I enjoyed this read from a new to me author! I requested it up on NetGalley because I love rom-coms and it seemed up my alley and it did not disappoint.

Some of the IVF things were wildly inaccurate and I had had enough of the inspirational quotes by the end of the book but I also realize the importance of the quotes in regards to the storyline. I liked the dynamic between the two MCs and really loved Josh's personality.

Overall it was a very solid read and honestly I'm glad the a book that talks about infertility as not enough do!

When Gemma finds herself at her family New Year’s Eve party she realizes she’s become the neighborhoods desperate single woman. Thanks to her sad love life & her mom pitching her a date with any guy in town. Gemma however, has no intention on settling and finds herself wanting a baby but without the complications of a “baby daddy”. Being infertile she seeks in vitro fertilization and finds herself needing a sperm donor she’s familiar with. Will Josh be up for this task? Will she confide in her family? How will this whole experience play out? And where will it lead her?

This book seriously has EVERYTHING. The perfect amount of spice 🌶 , romance, drama, awkward moments, laughter and tears. The friendships and choices Gemma finds herself in, makes for a huge page turner. I only thought the ending was slightly rushed but otherwise this book is awesome and I recommend!!

Reviewed on: Amazon (pending approval), Instagram @4everbooked, tik Tok @4everbooked, and good reads @4everbooked

This romance audiobook was enjoyable to listen to. I really liked the characters that this story focused on and how their relationship has evolved from their meeting as children to their relationship as adults.

Gemma has a lot of her life planned out and it's mainly going according to plan after a couple bumps in the road. But one thing she truly wishes to have has been close to impossible so far in her life. After a decade of disastrous relationships and an infertility issues she has nearly lost the chance to have a baby.

Josh is and always has been the polar opposite of Gemma. Not to mention he’s also her brother’s best friend. For the past twenty years Josh has attended every Jacobs’ family birthday, holiday, and event – he’s always around. He has become a constant in her life where it's not always there when it comes to people not blood related to her. When Gemma brings up a deal with Josh that will be unemotional, businesslike arrangement for him to help her make her dream of having a child come true. No commitments, just a baby, and she is surprised when he agrees.

Through their attempts to keep their arrangement business like it becomes increasingly difficult to keep emotions out of the mix. Especially when it feels like a life, and a family, and love are forming during the time they are spending together. Will they both decide they do truly want so much more than just their arrangement together? Or will they walk their separate paths once the arrangement is complete?

I really loved going through the journey with these characters. Thank you NetGalley for an arc of this audiobook.

This story was so so sweet! I loved the infertility awareness, Gemma’s independence and self-assuredness, and Josh’s overall character/personality. I went and thinking this one would be super cheesy (and it was a bit cheesy at times), but it also made me tear up. Overall, I really enjoyed this one!

Happy #pubday to this gem! Josh and Gemma Make a Baby by Sarah Ready is just what I needed to start off 2022. I’ve read some good books lately with guys named Josh—Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating & The Hating Game—and this Josh is giving them a run for their money!  
 
A newly single 32-year-old, Gemma is ready to become a mother. After an infertility diagnosis, Gemma turns to IVF. Cue in her brother’s best friend, and the polar opposite of Gemma, Josh Lewenthal. Of course, Gemma thinks he will be the perfect sperm donor with no strings attached. But there are always strings, aren’t there?!

A sweetly romantic, heartfelt, laugh out loud read! I decided to listen to the audio version of this book, and it did not disappoint. Erin Mallon did a wonderful job in narrating.

A big thank you to @netgalley and Swift & Lewis Publishing for giving me access to an ARC of this book!

I anticipated this book would be fun and sexy based on the light heartedness of the title and cover, and it was, however it was so much more than that. Josh and Gemma Make a Baby by Sarah Ready made me laugh out loud and full-on ugly cry. I was not prepared for the level of emotion and pain that I would feel because of this book and I am honestly impressed. Sarah Ready takes two people with seemingly little in common and brings them together for one of the most intimate, challenging tasks imaginable and manages to convincingly make them fall in love along the way. Overall, the story is light-hearted, fast-paced and full of enough inspirational quotes used to satisfy you for the rest of the year.

⭐⭐⭐⭐✨/ five stars

Josh and Gemma are acquaintances who have known each other for decades and when Gemma decides she wants to have a child she reaches out to Josh to assist as the sperm donor. They navigate the challenges of using IVF to become pregnant while attempting to date other (objectively gross) people, maintain professions, avoid awkward setups coordinated by a well-meaning mother, and keep any emotions out of the mix.

As you can probably imagine this fails miserably leading to an adorable story of two people who reconnect and develop a bond through one of the most intimate processes possible, baby making. Josh Lewenthal is consistently a dream partner with his confidence, charisma, and comic fame (?), who supports Gemma through the process while subtly wooing her. Meanwhile, Gemma is so caught up in her perceptions of who other people are to give him or her friends the benefit of the doubt. This all comes to a head when Gemma is forced to confront that the encouraging quotes she lives by cannot take the place of genuine connections with other people and she ends up putting herself on blast in the process.

My biggest wish for this book is that Ready had explored in more detail Gemma's relationships with her fertility group members. I loved each and every member of her support group with all of their quirks and would have loved to see them feature more in the story as I feel that those women played a huge role in challenging Gemma to grow and open up to others. In some ways each of their stories felt more real and more powerful than Gemma's sudden desire to have a child, but that would have been a different, much heavier, book. However, Josh and Gemma Make a Baby does take on the burden of unsuccessful pregnancies and repeated unsuccessful attempts to become pregnant and because of that I would not recommend this to anyone who is currently grieving from a miscarriage, or struggling to conceive.

Gemma is in her 30s and her biological clock is ticking. She has a job that she loves and is passionate about and wants someone to share her life with...preferably a baby. Gemma has been there, done that with men and she is done searching for her Mr. Right. All she needs now is egg, sperm, and IVF to make it happen. But who's sperm to use? Who does she know and trust to have their baby and it not be weird and awkward? Enter, Josh Lewenthal. Josh and Gemma have known each other their whole lives. Josh and her brother are best friends and he has been a constant presence in her life and her family's life. He is the perfect choice...if only she can convince him.

The title gives away a little bit of the plot of the book, but honestly I was impressed by the fact that I didn't see all of it coming. I had expectations for what would be in the book and how the plot would come together, but it ended up being better than I expected. The characters were very relatable for a romance book and honestly the depth behind Gemma and her fear of commitment and being let down was pretty impressive for a "fluffy" romance novel. I would say this is pretty light on the romance and would be a good read for someone who tends to steer clear of super steamy books. It was sensual at some points, but appropriately so in my opinion and was very tasteful.

Gemma wants a baby, but she is divorced and decidedly single, so she decides to do it on her own. But she needs a sperm donor to start IVF, so she recruits her brothers best friend, of over 20 years, Josh Lewenthal. When he eventually agrees they begin a journey that neither of them expects.

I loved this book! Both Josh and Gemma are very lovable characters and my love for them grew as the book went on. I loved their witty banter and interactions and seeing their friendship grow throughout the book. Josh’s poignant moments made this story special, his relationship with his dad, his connection to Ian and his obvious feelings for Gemma. The antagonist and side characters were all well developed and rounded the story out to make me love it even more. Gemma’s group of friends that she makes from the IVF support group was one of my favorite aspects of the book.

I loved the way that pregnancy, IVF, and the struggles these bring was addressed. Though it is not something I have personally experienced it all felt very realistic. Besides pregnancy and IVF I felt that this book discussed a lot of other topics that do not get discussed enough such was women feeling like they have to have kids by a certain age, having babies in your 30s, and even having to be in a stable relationship by your early 30’s.

This book had everything you could want in a romcom. This book had a lot of laughs and fun but there were many heartwarming and charming parts. This book made me feel so many different emotions. This is my first book by Sarah Ready and I look forward to checking out more of her work. I also plan on checking out more of Erin Mallon’s work as well. She did a fantastic job narrating. The way she was able to hit all the comedic timing but also capture the sadness was incredible. This book was a very strong 4.5 stars for me.

Light , quick read. I enjoyed the characters , nice to see infertility and ivf represented. Enjoyable narrator.

Rating: 4/5 Stars
I’ll be honest, I was 50/50 on picking this book up. It had my favorite trope (brother's best friend) and my least favorite trope (main characters having a baby) combined, but I’m so glad I gave it a shot. Josh and Gemma Make a Baby was a total delight from start to finish!

The feminist ideals behind this story were dynamite. It highlighted a woman does not need a man to have a child if that’s what she wants and that she can be career-oriented while simultaneously being a mother. Showing the struggles and highlights of IVF in today's society is so refreshing no matter how ridiculous parts of it felt - i.e. the zany doctor, crazy patients, overly holistic friends, etc. The support group Gemma joins not only further shows the different struggles women go through during the process, but also added fun and lovable side characters because after all, everyone needs a good girl gang by their side when going through something so life-changing!

Gemma was a bit of a complex character and I had a big love-hate relationship with her. On one hand, she was very immature, superficial, and judgmental - especially of Josh who she was asking a huge favor of. She was obsessive over motivational quotes her boss founded countless self-help books on and truthfully if I had to listen to one more fluffy quote I think my eyes would have rolled out of my head. But on the other hand, she was driven, quirky, and relatable. She knew what she wanted in her life and career and fought hard to get there. Her biggest downfall was creating an idea of people in her head and running with it as law which I think a large portion of the population can admit to being guilty of.

Josh on the other hand was entirely swoon-worthy from start to finish. I think I developed a full-blown crush on him as the book progressed. He was such a stable force in Gemma’s life and you could feel how much he cared about her and her family. He had his own struggles, but he always wore a smile and supported those around him first and foremost.

Two elements knocked this book down to a 4/5 star read for me - Gemma’s boss Ian and Gemma’s mom. Let’s start with her mom. She continually put Gemma down and tried to set her up with every loser she could find. She shamed her constantly for her weight and her inability to naturally have children and to find a husband - as if those factors are what would complete her as a woman. She would have been my least favorite character if not for Ian who somehow took the cake in that category. Picture every insufferable man you’ve ever known and put them in one person. He used his position and knowledge of Gemma’s crush on him to woo her in what felt like a creepy way. He thought that because he was a self-proclaimed self-help guru that he was above everyone and I audibly groaned during every chapter he was in. I respect that both of these characters were pivotal to the plot, but it was nearly impossible to find anything redeeming about them.

Josh and Gemma Make a Baby was the unexpected and heartwarming story I was desperately craving without even knowing it. While there were certainly some unbelievable and overzealous parts, overall I laughed, I cried, and I loved. Sarah Ready knocked this one out of the park!

Going into this, I was unsure. It isn't common that I find myself enjoying the pregnancy trope in books. But having heard Erin Mallon's fantastic narration, I decided to give it a chance.

Gemma and Josh are very lovable characters. Although at first I found the dialogue a bit cheesy, overtime it grew on me. The inspirational quotes that are placed throughout the story always have a reason for being there, and don't feel like filler at all. The antagonist and "side characters" all feel well developed and like they belong in the story just as much as the main characters.

I also really appreciate the way pregnancy, IVF, and the struggles that come with these situations is addressed. Nothing felt forced or over-dramatic, and I definitely felt the emotion portrayed was fitting.

Overall I really enjoyed the experience of listening to this book, and would recommend it to anyone looking for a cute rom-com!

⭐4.5 Stars On My Instagram Account⭐

Romantic comedies are comfort for my heart. Josh And Gemma Make A Baby by Sarah Ready has everything I want and expect from a romcom. There is the independent woman not looking for a serious relationship, misunderstandings, the evil rival, awesome girlfriends and a loving nosy family.

Gemma is in her 30s and has not had the best track record with men. Her mom's fix ups are so off and, sadly at Gemma's expense, hilarious.

On New Year's Eve Gemma decides despite her diagnoses of infertility from severe endometriosis she wants a baby. She decides that her brother's best friend Josh would be a near perfect donor. She has known him her whole life, he isn't crazy, he is very handsome and basically a nice guy even if he lives in his Dad's basement.

Surprisingly, Josh agrees to help with the IVF treatment and wants to be a part of the baby's life. What follows is hysterically funny moments at the doctor's office. Like when Josh needs help leaving a "donation" for the baby making process. Honest tears from laughing so hard.

In the middle of all this baby making Gemma starts dating her wealthy self help guru boss Ian who knows Josh and has nothing good to say about him. Then there are the awesome women in Gemma's IVF group who are not only quirky but have their own endearing stories.

I am amazed how six time award winning narrator Erin Mallon not only hit all the comedic timing to make this romcom not just funny but swoon worthy romantic.

What made this story so special were Josh's poignant moments. Josh's relationship with his Dad, his obvious feelings for Gemma and his connection to Ian. Also, the ending the following New Year's Eve was absolute perfection. My heart is happy💖

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publishers via #Netgalley for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

"You're the star that guides my heart."

I liked the banter between Josh and Gemma. Honestly, I did not like Gemma really on her own - she annoyed me for most of the book, but I absolutely ADORED Josh. Some parts of the book felt a bit clunky; there were some pieces that I wish maybe flowed a bit better.

I know that Gemma finally reading Josh's comic at the end was important, but I wish that we got more about Josh. I wish we got his point of view, I find romances with dual POV's are that much more rich.

TW for miscarriages and infertility.

When Gemma decides that she doesn't need to have a boyfriend or be married to have a baby, she enlists the help of her brother's friend Josh. He's laid-back, doesn't take anything seriously and has a revolving door of women. Despite all of that Gemma has known him for years and he's practically one of the family. She's shocked and ecstatic when he agrees to be her sperm donor. And so begins the journey of Gemma and Josh trying to make a baby.

I was able to listen to the audio version as well as reading the book, and I love being able to do both together. I'm a fan of Erin Mallon's audiobooks and thought she did a great job with this book. There were some laugh out loud moments and I love how close Gemma is with her family. As they spend more time together Gemma realizes that she doesn't really know Josh at all and had misconceptions of the type of person he is. She's scared at the realization that she's beginning to have feelings for him, afraid it will complicate the situation. Throwing herself into dating her boss Ian, Gemma realizes that she can't hide from the truth but is scared to admit her feelings to Josh. Overall this is a good book to read and listen to and I look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you Netgalley, Swift & Lewis Publishing LLC and IBPA/Member's Audiobooks for the opportunity to read this book.

really wanted to like this and I was excited until I wasn’t. I couldn’t stand the protagonist. She was a pushover and unlikable and annoying. It didn’t feel realistic….

Gemma is 32, divorced, feels insecure about her curvy body, dresses as she really doesn't care, and her mother is trying to set her up with all these losers in their small town. She works and lives in New York for a life guru, Ian what's his last name, he is the person who invented all these feel-good quotes. Gemma's job is, I guess, to post them on social media and make presentations. This dbag Ian is her crush. After whatever reason, or maybe learning her ex-husband is expecting his third child, and another awful set up by her mom, Gemma decides she will have a baby on her own..

This book has its moments of laughter and cuteness, and the pace was also great.
It had a solid start and the idea behind the story made me want to read the book in the first place.

I listen to this as audio and Erin Mallon was exceptional.

I really really wanted for this to be successful reading and for almost half of the book, I thought it will be... Nevertheless, do we count it as a win if the book made us feel? Even if those feelings were negative?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of the book.

4.5 stars *Spoilers Ahead*
I absolutely adored this book. The narrator was very good and I loved every single second of it.
Considering the name felt a little off to me, "Josh and Gemma Make a Baby" it was not what I expected at all. Some points in the story had me crying and some parts had me so happy that I felt that I was feeling the emotions with the characters.
Gemma- I really liked Gemma's character, she was very positive and I really like that part of her. I didn't like how much she quotes the quotes though even though it does make sense to the story so it's fine. She's 32 and had problems with infertility during to a disease she had, so she does what any logical person would do in this situation... she asks her brothers best friend to be her donor.

Josh- I adore Josh so much, I love everything about him. He's 33 and draws comics for a living and I think his whole character just showed how in love with Gemma he was.

This whole story had me screaming in happiness in moments like whenever she found out she was pregnant and crying with the miscarriage and the death of Josh's dad. I had so much fun listening to this book. I really liked some side characters too, like Lavinia (I have no idea how to spell her name) even though she was a pretty unlikable character I personally really liked her for some odd reason, all her friends especially Hannah I loved so much with all her talk and how funny they all were. I hated Ian so much, I knew he was gonna do something stupid and he did, though I still don't understand who the woman in his bed was... anyways him stealing Josh's quotes was so shitty and made me so angry, though I was happy that Gemma finally figured it out and I was happy that Josh was the one who wrote them.

At the middle of the book I though about his comic and thought he definitely wrote it about Gemma, I'm so happy I was right but I also thought that he loved her since they were teenagers.. I was wrong at that part. I'm so happy they got their happy ever after but was the baby a girl 0r a boy??

I definitely need to check out more of Sarah Ready's work.

I finished with listening this book and it's a solid romance!
It has tropes that I like (brother's best friend, friends to lovers) and it mentions some trigger warning scenes (grieving, IVF procedures). It's funny and it's seriouses and it's overall a nice read for long winter nights.
I got both kindle and audio version because life is busy and I really liked the narrators voice. The timing was just perfect and she had such comfortable and flowing voice that I could listened to her for a long time. She narrated several characters and used different voice for each of them so there was no confusion in the story.

I liked Gemma's personality and her strong will and Josh is such a cutie too. I really enjoyed their story.

Thanks to Netgalley for receiving ARC copy. All opinions are my own.

In a Nutshell: This delivers exactly what it promises. So if you are on the lookout for a typical romcom that goes exactly as you expected, this one is for you.

Story:
Gemma is a 32 year old divorcee who is "average in every way". She has a great job working for famous self-help guru Ian Fortune, she lives in a lovely apartment in Manhattan, and she has a loving and (mostly) supportive family. The only tiny issue in her life is that Mr. Right is nowhere in sight and her mom won’t stop setting her up with weirdos. Gemma decides that the solution to her happiness is not a guy but a baby. Unfortunately, after an infertility diagnosis when she was younger, the only chance she has of conceiving is to go for IVF. And when it comes to search for a potential sperm donor, who better than Josh – the laidback, handsome, funny and dependable best friend of her brother. Will Josh agree? (You know the answer.) Will Gemma find what she’s looking for? (You know the answer.) Will there be a baby at the end? (Well, duhhh!!! You know the answer!)
The story comes to us in the first person perspective of Gemma.

Let’s create a checklist of the qualities a contemporary romcom typically has.
• A goofy and clumsy heroine who is unaware of everything other than her own needs.
• A sexy rich guy who's secretly in love with the goofy girl but she doesn’t know it. (Duh!)
• A creepy hot guy whom the heroine has a crush on but who is actually a douchebag, unbeknown to her. (Duuuhhhhh!!!!)
• A large and crazy family who are both endearing and irritating, and who love to poke their nose in affairs none of their concern.
• Close friends of the heroine, each of whom fits into their own stereotypical trope: the gorgeous rich girl who is desperate for true love, the nature-loving vegan who wears remedy beads and meditates and follows weird natural healing ideas, and the smart foul-mouthed woman who uses her bluster to cover with a heart of gold.
• Too many over-the-top situations that would never happen in real life. (I mean, seriously! If you feel like you are going to puke and there’s someone standing in front of you, how difficult is it to turn your head and puke anywhere but on him!?!??! Sheesh!)

Basically, there's hardly any romcom trope left untouched. (Oh, one more item to tick - there’s also a cheating ex!) Where this book attempts to be different and succeeds is that hardly any romcom focusses on having a baby. Most only focus on the couple. So the struggles faced in conceiving a baby other than the natural method, and the heartbreaks and uncertainties associated with this process are very well brought out. Also, every chapter starts with a cheesy self-help quote. These are fun, especially as they represent the chapter and Gemma’s thoughts perfectly. Some of the scenes between Josh and Gemma are really cute and heartfelt.
At the same time, the characters follow the computing acronym of WYSIWYG – “What You See Is What You Get”. Everyone is exactly as expected, there are no surprises. Josh was the typical good guy, Ian was the typical bad guy. Gemma was a bit too self-centred and rude for my liking. I am not a fan of Sophie Kinsella but at least when she writes a clumsy lead character, she still makes her loveable. Gemma did not win my heart in spite of her struggles because of the way she treated everyone in her life. Some of the secondary characters are jerks. I couldn’t understand Gemma’s mother’s attitude, for instance. She comes off even more self-centred and narrow-minded as Gemma. Genetic flaw, maybe?
Also, there are too many over-the-top scenes. (Every modern romcom has at least one such scene, I don’t know why. This one crossed my level of permissible stupid content.)
Basically, you will get everything that you expect from this genre. And if that’s all that you are looking for right down to the predictable happy ending, you will enjoy this book. Those looking for steamy scenes will be mighty happy.

I heard the 9.5 hours long audiobook as narrated by Erin Mallon. She is a brilliant narrator and she certainly enacts the scenes well. She is very expressive and every emotion shines perfectly. (Anyone who can narrate a sex scene with full gusto and passion without bursting into giggles earns my admiration.) I wasn't a fan of her male voices, but no other complaints.

3.5 stars from me, rounding up to 4 because of the fabulous narration.

My thanks to Swift & Lewis Publishing, LLC, Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), and NetGalley for the ALC of “Josh and Gemma Make a Baby”. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audiobook.

This was a cute read, & such a an emotional journey my word.

Gemma is a 30-something woman who decides she want to take control of her life/destiny & try to have a baby via IVF. And being that she is single, & doesn't want to go the anonymous donor route, she pitches the idea to her brothers best friend, Josh.

It was a lovely story, told by a great narrator. and it really did get quite heavy & emotional in the 3rd half of the book. But it gave us the HEA with the ups & downs that reality comes with too. Really enjoyed the read.