What do readers think of You Were There Too by Colleen Oakley? Write your own review.

Colleen Oakley, author of "You Were There Too" writes an emotional, compassionate, thought-provoking, suspenseful and intriguing novel. The Genres for this Novel are Contemporary Fiction, Fiction, Romance and Suspense. The timeline for this story is set in the recent present and goes to the past when it pertains to the characters or events in the story. The author describes her dramatic characters as complex and complicated.

How many of us can remember a dream, yet a recurring one that keeps us wondering why this occurs? Is this from the sub-conscious? Perhaps overeating and drinking before sleeping? Something …more predicting a future event? Symbolic occurrence? Is this a form of anxiety or emotional disturbance? Mia Graydon often has dreams that star a man she has yet to meet.

Mia is happily married and hoping to have children. She is very artistic and has a nice house. When she and her husband move to this community, she meets the man she has been dreaming about. When they start talking, he tells her that he has had dreams with Mia in his as well. As they try to discover what the dreams mean, they have no idea what danger lies ahead.

I like the way the author vividly describes the characters, landscape, and setting. I also appreciate the importance of thinking things through, following your heart, the importance of family, friends, love, and hope. I would highly recommend this thought-provoking and emotional novel. (less)

I loved You Were There Too by Colleen Oakley. This book has a very strange premise which drew me in from the start. I really liked Mia and felt her struggles were true to life. This story had a depth which I did not expect and I loved how it all worked out. I will be thinking and talking about this book for a while - the mark of a good read. Highly recommended.

You Were There Too by Colleen Oakley is an absolutely wonderful but different love story. I loved all the main characters and was hard pressed to decide who I liked best and how I wanted the book to end. All of the secondary characters were well developed and added to the story-line. Ms. Oakley used the "eternal triangle" relationship, but without any of the sharp edges. This is a romance with a touch of dream interpreting, heartache, miscarriages and violence. It is about the struggles that often exist in every marriage. The characters attempt to understand themselves and others.

Miss Oakley takes all of life's …more ups and downs, the happiness, tragedies, successes. sadness and failures and ties them up in a story that is not only enjoyable but thought provoking and very different. It is all about life's possibilities, how we interpret them and how these possibilities impact the decisions we make. The story asks the question, are our decisions and choices simply fated or do we truly have control over of our lives. (less)

What do recurring dreams mean? Mia wants to know and understand her strange dream, especially the man in front of the carousel. Where is that circus located? Mia's adventure in uncovering the meaning of her dream has some captivating twists. She loves her husband, but the strange man in the dream puzzles her. You Were There Too kept me from foreseeing the ending, a surprise I did not think would happen. Oakley's prose is lively and moves the reader seamlessly through all the twists and turns. You Were There Too was a pleasurable story, and I plan to read Oakley's other two acclaimed novels.

I began this book reluctantly as I felt the writing style was juvenile and trite. There were very long and rambling run-on sentences and an abundance of trite, needless metaphors.

At some point the writing style improved and the story had my full attention. There was much to think about regarding the trials of marriage which included an attraction of another and the threat of infidelity as the marriage hit a significant stalemate which would have long-lasting significance. One of the things I really appreciated was that none of the main characters were likeable and none were vilified. I didn't know how this …more romantic triangle would end though I did have my preference.

All in all, this was a very satisfying read that totally engrossed me (less)

What a great summer read. The writing was terrific, the characters were relatable and well developed and the plot twists were unpredictable. I kept reading late into the night to find out how and why Mia and Oliver are connected. And what does she decide to do with that knowledge. This story has stayed with me and gotten me thinking about the choices we make and the role of fate in our lives. Read this book. You won't be disappointed.

I thoroughly enjoyed You Were There Too by Colleen Oakley. I didn't want to put it down which surprised me. The twists and turns kept me going, wanting to know if Mia would discover the meaning of her dreams. And then when she met the man in her dream what would she do about it. Mia and Oliver, the man in her dreams, went to great and interesting lengths to find out what their dreams meant. At the same time there was also a lot going on with Mia and her husband Harrison, a doctor - her miscarriage and the death of one of Harrison's patients. I was not expecting the ending but was not disappointed. I will be …more recommending this to my book club. (less)

In You Were There Too, Colleen Oakley skillfully weaves intense matters of sincere love, complicated human relationships, and emotional crises into a beautiful tapestry. Through mastery of dialogue the characters become real. Applying thoughtful imagination the unusual circumstances gain authenticity. By facing difficult topics with honest observations the narrative achieves reality without losing any creative, imaginative threads. Author Oakley has moved into my list of favorite authors. This book deserves a broad audience.