Really enjoyed the first half and thought the second part would be the same situations viewed differently. A little disappointed that it wasn't but even so a good read

This book is essentially two stories in one, or, if you're feeling less generous, the same story told twice in slightly different ways.

It all hinges on a big decision at the start of the millennium. Will Liv stay with boring husband Nate or leave him so they can both have a chance of finding a bigger love?

The first half of the book is 'without' and the second half is 'with'. Interestingly (or not), the small pool of main characters stays the same in each. The ramifications of the decision aren't as big as you might expect and this is where the book was missing something for me. The differences between each book are what are interesting (small realisations, spotting an affair, helping a friend, saving a life, creating life!) and there's not quite enough of it. Liv is often not particularly sympathetic and while main characters don't have to be, I found her frustrating.

Also, I felt the first half was the 'happier' one to me (not a spoiler as you may view things differently), and so I didn't particularly enjoy the book finishing on the 'sadder' version of Liv's life.

I got the feeling the author wanted to say that we all end up where we're supposed to (regardless of which way your big decisions go) - and what you think of that may affect how you feel about the book generally.

An interesting premise, but for me it didn't quite work.

What a great idea for a book to find what life throws at you and what path you eventually take loved the first half of the novel when Nate and his wife split up and enjoyed it from the other side when they stayed together a story of great friendship's in which the characters all came together in good and bad times a fantastic read

A delightful read, took me 8 hours to read, loved the characters, the story flowed from beginning to end and I loved how Shari wrote it from two perspectives, life really is what you make it.

I was given an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
A very comfortable read which was enjoyable. I liked the way that the story was written in two different ways focusing round the main characters Nate and Liv. The two parallel storylines let the story go in two directions. But somehow there was a little something lacking which meant a 4 star review and not 5.
However, the characters were interesting and I really liked the strength of the individual friendships.
This is the fourth book I have read by Shari Low and she is definitely an author I will be following.

I was surprised that basically the same things happened albeit in a different order and circumstances, but it was a pleasant surprise. I'm sure every reader could look back at their life and think "what if?"
It was like reading two books with the same people with a change of fortunes. I enjoyed it although wasn't riveted but it was a very gentle read.

An interesting book. I found the concept intriguing but failed to connect with the characters. Other readers may enjoy this more than I did

I enjoyed this book. It was a thought provoking story. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Shari Low fir the copy of this book. I agreed to give my unbiased opinion voluntarily.

I quite enjoyed this book and was intrigued how different the consequences of a big decision may be. However I don't know that there was an awful lot of difference between the two.stories. The characters I found somewhat stuck in a time warp as they didn't really develop and seem to remain around college age even 20 years on. Somewhat immature and the main character, Liv, seemed quite self centred, there seemed to be a lot of over the top reactions from the girls in the group. The stories evolve round the same group of friends and had more or less the same ending which was a little disappointing.

This is really the same story, told twice, with minor variations. It is very lightweight and does not explore the possibilities of parallel existences in enough depth. The characters do not really develop, and stay at college maturity level throughout - it's very unlikely that a group like this would stick together so closely. Olivia's mother is a bit of a joke. Too chick-lit for me.

I read this book in one sitting, mainly intrigued by what will change between Without and With parts, not wanting to forget any details.

I enjoyed the hypothetical game of circumstances and how people live through them in both scenarios kind of ending up making the same life-altering decisions no matter if Liv is or is not married to Nate.

I did feel like the writer was holding back a bit trying to make this believable and/or romanticly safe enough. Somehow I expected more of a comedy vs. tragedy sort of thing, thinking that this will be one account that makes people question what grand changes they would have had they that one time picked the right door, and not the left one. I know my life would've been completely on a different continent right now if I'd stayed with my college boyfriend.

Also, it felt a bit strange that Liv and Nate remain surrounded by the same people - surely people change more when they're not with the same people they used to be.

But overall it was an engaging story.

Thank you Netgalley for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

What a book. This is amazing. Everyone has wondered at one time or another what would have happened if you had made a different decision and this is wonderfully written. There were a few sections where I skim-read but the poignant moments were outstanding. I only stopped at 4 stars because of the small sections I skimmed but I thoroughly enjoyed this book.

I really enjoy all of the Shari Low books I have read, and this one didn’t disappoint. This was a lovely-sliding doors story focussing on the lives of Liv and Nate and their friends and was broken into two parts depending on whether they stayed together or separated on New Years Eve. This was a lovely book. I really felt like I wanted to be part of their group and took all of the characters to heart. A spin off swries would be great focussing on some of the other characters would be great, as Shari has done with. previous set of books.