You Should Have Seen This Coming, Shani Michelle

You Should Have Seen This Coming by Shani Michelle is a fun new YA mystery to read. You might know the author as Shani Petroff, the author of YA contemporary novels, such as Airports, Exes, and Other Things I’m Over. Keep reading to learn more about this book and read about Shani’s favourite character to write about.

Title: You Should Have Seen This Coming
Author: Shani Michelle
Publisher: Swoon Reads
Publication Date: April 12, 2022

Summary (from Goodreads):

A teen girl who sees visions of the past must use her gift to save a kidnapped classmate in Shani Michelle's high-stakes YA thriller You Should Have Seen This Coming!

Hayden sees the past. Just touching an object will occasionally give her flashes of the previous owner's memories. And if that memory happens to be a deeply hidden secret, then she has no problem making you pay for your crime, in cash.

Cassie sees the future, and it sucks. She will randomly wake up from dreams filled with disasters that she feels compelled to stop, and she would really like to stop watching her boyfriend fall in love with someone else!

But when Cassie tries to warn Hayden that her latest blackmailing scheme is a trap, she knows she's really in trouble. All her visions warn her of the upcoming kidnapping, nothing she does stops it. And it's all Hayden's fault!

Can Hayden's gift help her find Cassie before it's too late?

Guest Post: You Should Have seen This Coming

Which Character Was Shani Michelle’s favourite to write about?

Picking which was my favorite You Should Have Seen This Coming character to write is so hard. Each had so many things about them that I loved coming up with!

But…if I had to pick, I’d go with Hayden. I spent the most time in her head. The majority of the book is told from her perspective, and I loved watching her grow and trust while never losing her snark.

The scenes she shares with Brody were so much fun to write. I love an enemies-to-lovers storyline, and I’d always find myself smiling when I was typing their scenes. (Although I will admit, I have a super expressive face when I’m writing. If I’m crafting a scene where someone is smug, my expression turns smug, if they’re angry, my expression turns angry, if they’re sad, many times I’ll look on the verge of tears. There’s been a few times where my husband has asked me what was wrong, if I was okay—but I was just writing—getting lost in my characters’ heads!)

Hayden came to me right away. Her backstory, her personality, even her first chapters. Originally the story was going to be told solely from her point of view. My editor, the amazing Holly West, suggested adding in some chapters told by Cassie, a teen who is not only psychic but gets kidnapped during the course of the book.

It was a suggestion I was onboard with instantly. It gave a whole other perspective to the story, one that really makes it richer. Although, it wasn’t always easy! Adding in Cassie’s point of view meant I had to make sure she couldn’t tell who her captors were, and I had a bunch of scenes where she was by herself. I’m a writer who loves dialogue, witty banter, tense interactions, and heartfelt ones, but this made me really have to get all of the emotions, all of the feelings out a different way. I did the most revisions on the Cassie in captivity scenes, but I’m really happy with how they turned out.

I really do love all of these characters! I can picture them in my head—and can even see what they’re up to next!

You Should Have Seen This Coming by Shani Michelle blog tour is in full swing! Make sure to stop by the other blogs on the tour.

About Shani Michelle

Shani Michelle is the author of YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN THIS COMING. She also works in TV news. When she’s not writing, she loves spending time with her husband, family, friends, reading, watching way too much TV, and coming up with new story ideas. (She’s also written several rom-com and middle grade novels as Shani Petroff)

Goodreads | Instagram