The following version of the novel was used to create this study guide: Hoover, Collen, All Your Perfects. Atria Books, July 17, 2018. Kindle.

In the novel All Your Perfects by Colleen Hoover, Quinn and Graham never believed they would have to open the wooden box, their marriage survival kit, that Graham gave Quinn on their wedding day. Graham intended the box, containing love letters they had written to one another, to be opened on their twenty-fifth wedding anniversary as a reminder of how strong their love had remained. After battling infertility for years Quinn believes Graham would be better off with another woman. Graham meanwhile, loves Quinn but fears he is no longer enough for her. Will a reminder of their old love for each other be enough to bring them back together?

Quinn narrates how she and Graham meet one day because her fiancé and his girlfriend are cheating on them with each other. They head to Quinn’s apartment with Quinn thinking they will have revenge sex, but instead, Graham instructs Quinn to call him once she is finished with her rebound relationship. After dating, the two realize how perfect they are for one another. They get married. They begin trying to have children on their first wedding anniversary.

The chapters of the novel that detail the excitement of Quinn and Graham’s new relationship and growing love are alternated with chapters that describe what their relationship looks like seven years later. Quinn is so hurt by not being able to have a child that she does not even want to make love to Graham. Making love gives her hope she might receive a miracle, but the hope is dashed each month when her period starts.

Graham and Quinn’s unhappiness climaxes when Graham admits he is being unfaithful to Quinn with a woman that he met at work. They have not had sex, but he has kissed her. After a particularly brutal argument, Quinn suffers severe stomach pain. She hemorrhages and Graham takes her to the hospital. The doctor tells Quinn that she miscarried an ectopic pregnancy, a pregnancy that would have never been viable. There was enough damage, however, for a hysterectomy to be necessary. Quinn has lost hope of ever having children.

Quinn travels to Europe to stay with her sister while she recovers from the surgery. She also needs time away from Graham. After three weeks, Graham follows Quinn to Europe to confront her about their relationship. He says he is tired of waiting and wants her to tell him to either leave, or he wants her to come home with him.

Graham has brought the box containing their letters with him. Even though Graham is angry that their relationship has crumbled to the point that they are opening the box early, Quinn reads the letters Graham has written to her. He added letters explaining things she never really wanted to hear. In these letters, Graham tells Quinn how devastated he was for her that she was never able to become pregnant. He explains how he ached for her when people asked insensitive questions about when they were going to have a child. Graham tells Quinn that he had an affair because he had reached a point where he believed he would never be enough for Quinn if they were unable to have a child.

After reading Graham’s thoughts, Quinn can finally forgive him for the affair. He forgives her for pushing him away. They make a commitment to making the best they can out of the life they have been given. The novel ends with them adopting a lonely puppy from a pet store and naming it August in honor of the month when they began dating.