What Might Have Been
By Holly Miller
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Do you ever wonder how the decisions you make, will turn out? Lucy has had a day from hell. She’s at a bar when she meets Caleb. Sweet and charismatic Caleb. Right outside she sees Max, the one that got away. This leads her down a story told in parallel time lines. What happens if she stays and sees what happens with Caleb? What happens if she moves to London with Max? Which one is her happily ever after?

I really enjoyed the story however I did find myself getting confused with the timelines at times. Only because of what happens in one timeline appears somehow in the next due to the parallel timeline. Regardless I really enjoyed Lucy’s story.

Thank you to Netgalley & Penguin Group Putnam for the eARC in exchange of an honest review.

What Might Have Been certainly takes a degree of focus when reading, as the timeline is split between two “what-ifs” in Lucy’s life: whether she decides to stay in her small town or move to London. In the “stay” timeline she begins dating Caleb, another local who grew up across town. In the “go” timeline, she gets back together with Max, her “one that got away” from college. Throughout the book, major events happen in both timelines with different outcomes.

This is the first time I’ve read a book written like this, and I think the style worked really well. It was kind of love triangle vibes without the ickiness of a real love triangle. The book was very well written in that the alternating timelines weren’t confusing at all, despite the same characters in both. I couldn’t wait to see how the author would wrap up the ending–would each timeline just end, or would we get to see what Lucy really decided and how it turned out?

Lucy was a very interesting character. She dreams of writing a novel, but it stuck in a job where she is underappreciated. I thought she felt very real and relatable, and it was easy to agree with most of her choices.

I would definitely recommend you pick up What Might Have Been once it comes out on January 18th!

5⭐
G for a closed door book that is not a romance book (don't fall for marketing otherwise!)

Did Holly Miller just pull my heart out of my chest, stomp on it a few times and then piece it back together?! Because I'm really not sure if I'm okay right now.

This is honestly one of the most unique books I've read in a long time and I'm going to be thinking about it for a while. Have you ever wondered what would have happened if you had made a different pivotal life choice? Even though I love my partner and the life we created together, I can't help but wonder what happened to the alternate version of myself that chose to move somewhere else after college. And that's what Holly Miller explores in this book.

Lucy quits her job to find a new start and faces a major decision: does she stay in her coastal hometown or move to London? And with that decision, she'll change her relationships with her family, find different men to love and explore divergent career paths. This books builds a rich story to show that some outcomes are inevitable but some outcomes, like who you love and who you forgive, are because of what you choose.

I loved how Holly wove this story together with its two parallel plot lines. There were excellent twists I couldn't predict and the ending was satisfying without turning the book into a cliche. It was so interesting to follow these two storylines and hope for multiple outcomes because in the end, I just wanted Lucy to find happiness and peace.

If you enjoy Mhairi McFarlane books and wondering about the multiverse, you should pick up this book because it was just so excellent and special!

This book was cute. A sliding-doors romance set in London and on the British coast, it follows Lucy and the two alternate lives she might have led if she chose to either get back together with her college sweetheart or take a chance on a handsome photographer she meets at a pub in her hometown. The story explores the idea of soul mates and whether or not they exist, and I liked where it landed on that theme.

I’ve read a lot in this genre and will admit that this book wasn’t my favorite. Despite some more serious themes, it didn’t have the punch or chemistry of Lydia Bird and others like it. I loved Caleb, but didn’t like Max, and couldn’t buy into that storyline. That being said, I think if someone is looking for a fun and sweet contemporary romance they might enjoy this, especially if they like reading about “What-if” themes. One thing I did really love in this story was the emphasis on resilience and staying the course when it comes to art and hard work. I thought Lucy had real grit when it came to her novel, and that was a joy to read.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Putnam for giving me an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was just okay for me. I love the two story lines, but I had a hard time connecting with the characters.

As someone who often wonders “what might have been” I was thrilled to receive an ARC of Holly Miller’s newest novel. Written in a sliding-door format, main character Lucy is faced with an incredible decision that ultimately will decide the rest of her life. Lucy’s just left her job and meets Caleb, a handsome photographer at a local bar. In this scenario, Lucy is able to step away from a job that she didn’t love and write a novel that she’s only dreamed of. But, in another scenario, Lucy runs into Max, a man from her past, the “one that got away.” Max is in London and Lucy has a chance to make the move and work for a large company she’s aspired to be a part of and explore a relationship with Max.
I found it challenging to decide which storyline I preferred, as they felt like two very different novels. Holly Miller adds a lot of depth with various characters, but I always felt like there were big shadows looming in the storyline that kept me from being fully immersed. While Lucy is the same person in each path; how she navigates previous traumas, how she engages with her family and friends and how she herself defines success and happiness differ significantly. I think Miller does a wonderful job with this, as it highlights how some choices we make really do solidify the trajectory of our own lives and this was neat to witness. This was not a particularly “light” novel and I feel that readers should be warned that there's a lot to unpack emotionally. I’m hoping lots of friends pick up What Might Have Been and look forward to discussions about Lucy, Caleb and Max.

This is an ultimately hopeful story that explores the ideas of fate, the choices we make, and the ways in which our choices can shape our paths in life. The book is very much plot driven, as the reader follows the chain reaction of events that occurs in two parallel timelines, following the protagonist’s decision to either stay in her hometown, or move to London. At its core, “What Might Have Been” is a love story, with its share of heartbreak, as well as hope.

Thank you to G.P. Putnam’s Sons for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

{Huge thank you to @netgalley for this advanced copy!}

📚𝐁 𝐎 𝐎 𝐊•𝐑 𝐄 𝐕 𝐈 𝐄 𝐖📚

•What Might Have Been-Holly Miller
•Fiction/Romance
•Available January 18th, 2022
•4.5⭐️/5

“𝑰 𝒖𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆…𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑶𝒏𝒆, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘? 𝑴𝒚 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒕𝒐𝒈𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈.”
“𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒘?”
“𝑰’𝒎 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝑰 𝒃𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒗𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆. 𝑴𝒂𝒚𝒃𝒆…𝒘𝒆’𝒓𝒆 𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒎𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒕’𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒖𝒔 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒅𝒐 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕. 𝑵𝒐𝒕 𝒇𝒂𝒕𝒆, 𝒐𝒓 𝒅𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒚, 𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒉𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒑𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓. 𝑴𝒂𝒚𝒃𝒆 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒔 𝒊𝒔, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒎𝒆𝒆𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒊𝒏 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒅𝒐 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒌.”

Fans of Sliding Doors are going to love this one! A great story that shows us that a simple action/choice can change the way our lives turn out. I love this reminder that we are in control of our lives and we have the power to change something if we want to.
I really enjoyed it! You are definitely going to want to pick this one up!

I'd give this a 3.5. The writing is good, the timelines are clear, and the story moves forward logically. I enjoyed the characters, for the most part, and their relatability, but aside from the main characters (Lucy, Max, and Caleb), I didn't feel a connection to anyone else; I didn't know them that well, probably because we didn't have time to get to know them (due to the dual timeline). If you believe in fate, this book is for you. But I'm not sure I do, and therefore, the two timelines often felt repetitive. I did like the emotional end (no spoilers here), and I would read more of Miler's work.

I love Sliding Doors type stories--where we get the same tale from two different timelines based on a choice or circumstances. In this book, we have Lucy who has just quit her job. She has a choice to make: stay in her hometown and write the novel that she has been longing to write, or go to London, take a job with another agency and see if she might rekindle her relationship with Max, the "one who got away". In the "Stay" storyline, she has just met Caleb, a photographer who she finds interesting and attractive.

I liked this book for the most part, I just felt like it got really bogged down in the middle. Emotionally, it is really heart tugging and meaningful towards the end, but it takes a while to get there. I appreciated the exploration of how our pasts can shape our present, and although I thought it took Lucy too long to get help for her past trauma, when she does tell others about it and get some help it really helped to move the narrative forward.

One fun part for me was noticing and experiencing how many of the events, relationships, etc. seemed like "destiny" because they happened in both sides of the story. There are two main things that are different on each side and I appreciated how circumstances shaped how those two events weren't destined to happen.

Overall I do recommend this contemporary novel, especially if you are willing to stick with things through the slower parts to find the heart and growth on the other side.

What Might Have Been is the story of Lucy, who quits her job and is contemplating her next step. She is presented with two opportunities: to stay in her current town with new love interest Caleb, or to move to London with her rekindled romantic interest Max. Both storylines are presented in alternating POVs, to stay or to go.

What Might Have Been is an interesting take on a love triangle, with both of Lucy's potential love interests and life choices shown in alternating chapters. Neither relationship is simple or straightforward, and Lucy is continuously confronted with a lot of difficult decisions. It is easy to get engaged in the book; the story moves quickly and there is a lot going on. At the end of the book, the reader will likely be left thinking of which option they would have chosen......though one is definitely more clear than the other in my opinion. What Might Have Been is a good pick to start the year.

Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for this ARC; this is my honest and voluntary review.

Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin Group for the ARC of this!

3.5 stars, rounding up. I am a huge sucker for a sliding doors vibe - I loved Maybe in Another Life, Fractured, After the End, The Book of Two Ways, and The Two Lives of Lydia Bird, so I was immediately interested in this one! This was a little slow to start for me, though I see how that was setting things up. I really liked seeing things that played out similarly and things that were hugely changed by one decision or the other. This is a cute one, and I recommend it for anyone else who is a romance lover and is obsessed with parallel lives branched off from one choice!

This book is amazing. I love alternate timeline books and this book follows Lucy as she chooses to go after an old flame who broke her heart, or not.
I loved that the two timelines did not lead to the same love story, which seems to be the case for many.
There was a lot of depth and emotion in this book, which I hadn’t expected, but thoroughly enjoyed.
The only thing that caused me to give this 4 stars rather than 5 is that I felt like there were a few too many major problems piled onto Lucy. That pulled me out of the story a bit thinking, “Really? She has to deal with THIS too??” Not that a slew of bad things don’t happen in real life, but the whole thing with Tash, the fire, AND the accident felt a little over handed. It made me feel like the love with Max wasn’t as sincere as Lucy imagined it to be…but became clear at the end that she felt it was.
That aside, I really enjoyed the book and seeing how Lucy found happiness in both timelines.
The writing is excellent and I’d read more by this author for certain.

The two timelines of this story were perfectly woven together. This was a beautiful and heartfelt story that really gets you thinking.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I enjoyed this book and I was able to connect with most of the characters. The one problem I had with it is that I wasn't a big fan of the bittersweet feeling I was left with after I finished reading.

What if....

I admit I have not read a book similar to What Might Have Been, not having read Sliding Doors. There are 2 timelines after the opening day when Lucy, having just abruptly quit her job, is sitting in a bar talking to Caleb who she just met. Lucy sees her college love, Max outside the bar and runs to meet him. Should she pursue the possibility of Caleb or try to reconnect with Max? Is there such a thing as a soul mate? Lucy had been a strong believer in soul mates but who is hers and do they really exist?

The story follows two possibilities, she STAYS and goes out with Caleb and she GOES to London to see if there is a life there with Max and a new job. Her choices of what work to pursue and whom to love and try to build life with are very different but the underlying person who she is stays the same although life in London versus country life are very different. It just shows we can be happy with different lives, we have to choose to be happy.

This is a bit of a romance but so much more.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for this honest review.

What Might Have Been
Holly Miller
4
I'm a sucker for an alternate timeline story and I have been since I watched Sliding Doors when I was young. What Might Have Been is a story told in alternating
perspectives of one choice. I feel like it's human to play the "What if" game and this story is like that game come to life x100.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story, but it was sadder than I expected and also felt rushed at times. Spoiler: I didn’t love that it played out both options. It left me with an unresolved feeling.. like I wanted to know what the right answer was.
Also, I think I would have picked "Stay."

Thank you Net Galley, Holly Miller, and Penguin Group Putnam for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

IF YOU RATED THIS LESS THAN FIVE STARS, DON’T TALK TO ME. I loved this so much. I cried more than once. I thought I knew where the story was going and I was wrong over and over again.

Lucy’s story starts with a choice and is then told in alternating POVs, between if she chooses to stay or go. I’ve seen some other reviewers mention that there are too many storylines and they’re hard to keep up with, but I strongly disagree. There are certainly some elements of knowing something has happened in one POV and wondering if it will happen in the other POV, but I don’t feel it was hard to keep up with at all!

First five ⭐️ book of 2022!

Bittersweet romances are my jam. Not wholly original, but wholly intoxicating and I ate it up. It was addicting and I couldn’t put it down for a second!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is my favourite kind of book, a sad romance that pulls on your heartstrings and makes you question what you would do if you were in the same situation as the character you're reading about. I loved the concept of this book, following Lucy in two alternate timelines, showing what might have been, depending on one important decision she makes.

I was equally invested in both timelines of this book. At times I found myself favouring one of the the two timelines, enjoying her relationship with Max, or Caleb more than the other. But my feelings bounced back and forth throughout the book, and overall I couldn't decide which decision I thought was the right one for her to make.

I also really appreciated seeing where there were some similarities between her two different lives, where things happened exactly the same, or just slightly different between the two timelines. It was interesting to see that one decision made such a big impact upon the path her life followed and the events that ensured.

I will be recommending this book to almost everyone I know. I really enjoyed reading it, and think its the perfect emotional romance story. I can't wait to buy it for myself when it releases!