A Day Like This Explores the 'What Ifs'

Do you ever wonder what your life would look like if you had made different choices? Taken that job offer, moved out of town, or even simply turned right when you should've turned left?

That's exactly what artist and mother Annie Beyers finds out in Kelley McNeil's newest novel, A Day Like This, a fascinating look at the possibilities of what could have been.

Annie has a seemingly perfect life — her dream house in the country, a devoted husband, and a beautiful five-year-old daughter, Hannah. But on a day that starts like any other, Annie is on her way to take Hannah to the pediatrician when a truck pulls out in front of them, causing an accident. When Annie wakes up in the hospital, nothing is the same.

Asking for her daughter, Annie is met with confusion from hospital staff, telling her that Hannah never actually existed. Frustrated, Annie turns to her loving husband — or, rather, formerly loving, as Annie finds out the couple are headed for divorce, having given up their idyllic home in the country.

With no daughter, no husband, and no dream house, Annie learns that in this life, she is a successful artist — something she gave up when her daughter was born — and lives in New York City, a far cry from the simple life in the country she so loved. In her search for answers, Annie is led to understand what is memory and what is real, discovering the truth about her current life and being forced to reconcile her past with her present.

Written in such a way that captivates readers from the start, McNeil's newest novel is a page-turning mystery, allowing readers to explore the idea that perhaps this isn't the only life we are meant to live — perhaps there are other versions of us in other realities, going about their days until the threads of time cross over. Or maybe it is just our own brains playing tricks on us. Either way, McNeil's writing is both thought-provoking and fascinating, allowing a glimpse into what might have been. — Ally Kutz 

Lake Union Publishing // 288 pages // Mystery, Suspense