Scan barcode
A review by tuckeralmengor
You Were There Too by Colleen Oakley
5.0
Many thanks to Berkley Publishing Group for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review
The romance genre has its problems which I discussed in my latest booktube video that you can click here to watch) but there are occasionally books like these that break down the problematic tropes.
Skip to 12:33 to here my thoughts on this specific book and what it does to push back against problems with the romance genre.
------------------
"What do you want? It's as simple as that. Who do you love? Who do you want to be with? Forget everything else."
When the final seconds of this book played through my headphones, I confidently press "rate 5 stars" but in the back of my mind, I was worried that the rating might go down once my initial emotions settled. It didn't.
Even after letting this amazing story digest for days, the raw emotion still remains in my heart.
So, what's this book about
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 them, until 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?
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.
I have to confess that I went into this book expecting a contemporary romance with a magical-realism twist. I did not expect to become so attached to the characters so quickly. I also didn't expect [SPOILER REDACTED] which broke my heart into a million piecesssssssssssssssssss. I STILL CAN'T EVEN BELIEVE COLLEEN OAKLEY DID THAT!!
This book goes even further beyond evoking raw emotion, though. It covers a lot of really deep themes and covers them in a way that most books don't.
The theme of this book that sometimes it's better to focus on the 'what is' instead of the 'what if' or 'what could be'. You can spend your entire life tortured by not knowing, chasing knowledge or you can simply accept the unknown and live in spite of it.
I also really, really loved Harrison and Mia's relationship. It was so realistic. I feel like we don't see enough married couples in romances. On top of that, we don't see enough married couples who are not perfectly married. It was really encouraging to read a story that is proudly saying 'Yes, couples fight. Couples disagree. Couples have problems but they fight for love anyway.'
Overall, this book made me chuckle and smile, but, most of all, it made me ugly cry. I cannot recommend this one enough!
Bottom Line:
5 stars
Age Rating - [ PG-13 ]
Content Screening (Mild Spoilers)
Educational Value (1/5) - [Medical terms/procedures]
Positive Messages (4/5) - [Choosing the 'what is' over the 'what could be', kindness, sacrifice]
Violence (2/5) - [Brief gun violence, off-page death]
Sex (3/5) - [Sexual themes, Kissing, Off-page sex]
Language (2/5) - [Brief and mild use of language]
Drinking/Drugs (3/5) - [Alcohol consumption, medicinal drugs]
Content and Trigger Warnings - Miscarriages, Loss of loved ones, Death, Depression, Appendicitis, Hospitals, Scene with psychic
Publication Date: January 7th, 2020
Publisher: Berkley Publishing Group
Genre: Contemporary/Romance
-------------
HOLY FORKING SHIRT I AM WRECKED RIGHT NOW
-------------
I requested this solely because I saw that it's set in Pennsylvania (where my family is from and where I go every holiday season)
| Goodreads | Blog | Pinterest | LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram