Let me preface this review by saying that in a lot of ways, I don't think this sequel was necessary. I think we all know that the fans of CoHo and IEWU made the first book so popular in a way a book hasn't been before due to TikTok and BookTok, and basically berated CoHo until she was like, "Damn, here's your sequel you all begged for." And I'm sure the loads of money she will make from this doesn't hurt either.

The reason I gave it five stars, despite that warning, is because if you are a fan of IEWU and the Lily and Atlas romance, then this book is definitely for you and it will give you everything you need and more, and it will fill that hole of feeling like we didn't get ALL of their story, and it contains another beautiful story wrapped in a plot line that mainly focuses on Lily and Atlas's immediate future. I am these things, so therefore I greatly appreciated a sequel and actually did love it, despite maybe some cringeworthy parts and moments.

The book picks up literally right where the other one left off. Like, later that day kind of thing. It's all about the will they won't they for the first little bit of it, and then they just get together and remain together, something they both agree was inevitably going to happen and will essentially never end - now that they're together, they're never breaking up. And they don't. There is no third act breakup or anything of the sort. Does Ryle make Lily's life difficult when he finds out? Well, of course. Ryle is Ryle, and although he does not commit a violent act in this book (he comes close), he's still a raging piece of crap. There is absolutely no redemption for him in this book, AND THERE SHOULD NEVER BE. It doesn't matter if he's father of the year; he's still a bad person, and an even worse partner, and just all around bad human being in so many ways. He has learned nothing.

I loved this because we get dual POV, which is something I felt was sorely missing from IEWU, but I understood why CoHo elected to just go with Lily's POV in the first book; it was her story and hers alone. This time, we actually get Atlas's POV and I was really happy about that. The thing I probably loved most about ISWU is Atlas's story in this book. No, not his backstory, although he gets into that a little bit. It's really his present story that really hit my heart in all the best ways and I adored Josh and the other side characters and the way in which Atlas is... well, Atlas. He's touted as the book boyfriend we all want, and let's just say he definitely lives up to that title in more ways than one. If you think you loved him before, you'll fall deeper in love with him with this book. I won't go into too much detail, because it would be a spoiler to say anything more about Atlas and Josh and that whole storyline, but needless to say, it was such a beautiful thing to read and when you finally find out why the title is "It Starts With Us", you may just shed a tear. Hint hint, it's probably NOT what you think it is.

Overall, this was strictly for fan service. Did the first book need a sequel? Not really. Am I glad she wrote one, simply because I missed the characters and wanted more of them and their story? Yes, I really am. And you will be too.