--- description: Find out why 'If Only It Were True' made the list. title: 'If Only It Were True' Is on TIME’s List of the 50 Best Romance Novels image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4cf9f096621b67b4/698a59439862f576f7895f7a/If-Only-It-Were-True-Marc-Levy.png?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- Aug 01, 2024 # If Only It Were True by [Shannon Carlin](/author/shannon-carlin/) ## Shannon Carlin Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Carlin is a contributor for TIME.  French novelist Marc Levy’s 1999 debut, _If Only It Were True_,which was translated into English by Jeremy Leggatt the following year, is a quirky ghost story about love, loss, and fate. Arthur, a recently single architect, is surprised when he discovers Lauren, a hardworking ER nurse, hiding in the closet of his new San Francisco apartment. It turns out that she used to live there—until a serious car accident left her in a coma six months earlier. What’s even more surprising is that Arthur is the only one who can see, touch, and communicate with Lauren, whose spirit has detached itself from her comatose body in a nearby hospital. She needs Arthur’s help to become her whole self again, and the two embark on a series of fact-finding adventures that feel a lot like dates. The once-lonely pair find themselves falling in love just as Lauren’s mother decides to take her daughter off life support. Arthur must come up with a plan to save Lauren and their magical bond before it’s too late. _If Only It Were True_ offers a heartwarming look at the lengths one will go for the one they love. It’s also the inspiration for [_Just Like Heaven_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhlSLVJfYOE "undefined"), the 2005 movie starring Reese Witherspoon and Mark Ruffalo. **Buy Now:** _If Only It Were True_ on [Bookshop](https://bookshop.org/a/4973/9780743276849 "undefined") | [Amazon](https://amzn.to/4eZqZX9 "undefined") These are independent reviews of the products mentioned, but TIME receives a commission when purchases are made through affiliate links at no additional cost to the purchaser. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"Article","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996680/if-only-it-were-true/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996680/if-only-it-were-true/"},"headline":"If Only It Were True","datePublished":"2024-08-01T12:21:16.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-03T00:34:23.767Z","description":"","url":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996680/if-only-it-were-true/","keywords":["Books","E-Commerce","list","Special Project"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4cf9f096621b67b4/698a59439862f576f7895f7a/If-Only-It-Were-True-Marc-Levy.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Shannon Carlin","jobTitle":"Carlin is a contributor for TIME.","url":"https://time.com/author/shannon-carlin/"}],"creator":"Shannon Carlin","articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt4cf9f096621b67b4/698a59439862f576f7895f7a/If-Only-It-Were-True-Marc-Levy.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/books/","name":"Books"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996680/if-only-it-were-true/","name":"If Only It Were True"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Romance Authors Share The Book That Got Them Into Romance","description":"Romance authors like Alyssa Cole and Tessa Bailey talk about the book that started it all for them.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/m8vBnzUj/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2024-07-30T10:00:00.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/m8vBnzUj.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996680/if-only-it-were-true/","duration":"PT2M1S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/collections/best-romance-books/6996680/if-only-it-were-true/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```