Samantha, Holly, and Katie were college roommates and best friends, but that was 25 years ago. Now Katie is hospitalized with cancer and she wants her former roommates and still best friends to travel cross-country to retrieve her Great Pyrenees from her ex-husband. Simple, right? Now so much, since Katie and Holly haven’t spoken to each other since graduation. But for Katie they are willing to do anything to make her feel better. As a result, the trip they make will be life-changing, eye-opening, and unforgettable.

The first few chapters of this book didn’t really capture my attention, but I decided to read on anyway. And I’m glad I did! Sue Garvin’s book is a winner. It is humorous, emotional, and tender. The characters are memorable (Summer, in particular), there are a variety of obstacles and situations, and the interactions and dialogues are well-written and entertaining. All in all, I Thought You Said This Would Work is a great read and one I most thoroughly enjoyed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

An entertaining book.

One friend is in the hospital with cancer and would like to have her Newfoundland with her for her remaining days. Two other friends are on not so friendly terms anymore; so it seems fun to toss them together in a van and have them drive half way across the country together.

They pick up a 4th woman in their travels to add to the mix.

oops, need to add a detour to Utah to the mix. One (traveling) friend falls for the handsome doctor of the friend with cancer; they are texting each other along the way.

Women's literature isn't my favorite genre, but all in all I liked this one. Where this book looses a star with me is that ... I'm pretty sure that the author didn't do field research in riding across several states with two large dogs and a kitten and three women. Besides that, it was an enjoyable (and worthwhile) read.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher (Lake Union Publishing) and the author Ann Wertz Gavin for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review.

Samantha and Holly haven’t spoken to one another in years. They are reunited by their mutual friend Katie who is in hospital and needs their help.

A touching, funny story about friendship.

I Thought You Said This Would Work is my first book I have read by Ann Garvin. This is a story of three friends who were college roommates. Sam and Holly have lost touch and Sam really doesn't understand what happened all those years ago. They are brought back together when Katie ends up in the hospital because her cancer has returned. All Katie wants is her dog Peanut back. The only problem with that is her ex-husband has brought the dog to a shelter AND that shelter is clear across the country from Wisconsin! So Sam and Holly join forces to get the dog back no matter what it takes. Add Summer into the mix - who was so funny! I laughed so hard so many times! Ann's sense of humor is fantastic! This book will also make you cry. Just a great story of female friendships in good times and bad. Highly recommend this book!

This is funny and entertaining but also a touching exploration of friendship. The story itself drew me in straight away and I really like how the author introduced the characters and made them feel real. Snappy dialogue and funny situations make this a book you won’t want to put down.

I loved this story of three friends who have been friends since college, had some kind of a fallout, and came together when one of them, Katie had cancer and they need to go rescue her dog from her ex-husband. Samantha and Holly hasn’t been in touch since they had a misunderstanding on graduation day and haven’t spoken to each other since. The only thing keeping them together is their friend Katie and she needs their help one more time to rescue her diabetic dog from her ex husband.

I loved how, despite their differences, the two friends were able to put it aside and team up together to do something for their friend.

And then, along comes the weird and fun-loving and totally carefree Summer. I liked her character a lot. Though she could be irritating and irresponsible at times, she was the one who kept the whole road trip exciting. I liked how she was not afraid to take chances and enjoy herself, and also how she was not afraid to speak her mind and to stand up to Holly and her negativity. And how she is ready to do anything to keep her friends safe and complete the mission, though they seem to have met only then.

Overall I liked the story and was laughing out loud most times with Summer and her antics. And I liked how Sam and Holly, though unable to stand each other, team up for a rescue and were able to sort out their differences along the way. It put faith in my belief that friendship can withstand anything.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of the book in exchange for an honest opinion.

#NetGalley #IThoughtYouSaidThisWouldWork

This one hit a bit close to home on many levels. I have cancer, I rescue dogs, I’m from the Midwest but relocated to the west. I know many of the references in WI.
I don’t do sappy, sweet usually this is why. I don’t want to cry.
Ann Garvin writes with heart, passion and kindness.

Ann Garvin knows how to write an entertaining story. She also always gets the characters just right. Samantha, Holly, and Katie, could very easily have been friends of mine. The three have been friends since college, yet something happened to the friendship of Samantha & Holly and they have not really talked since Samantha was in the hospital giving birth to her daughter. Now it's years later and Katie is in the hospital fighting cancer for the second time and Katie calls upon her two best friends, Samantha and Holly to make a cross country trip to steal a camper from her ex-husband in order to rescue her beloved diabetic Great Pyrenees dog. Sam is dreading the whole harebrained trip. Imagining multiple days in the vehicle with Holly, it was sure to be uncomfortable as Holly gave her the silent treatment. Along the way they pick up a crazy has-been, Hollywood talk show hostess, who makes sure their chakras are aligned and the journey is even more eventful than it already was. Widow Samantha meets not one but two hot men and Samantha & Holly are pulled out of their comfort zone and forced to confront their friendship troubles. Nothing is easy, but they do what needs to be done for the sake of their friend Katie. This book would translate so well to screen. I am picturing Melissa McCarthy as Samantha, Kristin Wiig as Holly, Amy Pohler as Katie, and Drew Barrymore as the has-been Hollywood talk show hostess.
#IThoughtYouSaidThisWouldWork #NetGalley

Samantha and Holly haven't been in the same room in ages - they don't like each other and don't pretend otherwise. However the one thing they have in common is Katie - who they've been friends with since they were college roommates and love unconditionally. But now Katie is struggling in hospital with Cancer and needs one little, simple favour - travelling to the other end of the country to steal back her horrid ex-husbands VW, locate her diabetic dog Peanut and bring them all back home to her.

Two thousand miles is nothing compared to how much they love Katie so even it means a road-trip with someone they can't stand they're putting on their seatbelts and setting off.

Along with all the strange antics they get into along the way, Samantha and Holly are finally going to have to stare their conflict in the fact and learn about each other and themselves to see if any friendship is truly beyond saving - if not for themselves then for Katie.

I Thought You Said This Would Work was a beautiful journey, life affirming and and heartbreaking all at once. The journey wasn'yt just the drive - it was a journey of self-discovery, second chances, love and loss that leaves the reader unsure whether to laugh or cry. The story spiraled and looped and instead of moving forward it lead back to the past and the things left there.

The friendships in this story hit me right in the heart - I felt so much love and admiration between our friends and saw so many of my failed and sucessful friendships scattered throughout the pages..

This book gave me all the feels- made me laugh, made me cry, made me smile. Loved the characters and different POV's.

Thank you to #NetGalley.

If you want a humorous but yet sort of deep book, this is it. Picture two former college friends (Holly & Samantha), on a mission for their other college friend (Katie) whose in the hospital with cancer, going to pick up her dog from her ex-husband, who put "Peanut" the dog in a pound, because his new wife is allergic. Samantha is skeptical since she and Holly had a falling out and haven't spoken in years and she cannot figure out the reason. Samantha is single, widowed before her daughter was born. Maddie is 18 and almost out on her own. What made it even sillier (but it shouldn't be) is that Samantha has a sleeping disorder and can fall asleep at anytime and anywhere and she does at the most inopportune times and places.

Peanut is a Great Pyrenees and diabetic one who won't go into small cars and it has to be a van. Blend in Summer, a ex-TV star who Samantha meets on a plane when she goes to meet Holly to pick up the dog. Then the hilarity ensues; she is a trip and keeps them all together on the trip even with her shenanigans. They find a van, then they have to find the shelter that the pound moved him to, which is Utah. Also going on is Holly's wife who's pregnant. It all comes out in the end (pun intended) what the reason for the "break-up" was. Add in a good looking doctor (Katie's) and the vet who is at the shelter in Utah who Samantha both likes.

This book had me laughing and sort of sad for Katie's situation but the book didn't focus on the sad times.

Samantha and Holly set out on a long road trip to collect their friend’s dog from the pound.
They are joined in California for Peanut’s rescue by d-lister celebrity hippy Summer Silva who is big on alternative psychological therapies.
Summer transforms this very road trip into a more nuanced journey and is the perfect foil for widowed, neurotic mother Samantha and her super successful former pal Holly who is about to become a parent.
The reason why Samantha and Holly became estranged did not work for me. No spoilers but for two intelligent women it was super juvenile and unbelievable and the positive resolution seemed too forced.
Overall an emotional, engaging road trip with a difference. Perfect for dog and cat lovers.

I found nothing enjoyable about this book at all. I found the characters to be unsympathetic and the storyline dragged on.

I've been reading too many depressing novels lately, so this sounded like a good change of pace. Even though the premise is a dark and depressing, like every other crazy adventure story the hijinks are so bizarre they'll make you laugh in disbelief.

Unfortunately, I couldn't connect with any of the characters. These were women in their 40's yet they act and sound much younger. It seems like they're still stuck in their college days, and have never outgrown that phase. Also, the romantic angle in the book was a really bad choice, and further established that the characters were clearly emotionally stunted.

*Thanks to NetGalley for the DRC*

Sam’s best friend, Katie, has cancer, and as always, Sam has dropped everything to be by her friend’s side. This time though, Katie’s other best friend (and Sam’s ex best friend) is there too. Sam has no idea why Holly stopped speaking to her years ago, or why she appears to still hate her now, but when Katie finds out her ex-husband has dumped her beloved dog in a pound, Sam agrees to make the road trip to rescue him, with Holly.

Accidentally collecting a celebrity has-been on the way, they navigate bizarre circumstances, changed plans and a pit stop with a woo woo shaman, all in the name of giving Katie what she needs most right now.

I absolutely adored this book. It was funny, emotional and downright entertaining, despite the very real and tragic subject matters along the way. Not only do we watch Sam and Holly try to untangle their destroyed friendship, themes of empty nest fears, impending motherhood worries, grief, dating and assertiveness all played a part.

I often avoid contemporary books because I’m not a fan of the cliche romance aspects, but I’m so glad I picked this one up. While there was some light romance going on, there was nothing that overtook the friendship aspect of the story or was in any way unrealistic.

I read this all in one night, I couldn’t put it down and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fun, engaging read that will make you laugh and cry! Now I’m off to look up some more of this author’s books!

Holly and Samantha, two former friends and both friends with Katie, have to go together on a road trip to get Katie's dog while she's in hospital. Only tiny problems are:
- Holly and Samantha are no longer friends; in fact, it seems that Holly can't stand Samantha.
- Katie's dog is with her ex-husband.
- In order to take the dog back, they have to steal the ex-husband's camper.
What can go wrong?

I loved the book! It's told from Samantha's point of view, and she's a really likeable character, it felt as if I'd known her for a long time. The book is hilarious at times and more serious and a little bit sad at other times, but it works perfectly. The secondary characters are also lovely (I'm looking at you, Summer) and overall this is a sweet story.

Two things I loved about the book are that even if the characters are not young, they haven't everything figured out (I could totally relate to them), and that even if there is some romance in the book, this is a story of friendship. It is just what I was looking for.

I was nervous about this book because I knew one of the characters was battling cancer and I was NOT in the mood to ugly cry.

Thankfully, this story is charming and witty and, if it does invoke tears, it won't be until you close the book at the very end. This story follows Samantha, a forty-something empty-nester who winds up on a crazy adventure across the country to pick up a dog and return it to her friend... who has cancer. She has to travel with her ex-best friend and they pick up several unlikely stragglers along the way. This story reminds us that communication is a two-way street but someone needs to start driving.

Animal-lovers, such as myself, will really enjoy the middle chunk of the book that takes place at the real-life Best Friends Animal Society, the largest non-profit animal rescue center in the United States. I applaud the author and the sanctuary for their collaboration and I encourage all readers (of the book or just this review) to make a donation to this wonderful place.

Sometimes you need a book that will make you laugh until you have tears streaming down your face. Sometimes you need a travelogue. Sometimes you need a heartfelt tale of the complex bonds of friendship and sometimes you just need to read about goofy dogs. No matter what you’re in the mood for, get ready to hit the jackpot, because Ann Garvin’s latest novel, I Thought You Said This Would Work, is all of these things rolled into one.

I Thought You Said This Would Work takes us on a journey with Samantha Arias, who hasn’t spoken to her former college roommate Holly Dunfee in years—although Samantha is still fuzzy as to why. When their mutual best friend Katie enlists their help while she’s in the hospital due to cancer, there’s no way they can say no, even if that means driving cross-country together, stealing Katie’s ex-husband’s VW camper, and bringing Katie’s diabetic Great Pyrenees home to her. (Easy peasy, right?) If two thousand miles, a 100-pound dog named Peanut, and a weighted history aren’t enough, Sam and Holly’s adventure is further complicated by the flighty D-list celebrity who hitches a ride and an unplanned detour to an animal sanctuary in Utah. With the highway in front of them and decades of unspoken wounds on their tail, Sam and Holly must put their differences aside in the name of their love for Katie, and maybe find the road back to each other along the way. I Thought You Said This Would Work is a hilarious and heart-wrenching tale of old friends, new friends, and the bridge in between, and I loved every leg of the trip.

What makes Ann Garvin’s writing so beautiful is that it balances laugh-out-loud humor with heart-stopping poignancy. Through all of the zany hijinks, there’s a pool of emotion underneath. For every moment of sadness, there are three more of utter joy. In short, it’s life in a nutshell, highlighting that even during times of aching tragedy, rays of light, happiness, and mild absurdity find their way to break through.

And then there are the chapter titles. Have you ever heard anything as true as, “Got a Problem? Get a Dog”?

Every character in this novel is so real and lived in, from Sam and her inability to master teenaged lingo to Holly and the wealth of medical expertise she’s gained from Grey’s Anatomy. I never knew where the story was going to take me—how can you when one of the main characters is a YouTuber with a show called Trick Out My Tent?—and it was an absolute treat to buckle up, hang on tight, and go along for the ride.

If you’re looking for a book that will make you laugh, cry, and feel every emotion in between, don’t miss I Thought You Said This Would Work. It perfectly explores the messy, unpredictable, awkward thing we call life, and it’s a trip you can’t afford to miss.

This is a fun fast read about mature women bonding- or rebonding- during a road trip they take to retrieve a dog. it's got good characters, snappy dialogue, and a positive outlook (even though cancer is looming over all of it). Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

This is not my normal genre, but I thought the plotline sounds interesting enough to give it a go.
I Thought You Said This Would Work is a well-written novel about insecurities, friendships, motherhood, womanhood all wrapped in one chaotic road trip. I appreciate the writing style and the plotline, definitely kept me reading until the end. I love the character Summer! She is funny, unpredictable, and very wise. Unlike the main character Samantha, whose low self-esteem and insecurities dominated her whole life and there were so many moments that her thoughts/actions made me cringe so much that I want to stop reading. I would definitely like to read a spin-off focused on Summer and how she became the person she is :)

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for an ARC in exchange of a honest review.