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What If?
A helper finds the diary and a letter addressed to Lily's daughter Deirdre with instructions that the diary be read aloud to her. Lily's last wish is that Deirdre learn the truth about her birth so that she might be able to understand her mother's choices all those years ago. And there begins a journey of three women - Lily, a young woman dreaming of the day she can escape to the city; her daughter Deirdre who has always felt responsible for the life her mother never had; and Zoe, the young helper who reads the diary to Deirdre. As each woman steps back in time, they realise that while life might turn on a single moment, what happens afterward is up to them.
407 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2013
6 people are currently reading
64 people want to read
About the author
Martina Reilly
32 books98 followersHi. It’s Martina Reilly here, the artist formally known as Tina Reilly! And before that, I was teen writer, Martina Murphy.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
May 13, 2022
Needed much better proof reading, and the characters were often irritating in their determination to be miserable.
October 22, 2018
This was my first novel by Martina Reilly and I'm extremely impressed. It is an emotionally in-depth and honest novel about the complexities of relationships, while also exploring other mature topics such as break ups and sexuality.
The novel navigates between the stories of Lily, an elder woman with Alzheimer's disease who has been placed in a nursing home; Deirdre, Lily's daughter with whom she has a strained relationship; and Zoe, a younger lady who works as the entertainment manager the nursing home and who reads Lily's diary aloud every Wednesday. Lily insists her diary entries from her youth be read aloud to her daughter to help Deidre understand the truth behind Lily's life.
The novel goes between present and past, through Lily's diary entries, which allows us to get a fully rounded view of who Lily was when she was younger and what made her become the person that she did. I really enjoyed these diary entries as they felt so raw.
The characters are well developed and likable. The relationships that develop or unravel throughout the novel are raw and honest, allowing readers to relate to the feelings the characters are experiencing.
This is a chick-lit novel that is fairly easy to read but still makes you think.
The novel navigates between the stories of Lily, an elder woman with Alzheimer's disease who has been placed in a nursing home; Deirdre, Lily's daughter with whom she has a strained relationship; and Zoe, a younger lady who works as the entertainment manager the nursing home and who reads Lily's diary aloud every Wednesday. Lily insists her diary entries from her youth be read aloud to her daughter to help Deidre understand the truth behind Lily's life.
The novel goes between present and past, through Lily's diary entries, which allows us to get a fully rounded view of who Lily was when she was younger and what made her become the person that she did. I really enjoyed these diary entries as they felt so raw.
The characters are well developed and likable. The relationships that develop or unravel throughout the novel are raw and honest, allowing readers to relate to the feelings the characters are experiencing.
This is a chick-lit novel that is fairly easy to read but still makes you think.
July 6, 2017
An enjoyable read about the complexities of relationships, this novel centres around Lily, who suffers from Alzheimer's, who requests to have her diary read aloud to her daughter. The novel interweaves Lily's story from the past with her daughter, Deirdre's present as well as that of Zoe (one of Lily's caregivers), who has the task of reading the diary. I felt it was cleverly put together and well-written.
December 13, 2021
Very satisfying read! Love all the interpersonal relationships and intertwining. Well done!
May 29, 2022
Great read
Just loved this story from start to finish. It's an amazing story. Highly recommend it I read it in one sitting 😀
Just loved this story from start to finish. It's an amazing story. Highly recommend it I read it in one sitting 😀
November 29, 2025
2.5/5. It ended well, but it was a SLOW build.
January 25, 2013
Martina Reilly is one of my favourite Irish authors around. I adore her books and rank Something Borrowed and A Moment Like Forever among some of my favourite books, ever. I haven’t read a book of hers in a couple of years though, not managing to get around to her release last year, Even Better Than The Real Thing. So when I received a copy of her latest novel, What If, I knew I had to read it. I owed it to myself as I adore her novels, and I adored Martina a review as she so kindly arranged a copy of the book for me.
What If is a very moving, emotional novel. I’ll be honest, I didn’t personally believe it was on par with Something Borrowed or A Moment Like Forever – for me, A Moment Like Forever is Martina’s best book, ever, it utterly blew me away and I still remember the shock and horror when the truth was revealed about Andi’s friend, Lexi. Martina picks her story subjects very well, and in this case, the novel focuses on Lily Deegan, who has begun to suffer from Alzheimers and has been placed in a care home. She has spent her life keeping a diary, and she wants her daughter, Deirdre, to listen to her diary, weekly, and she chooses the entertainment manager, Zoe, to be the one to do the diary reading.
I very much enjoyed the plot of What If, and I found Lily’s diary entries from the 50s and onwards to be quite absorbing, and it was a bit of a wrench to start reading about Lily’s life back then and then be yanked back into the present until the next week. I suppose my problem with the novel was that I just found it a bit slow-moving. It got a lot more exciting towards the end, but the build up to that was quite slow and although I enjoyed the novel overall, it wasn’t what I was expecting. Martina has always written more mature Chick Lit novels (and I don’t mean it that way – that her characters are old ladies, I just mean they deal with proper issues) but this one was a lot more mature, both in terms of characters (except for Zoe) and the topics it dealt with. But, on the plus side, there was loads I liked. Zoe and Dominic, for starters. I loved that. Ronnie, one of the residents at the care home deserved his own novel! I liked how Deirdre got closer to her (or greatcousin?)cousin, Rick who came to look after Lily.
There was a lot to like about the novel. Martina even managed to throw in one last surprise, right at the end there. Which, I admit, (she says smugly) I guessed. It takes a lot to surprise me these days, lemme tell you. I enjoyed What If. All of the characters really made an impact on me, and I admit, I even got a bit teary eyed near to the end (Martina Reilly is the QUEEN of the tear-jerker, I just don’t think anyone can beat her). I definitely recommend the novel, Martina Reilly has definitely matured her novels as they’ve gone on and although it wasn’t 100% to my tastes, I still thoroughly enjoyed it because Martina Reilly knows how to tell a story. I would very much recommend the book, and I look forward to what Martina brings us next, she is truly one of the most talented writers out there.
What If is a very moving, emotional novel. I’ll be honest, I didn’t personally believe it was on par with Something Borrowed or A Moment Like Forever – for me, A Moment Like Forever is Martina’s best book, ever, it utterly blew me away and I still remember the shock and horror when the truth was revealed about Andi’s friend, Lexi. Martina picks her story subjects very well, and in this case, the novel focuses on Lily Deegan, who has begun to suffer from Alzheimers and has been placed in a care home. She has spent her life keeping a diary, and she wants her daughter, Deirdre, to listen to her diary, weekly, and she chooses the entertainment manager, Zoe, to be the one to do the diary reading.
I very much enjoyed the plot of What If, and I found Lily’s diary entries from the 50s and onwards to be quite absorbing, and it was a bit of a wrench to start reading about Lily’s life back then and then be yanked back into the present until the next week. I suppose my problem with the novel was that I just found it a bit slow-moving. It got a lot more exciting towards the end, but the build up to that was quite slow and although I enjoyed the novel overall, it wasn’t what I was expecting. Martina has always written more mature Chick Lit novels (and I don’t mean it that way – that her characters are old ladies, I just mean they deal with proper issues) but this one was a lot more mature, both in terms of characters (except for Zoe) and the topics it dealt with. But, on the plus side, there was loads I liked. Zoe and Dominic, for starters. I loved that. Ronnie, one of the residents at the care home deserved his own novel! I liked how Deirdre got closer to her (or greatcousin?)cousin, Rick who came to look after Lily.
There was a lot to like about the novel. Martina even managed to throw in one last surprise, right at the end there. Which, I admit, (she says smugly) I guessed. It takes a lot to surprise me these days, lemme tell you. I enjoyed What If. All of the characters really made an impact on me, and I admit, I even got a bit teary eyed near to the end (Martina Reilly is the QUEEN of the tear-jerker, I just don’t think anyone can beat her). I definitely recommend the novel, Martina Reilly has definitely matured her novels as they’ve gone on and although it wasn’t 100% to my tastes, I still thoroughly enjoyed it because Martina Reilly knows how to tell a story. I would very much recommend the book, and I look forward to what Martina brings us next, she is truly one of the most talented writers out there.
August 16, 2013
I’d never read a book by Martina Reilly, but if What If? is anything to go by I’m going to really enjoy catching up with her large back catalogue. When Lily Flynn is admitted to a nursing home with Alzheimer’s disease, she decides she needs her daughter Deirdre to know the story of her life, so she asks a care assistant to read her the diary she has been keeping since she was fifteen. The story then follows the lives of the three women – the care assistant Zoe, Deirdre the radio gardener (her programme the source of much of the book’s gentle humour) who has always had a difficult relationship with her mother, and Lily herself through the years.
It’s a really engaging read, exceptionally well written with real emotional depth and a deft touch with the different story lines as they unfold. So many Irish woman writers could lay claim to the title of “the new Maeve Binchy”, but it’s difficult to get away from making that comparison – if you enjoyed her books, you’ll simply love this one. The story has a number of unexpected twists and turns, and a real heart – and it left me with a tear in my eye and a sense of loss for the friends I’d have to leave behind.
It’s a really engaging read, exceptionally well written with real emotional depth and a deft touch with the different story lines as they unfold. So many Irish woman writers could lay claim to the title of “the new Maeve Binchy”, but it’s difficult to get away from making that comparison – if you enjoyed her books, you’ll simply love this one. The story has a number of unexpected twists and turns, and a real heart – and it left me with a tear in my eye and a sense of loss for the friends I’d have to leave behind.
July 6, 2016
Martina Reilly, how can an Ireland-lover not love her?!?
This book is about a Woman with alzheimer (now living in a caring facility) who tries to get back to her past and make it up to her daughter in a way it was to be expected, considering her situation.
She kept writing a diary since her early years, however there is a great gap which she had to fill in later. Those memories were prescious to her and no one ever knew exactly what happened except for two people.. well a bit more tho that doesn't matter right now.
She wished the diary to be read out loud at the facility for her and her daughter, who has to know the truth as she says. Anyway, what makes this book a great book is, you really feel like sitting a room with all the people and listen to the heart-wrentching story of this old woman.
I liked to book very much and I think there will be a time in the future, where I'm boing to take it of my bookshelf and start reading it all over again.
This book is about a Woman with alzheimer (now living in a caring facility) who tries to get back to her past and make it up to her daughter in a way it was to be expected, considering her situation.
She kept writing a diary since her early years, however there is a great gap which she had to fill in later. Those memories were prescious to her and no one ever knew exactly what happened except for two people.. well a bit more tho that doesn't matter right now.
She wished the diary to be read out loud at the facility for her and her daughter, who has to know the truth as she says. Anyway, what makes this book a great book is, you really feel like sitting a room with all the people and listen to the heart-wrentching story of this old woman.
I liked to book very much and I think there will be a time in the future, where I'm boing to take it of my bookshelf and start reading it all over again.
January 27, 2013
I have read all the books by this Author and I love them, I found this book a little bit hard to get into, however a few chapters in and it all seemed to be better. I would defintely recommend this book as I enjoyed.
February 2, 2014
A nice easy read, with a not altogether predictable storyline. There was an edge to the protagonists that stopped you liking them 100% but then that is probably more realistic anyway. Chick lit to an extent but I did find it mildly addictive hence 4 stars rather than 3
January 28, 2013
Review to follow
February 22, 2015
Another fantastic Martina Reilly read, loved it and a wonderful ending
December 26, 2013
Loved it! Quite emotional but loved the way the stories intertwined.
October 26, 2013
A perfect ending. Really enjoyed it.
February 27, 2014
A little slow to start with but as the links between the characters became obvious the book definitely improved. I did not predict Ricks part in the story but maybe that was just me!
October 25, 2015
This book was well-written, but it was relatively mundane until the massive plot twist at the end. (Although that did almost knock me off my seat!)
June 30, 2017
Another amazing story by Martina Reilly, she doesn't ever disappoint.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews