★Kuang, Yulin. How To End a Love Story. Avon. Apr. 2024. 384p. ISBN 9780063310681. pap. $18.99. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

DEBUT Helen’s successful YA novels are being adapted into a TV series, and she happily accepts a position as a screenwriter on the project. When she shows up to the writing room, however, she finds the one person she never wanted to see again: Grant, now an established producer. Thirteen years have passed since Helen’s little sister died in a car accident—and Grant was at the wheel of the car that hit her. Helen has never forgiven him, and the idea of working together seems incomprehensible. As they begin to unravel each other’s stories, they get embroiled in an ultra-steamy yet emotionally knotty relationship that becomes all-consuming. Helen tries hard to deny her attraction to the man she’s hated for so long, and Grant struggles to convince Helen that their love is real. Told in alternating points of view, this captivating novel is a sexy and emotional read that deals with the aftereffects of trauma in a realistic and heartrending way. VERDICT Readers looking for a contemporary romance with a passionate and grand love story, characters that leap off the page, and an original storyline will relish screenwriter and director Kuang’s debut novel.