They met at Dartmouth University almost twenty years ago. The five women are about to turn forty and have retained their friendship. Their lives have changed as they have moved into professions. One is a doctor who no longer practices, two are attorneys. One has stayed at home with an absentee husband and another has a star-studded life as a CEO at a tech startup.

They come together for their annual vacation. They stay at the California friend's Carmel house although she didn't make the reunion this year. She is busy writing a book. So busy in fact, that when one of the women loses a family member, she can't be bothered to attend the funeral.

But that's not her worst act. The book is an expose, based on what the author calls the four mistakes women make. She uses each of her friends as an example, and while she doesn't name them, she uses their initials and family facts so that they are easy to identify for anyone who needs them. The other women are outraged and they feel that her book has made things more difficult for them at work and in their families.

But as they turn forty, each of them finds a way to carve out a life they want. One divorces and finds a new lover while another finds a way to have the baby she has wanted for years. One adopts a child and another finds a way to take a job on her own terms with almost twice her prior salary. Another starts her own law firm which is highly successful.

Laura Jamison has written a book about female friendships and how women must fight for the lives they want. While it is interesting, many readers will not be able to relate to these five women with tons of money and huge houses and professional careers. The husbands all agree to either cut back on their professional jobs or become consultants so that they can help more at home which doesn't seem that realistic to most women's lives. This book is recommended for readers of women's fiction who are interested in female friendships and how to nurture them and on how to get the life you want.

Tried reading this one and it just was not meant for me. This does not mean that it is not a good book, I just was not in the right place to be reading it and have decided to not try picking it up anytime in the near future.

ALL THE RIGHT MISTAKES by Laura Jamison, on audio, was an enjoyable listen. A story of friendship and the many complexities that come with old friends and new chapters in life, ALL THE RIGHT MISTAKES follows four friends as one does something surprising: publishes a book about all their mistakes. I enjoyed this audiobook, but did find it a bit hard to get into at times. I may have enjoyed this in print more! But overall, an entertaining story and very well-written.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC, which I received in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this book. The four main characters are relatable in different ways. Overall, all the characters go through well-considered growth. I love that although, in the end, there's a satisfying end to the book, it doesn't feel like a rushed effort to wrap everything up in a tidy bow and a happily ever after. I was left with satisfaction about the conclusion while being given the chance to consider what might happen next.

This book didn't quite resonate with me as much as I would have thought. The premise sounds really promising and I was immediately reeled in by the description. As I dove in and started listening, I found my mind wandering and getting easily distracted because I couldn't really connect with any of the characters. I wonder if it would have been easier for me to stay with it if I had been reading a book vs. listening to the audiobook? I also can't help but wonder if I would be more engaged if I had picked this up at a different point in my life.

Listening to the audiobook of All the Right Mistakes felt like I was listening to conversations between five friends and in a way that is how the plotline of the book is developed... through conversations. I am not sure how much I would have enjoyed this book if I had read it as a physical book but I definitely had a good time listening to it. The narrator Aimee Barrett has done a wonderful job narrating this book; her voice is soothing, smooth and clear and since most of the book is basically conversations between friends, she manages to bring all these characters to life through those conversations without changing her tone too much.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher OrangeSky Audio and the author Laura Jamison for the audio ARC of the book.

A well written story of women who’ve been friends for years. They know everything about each other and have always been honest, supportive each and most importantly respected each other. And then one of the does the unthinkable and writes a book about all of their “mistakes “ the others have made in their lives without their permission nor giving them a heads up that she has had these thoughts and feelings and doesn’t have an inkling of the colossal betrayal this is. The other four are left reeling. The story is about their way back themselves as individuals and as friends. This was either authors debut novel and I am very much looking forward to what comes next for her.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ALC in exchange for an honest review.

"All The Right Mistakes" by Laura Jamison was just "okay" for me. I think this is a strange story for someone in their mid-twenties, because these characters are hard to relate to for me personally, whereas for younger moms in their thirties they would be able to relate very well. Overall, "All The Right Mistakes" is a coming of age story of adulthood and parenthood. It explores the issues of how college friend groups change and warp themselves throughout the group's lifetime and different life stages. It shows the different ways that people can grow apart and how they can grow back together. This is sort of like gossip girl but women in their thirties instead of high schoolers. 4/5.

I liked this book and the narrator was engaging. However, for my HS library it is not the right fit. For a ladies' book club.... love it!!!

A group of women who consider themselves lifelong friends have their friendships and loyalties tested when one writes a book full of judgement about their personal life choices. Interesting, but predictable. Relatable characters until the part about faith, which I typically find disingenuous despite being a Christian myself.

All the Right Mistakes by Laura Jamison
Genre: Womens Lit, Fiction
Pub Date: 12 Oct 2021
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

For fans of Chandler Baker (Whisper Network; The Husbands), All the Right Mistakes by Laura Jamison is a power b*ch anthem for all female friend groups.

Five college friends have arrived at forty in very different circumstances, but with at least one thing in common: they are among the more privileged in society. Elizabeth and Sara are lawyers, Martha is a doctor, Carmen is a wealthy and well-educated homemaker, and Heather, the most successful, is a famous tech executive—and after more than two decades of friendship, they know one another better than anyone.

But as these friends are continually reminded, life is complex, messy, disappointing, and joyful, often all at once—and no one can plan her way out of that reality. In the end, all five women must embrace the idea that their lives are shaped not just by their choices but also by how they handle the obstacles life inevitably throws at us all.

Read if you:
🏡Love women supporting women
🏡Are from Chicago
🏡Know that “having it all” is a myth
🏡Need some girl time

Thank you to @NetGalley and @OrangeSkyAudio for the gifted audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

#AlltheRightMistakes #NetGalley #books #bookstagram #bookclubreads #bookclub #booklover #reading #ilovebooks #currentlyreading #bookreview #book #bookstagrammer #audiobook

All The Right Mistakes by Laura Jamison is a pointed look at the friendship of five women and what happens when one friends selfish actions puts all their “mistakes” on public display.

A look at relationships, life choices, and the meaning of success that relies a bit to heavenly on conversation to share information with the readers. The conflict does not ring true to the deep friendships that should exist after 20 years however the book is still entertaining on a surface level.

⭐️ ⭐️⭐️ 3 stars with a 14+ rating

All the Right Mistakes by Laura Jameson was such a treat! I listened to this audiobook and felt like I had a front seat to the inner workings of a friend group in their forties navigating a variety of different circumstances. The story line was action packed and never dull.

Thanks to the Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook.

I received an audio copy of this book for my honest review.

In this book, there are five friends from college who had a girl's weekend each year. All were successful in their own right. This book is about the lives of these women. I was able to connect to each woman and the growth of each as this story unfolded.

Normally I read Historical fiction or mysteries, but this book was written very well. I even shed a couple of tears throughout. I loved the way the author was able to tell each of these women's stories so smoothly and give breathe life into each woman.

The narrator was wonderful to listen to. She had great cadence and inflection which helped bring these ladies to life.

I very much enjoyed this book and its stories. Friendship can be difficult, but sometimes you've "just gotta grow up".

Fascinating that when you become an adult and look back you find that you never actually left high school. It’s just the same dramas with more money. This can be an awful combination for some because it just gives more weight and perceived power to their self entitlement. Throughout adulthood we make mistakes and in the end hope that some actually turn out right. Here we’re reminded it’s never too late to make changes for the better.
Special thanks to OrangeSky Audio and author Laura Jamison for the opportunity to listed to the advanced copy of this audio book.
#OrangeSkyAudio #NetGalley

A group of five women - all friends in college - enter their 40s when one of their group betrays their trust and secrets in the most public of ways - forcing them to all deal with the fallout. Carmen, Martha, Sarah, Elizabeth and Heather have been close since meeting in college, but in recent years, Heather's professional success has put some distance between her and the rest. Now all but she live in Wisconsin. As the other women grow closer, Heather's bombshell in the form of a judgmental book criticizing their different approaches to careers and private lives drives them all in different directions.

To be honest, I very nearly stopped listening to this one about a quarter of the way through it. While the narratives do bring these women to life, the writing style leans a lot on the dialogue for explanations and backgrounds. Plus, I didn't feel a connection to any of these women - and wouldn't want any of the them to be my friends! They really don't treat each other very well. Heather's role as the antagonist doesn't end in a satisfying way. And honestly, I am surprised that any of them stayed friends. A lot of drama happens here. The career focus - in more mundane ways may appeal to some readers, but really did nothing for me. And the relationships between the spouses didn't really add to the book or bring any surprises. Plus, as these relationships weren't the main focus, sometimes just seemed to drag the book out.

The audio is well-executed, but because of the storyline, I never found myself all that eager to keep listening to it. It's just not the kind of women's fiction that does anything for me. Maybe a smaller group of friends would have made this a tighter read? I did appreciate the Wisconsin setting though!

I picked up All The Right Mistakes on audiobook via NetGalley after reading the book summary and feeling like it was right up my reading alley. I love a book about female friendships, motherhood, marriage and plenty of drama and the book summary checked all of these boxes.

All of the female characters have had very different paths since college and this book takes place as they all approach their 40th birthdays. And while they all are very different now than 20 years in college, they all live very privileged lives, and plenty of drama ensues.

Parts of this book really worked for me, and I loved the inclusion of the pressures that are put upon women from ourselves, society and from one another and how "mistakes"s can often lead us forward.

Where I struggled was that I just felt that there was too much that was trying to be covered that it felt less impactful overall The relationships didn't feel totally believable for me and the betrayal aspect just didn't fully work because of this.

This one had a lot to offer, but I ended up feeling like this could have been more powerful if the topics were narrowed down and then looked at more in depth,. 3/5 stars.

Thank you to She Writes Press for my gifted review copy.

All the Right Mistakes by Laura Jamison is the story of five college friends who manage to keep the friendship trough good and bad, trough marriages, break-ups, kids, career success or fails. The women are quite different from each other. Each has a different perspective about what really matters in life, but maybe the most different among all is Heather.

Heather is the perfect woman. Career woman. Successfully. Rich. And now preparing to launch a book in which she gives specific details about her friends' private lives. Of course this comes as a shock to Elizabeth, Sara, Martha and Carmen, and they all try to cope with everything that is happening with the book launch and their private lives, because some messy things happen to all of them.

In the end it is a book about friendship, growing, fighting for what is good for you and following your dreams. A good read, but I must admit that I never want a friend like Heather.

P.S. Heather (Hole I assume) at the Real Heather Hole tweeting:
I AM SUCH AN ANNOYING CHARACTER, AND NOT EVEN AFTER SOME TERRIBLE THINGS HAPPEN TO ME AND MY SO-CALLED FRIENDS...I DO NOT INTEND TO CHANGE MY TOXIC BEHAVIOR. #favoritequotes

Thank you # netgallery for this book. I enjoyed this more than I imagined. I enjoyed each different woman's story and conflicts. I listed to this book and thought the narration was done well. 100% recommend.

A story of women’s friendship over decades of time. A beautiful poignant story about love, loss and the importance of friendship.