OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "You Did What?" by Isabella Harron.]

You Did What? is one of the most aptly titled books I have read recently. A juicy romance, the plot centers around a scandalous incident that rocks the lives of a single mother, her daughter, and the man they are both interested in.

Natalee is thirty-eight years old and has been single for many years, having lost her police officer husband in the line of duty. While her friends are desperate for her to find love again, Natalee remains uninterested in any of the men she meets... until Joe comes into her life. Although the two have a mutual attraction to each other, Natalee avoids getting involved with Joe. He is eight years younger and looking to start a family soon, and Natalee has already raised a daughter. Jenny is a college student and Natalee feels that part of her life is finished.

Undeterred, Joe continues to pursue Natalee. He feels a connection to her and is sure she feels the same way, and that their mutual feelings will win out over practicalities. His progress is impeded by the ambitious Jenny, who is also attracted to Joe. When she has trouble making progress with her new love interest, Jenny resorts to committing an act so vile that it shocks all those who know her- or thought they knew her. Once Jenny casts her stone into the water, the ripples affect not just her life, but the lives of Joe and Natalee too.

You Did What? is far from a cookie-cutter romance. The story is fascinating and a little lurid; it's a great book for a guilty-pleasure read. Jenny's plan to win her man at all costs gave me some pleasant shock value and kept me glued to the story; I simply couldn't wait to see how the characters would handle the fallout. It was such a page-turner that I finished the book in one afternoon.

The plot was definitely the book's strength. I also enjoyed the characters, although I wish Jenny had been a little more three-dimensional. As the story's "villain," I wanted to know more about what made her tick. No one is all good or all bad, and while a superfluous motivation for her actions was mentioned, I wish we had known more about what was really going on inside her head.

The only other thing that bothered me about the story was the on and off nature of Natalee and Joe's relationship. Natalee has many good reasons to be wary of a relationship, but she veered between being with Joe and breaking it off with him so often I nearly got whiplash while reading. At first, I was rooting for them to get together so the conflicts sparked a lot of interest, but soon I began to feel like their break-ups were a bit redundant and it affected the pace of the story. Luckily, the characters are likable and the overall story held my interest.

I wish that I were able to give two separate ratings, one for the plot and one for technical merit. There were lots and lots of misplaced commas. It was to the point that I was sometimes confused about which lines of dialogue belonged to which character. Luckily, almost all the errors involved commas and nothing else, which made it a little easier to overlook. I gave You Did What? three out of four stars. The story was enjoyable and it was a quick and easy read. Keep in mind it is a romance novel and does include sex scenes, which I know some readers choose to avoid. If you're looking for a juicy little beach read, however, this is a perfect choice.

******
You Did What?
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

Like Haute_Coffee's review? Post a comment saying so!

Wow! This book sounds really interesting. I have read so many romance books that I presently prefer less drama ones but this got me really intrigued. I haven't read such a plot and conflict between mother and daughter about their love interests. This is surely a juicy breach read for that conflict. I'm also drawn to novels that can be read in one sitting only. Thank you for this thorough review.

a single mother, her daughter, and the man they are both interested in.

A very interesting plot. Your review is awesome.

Thank you for this review. It got me really interested and the plot sounds very good.

Haute_Coffee wrote: ↑13 Jun 2018, 11:52 Natalee has many good reasons to be wary of a relationship, but she veered between being with Joe and breaking it off with him so often I nearly got whiplash while reading.

This line made me literally laugh aloud. I love reading a good review almost as much as reading a good book. I'll pass on the book due to gratuitous commas and sex scenes, but thanks for an entertaining and thorough review!

Interesting to see what jealousy can do to tear people apart. Sounds like an exciting read! Thank you for a descriptive review!

An interesting storyline I must say. Not sure the sex scenes cut it for me though. Thanks for the detailed review.

Alright, so the title sounds pretty interesting and I might pick this one because it seems like a light read. You've done a great job with the review, anyway. Pretty amazing writing skills.

The title makes me curious, and you review makes me imagine hot drama that I don't want to miss.

This review definitely made me interested in the book. I hope I can overlook misplaced commas.

I enjoyed reading your review but I don't fancy the plot about the mother and daughter is attracted towards the same man. Thank you for this great review of yours.

Your review makes this book sound very interesting and like something I would enjoy reading. Thank you for sharing!

The title alone is intriguing enough but that mixed with your review has made this book even more intriguing. Especially about whatever it is that Jenny has done. I am definitely going to be giving this a read. Great review! Very well written

This book seems so exciting that it really captured my interest which is romance

Tittle is intresting and your review made it more intresting for me . thankyou for the review .