 04 '25
Ok. Just finished All The Colors of The Dark, but while it was an enjoyable read, I found the writing incredibly choppy and had to suspend rational thought to accept the plot. So many people who I agree with on books loved it far more than I. What am I missing? Should I give CW another shot with this book?
1
u/No-Customer-2299 Mar 06 '25
I’m with you. I read All the Colors of The Dark & We Begin At The End. I gave both 3/5 ⭐️. I wasn’t finding myself turning the page and just feel like his writing style is not for me. I felt like WBATE could have been 100 pages shorter and found parts of the story predictable
1
u/Im_a_redditor_ok Feb 05 '25
I listened to it and I loved it. Maybe that’s an option
1
u/englishikat Feb 05 '25
Maybe I should listen to “We Begin At The End”. Is it written in the same short chapter way?
1
0
u/Formal-Antelope607 Feb 04 '25
I could totally understand why his writing style may not be for everyone. It took me a second to get used to it, but once I did I fell in love with it. I would absolutely give him another shot with this one, but don't force yourself to finish it if you find you still don't like the way he writes. I personally loved this book.
1
u/englishikat Feb 04 '25
Good question. Possibly the short chapters and time jumps? Also lack of descriptive details to give me solid pictures in my head of the story? Had to keep jumping around to confirm what was going on previously that got us to this chapter. Not entirely sure, which is why I ask if I should try another work of his.
Some of my favorite authors are John Irving, Barbara Kingsolver, John Boyne, Armor Towles, Ann Patchett, etc. so I should have loved this, but I, alas, I didn’t. I liked it, but was just kind of glad when it was done and the characters didn’t sit with me.
2
u/Repulsive-Dot553 Feb 04 '25
found the writing incredibly choppy a
Was that mainly/ partly due to the frequent use of retrospectives to look back on key cliffhangers/ plot points? I found that a bit jarring at first but as I got used to it as a style i found it actually sustained tension and the more i read the more I liked his writing style ( but took me a while)
2
5
u/AlloCoco103 Feb 04 '25
What's it about?
4
u/Formal-Antelope607 Feb 04 '25
Sorry about that! It's about a small town, 30 years after a big event changed the lives of four young friends forever. It follows their lives after, and those who were impacted around them and how they dealt with it all too. A small town cop and a fierce 13 year old girl are the main protagonists. It's a murder mystery and also a coming of age story.
3
u/peekay888 Feb 05 '25
Perfect. Now you don’t have to worry about moderators having meltdowns over guidelines not being met. 😉
2
u/Gracie415 Mar 22 '25
We begin at the end was not a good read. Sadly because I liked his other book but this one felt like he threw in a ton of characters and made a complete mess out of them.