Review – I Thought You Said This Would Work by Ann Garvin (3.5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Contemporary Fiction/Humor
Length: 301 pages
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Release Date: May 1, 2021
ASIN: B08CMS48FT
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Kindle First Reads (Also available through Kindle Unlimited)
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
“ Widowed Samantha Arias hasn’t spoken to Holly Dunfee in forever. It’s for the best. Samantha prefers to avoid conflict. The blisteringly honest Holly craves it. What they still have in common puts them both back on speed dial: a mutual love for Katie, their best friend of twenty-five years, now hospitalized with cancer and needing one little errand from her old college roomies.
It’s simple: travel cross-country together, steal her loathsome ex-husband’s VW camper, find Katie’s diabetic Great Pyrenees at a Utah rescue, and drive him back home to Wisconsin. If it’ll make Katie happy, no favor is too big (one hundred pounds), too daunting (two thousand miles), or too illegal (ish), even when a boho D-list celebrity hitches a ride and drives the road trip in fresh directions.
Samantha and Holly are following every new turn—toward second chances, unexpected romance, and self-discovery—and finally blowing the dust off the secret that broke their friendship. On the open road, they’ll try to put it back together—for themselves, and especially for the love of Katie.”
Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book that I got through Kindle First Reads.
Story (3/5): The story starts out pretty slow. You basically have three friends, two that are on the outs and one (whose cancer has come back) who has traditionally kind of held the friendship together. The first 20% of the book is these three sniping at each other in a hospital room. Things pick up a bit when the two that are on the outs (Holly and Sam) head off on a road trip together. It’s basically one of those “road trips help friends work out issues” kind of stories. The resolution and revelations are a bit bland as well.
Characters (3/5): I really disliked our main characters in general. The fact that they let so much mis-communication drive such big dynamics in their relationships came off as really immature. I found it really hard to believe I was reading about adults here. Sam is so averse to any type of confrontation that I struggled to relate to her in any way. Holly is so aggressive about everything she was on the opposite end of the spectrum. They are very overly characterized. Some of the side characters were much more intriguing. Summer, who joins them on a whim, was a hoot and I loved her. The Shaman was wonderful as well. I even liked some of Sam’s potential love interests way more than any of the women this book focuses on.
Setting (3/5): The setting is kind of generic modern day American. I really did enjoy the time on the animal rescue farm, that was very well done and intriguing. The rest of it is just kind of a blur of American countryside and, while it does portray the feeling you get on a roadtrip nicely, it just doesn’t impact the story that much.
Writing Style (4/5): After you get through the first 20% or so of the book, this was engaging and well written. The questions of whether or not they will get Katie’s dog, what Holly is so pissed at Sam about, and what will happen to Katie really drive the story forward. It’s an easy and quick read that is entertaining. Unfortunately, I felt like the big reveal and the wrap-up was a let down. It was just really predictable and the way things wrapped up was unsatisfying, it felt rushed.
My Summary (3.5/5): Overall this was okay, it is a quick read and most of the book is easy to stay engaged with. It started a bit slow, I didn’t like the characters, and I thought the way things wrapped up was unsatisfying. This is a book I didn’t mind reading, but will quickly forget. I don’t plan on seeking out any more books by Garvin in the future.
