“‘Our home,’ he says, and his voice cracks a little. ‘That’s not our home,’ I tell him. ‘Home’s only another word for us, right?’ He nods.”

At I’ll Have Seconds, a high-end fairytale vintage dress shop in Manhattan, Nora Hammond loves nothing better than pairing a rare find with the perfect client.

At home, Nora grapples with the bleaker reality of enormous debt, a tiny apartment, and ever-dwindling hope that she and her husband Jacob will have a family of their own. When socialite Evelyn Elliot charges into Nora’s life, the women spark an immediate connection, and Nora is jettisoned into the heady whirl of New York’s moneyed elite. As Evelyn’s stylist and confidante, Nora needs to learn all new rules of engagement for the uber-wealthy. But it isn’t until Evelyn decides her next cause is to carry a baby for Nora, that these rules–and this unlikely friendship–are tested.

I was hooked from the first chapter with this one! Evelyn was like the fairy Godmother that Nora needed. As the story progressed I was waiting with bated breath for Evelyn to pull the rug out from under poor Nora in regards to her extreme and immediate generosity. I won’t spoil whether she did or didn’t, but that aspect definitely had me listening at 2x speed to find out. The narration was wonderful, especially the southern accents of Evelyn’s parents. The talk of infertility and surrogacy was emotional and done very tenderly. An enjoyable listen for sure!

Thank you to Netgalley, Sourcebooks Landmark, Orange Sky Audio, and the author for the ARC and ALC. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A warm-hearted examination of motherhood, class, privilege, and friendship, The Favor is a great slowbuild contemporary fiction. Nora and her husband Jacob dream of being parents, but they are dealing with enormous debt from expensive treatments and are running out of options. When millionaire socialite Evelyn enters the vintage dress shop Nora works and practically buys out the whole shop, Nora and Evelyn quickly become friends. Evelyn, aware of Nora's difficulties trying to get pregnant, offers to be her surrogate. As a last-ditch effort, Nora and Jacob agree, though boundaries are soon blurred and friendships are tested. This is a story that will have you anxious like a thriller and smiling like a romance. I loved Nora's story, and I could definitely see this as a book club read.

Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.

A wonderful story, and it found me at a great time. One can say this book is about fertility challenges, female friendships, class and wealth, and the redefinition of family and motherhood. It is also about vintage clothing, jet-setting, influencers, and mid-1900s poetry.
In any case, it is very well written, with characters that come to life, colorful sceneries, and a great plot (and a delicious twist in the end.)
As someone who is not yet a mother but hoping to become one very soon, I understand the pain and hope in these pages on a certain level. The book describes these emotions from a place of knowing and compassion, and it is fair to say that if you know this sort of pain or know someone close to you who is going through it, there are a few places in this book that will make you weep.
I listened to the audio version, and it was very well narrated and brought the story together well. (

What a fascinating premise and story execution. In lesser hands, this could have been a maudlin, poorly written story, but here it sparkles and fully engages the listener. My thanks to Netgalley for granting me access to the Advance Listening Copy.

Evelyn Elliot, a wealthy young woman, bursts into the East Village vintage clothing shop where Nora Hamilton works, and promptly upends her life. Soon Nora is working for Evelyn as a part-time fashion stylist and even goes to lavish events with Evelyn attended by famous celebrities. In her real life, Nora is married to Jacob and they are frantically saving for a surrogate to carry a baby for them. Evelyn, who is a mother, impulsively offers to be their surrogate which might involve her lessening her globe-trooping and fancy foods. What could go wrong?

This sounds like the set-up for a farce or a sit-com, but in Griffin's capable hands, it is compulsively readable and literary. Besides motherhood and surrogacy, there is the intriguing issue of class- whether wealth gets in the way of true friendship when there is huge financial
inequity. And the references to fashion are fun.

This is the second audiobook narrated by Kristen Sieh that I have listened to-- the first was
"Community Board" by Tara Conklin and she was excellent in both. She creates vibrant and
believable female and male characters, and her energy and enthusiasm reel in the listener.

In all, this was a terrific read and I will search out other stories by this author and narrator.

The favor has a lot of good themes throughout the book focusing on surrogacy, found family, some unlikely friendship and absolutely unconditional love.

While i did enjoy the basis of this book, and i loved reading about the MCs journey in becoming parents i felt extremely detached from the characters.

I felt that the characters were extremely immature in certain sections of the book and also acted a bit too trusting and nonchalant about the entire surrogacy process.

I really enjoyed the narrator. She delivered the story very well and kept me engaged during consumption.

Overall, it was a quick read with a lot of wonderful themes but felt a bit frustrating during reading and unfortunately felt forgettable.

Two women who seem to have zero in common meet and both of their lives are changed forever. Evelyn is a socialite who lives her life exactly as she wants with great verve. Money doesn’t buy happiness, but it certainly can make it so much easier to attain. And way more fun. She is a kind and loving soul who does good and wants to make people happy. Nora is struggling to get by with her husband with so many dreams they have yet unfulfilled. As Evelyn and Nora grow closer the lines between employer/employee and friendship blurs as does the difference on their financial status causing the lines of their friendship to be challenged. It’s a beautiful story about friendship, love and what we will do for the ride or die people in our lives. Fabulous narration added to the experience.

A tale filled with twists and turns, well- crafted characters and a fabulous ending you don’t see coming.

The cover is deceiving with this one. The cover made me think it was a light book. But it delves deep into infertility, social and financial status, and friendship.

We meet Nora, who works at a vintage clothes boutique in NYC. Nora and her husband, Jacob, want to have a baby more than anything but are dealing with infertility issues. Into the boutique walks Eleanor. Eleanor is a big personality, oozes wealth, buys out the store, and next thing you know she and Nora are fast friends.

Their social status sometimes complicates this unlikely friendship. To complicate things even more, Eleanor offers to be a surrogate for Nora and Jacob. Things get a bit wild at this point, as Eleanor is still jetsetting around the world, changing appointments, and putting Nora on an emotional ride (honestly, I don't think it was on purpose - that is just how Eleanor lives her life). Nora and Jake are left wondering if Eleanor even intends to give them the baby when it arrives.

I really liked both Nora and Eleanor. They are obviously different in many ways, but at the core I felt they held the same values. Eleanor made me laugh many times during the story.

Also there's a little plot twist at the end I didn't see coming!

I also enjoyed the audiobook and narrator!

I have not dealt with infertility. If you have, might want to read up on this one before picking it up.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark and OrangeSky Audio for both an ARC and ALC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Evelyn and Nora become unlikely friends after Evelyn arrives at the vintage dress shop where Nora works just as the shop is closing for the day. From here, their friendship unfolds, but with an interesting dynamic, as Evelyn is independently wealthy from an elite family, and Nora is an average, middle-class New Yorker. Once Evelyn learns that Nora and her husband have been struggling with fertility challenges, she offers to carry their baby, drastically testing their relatively new friendship.

I listened to the audio of The Favor and finished in just a few days. The contrasting background and social status of the two women provide an interesting paradox. Initially, I thought Evelyn was hard to figure out. She seems to have Nora’s interest at heart but also is oblivious and selfish in many ways. It was interesting to see how this played out as the story progressed.

The character development kept me engaged throughout the novel. Nora is sweet and, while confident, struggles with wanting to please Evelyn because of her wealth. Nora experiences some tough seasons, and the author does a remarkable job illustrating these rocky situations while allowing Nora to grow through them.

The supporting character, Frankie, is one of my favorites. Everything about him made me happy, and I love that he’s Nora’s friend in and out of work. He and his partner adopted children through a surrogate and provided a much-needed shoulder on which Nora could lean. Having LGBTQ representation is always a plus too.

As a woman who has not experienced fertility challenges, I do not feel equipped to speak on the complexity of this topic. While it all seemed authentic to me, I would strongly encourage any reader to check for trigger or content warnings.

Thank you @orangeskyaudio and @netgalley for the advanced listening copy.

Title: The Favor
Author: Adele Griffin
Narrator: Kristen Sieh
Publisher: OrangeSky Audio

I went into this audiobook completely blind and I absolutely loved it! I felt such a strong connection to Nora and her infertility journey and I could not listen to this one fast enough!

Nora, a retail worker at a high-end vintage dress shop called I’ll Have Seconds, is in financial trouble as she and her husband struggle to start a family. At work one day, Evelyn Elliot enters while the store is closing and despite Nora’s objections, she agrees to help style her for an event. In doing so, Nora and Evelyn form a connection. Eventually, Nora continues to style Evelyn and Evelyn continues to throw money at Nora for all of the favors she provides. However, it isn’t until Evelyn makes it her mission to carry a baby for Nora, that their friendship is tested.

The Favor was just beautiful to me and it almost felt like I was listening to some sort of fairytale. I just adored this book and I highly recommend it! I also loved the narrator, Kristen Sieh!

TW: Infertility and Pregnancy

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Posted on Goodreads on June 12, 2023: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/144922955?ref=nav_profile_l
**Posted on Instagram (Feature) on June 12, 2023: http://www.instagram.com/nobookmark_noproblem
**Posted on Amazon on June 13, 2023
**-will post on designated date

Nora runs a high-end second hand dress shop and is just about to close up one evening when Evelyn comes in and ends up spending a lot! This begins a relationship of little favors (that are really big favors) that Evelyn asks of Nora. These favors impede on her life and her marriage with Jacob, but ones they accept when Evelyn offers to be the surrogate for Nora and Jacob. From the beginning of this story, I kept saying "no, No, NO!!!" in my mind! Cringey and uncomfortable! The ending wasn't what I expected at all, but the story kept me reading and interested.

The audio was very good and really enhanced this book.

My thanks to Net Galley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an advanced copy of this e-book and to Orange Sky Audio for an advanced copy of the audiobook.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫
𝐁𝐲 𝐀𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐞 𝐆𝐫𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐢𝐧
𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐫: 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐬
𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤: 𝐎𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐒𝐤𝐲 𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨
𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: 𝟔.𝟏𝟑.𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟑 𝒫𝓊𝒷 𝒲𝑒𝑒𝓀!

Thank you @tlcbooktours @orangeskyaudio and @adelegriffin for a spot on tour and a gifted audiobook.

The Favor is such a fun and warm read. The author did a great job of hitting on the pain, longings, and financial debt that Nora endured while trying for a baby with her husband. And when wealthy Evelyn comes along, I wasn’t sure if Nora should trust her, yet she offers to carry a baby for Nora and Jacob. Speaking of Jacob, he is so sweet and, I thought, rather patient.

The way Evelyn's behavior was all over the place frustrated me but also humored me. But that was the chance Nora took when she agreed to a jet-setting socialite surrogate. Fans of friendship fiction will love the dynamics between the two women and the range of emotions.


Thank you to @bookmarked for the gifted book.

Nora and her husband live in a tiny apartment in Manhattan. They have a mountain of debt and a desperate desire to have a baby. Everything they have tried has not worked. Nora works at a cute little high end second hand shop. one day Evelyn comes into the shop at closing and buys half the shop. A friendship is formed and Nora starts doing some work for Evelyn to help ease the debt. One day Evelyn offers to carry their baby. Now that is a favor. But does this offer change their relationship. Will Nora and Jacob get the baby they have longed for?

Thank you @bookmarked @orangeskyaudio @netgalley for a copy of this book. This was a story about Nora and Evelyn who are from different economic class and forms a friendship. The friendship takes a different turn when Evelyn offers to be a surrogate for Evelyn and Jacob who has been having trying to have a baby. I thought this book was interesting with exploration of privileged and forming a friendship where one has more financial freedom. The use of love for vintage designer clothes brought an interesting element to the story. I enjoyed the narration in Nora's POV.

- 3.75 Stars -

I went into this book totally blind and I really enjoyed it! I wasn't too sure what to expect, but I didn’t think a book about infertility, surrogacy, fashion and friendship would hit this hard!

We get to see a fair amount of character growth from our leading lady Nora throughout the book as she wrestles with a multitude of things. I really enjoyed watching her friendship with Evelyn grow throughout the first half of the story.

All the things regarding vintage designer clothing had me totally lost, but that’s just because I know literally nothing about anything fashion wise. I did however, totally love the supportive husband that Jacob was to Nora. We love a supportive man!

Overall, if you’re looking for a good contemporary read with quite the twist at the end, this could be the book for you!

🤍 Thank you so much to the publisher @orangeskyaudio & @bookmarked & @netgalley for this advanced reader copy!

⚠️TW: infertility, pregnancy, drug use

I don’t usually point out triggers, but if infertility is a trigger, this one is not for you. This story was sad and hopeful at the same time. Nora and her husband are having struggles with their fertility when Evelyn, a socialite and social media star, offers to be her surrogate, but still puts her entire life on social media. Throughout the entire story, Nora and her husband questioned Evelyn’s true motive. Is she doing it out of the good of her heart or is she going to keep the baby? I liked this book more than I expected to. Nora, down to earth, and Evelyn, eccentric and wealthy, seemed like unlikely friends. This was a deep dive into their friendship and the question, can their friendship last through this event in their lives? This would be a very interesting book club read as there are various topics to discuss and debate.

This book follows MC’s Nora, her husband Jacob, and the unexpected friend & socialite, Evelyn. Evelyn and Nora cross paths at the high-end vintage dress shop where Nora work & they have an instant connection. This instant connection brings Nora into the world of the elites, which drastically differs from the more “mainstream” life she leads. Their story explores themes of friendship, relationship, family planning struggles & takes readers on a journey that displays a different way to grow ones family. Yes, I’m writing that as vaguely as I can, as to not spoil anything from this beautiful story!

I was pleasantly surprised by this gem of a book, to say the least. At first, it seemed that there was a lot of focus on the fashion components, which is not my forte, but as I continued to read it was clear to me that the fashion information was intentionally included in the writing to help readers understand the way in which Nora thinks and how she sees the world.

The way that the friendship between Nora and Evelyn played out was beautifully done - and honestly, incredibly true to life! Displaying the good times & the bad, while also adequately representing the anxieties than can also come with friendship and finding ones place amongst new friends. The challenging topics (which I’m holding back from listing as to not give anything away) were profoundly explored with not only curiosity, but also with respect - noting that these can be incredibly hard, but also laced with beauty too. All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend that you pick it up as well!

This new release had me holding my breath for hundreds of pages. Would the flamboyant and generous uber-rich Evelyn, the surrogate and star of "Evy Does It" keep her word to hand over the baby to Nora and Jacob, the bio parents unable to carry to term. The lifestyle contrasts make a fascinating contrast. Then there is the haute couture and a mini mystery. My favorite character was Nora's stepmother Gabby. If you also read this one, you will know why. Absolutely LOVED this on audio.

Thank you to Orange Sky audio and Netgalley for a DRC in exchange for an honest review.

'The Favor' by Adele Griffin

First and foremost, I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to Netgalley and OrangeSky Audio for graciously providing me an advanced copy of 'The Favor' by Adele Griffin. The moment I embarked upon this journey, I found myself engrossed in a narrative that was as captivating as it was unexpected.

'The Favor' is the quintessential beach read: engaging, well-crafted, and utterly transporting. From the moment I began reading, the characters presented were intricately layered and distinctively genuine. They escaped the drudgery of cliché, instead showcasing an interesting dynamic that played out in an increasingly engrossing fashion as the pages turned.

At the heart of the narrative are two friends, their relationship complicated and intriguing. There's an undercurrent of power differential, expertly wielded by Griffin, that propels the story forward. The intricacies of their bond kept me absorbed throughout, each nuance adding another layer of complexity to an already compelling plot.

Griffin's masterful storytelling ability is showcased by an ending that was a literal punch in the gut - a true testament to her prowess. Just when I thought I had the plot figured out, the narrative took a dramatic turn, leaving me flabbergasted. The element of surprise was so elegantly handled, it kept me on the edge of my seat until the very end.

Yet amidst the suspense and drama, 'The Favor' is a light read. The eloquent descriptions of clothing and couture were a joy to read, an ode to vintage fashion that Griffin brings to life with a finesse few authors possess. The vivid detailing never felt forced or overwhelming; instead, it was seamlessly woven into the narrative, enhancing the experience by adding another layer of authenticity to the plot.

The pacing of the book was spot on. There wasn't a moment where I found myself sighing with impatience or rolling my eyes at predictability. On the contrary, Griffin maintained a narrative tension that kept me hooked from beginning to end.

In conclusion, 'The Favor' by Adele Griffin is a must-read for the summer season. It's a rare gem that offers an absorbing story, well-rounded characters, and an unexpected twist, all served with a side of fashion. If you're in search of a novel that will keep you entertained and guessing, I can't recommend 'The Favor' highly enough.

Thank you to NetGalley, Adele Griffin & OrangeSky Audio for an audio arc of The Favor in exchange for an honest review. This review is wholly my own & may not be reproduced.

This sweet story follows Nora who owns a high-end vintage dress shop. But at home, she and her husband are struggling to make ends meet and the fact that they may not ever have a family of their own. Enter Evelyn, an uber rich socialite who comes into Nora’s store. They immediately form a bond and become amazing friends. Then Evelyn decides that she should be the one to carry a baby for Nora and Jacob, which really tests the boundaries of their friendship.

Expected Release is June 13, 2023 and you need to RUN, now walk, to grab a copy ASAP.

For anyone who has struggled with infertility, this book will hit home. The characters were very well written so that you can resonate with each of them. This was such a heartwarming story that had me laughing, smiling, crying, angered – ALL the feels!!!

This was my first Adele Griffin read and she had me hooked from the very beginning. Her writing style flowed perfectly, the pacing was great and you can tell that she either really knew the content she was writing about or she researched it extremely well.

I’m definitely signing up for all future Adele Griffin novels!

4.5/5 Stars (rounded to a 5)