Here's how Joe Goldberg's You season 3 ending is different to the book

18 October 2021, 16:33

Watch the You Season 4 announcement trailer

By Katie Louise Smith

Joe Goldberg faces a dramatic showdown in Netflix's You and in Caroline Kepnes' books – here's how they differ.

Well, I think we can all agree that You season 3 was a) absolutely wild from start to finish, and b) easily the best season so far.

Fans of Caroline Kepnes' book series may have had some inkling about the dramatic way in which You season 3 would end, but because the Netflix show has deviated quite far away from the novels, the show was still able to pull off a big ol' shocking surprise.

You Love Me's overall plot is actually massively different to the show. Joe Goldberg's relationship with librarian Mary Kay (some aspects of her character are borrowed for Marienne in the show) takes centre stage in the novel, as opposed to his new suburban life as a parent with Love Quinn in the show. In fact, Love doesn't feature much in the book at all.

That said, there are a few similarities between the ending of You Love Me and You season 3 – but they happen in different ways. Here's how Joe Goldberg's ending in the show differs from what happens in the book.

WARNING: Major spoilers for both You season 3 on Netflix and the book series ahead !

Joe survives a gunshot wound instead of being poisoned, and he doesn't kill Love.

Towards the end of the You Love Me book, Love re-enters Joe's life after months apart. Jealous of his new relationship with Mary Kay and upset that Joe doesn't care about or love her anymore, Love shoots Joe and then herself. Love dies and Joe survives, waking up in hospital later on.

The Netflix series puts its own twist on that book moment by having Joe stage Love's murder-suicide attempt instead.

In the final episode of the Netflix series, we see Love poison Joe with aconite and then attempt to kill him with a knife after learning about his obsession with Marienne. But just before she goes through with it, he overpowers her and gives her a lethal dose of the paralytic. Joe then pins all the murders on her, fakes his own death and burns the house to the ground with Love inside.

READ MORE: Who dies in You season 3? A complete list of every death

Baby Henry ends up with the Quinn family.

Another similarity between the Netflix series and the book is that Joe doesn't end up with baby Henry in either.

In You Love Me, baby Forty (yep, he's actually called Forty in the books), ends up with the Quinn family following Love's death. While recovering from his gunshot wound, Joe tries to convince the Quinns to let him raise his own son but Love's father threatens him with footage of Joe burying a body. Joe then signs papers to give up baby Forty.

In the Netflix series, Joe leaves baby Henry on the doorstep of Dante and Lansing's house, with a note asking the couple to adopt him and raise him as their own, just before he returns home for his final confrontation with Love.

READ MORE: You season 4: Release date, cast, plot, spoilers and trailers

Joe moves to Florida instead of Paris.

As always, the end of another chapter for Joe Goldberg means a brand new location. This time, Joe has left the U.S. and has gone international. After faking his death, he moves to Paris to start fresh and with the hopes of finding Marienne and her daughter.

At the end of the third book, however, Joe doesn't leave the country. Joe runs away to Florida and opens a bookstore of his own.

The Netflix series cleverly alludes to Joe's ties to Florida in the books by sending Ellie there to start her new life at the end of season 2. With Ellie being one of the few people still alive that knows about Joe, there still may be time for Joe to pop up in Florida in You season 4. Until then, we'll have to wait and see.

READ MORE: Is Ellie in You season 3? Here's what happens to Jenna Ortega's character

Listen to ‘The Power of Little Mix’ podcast

Click the picture below to listen to 'The Power Of Little Mix' on Global Player, celebrating 10 years of one of the biggest girl groups of all time, with exclusive interviews with Jade, Leigh-Anne and Perrie, as well as their closest collaborators and inner circle.