Review: If You Were Me by Sheila O'Flanagan

Carlotta O'Keefe is happily engaged, and the wedding plans are coming together. She's clear about her future path, both personally and in her busy career. Maybe Chris doesn't make her heart race every time she sees him, but you can't have that feeling for ever. Can you?


Then, on a trip to Seville, Carlotta runs into Luke Evans. Luke broke her heart so long ago she'd almost convinced herself she'd forgotten him. Now, he's not that boy any more, but an attractive and intriguing man. And he can explain everything that happened way back when.


Suddenly Carlotta's not so sure of anything any more. Except that what she decides now will shape the rest of her life...

Review: I struggled with this book a little bit. I enjoyed it when I was reading it but It really didn't stick with me and I didn't feel driven to pick it back up again after I'd out it down. I think the premise behind the story is an interesting one, but not much is done with it really. There are some interesting relationships and some interesting friendships but I didn't find any of them sticking in my head and didn't particularly want to find out more about any of them. I just feel a bit like nothing happened in this book, I suppose. Quite clearly things did happen but I feel like it could have been written a lot more dramatically. 

Carlotta was an interesting character. I found her very difficult to like. She was pretty indecisive and yet selfish at the same time. She starts off the book with a bang, a big presentation, she is very much career driven and successful and yet she looses this passion and drive somewhere along the course of the novel. I really didn't like her fiancé and couldn't see how they got together in the first place, they didn't seem compatible and the other love interest in the story had been a childhood sweetheart but now I couldn't see how he was going to fit into Carlotta's life. Her best friend is also fairly dislikalble although she does make Carlotta see sense in the end and so I am grateful for that. 

There are some interesting scenes in the book, Carlotta does go through a stage where she rediscovers her drive for work and sorts her life out a bit but these are peppered with little anecdotes that I don't think really gave anything towards the storyline. I enjoyed the ending but just wished the book could've been a little more like the ending rather than sort of meandering it's way there via a series of linked events and semi-interesting flashbacks. This book wasn't really for me but wouldn't stop me picking up another book by this author again.