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

Though I found it well-written enough, and I did keep reading to the end, I think I am not the target audience for this book and didn't enjoy it much. I found several of the main characters unappealing and I struggled to feel sympathy for the POV character's struggles. I imagine young women wrestling with fertility issues who are interested in psychic phenomena and enjoy tension-filled stories—or anyone who thinks those things sound interesting to read—would enjoy it.

So I went back and forth with this review. I did not hate this book, but I did not love it. It was all a little much for me - too summer romance novelly. I did not care for the protagonist - too indecisive and emotionally immature. The idea of dreaming about the same person and then recognizing them (not to mention them doing the same about you) was very intriguing to me, but sadly the execution fell flat for me. No one was particularly objectionable and the story telling moved along at a really nice clip, it just wasn't my jam.

Unfortunately this book arrived right after the loss of my husband of 53 years and so I'm not sure I was in a positive frame of mind for it. Nevertheless, I found the characters and narrative well developed and the story line unfolded with good pace although the dynamic of the shared dreams became a bit belabored for me. I also had difficulty buying into the premise. The narrative does flow easily and so I hung in there hoping for something that might make it believable but that never happened. A diverting read but not one I'd recommend as a "must read".

Colleen Oakley's novel is a good enough summer-at-the-beach read. Who wouldn't be caught up when Harrison whispers "Dios Mia" into his wife's hair? The couple has lived a seemingly perfect relationship for eight years, spoiled only by Mia's inability to carry her pregnancies to term. But then there are Mia's dreams, a cheesy device until she recognizes Oliver as the man in her dreams and she's tempted to play with fire. The book is rescued when the author connects various strands with some recognizable situations like how to experience grief or the importance of friendship. What may be the saving grace is the Reader's Guide, which gives the book some depth. I didn't understand the sudden appearance of, for example, Harrison's name as a chapter title. This recurs occasionally with little purpose until it begins to make sense in the final chapters.

There were many things in this book that piqued my interest: Mia's marriage, her attraction to Oliver, Harrison's obsession over Noah's death, the shared dreams, and Mia's art. Unfortunately, I was disappointed in how the book unfolded and how things were resolved. I thought the trip to the psychic was unnecessary and the line "he will give you baby" inane. It was a letdown that there was never an explanation for the dreams. I thought Mia's character was developed well, but the plot contrivances distracted me.
I have one minor pet peeve. When did "graduated high school" become acceptable. (Even Obama, who has a great command of the English language, uses that phrase.) You don't graduate a school, you graduate from a school. Am I the only one out there who is bothered by this?

To begin, I'm not enthusiastic about the romance genre. In YOU WERE THERE TOO there seemed to be so many accounts of unnecessary facts through out the story, it hampered the reading flow. The author does have an interesting imagination and good descriptions of her characters. This book was a hard for me to finish.

Good Summer Read

I have been reading so many mysteries lately that Colleen Oakley's book, You Were There Too, was a refreshing change of pace. Set in a small town outside of Philadelphia, this book offers up an unusual premise. What if you had dreams about the same man almost all your life, a stranger you don't know and have never met. And what if you were to meet this man and find out he had been dreaming about you...? Is that crazy premise possible?! It happens to Mia Gradon, an artist who is happily married to Harrison. Think about what might happen to your happy life, to your supposedly perfect marriage. If you find that this catches your interest, pick up this book and find out the complications that ensue. I read this book at breakneck speed, as I wanted to know how Mia and Oliver would handle this amazing scenario, after dreaming about the other for so long, for feeling that they know each other inside and out. Looking back into your life can often unravel your present life in ways you never expected. This book will take you on a fascinating ride. I did feel disappointed at the end, as it wasn't the ending that I wanted, but maybe that is my failing for wanting the fairy tale ending, not the realistic one. It was a fun summer read, but not a book that stayed with me as I had hoped. My interest in this author has been piqued, and I would like to try her other books.

When reading literature, we are often asked to suspend our disbelief, to immerse ourselves in the story, to let tale surround and uplift us to join the author in her world. I was never able to do so in Colleen Oakley's You Were There Too. I couldn't buy the constant dreaming of the mystery man who stepped into Mia's reality in small town Pennsylvania. Yes, this is supposed to be a love story, but Mia's perfect husband felt more like a caricature than a fully realized person. The ending was too tidy; and overall it was too predictable.