A sucker for nostalgia-this book was perfect for me. The protagonist Carly was a calamity in every sense but I loved her and her crazy ways. A great story about friendship, lost loves and life choices.

I loved this although did struggle to keep track of all the time changes without clear signposting so it sometimes took me a little while to work out whether it was past or present.

Carly is extremely likeable if not a bit chaotic but that just adds to the frenetic pace of the book. I can’t wait to hear what’s happened to everyone between now and then when the sequel’s released - the book was tied up with what felt like multiple shotgun weddings!

Thank you to @rachelsrandomresources for inviting me in this tour and to @netgalley and @sharilowbooks for a copy of this book to read.
💗
I have read a few of Shari Low’s books before and have enjoyed each one and this was no different, it did not disappoint!
💗
Set in the 90’s before social media, smart phones and google were huge! (Take me back to then except let me keep Bookstagram!)
💗
Carly has given up everything in life to dedicate time to find Mr Right, after having several relationships that could have been close but then letting them go!
💗
Perfect for anybody who enjoys a light hearted romcom to snuggle up with and an added enjoyment which I love is each chapter is named after a song title.
💗
A sequel is due to be released early 2021 which is exciting! #blogtour #romcom

Wow, what a lot has changed in twenty years! It is twenty years since this book was first published, so readers travel back to 1999 when reading it. Carly Cooper is thirty and thinking of all her ex-boyfriends and pondering if she accidentally let the man who is her soul mate disappear from her life. She decides to catch up with them all, find out what’s happened to them and to see if they’re still attracted to each other or not. In Part One, you learn about all her ex-boyfriends and what happened with them . . . . and in Part Two we journey with Carly as she sets off to track them all down again.

This is a fun romcom, filled with great characters, multiple romances and everything from a decade of relationships revisited. Through it all the close friendship between Carly and her girlfriends provides support, laughter and surprises. It is a lovely read and I can’t wait to read the sequel, What Now?, which is due to be published in January 2021.

Thanks to Boldwood Books and NetGalley for my copy of this book which I have voluntarily read and honestly reviewed.

'What If?' is a 20th anniversary reprint of Shari Low's novel. I found this to be fun, uplifting and light read tat was truly enjoyable. This 90's romance was reminiscent of the days before the explosion of social media, smart phones, and pre-Netflix and chill, and I loved the nostalgic feeling reading this book brought to my life.


What If is such a cute story about 30 something Carly Cooper who is ready to make a change in her life. To move forward and learn from her past mistakes, she quits her job and tracks her exes in the far corners of the world. Full of hilarious and crazy moments, this was exactly what I need to cure my pandemic blues and the travel bug that had been pestering in me.


Shari Low is the queen of hilarious and heartwarming romcoms that is smart, witty, and swoon worthy. This re-release of her debut novel really proves her brilliance and how her stories truly stands the test of time. I recommend this amazing and fun escape read to a new generation of modern readers that will find Shari Low's brilliance relevant and timeless.

5☆ An Uplifting, Fun, Light Hearted, Witty
Must Read!

What If? is a humorous, very entertaining, lighthearted and uplifting romp about relationships and discovering what if the one you let go, really happens to be the love of your life!

That's exactly what Carly is contemplating.
She is reminiscing on her past relationships, right from the very start where she lost her virginity to present day.
She believes that somewhere in her eclectic bunch of ex boyfriends, one of those could be "The One" ..... and she's determined to find him!

Even if that means giving up everything to find him. Oh and that also means travelling to various countries to find them all.

I absolutely loved this story. Carly's backstories of how she comes to meet each of the men in question was humorous, endearing and heartfelt.
She had me smiling and giggling, and wow did she have some fun!

This is an Enjoyable and thoroughly Entertaining read about friendship, family, self discovery, finding the one that got away and relationships.

All of the added lil features set in the 90s just bought back lots of memories and the song titles for the Chapters....Brill idea! Had me singing away and asking Alexa to play them! So big thumbs up there!

I adore Shari Low's books and once again she had written an absolute Gem of a book!
So if you love Women's Fiction, filled with Humour, Love, Lust, Drama, Adventure, and bopping away to classic 90s music, then I Highly, Highly Recommend you pick up a copy of What If?.


Thank you to Rachel Random Resources for this copy which I reviewed honestly and voluntarily.

This book was fun, funny and absolutely fantastic. I was captivated from the beginning and lost a few late nights to Carly and her dramas.  With so many brilliant one liners. I laughed out loud the whole way through. This is a must read and I was so happy to be part of such a wonderful blog tour.

Carly was hardworking, persistent, had the biggest heart, strong as an ox, and full of so much courage! Yes she was a walking disaster and a spontaneous nightmare. You couldn’t help but love her.

With the best group of friends, friends since high school, they were more like family. They had her back since day one, even through all of her dating mishaps. I loved their easy, caring, strong friendship, its one you would want to be apart of. They were all literally amazing and I loved them all.

Carly in my eyes was a legend and a character I’m going to miss for a long time.

The girls first holiday to Benidorm had me in stiches and took me right back to my first girls holiday 🙈Jess and her rules. LOL.

The men…Carly’s men!…So much to say about all of these but I wont give away any spoilers. If you have read this, did you have a favourite?
I think mine was the Irish one or was it the one in China. Both! I loved all of the adventures she went on. My best was maybe her time in China. I liked reading about her journey from a young women, the first time she met these men, to when she was then 30 ,going back on the journey to meet them all again. Some shocking discoveries and moment during this time. There never was a dull moment!

The chapters were written so well, I loved how they went back and forth from her previous adventures to now. Each chapter reeled you in and left you wanting more. The song names and artists as a chapter title were a nice touch and left me singing along to that song at the start of each chapter.

This was brilliant. I loved it.

Every author goes through an evolution in their writing. I started reading Shari Low's recent work, and absolutely loved every book I read. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case for this 20th anniversary edition of one of her earlier books. Quite frankly, I just found myself being too annoyed at her main character to get at all invested in the story. Apparently, writing a good, likeable yet annoying MC isn't something she perfected until after What If?

It’s the end of 1999 and with the approaching new millennium Carly Cooper is wondering where she went wrong with her love life. After 6 failed long term relationships she is wondering if Mr Right was among them. So, quitting her job and applying for some credit cards, she decides she will hunt them all down and see what they’re up to now - and if there are any sparks to reignite.

I really enjoyed this book, I can’t believe I missed it 20 years ago when it was first released. Im very much looking forward to the next instalment to read what everyone is up to now.

I’m sure that many of us have looked back on our lives and wondered ‘what if …’. A different decision here; a change of plan there; perhaps some kinder words spoken, or an argument that could have been avoided. Carly Cooper has reached the age of 30 and although she’s managed to be engaged 5 times, she’s never quite managed to seal the deal and get married. She’s somehow reached the conclusion that she may have made a mistake somewhere along the way (possible more than one?) and decides to chuck in her job and track down her exes … in order of engagements … to see if one of them might actually have been Mr Right!

I adored Carly! I loved the fact that she was quirky, and unsure, and basically a bit of a hot mess … but 100% authentic. While all of her friends are off settling down, finding themselves and becoming all adulty, Carly doesn’t quite seem able to manage it. She’s actually quite good at what she does, but when it comes to making those important life choices, she just falls short every single time. I really wanted her to find her happily ever after and couldn’t wait to see who would be ‘The One’. She just has this feeling that she’s missed out on this opportunity somewhere, and she’s absolutely determined to go out there and grab it before it’s too late. I was cheering her on every single step of the way, because how many times in life do we miss out on stuff because we don’t act on all those feelings when we really, really should. Well, read this book and live vicariously through Carly because she does it all for us!

Shari Low hasn’t lost her touch since writing this, her first book, all those years ago. She’s only improved. Her characters quickly endear themselves to readers and they’re likeable and real. She writes about people who are just like you and me.

This is such an enjoyable read as we jump between past and present, following Carly’s journey from her first love, through her various liaisons as she learns about herself as much as what type of man is actually the one for her.

This is a fabulous 4-star read, and is one of those books that immediately draws you in . It has warmth, humour and so much heart.

This is a fast moving romcom with quirky characters and many funny moments. Re-issued to celebrate its 20th anniversary, it was great to read it and to enjoy all its now retro qualities and life in 1999. I see that Shari has revisited the characters and her sequel, What now, is due to be published in early 2021. The premise of the story is that Carly, after a series of broken engagements and doomed relationships, has decided to revisit all her ex's to discover if any one of them is 'the one who got away'. The first part of the novel looks in flashback at all these candidates. The second part covers her visits to them, years later. This structure certainly helps you to make sense of the story.

Carly's friends and family are a close knit bunch, with a few exceptions. Her decision to leave her job and home to travel takes them by surprise. I enjoyed the banter between them all and their friendships were totally credible. This is a warm and witty story which takes you back to a time before the internet was all encompassing and social media was absent. It has stood the test of time and is well worth a read.

In short: What if?...
Thanks to Boldwood Book for a copy of the book

This book was absolutely hilarious. I list count of the number of laugh out loud moments. Set in the late 1990’s this book oozes nostalgia and the main characters hail from Glasgow what more could a girl want!

Carly Cooper’s life has not resulted in what she expected - it’s creeping up to the Millennium and she is single, in a small flat and with a job she ensures. She has a great group of friends though - ones she has been besties with since high school.

As the year 1999 progresses she looks back on her life and the boys she loved and lost. She wonders what if one of those she let go was ‘The One’ and makes the decision to go looking for them all to see if she can rekindle those feelings. So she packs in her job, leaves her flat and prepares her credit cards to be maxed out. Will she find the true love she is looking for?

I loved this book and can’t wait to read ‘What Now’ next year to see how the characters are all getting on.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced read copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

That eternal question...what if?
There are so many ways that it can help us, but also so many ways that it can plague us...and in this story, we see both ends of that stick.

Carly is trying to clean her slate before the millennium arrives. She's always been on the lookout for adventure, travel, the next big thing...and usually finds it...but there's one area that she's downright shite in. LOVE. It's not so much that she can't find it, but more so that she can't seem to make it stick. As we follow her on her journey to reconnect with all the beaus of the past, we get to glimpse each relationship as they originally unfolded as well...and might I just say, there's definitely a trend when it comes to our fair lead. Problem with the trend? It generally scares her out of her wits, she jumps the gun or runs right into the fire, and BOOM...self-implosion every time. Like a trooper though, she's never given up...nor has her libido...but now, that what if of the situation is plaguing her. What if she threw the wrong one away? What if she didn't see the forest for the trees, or her soul mate for the person they were in her haste to make tracks? I mean, if there is someone for everyone, where is THE ONE meant for her? In the past or still to come? She aims to find out, come heck, high water, a mountain of debt, and the degradation of her self-worth...not that it comes to all that EXACTLY. *ahem*

This was definitely a whirlwind one way trip with a surprising round trip option built right in! How so? Oh, I couldn't possibly tell you that, but trust me when I say you'll want to stick around because good things come to those who wait. I can see how this one garnered attention back in the day, but also TODAY, because what gal isn't bothered by the what ifs at some point or another. I mean, until we've reached our rainbow's end and found that perfect pot of gold, there's always second guessing, miss steps, and nights rather forgotten...but sometimes those times we'd rather not have had, turn into memories worth sharing down the line, and as long as those off the rail moments lead us to our own happily ever after, how can we really ever truly regret them?

So, if you're a fan of Contemporary Romance or Romantic Comedy, and don't mind a few blush worthy scenes now and again, you're in for a real treat! Think Sex and the City with a heavy dose of cabin fever built in!

Carly “Cooper” Cooper is scatterbrained and organized at the same time. Her personal life is a mess, but if and when she has a job, she is exceptional at it. I felt a great dislike for Cooper because of her callous and selfish way of dumping guys without so much as a by your leave. Personally, I think she deserved much worse from her exes after ghosting them and then expecting them to welcome her back with open arms. In my opinion, she needed to mature as an individual first before “itching to be a couple”. With that being said, I admired her charisma and moxie at such a young age to travel around the world pursuing the grueling and demanding profession of overhauling and managing nightclubs.

As for Cooper’s exes, I liked them all, but found it unrealistic that they all fell in love with her so quickly (if only) and wanted to spend their life with her. Perhaps it was inevitable they would get ditched because they barely knew her. Oh, and by the way, I guessed early on who she would choose.

Cooper does have fantastic girlfriends with some hair-raising stories of their own and two supportive brothers who are working on their own issues as well.

Overall, even though I didn’t particularly like the main character, I enjoyed this rom-com with its sarcastic wit, hair-brained schemes, and colorful characters. I guarantee the book will get a rise out of you one way or another.

Thank you to Ms. Low for giving me the opportunity to read this book with no expectation of a positive review.

Loved this book! Shari Low has such a great writing style and a fabulous ability to create fun, memorable characters.

In case you missed the big celebratory balloon with number 20 on the bright and cheerful cover of What If?, this is a re-release of Shari Low's first book. And if it feels packed with popular culture references that firmly set it on the cusp of two millenums, it is because this is exactly when it was written. Reading it was like having a girls' night out with your best friends and, honestly, there are few better ways of spending your time than having a laugh with people who have known you for ages and will stand by you no matter what.

Carly Cooper has a safe job (although selling toilet paper to corporate clients was definitely on her list of what she wanted to do when she grew up) and is quite happy with her life. Now that she is approaching thirty (what is it about the magic three-oh that makes us question our life decisions), she can't help but wonder if should have already been married). Not that Carly is perpetually single, quite the opposite: she has been engaged four times and had two other serious relationships. So what is it that makes her run away and could she have already met her Mr Right and threw away her chance of eternal happiness?

I have to admire Carly's confidence and courage in doing what she decides to do next. She hands in notice at work and leaves her flat, and embarks on a life-time journey to re-visit her old flames to see if she had been too hasty. Remember the time when it was still possible to keep your different lives separate and embarrasiing school photos with braces and funny hairdos hidden in your family albums? Carly's journey is an Adventure with a capital A, and I couldn't help but envy all the excitement of re-discovering what made her fall in love with her exes. Especially, since her exes happen to be quite scattered around the globe.

Shari Low has a wonderful sense of humour and her first book is no exception - it is full of hilarious laugh-out-loud comments and witty banter. It is also deeply, genuinely romantic. What I liked the most, however, is the celebration of friendship, the kind which comes from sharing giggles, hangovers (okay, this one isn't strictly necessary) and unmitigated silliness, heartbreaks and big momentous news that turn your life upside down.

The ending was deeply satisfying (I am all for HEAs and HFNs), but the best thing came in the author's note to the readers: there's going to be a sequel from which we can find out what happened in Carly's and her best mates' lives afterwards. What Now? is scheduled to be released in January 2021 and I for one can't wait to spend a bit more time with these fun characters created by Shari Low.

Thank you to Rachel from Rachel's Random Resources, NetGalley and Boldwood Books for the review copy provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

This was a great read. I settled into it immediately and wanted to see where Carly’s adventures would take her. Having discovered that a sequel is being released next year, I now cannot wait to get my hands on it!

Low is an established writer but I have never picked up any of her books before. This novel was originally published twenty years ago… the re-release here is to remind readers of what really happened to Carly. I’m definitely a fan of Low’s writing now and want to look into her other novels in future.

This is a funny novel that had me sympathising with Carly. She hasn’t had any luck in the love department and I loved the concept of travelling the world to re-visit old flames. The first part of the novel moves between Carly’s previous love interests and how she met them… to how they split up. Move forwards to 1999 and Carly is preparing for her global adventure.

Low uses song titles for her chapters. They really did get stuck in my head – what a nightmare! Each chapter is really lengthy so, if you are someone who doesn’t like pausing mid-chapter, take this as a warning. There are helpful breaks in the narrative however, that became a godsend because I struggled to put this story down.

I think one of the essential elements that makes this story work is the fact that it is set before the luxury of the Internet and smart phones. Today, using social media platforms, it should be pretty straightforward trying to trace down past contacts. However, Carly, although aware there are simpler methods than travelling, decides to throw in everything she knows to have a whole-hearted adventure before the beginning of the millennium. I admired her bravery, especially as she does not know whether she will find her old boyfriends, nor what their situation has become.

Fearing this would become repetitive (I mean, Carly was busy: she goes to find six boyfriends!), I wondered how Low would keep the narrative interesting. Yet, she does so. Each boyfriend’s story is different and this is continued when Carly reunites with them. Although I could predict a couple of the stories, I still remained surprised. Furthermore, this story is as much about Carly’s supporting circle of friends. They feature heavily in the narrative and I was excited to see how they remained throughout Carly’s journey.

This was an effortless story. I loved the travelling aspect and felt I had gone on many aeroplanes from the comfort of my living room. This novel offered everything that I needed at the time: love, laughter and a holiday. Bring on the next book!


With thanks to Boldwood Books and Rachel’s Random Resources for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I have read a few of Shari’s books now and I have thoroughly enjoyed all of them. I haven’t read every single book that she has written but I am getting there. ‘What If?’ was Shari’s first book and it has recently been reissued to celebrate her 20th year of writing. I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘What If?’ but more about that in a bit.
As with all of Shari’s books, the synopsis grabbed my attention and I was drawn into the story from the very first word on the very first page. I made the mistake of starting to read the book shortly before I went to bed. Let’s just say that I read into the wee small hours of the night and I had a ‘lack of sleep’ hangover the following day. I loved the characters in the book but I especially loved Carly Cooper, who is the main character in the story. I warmed to her from the start and it didn’t take me long to feel as though she had become a friend of mine. As I considered her to be a friend, I felt compelled, in the nicest possible way, to keep reading to discover what fate had in store for her. The pages turned over at a fairly quick pace as I made my way through the book. I became so wrapped up in Carly’s story that I lost all track of time whilst reading this book and I managed to shut out all other distractions so I could focus on the book alone. I soon got to the end of ‘What If?’ and I had to bid farewell to Carly and her friends.
‘What If?’ is brilliantly written but then I think that to be true of all of Shari’s books that I have had the pleasure of reading and reviewing. Shari has one of those writing styles that is easy to get used to and easy to get along with. In fact reading one of Shari’s books feels more like a chat between friends than reading an actual book. I hope that makes sense. The story is written with chapters focussing on events as they happen in the current day and other chapters focus on flashbacks to Carly’s past. The chapters interlink well and the story flows seamlessly as a result. I loved the way in which Shari combines the serious and the funny. I found myself smiling away whilst reading this book. I found ‘What If?’ to be a fun and light hearted read.
In short, I thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘What If?’ and I would recommend it to other readers. I will certainly be reading more of Shari’s work in the future. The score on the Ginger Book Geek board is a very well deserved 5* out of 5*.

I read this for a blog tour.

This was a really fun read, following Carly as she travels around the world looking for her exes to check they weren't The One.

With her loyal team of girlfriends, some creaking credit cards and great brothers in tow, she criss crosses the oceans from New York to Singapore, Hong Kong to Amsterdam looking for the men she loved and left. Finding them teaches her things about herself, and finding some really great new friends along the way.

This book might be twenty odd years old but it still feels fresh and relatable even when just hopping on a plane is so far from reality right now.

I was first drawn to the book by the cover, which is bright and eye-catching. I also love a book with a question if a title, so I was fascinated to find out more about the characters and their predicament/s!

This was a 20th anniversary re-print but this book was completely new to me, and I felt that the plot and themes were timeless so still very enjoyable! The story follows thirty something Carly on her quest for love. What if she never finds The One? What if she has already met The One? She knows she needs to be open discovering (or re-discovering) him…

I loved Shari’s sophisticated use of alternative timelines and flashbacks to develop the character of Carly and for the reader to get to know her story and background.

This was a light, humorous read with a message and plot that is both uplifting and heart-warming. I have really enjoyed this one and as a big chick lit fan, cannot believe I have spent 20 years without reading a single Shari Low book (shame on me!)

*So What's the Story?*

Carly Cooper, the protagonist of 'What If' is a dreamer. And she takes that title very seriously! Most of her decisions in life were not perfectly planned. Neither were her relationships.

Somehow her life of crazy adventures has brought her to this point where our story begins. Carly has ended up working in not-her-dream job of proficiently selling toilet rolls.She is good at it. And sure, it pays her well. But it is definitely not where she asked to be. Her romantic life is as evergreen as the Sahara desert. And apart from hanging out with her trusty, forever girl pals, Carly doesn't really leave the house.

Near to turning 30, Carly is having a premature mid life/millennium crisis. Hey, I didn't come up with that terminology. Take that up with Carly! In any case, she is having a crisis, all right. Carly Cooper is suffering from an acute case of 'What Ifs'. Which, let's be honest is more common than the common cold.
What if, amongst all the ex boyfriends she left behind, she missed Mr. Right? What if she was to hasty in walking away? What if?

Thus, Carly decides to do something about it. Her dreamer tendencies kick into overdrive and she hatches a plan. She is going to track down all her ex boyfriends by traveling all over the world. As it so happens, Carly's exes are NOT nicely concentrated in one geographical location. If only life were that easy. Does she have the money for it? Nope. But Carly is determined.

She will do this chronologically, because that's so logical. And then begins the journey of a lifetime.

*Reasons to read 'What If'*

1.Carly Cooper is a delightful protagonist. She is hilarious and a little crazy. Okay, a lot. A little immature at times. But she does goes on a whole journey of learning and discovery. Literally.

2.The spontaneity of the story will not let you be bored. There is always something happening. And most of the time, it is not what you think it is.

3.All the supporting characters are beautifully unique. Even the ones who take up just a few pages of What If. My favourite though, is Carly's grandmother. She is adorable.

4.Shari Low has an amazing talent for melding humour, sensitivity and an in-depth understanding of human relationships that appears effortless. This is the re-release of her debut novel. A reminder that she is an author who has the uncanny ability to make her audience experience a myriad of emotions.

5.The story is perfect for some vicarious traveling. We need that. Especially now, when travel prospects are quite limited in most parts of the world.

6.Since this story is set in 1999, it gives you a big dose of nostalgia. The anticipation for the turn of a millenium, people's excitement/wariness of the rapid technological developments.... Remember the Y2K scare? I loved reading and reliving all of that.

*Do I recommend?*

Heck, Yeah

NOTE- There is sexual content in this story. But not an overwhelming amount.