You Were There, Too
Colleen Oakley
File Size: 3029 KB
Print Length: 348 pages
Publisher: Berkley (January 7, 2020)
Sold by: Penguin Group (USA) LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B07QPKR9YH
BOOK BLURB: Acclaimed author Colleen Oakley delivers a heart-wrenching and unforgettable love story about a woman who must choose between the man she loves and the man fate has chosen for her, in a novel that reminds us that the best life is one led by the heart.
Mia Graydon’s life looks picket-fence perfect; she has the house, her loving husband, and dreams of starting a family. But she has other dreams too—unexplained, recurring ones starring the same man. Still, she doesn’t think much of it, until a relocation to small-town Pennsylvania brings her face to face with the stranger she has been dreaming about for years. And this man harbors a jaw-dropping secret of his own—he’s been dreaming of her too.
Determined to understand, Mia and this not-so-stranger search for answers. But when diving into their pasts begins to unravel her life in the present, Mia emerges with a single question—what if?
This is the first book I’ve read by this author but I will definitely go back and read her two previous novels. The way she weaves a complicated plot together and makes even what might seem unbelievable believable was a joy to read.
Mia and Harrison and Oliver are superb characters whose interactions are written so deftly that I was never quite sure where the story might be going next. As troubles build in her marriage to Harrison, would Mia turn to Oliver the mystery man she met first in a dream? Just when that scenario seemed possible, another chapter would start that showcased the depth of love that Mia and Harrison have as husband and wife. So obviously, her destiny is to stay with Harrison.
Lurking under every interaction between Mia and these two men, are the questions. What do the dreams mean? Who is my true soul-mate?
The things outside of the control of the three main characters that pulled their lives together – then pushed them apart – then pulled them together again, were often quite surprising. The focus on dreams, and what they might mean, drove much of the plot of the book, and the research that Oliver and Mia did to try to figure out what was happening was most interesting. It was presented as an integral part of the story, and never felt like the author was just including a bunch of facts to show off her own research
It’s been a long time since I read a book that had me so involved with the characters, and invested in the plot, that I read in great swaths of time to see what would happen next. I highly recommend this book to anyone who would like to meet some wonderful characters and read an absolutely terrific story.
Colleen Oakley’s novels have been named best books by People Magazine, Us Weekly, O Magazine, Library Journal, and Real Simple, and long-listed for the Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize. Formerly the editor-in-chief of Women’s Health & Fitness and senior editor of Marie Claire, her articles and essays have been featured in The New York Times, Ladies’ Home Journal, Women’s Health, Redbook, Parade, Marie Claire and Martha Stewart Weddings. She lives in Atlanta with her husband, four kids and the world’s biggest lapdog, Bailey. Her fourth novel THE INVISIBLE HUSBAND OF FRICK ISLAND will be published by Berkley/Penguin in Summer 2021. Visit her WEBSITE for more information about her and her books.