CHAD GRIFFITH
The rest of the story
Colleen Hoover writes outside of the box
Costco member and bestselling author Colleen Hoover never planned for there to be a sequel to her hit novel, It Ends with Us. But because of fan requests—a tremendous amount of them, with some readers begging her for years—she wrote one.
“This book [It Starts with Us] picks right up where the first book left off—on the same day of the epilogue,” Hoover says. “It focuses on Lily and Atlas. I wanted to give readers some of the background from Atlas’ point of view that we had gotten from Lily’s letters as a kid. It’s also from Lily’s point of view, so we see her interactions with Ryle and how she handles it. Most of the book is in present day—Atlas and Lily’s life today.”
Her fans might be surprised to know that Hoover nearly didn’t become an author at all.
Small-town girl
In addition to being born and raised with her two sisters in Saltillo, Texas, about 128 kilometres east of Dallas, Hoover and her family still live there. “My graduating class in high school was 13 people,” Hoover says, laughing. She met her husband, Heath, when she was 16. “He is from the next town over.” They’ve been married 22 years and have three sons: Levi, 21, Cale, 18, and Beckham, 17.
Hoover always wanted to be a writer. “I didn’t know how to write yet. I was 4 years old. I remember my older sister coming home from school and knowing the alphabet and how to write her name and address. I was so jealous of her that she knew how to write, because I had all these stories I wanted to tell,” she recalls. She began writing stories as soon as she got into kindergarten—and even majored in writing for one semester in college—but didn’t think it could pay the bills.
So she switched her major to social work and worked in that field for a decade. At age 31, Hoover began her first novel just for fun; she didn’t try to get a publisher or an agent. In fact, the only reason she put the book, a young adult novel titled Slammed, on Amazon was because the family had bought her grandmother a Kindle for Christmas, and this was a way for her to read it.
“I literally put a Word document up on Amazon and used one of their cover-creator tools,” Hoover says. Readers began finding it. “We lived in a single-wide trailer with three kids and were struggling. My husband was a truck driver. I couldn’t afford marketing or anything,” Hoover says. Luckily, her sisters spread the word to their friends, and eventually the book got the attention of bloggers. It hit the New York Times bestseller list as an independent book.
By the time her first novel took off, she had written a second one, which also became a bestseller. She got an agent and publishers came calling. “It just happened really quickly and unexpectedly, so to this day, I have a really bad case of impostor syndrome,” admits Hoover.
No worries there, as her books keep attracting more readers. “I don’t want to be put in a box. I just write what I’m in the mood to write,” Hoover says. She’s also written paranormal, thriller and romance books. “My readers have come to know not what to expect next; that’s kind of become my brand.”
It Starts with Us (Item 1671022) will be available in October in most Costco warehouses.
Life as an adventure
In They Both Die at the End, Adam Silvera introduced readers to Death-Cast, a company that has been predicting people’s deaths for seven years. In The First to Die at the End, Silvera tells the story of two strangers who feel an immediate connection—and then one of them gets one of the first calls from Death-Cast.
Costco Connection
What is your biggest hope in regards to what readers take away from this story?
Adam Silvera
I’ve always been intrigued by the concept of not knowing when I’m going to die, and it’s inspired me to use each day as an opportunity to resolve any problems I might be experiencing. I hope that stories like The First to Die at the End will encourage readers to live just as adventurously as the characters within them.
CC
What inspired you to write a prequel to They Both Die in the End?
AS
I was blown away by the support The First to Die at the End found on BookTok! I had always dreamt of writing a No. 1 bestseller and I never imagined my book starring queer Latinos would reach such massive success in so many countries.
CC
What else would you like readers to know?
AS
I feel the love from all my readers, and I’m looking forward to returning it with The First to Die at the End.
The First to Die at the End (Item 1671145) will be available in October in most Costco warehouses.—Simon Gravel, Buyer, Books
Also in the warehouse
Your besties will always be there for you, and the cast of TV show Friends is here to impart that lesson in two books for children ages 5 to 7.
Chandler, Joey, Monica, Phoebe, Rachel and Ross are shown in some of the most heartwarming moments from the series. Be on the lookout for the Geller Cup, Marcel the monkey, Central Perk and more.
Life Is Better with Friends and Holidays Are Better with Friends, by Micol Ostow and illustrations by Keiron Ward (Item 1670108), will be available in October in most Costco warehouses.—Andrée Laflamme, Buyer, Books