What Happened That Night

by Sheila O'Flanagan

WHAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT is an enchanting read by Sheila O'Flanagan, bestselling author of THE HIDEAWAY, perfect for fans of Marian Keyes and Lisa Jewell.

Then
When Lola Fitzpatrick catches the eye of Philip Warren, she's new to Dublin and loving it. He's used to getting what he wants...and she can't resist him. Until one night he forces her to make an impossible choice. If she'd known then what she knows now, everything might have been different.

Now
Lola's daughter Bey has inherited her mother's impulsive streak and it takes her down dangerous paths. Then one night she too finds herself in front of a man she loves, with impossible choices of her own to make. For both women, what happened that night changes everything. For better. For worse. For ever.

Genres: Chick Lit, Romance, Fiction, Contemporary

466 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 1, 2017

About the author

As you can see, a Dubliner all my life. My parents owned a grocery shop in the Iveagh Markets, in the Liberties area of the city and I guess city blood runs through my veins.

As a child I enjoyed reading and telling stories and everyone thought that I end up in a job which had something to do with books and literature. But though I applied for a job in the library all of the job offers I got were in commerce.

I turned down lots of them before my mother accepted one for me (I was on holiday at the time). It was in the Central Bank of Ireland and that’s how my career in financial services began.

I started out in administration and then moved jobs until finally I was working as a dealer in a commercial bank. Eventually I was promoted to Chief Dealer (the first female CD in the country). I traded lots of different things – foreign exchange, swaps, options, bonds…all of the kind of things you read about in the papers and that sound very technical and difficult. Of course once you’re doing it, it’s not half as technical as it sounds.

But I still loved reading and writing (which I did in my spare time) and I desperately wanted to write my own book. I guess I never quite got over the fact that I was never offered the library job! In my thirties I decided that it was now or never and I sat down, stuck Chapter 1 on a page, and started. I wrote the whole thing before sending it off.

I was offered a publishing deal (with no advance) by an Irish company but only if I wrote a different book! So back to the drawing board, I started again. It was another two years before it was published. It wasn’t until I’d written a few books and was offered a contract (this time with an advance!) from another publisher that I felt able to give up my trading job and write full time. So, even though it took a long time, I eventually realised my dream of being a full-time writer.

And now I also write a business column for the Irish Times.

When I’m writing a book I want to do three things:

* Tell a good story
* Make the reader feel like they know the characters
* Make each book better than the last

I don’t write for any particular audience but I suppose I must have people like me in mind – people who have busy lives and who like to escape into someone else’s for a while.

I love writing books. I hope you enjoy reading them.

Reviews

[Bookread2day · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sheila O'Flanagan is one of the most classiest women's fiction writers. I enjoy all her books.

Lola Fitzpatrick works in a passport office and shared a flat with three girls in Dublin. She was pretty much broke and all she can afford is a bread roll for her lunch. After working as a clerical officer for nearly four years it was about time she started moving up the ladder.

A story about diamonds must be a favourite read for women readers.

The sparkling diamonds of Warren's jewellers caught Lola's eye. Warrens was most famous for the Adele collection that was each named for a flower.

Lola stared at the all diamond Snowdrops wondering if she would ever be able to afford anything remotely beautiful as an Adele piece. Women can dream can't they?

When a man appears beside her and asked her why don't you try it on, he was Philip Warren the son who would one day inherited the jewellers.

Of course after being persuaded to model the Adele range, that she couldn't afford to buy, Lola leaves Warrens jewellers in a hurry or she will be late getting back to work and with out giving Philip her number.

Lola wants to see Philip again but how is she going to do that and Philip can't seem to think about nothing else but Lola. He needs to find her to have her. He is confident that he would eventually. After all, Philip was a Warren, and the Warrens always got what they wanted. No matter what.

A lovely page turner. I recommend reading What Happened That Night as I believe that this is the most fantastic novel that Sheila O'Flanagan has written.

[Nicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sheila O'Flanagan is my favorite women's fiction author. I have read all her books and enjoyed them all too. I feel horrible rating this a 3. It's more a 3 1/2 really. It's not a bad book and it's as nicely written as the others, but I just didn't really feel all that enthralled by Bey and her story. Actually, I preferred Lola's chapters at the beginning. Reading about her struggles with Philip and his snooty family was much more interesting. Bey was kind of flat although likeable enough and the jewelry storyline. I don't know... kind of meh for me. Also the outcome with Will was so painfully predictable.
Maybe just an off one for Sheila. She's still my favorite and I still look forward to the next one.

[Dianne · Rating 1 out of 5]

Who really cares what happened that night? Frankly, not much did anyway. Talk about much ado about nothing. Whoever writes the blurbs for these books needs to actually read them, because the phrases "he forced her to make an impossible choice" and "leads her down her own dangerous path" have no bearing on this book at all! It does however make it sound really exciting and promising - it's not.

The Upstairs/Downstairs theme running throughout the story was frankly ridiculous and incredibly old fashioned. Then there was poor country mouse versus the wealthy city mouse., the constant rehashing of old events in story, silly one dimensional characters, long useless passages introducing random characters and events which were of no bearing to the story whatsoever, lots of background fillers thrown in to embellish and explain otherwise unfounded storyline.... blah, blah, blah. I could go on but I won't. That's enough. Just relieved it's finished.

[Trish at Between My Lines · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my second Sheila O’Flanagan book this week and I had forgotten what lovely reads her book’s are. This one features a jewellery designer and her passion for her work was hugely inspiring.

Bey has family issues to work through, and man issues as none of her men last longer than a jar of coffee! But her journey is a fun and challenging one to follow.

I’ve been feeling a little down lately, and this book has made me stop wallowing and search for what my own passions are. And to start focusing on them again.

I love when a book is uplifting and stimulating. And these characters embody strength and power, especially the power that comes from recognising the error of your own ways and moving on from that.

[virginia king · Rating 1 out of 5]

Soooooo boring

The only reason I carried on reading this book until 70% before giving up, was because if I read some before going to bed, I was guaranteed a good night's sleep, as it was so boring I would drop off in the middle of a chapter!! Just what was going on, I couldn't tell you, it was, as someone mentioned earlier, like an 'O' level student's essay, written circa 1970. It was not going anywhere, no plot, no storyline, no humour, (only in the sense it was so unbelievably awful) weak characters who I couldn't care less about, and it was a week of my life I won't get back, but the nights sleep was a bonus!!

[Nadia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting but that night is irrelevant to the story. Rubbish title

[✰ BJ's Book Blog ✰Janeane ✰]

Copy received from Hachette Australia for an honest review

I am not going to lie, I was not sure what to expect when I picked up What Happened That Night (and I did push it aside to read other books a couple of times before picking it up).

Almost everything in Lola and Bey Fitzpatrick's lives revolves in some way around "what happened that night" - not going to give away what happens though, you will have to read for yourself.

I adore Lola from the first time we meet her, and her daughter Bey is just wonderful.

This isn't a love story, it is a story of families, decisions that change lives and the consequences of those decisions down the track.

I love Lola and Bey's relationship so much. It is the kind of relationship we should all strive for with our parents/children. Unconditional love at its finest.


I am not going to lie. I disliked, and in some cases down right hated about 90% of the other characters 95% of the time. I know we weren't particularly supposed to like them, but I found them completely horrible every time they were on the page - you will get it when you read it, believe me you will!

I loved that the Irish/Englishness of this book was not toned down for the US market (not everything is about America, just saying). I loved the European feel of the story.

The story is full of emotion, I lost count of how many times I yell at my book, wanting to throw it across the room.

This was my first Sheila O'Flanagan read, but I will definitely be reading more in my future.

[Hayley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first adventure with Sheila O’Flanagan (despite having The Missing Wife to read on my book shelf for some time) and I was utterly thrilled with this book!

Lola Fitzpatrick works in the Passport office having moved from her childhood village and farm upbringing. It’s here she meets the very rich and charismatic Philip Warren, the heir to a fine jewellery store. They quickly start a romance that ends badly (partly due to the Warren’s abhorrent behaviour of the working class Lola). However Lola finds herself pregnant.

Years later, Lola has young Bey and is living back with her mother at the farm. She has not told Philip Warren about their child, and is only discovered by Philip’s father Richard when she returns to Dublin with Bey in tow. Richard effectively pays off Lola to keep the child a secret.

But the truth will out, and when Philip does eventually learn of his daughter’s existence, their first Christmas together doesn’t go to plan. In fact an event that takes place that night would shape Bey’s future forever.

Ultimately this is a book about family. About bonds that can be made and broken and that certain events in childhood can truly shape the adult that you become. It’s also a story about love and strength in the face of adversity.

O’Flanagan knows how to write unlikeable characters! Whilst Philip Warren annoyed the stuffing out of me, ultimately he was a weak man who was controlled by his bitter mother Adele. I intensely disliked her character. Her snobbishness, her undeterred opinion that the Fitzpatricks were nothing but beneath her really grated me. It was her treatment of the young Bey that caused ripples that would continue throughout Bey’s life.

I adored Bey and Lola. The sacrifices that Lola made to ensure that her daughter was happy and healthy were heart warming. She put her above all else. Even more endearing was that she was flawed and admitted it.

O’Flanagan writes with both mystery and realism. Quite an achievement! The world of jewellery making seemed so far removed from my reality and glamorous, yet her emotional sentiments and tribulations are one that I think most people would be able to relate to.

I can’t wait to delve into the next rich story.

I would like to thank Becky Hunter at Headline for a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

[Pam Robertson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the two central characters, Lola and Bey for their independence and determination to forge their own way in life. I also found the dynamics between the other characters interesting and how they related to these two. I particularly liked the way the narrative goes back to different times and you keep meeting the characters at different times in their lives.

The story carries you along but you know that events in the past will not stay hidden. The consequences of Lola's decisions will have a bearing on her daughter. Secrets will out.

In short: a page turner romance which keeps you hooked to the end.

Thanks to the publishers for a copy of the book

[Gabrielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good family drama. I do enjoy books that are about a particular subject, this one being jewellery. The main characters kept focusing on past decisions, and reliving things people said, which did start to get annoying but all in all it was a great read.

[Debora Nilsson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Den är lätt att dras in i och man vill gärna fortsätta att läsa. Samtidigt är det en ganska enkel berättelse, väldigt klyschig. Men är det feel-good man är ute efter rekommenderar jag verkligen!

[Sami · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I was left feeling a bit miffed and mystified by this book. The prologue, which is set 'now', goes out of its way to make it seem like there's a Huge Event later in the book at the launch of an exclusive jewelry collection. I can't be the only one whose mind went straight to thinking someone gets killed when the lights go out, or some very expensive jewelry is stolen. Okay, so I'm intrigued enough to go with it when the book then goes back 30 years into the past to talk about a woman trying to make her own way in Dublin in the 80s. For the most part I liked Lola and enjoyed her story, then as Bey was born and grew up I enjoyed following the events of her life as well. The book picks up enormously in the middle section about the awful Christmas spent with the Warrens. But for me that stuff in the middle was the highlight because after that it was all jewelry this and gemstones that and short term relationships this and will I ever by happy? that, and then finally we get to the Fateful Night that was hinted at in the prologue and we discover nothing really happens at all when the lights go out. Really. Abso-freakin-lutely nothing. This felt almost like a betrayal after all the hints that were dropped about Bey thinking she was a Bad Person, and her being accused of jewel thievery (simply for picking up a ring that her half sister clearly said she didn't want...way to over dramatize). I seriously thought she might have a secret identity as an international jewel thief (actually that's a great idea for a book), but no. Just a book about a woman and her life and relationships, which is fine, if I'd known that's what it was going in, instead of being lead astray by a prologue that hinted at criminal intrigue.

Boy.

This author's writing style though, is good. I liked the settings and the characters (when they weren't self-flagellating about every minor infringement they ever made). I think maybe this particular book just irked me because of the reasons I said (and also I'm not a jewelry fan so that didn't help. I do think jewelry is pointless and a rather disgusting display of consumption at times. All I could think when Wil was talking about sourcing his gems was 'how do we know these aren't blood diamonds by the way?' lol. Maybe my mind just goes to dark places, but seriously. A book that focusses this intensely on jewelry and jewelry making with diamonds specifically, should have had some discussion about how people suffer and die in Africa for no good reason other than rich people like the way they shine...but like I said. My mind = a dark, dark place at times and that was clearly not the reason for this book). I might enjoy something else by O'Flanagan if I know it's just going to be meandering stuff about relationships and nothing else. I liked that her female characters were independent and strong, they never let a man walk all over them (and many tried). I liked a lot about it. I just felt cheated by a prologue that lead me to believe the book was something it wasn't.

[Zelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Detta är den första bok jag läser av Sheila O`Flanagan, har velat läsa hennes böcker rätt länge. Hon är ju rätt stor i feelgood genren, hon är känd för sina relationsromaner. Detta är en typiskt feelgood som har de där ingredienserna kärlek, hemligheter, vänskap. Man vet lite hur det ska sluta men det gör ingen ibland behöver man läsa denna typ av böcker.

I början drivs jag med i handlingen men halvvägs in kände jag att den inte riktigt fångade mig längre. Tempot saktar av och berättelsen är på tok för lång. Författaren hade vunnit på att korta ner boken en 100 sidor.

Jag gillade beskrivningarna v smyckena och juvelerna. Författaren beskriver dem så levande så man verkligen kan se dem framför sig.

[Steph · Rating 5 out of 5]

A really very good book that was both easy to become immersed in and to read. I enjoyed all the characters, they were all interesting and easily likeable or not so likeable.
It started out telling the story of Lola as she met Phillip and her life after that and I honestly preferred the young Lola’s life to in the later part, her daughter Beys. The book was meant to be about these two women but I felt it was more centred on Bey and we only got the odd paragraph about Lola afterwards and in the end it was all about Bey and how her life turned out and not Lola.

Anyway as a story it was great, as with so many characters it wasn’t just Lola and Bey. With so much happening over a lifetime, there was always some drama befalling them.
The only dislike I had of Bey and at times Lola was that in Beys childhood she made a mistake and because of a chance remark she carries this self loathing around with her for a lifetime and blames herself for everything, she is full of self pity. When she takes a step too far with a certain man she runs away before he can even tell her how he feels, she won’t even let him speak and then she gives up her career and job and runs away. She began to irritate me with how pathetic and scared she always was.
Her Mum Lola was not as bad but she thought that every choice she made years ago were wrong and everything with Bey was all her fault. They were peas in a pod but it got boring after a while. Luckily and I think this was a saving grace, this self recrimination didn’t happen too often and only nearer the last sections.

Other than them annoying personality traits it was a thoroughly enjoyable read.

[Natasha Wasike · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was honestly one of the best books I’ve read in a while, the story is gripping, I couldn’t put the book down. Sheila O’Flanagan has a magical way of transporting you into her story, I felt like Lola and Bey . I was completely immersed. Such a worthy read

[Akcherrybomb · Rating 4 out of 5]

We meet the two central characters Lola and her daughter Bey. At first we meet Bey in the present at what sounds like a jewellery event. The story then flits back to the past tense of Lola and her relationship with Philip.

We see the struggle which Lola faces in bringing up her daughter without a father but also her strength in turning down a marriage proposal knowing she doesn't love the person and that she won't marry for money.

Fast forward to Bey when she is 11, she wants to know who her father is and finally they all meet.However after a disaster of a Christmas where she is forced to stay at her fathers, contact is mostly cut.

We then get to see Bey as a young adult working designing jewellery. It seems it is in her blood, she is a Warren as much as a Fitzpatrick. Bey's hard work pays off and once again she is thrown into the Warren family... But this time on her own terms.

With the past mistakes haunting both Lola and Bey, will they open themselves up to love but also being able to forgive.

[Dale Dow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not just a romance story, to me it was always a story about the relationship about a mother and her child moving into extended family, chasing dreams and finding love. There were times I was shouting in my head about how silly the main character was being. The prologue I think wasn't needed... it gave you a spoiler of what was inevitably going to happen at the end which spoiled that moment, hence only 4 of 5 stars

[Margi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read several books by this author over the years with The Missing Wife being my absolute favourite. What Happened That Night was an easy and enjoyable read and one that I read very quickly as I got very involved in the story. Being a lover of jewellery, I enjoyed the elements of jewellery design and making throughout the book as well as the appreciation for beautiful stones needed to make fine jewellery.

[Leona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great book by Sheila O'Flanagan and one which I highly recommend. This is.a perfect holiday read. It's an easy read but one which you won't want to put down. The author has a great way of bringing her characters to life . Four stars from me

[Magdalena Golden · Rating 3 out of 5]

So it often goes like this: I decide I'm in a mood for a light, mindless chick-flick, and then I'm annoyed that it doesn't have enough substance 🤷‍♀️ I guess I just love being pleasantly surprised by books like The Break that strike a great balance between light and serious so I have to also accept that sometimes that balance will be not exactly to my liking.

That said, I can't complain too much. I love low-key multi-generational stories set in places where I have lived so that's two boxes ticked right there. The prose was also all right, elevated by Aoife McMahon whose audiobook narrations are quickly becoming favourites of mine, so I'm quite sure I'll be reading more of Sheila O'Flanagan, even if I don't expect her books to become my all-time favourites. They might just scratch a particular literary itch I get from time to time and that's fine by me 🙂

[Maia Cruz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Den där kvällen var en snabbläst bok, som trots sin mediokra karaktär gick snabbt att ta sig igenom. Det är en väldigt oklar och otydlig bok, efter att ha läst baksidan och de första kapitlen förstod jag fortfarande inte vart boken var på väg. Flera hundra sidor in förstod jag fortfarande vad intrigen skulle vara… det var som en lång telenovela, många sidokaraktärer och sidequest men utan ett verkligt mål?

Karaktärerna är inte märkvärdiga, händelserna är mediokra och storylinen är mellanmjölk. Ändå tyckte jag att det var mysigt och nästan intressant att läsa om smyckesmakarna…

Jag vet inte om det beror på att det är en översättning, men författaren ältar och upprepar sig så enormt mycket att jag inte kunde undra om boken egentligen är ett manuskript till en nittio avsnitt lång serie. Dessutom känns det som att Sheila O’Flanagan tappade bort sig själv och plotten efter halva boken… känns som att allt var ett stort sidospår.

Den där kvällen är tydligt skapad för medelålders kvinnor som vill ha en mysig läsupplevelse på balkongen med sitt morgonkaffe, vilket är varför jag tackar och bockar och vänligt ger den 1,5 stjärnor!

+ För alla irländska namn och kulturinstick!
+ För att inte ha stereotypiska spanjorer utan faktiskt bra representation 🙏🙏

(Började läsa 22e men tog inte upp det igen förrän kanske 28e)

[Boktok73 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sheila O'Flanagans böcker är feelgood som man kan lita på. Det är perfekta böcker då man vill varva med något lite lättare mellan blodiga deckare. Så även "Den här kvällen". Underhållande trovärdiga karaktärer vars livsöden det är ett nöje att följa. Gnistrande ädelstenar som säkert varje kvinna drömmer om. En pärla till bok! Tack till @lbforlag för boken!

[Suse · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lola und Bey - Mutter und Tochter, deren Lebenswege jeweils durch eine schicksalshafte Entscheidung in einer Nacht geprägt werden.
Schöne Geschichte die zeigt, dass Familie immer wichtig ist.
Nicht der beste Roman von Sheila O'Flannaghan, aber ich lese ihre Geschichten doch immer wieder gerne.

[Kim Solleder · Rating 5 out of 5]

excellent, love Sheila O'Flanagan, great enjoyable read.

[Emelie · Rating 2 out of 5]

2,5owls

[Katarina Kongstad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Underbar, fantastiskt och lysande. Älskar hur smyckena får ta mycket plats och att det handlar om att våga och våga misslyckas.

[Olivia Hansson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Så bra! Tog många olika vändningar som gjorde den till en riktig bladvändare 🤩

[Amy Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book. It had a lovely ending. Was different to read a book based on jewelry shops.

[Lou Grimm · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know why? but this is a book I didn't expect to like. Yet I was roped in from the prologue: it's done so well I just couldn't stop wondering about it: is she jewel thief or event host? Is the hand that touches her shoulder welcome or feared? And I had no idea how it would end until literally the very last line.

It's a new take on an age-old problem that all too many women can probably identify with: do I love him enough? And is that really my subconscious nagging me, telling me something's wrong? Or am I just confused and overthinking it?

For me, What Happened That Night isn't about the realness of setting, nor about vivid surroundings or the vitality of characters. What it gets spot on is emotion. The turmoil and turbulence of the stupid self-doubts that stir our minds. And not just any character's - it's Bey who's the heart and soul, the very point of this story. Everyone pales into shadows next to the intensity of her feelings and passions.

This depiction of love for example:

Being in love - even if the object of her affection was totally unaware of it - was a bewildering yet exciting sensation. Every day, whether she saw him or not, [he] was always in her thoughts. Not necessarily at the front of them - after all, she was working hard on the projects Clara had given her and they needed her concentration - but she was conscious of his existence, of the fact that he was on the planet, that even when she couldn't see him, he was out there somewhere. She was always alert for the sound of his footsteps on the stairs, or the moment when he might push open the door and say hello. The fact that he was away more than he was in the office didn't matter. Her happiness was inextricably linked with his presence. Every day she didn't see him was a crushing blow, but every passing day brought her closer to one when she would.

When I read this, my body tingled. My heart raced. My brain frazzled. I knew exactly what Bey was being set up for next. Because in the instant of reading, I felt it with her, and remembered who made me feel that way and how that ended up. And that's O'Flanagan's power.

But it doesn't stop there. O'Flanagan perfectly conveys the misunderstandings experienced by her characters through internalization. And there is a conversation about projecting self-confidence early in the second half of the book that every woman should read.

But it's not just for women: this is for any man who wants to understand why women stew and hash up the past:

'Men can compartmentalise,' said Eilis. 'Women are terrible at that. We keep going on and on about things, letting them take over our heads until we're wrecked. Meanwhile the men aren't in the slightest bit bothered.'

And I love this snippet from her characters talking about families who date back centuries:

'All our families date back just as far...It's just that we haven't kept track of them...And the only reason these ancient families are so rich is that their ancestors were better at raping and pillaging than ours.'

While some of the turning points are foreseeable, the human reactions are not. In fact the only bad I have to say is that some of the earlier scenes feel contrived - the discovery of the bank statements by Adele for one.

And what I love most of all is the unashamed Irishness and Englishness of it all: none of the names have been simplified into generic names for the US market.

This is a gorgeous read, one that I wish I'd read when I was in my early twenties. My life would have been so much different!


***I received a free copy of this book from Hachette Australia for my honest review***

[Monika · Rating 3 out of 5]

När maj månads läsplanering var avklarad så kände jag att jag behövde lite feelgood. Sheila O'Flanagan är väl inte min favorit när det gäller feelgood, men Den där kvällen stod där i hyllan för recensionsexemplar och såg lite ledsen och övergiven ut. Så den fick det bli. Läs mer på min blogg