Twenty-two year old Poppy is used to not having her life together. Barista Rhiannon pretends she has it all together, but also does not. Together, Poppy and Rhiannon have to negotiate their lives, their feelings for each other, and Poppy’s pregnancy, while embarking on personal growth. Rhiannon was certainly bratty at some points, and the story is more focused on Poppy’s inner growth (which is appropriate, given that Poppy is the main character, and you can’t force others to grow for you). Poppy finally gets the strength and courage to stand up to her mother, make amends with her sister, cut her loser-ex loose, and greet her baby Oliver.

Poppy could use some friends at this moment in her life. She's pregnant and totally unsure about her life and capabilities as a single mother. The babies father is a deadbeat but she's made a decision and she's sticking with it. Rhiannon a has her own baggage to deal with but she's drawn to Poppy. The two try to figure out their feelings, changing circumstances and family dramas.

I love reading this journey unfold. Poppy and Rhiannon relationships is refreshing and not without bumps in the road but delightful nonetheless

Tropes can get boring and stale. Like really stale. But when you make them gay, they become a lot more interesting. Every turn in this book was very predictable, so I just let the story wash over me. It was honestly kind of refreshing in that aspect. I really felt for the characters in this book.

This book gives big Gilmore Girls vibes, but like if Lorelei had been into chicks and Christopher was even less likable. Set in Yonkers, Bell gives us a main character who comes from a wealthy and successful family; her father is hardly mentioned at all, but mom plays a role as the hyper-critical helicopter parent who still has a key to her 22 year old daughter’s apartment. A college drop-out who is overweight and pregnant with her stoner ex-boyfriend’s baby, Poppy is faced with the choice to have an abortion or raise the child; the latter of which she fears will cement her image as the family failure.

While I enjoyed the plot and characters, Bell's writing style left a lot to be desired. It felt kind of rushed in places where I think more time could have been spent digging into the characters. There are a lot of asides to the audience in the first person narrative that I could have done without and some internal monologues that weren't very clearly noted as such.

All told, the book was a quick read (I finished it in the course of two afternoons) and the story drew me in early on. It was a tad predictable, but it still kept me reading to know what happened next. As a bisexual millennial with a knitting habit and 2 kids, I definitely enjoyed the premise of the story and while I didn't love the writing style, I'm very glad to see positive bisexual representation in publishing and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a cute f/f romance book with a happy ending.

Knit, Purl, a Baby and a Girl by Hettie Bell is available on March 30th, 2021 from Carina Adores Publishing.

Copy reviewed was an uncorrected galley proof from the publisher; opinions are my own.