You Were There Too

Starred review from October 14, 2019
Oakley (Close Enough to Touch) blends an old-fashioned love story with a fresh psychic mystery for a satisfying look at commitment, forgiveness, and fate in this can’t-put-it-down story of a young couple whose dreams and regrets challenge their marriage and plans for a family. Artist Mia and her doctor husband, Harrison, have just moved to a small town near Philadelphia when Mia miscarries for the third time. The crisis worsens: Mia’s recurring dream of a stranger gets starkly realistic when she meets Oliver, the flesh-and-blood “man from my dreams,” who confesses “I dream about you too.” Meanwhile, Harrison sinks into depression over the death of a young patient, and rejects the idea of any more attempts at starting a family as Mia and Oliver embark on their own search together for why they’ve shared versions of the same dream. Their journey, however, becomes increasingly fraught as Harrison retreats further into his grief, and they turn to each other. “I know you’re married. And it’s messy... I believe that this all means something,” Oliver says of their disturbingly prophetic dreams. A visit to a psychic notches up Mia’s anxiety about both her marriage and Oliver. There is a splendid blend of humor throughout Oakley’s alternately romantic, idiosyncratic, and foreboding love-conquers-all tale that easily engages new readers and will please the author’s fans.

October 15, 2019
A woman finally meets the man of her dreams, literally, then must decide what to do about it. Mia and her doctor husband, Harrison, have recently moved from Philadelphia to a small Pennsylvania town. Mia spends most of her time trying to convince local art galleries to show her work and grieving the loss of three very wanted pregnancies. Although their marriage is largely happy, Mia is keeping a secret from her husband and everyone else--for years, she's been having dreams about a man she's never met. She assumes he's just a figment of her imagination, but then she sees him at the grocery store--and runs into him again when Harrison treats his sister for appendicitis. His name is Oliver, and he's been dreaming of her, too. Meanwhile, Mia and Harrison's relationship hits a significant roadblock--he decides he doesn't want to try again for a baby. As Mia reels from Harrison's decision, she and Oliver begin to research their unlikely dream connection. They have so much in common, and being with him is easier than being around her withdrawn husband. It's clear that the two of them are connected in some way--but what does that mean? Should Mia be with Oliver or Harrison? Oakley (Close Enough To Touch, 2017, etc.) skillfully navigates several twists and turns, never settling for a predictable plot. The tension ratchets up quickly in the last third of the book as the characters hurtle toward the somewhat shocking event that finally reveals why Mia and Oliver are meant to be in each other's lives. Readers expecting a simple happily-ever-after should look elsewhere, but those looking for a Me Before You-style sobfest are in the right place. A heartbreaking and thought-provoking exploration of fate, love, and choice sure to bring on a few tears.

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Starred review from October 1, 2019
Mia Graydon and her husband, Harrison, relocated to small-town Hope Springs in search of a quieter life. The only flaw in their picture-perfect marriage is their struggle with infertility?Mia has had several miscarriages, and Harrison is reluctant to pursue treatment with an infertility specialist. When Mia has a chance encounter with a stranger who seems familiar because he's appeared repeatedly in her dreams, she writes it off as an odd coincidence. But Oliver keeps turning up in Mia's life, and Mia learns that she's appeared in Oliver's dreams as well. Meanwhile, Mia's relationship with Harrison becomes more tense, and Mia wonders if fate has different plans for her. Oakley (Close Enough to Touch, 2017) keeps readers wondering will they or won't they about Mia and Oliver, while the emotional journey of infertility and the strain that it places on a relationship is realistic. Keep a box of tissues handy?the ending is a gut-punch that will leave readers who have invested in these beautifully drawn characters reeling. Fans of relationship fiction that explores women's inner lives and choices by Jennifer Weiner or Amy Hatvany will be unable to put this book down.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)