Cover Image: The Friendship Breakup

The Friendship Breakup

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Member Reviews

I liked this book. Seeing how Fallon navigates her life through her friendship possibly being over. One thing I will say is that the characters seem too old to be acting this way. Though i do know that suburban moms can be very exclusionary and gossipy so it make sense. It just annoyed me how much could have been solved with them being more upfront and communicating. That however would not make a good book. I like how the book focused on the mc trying to improve herself outside of her relationship be it her friendship or her marriage. Getting a peak at her childhood and why she hold the trauma and difficulty keeping friends helped me understand her even more.
!!!spoilers moving forward!!!
The ending was prefect, I am so glad Fallon got out of the town town and was finally able to fully focus on opening up her business. I think in the long run it benefits her child as well. Seemed like the toxic mothers energies started to rub off on their kids (Fallon included) and i'm glad she realized before it was too late.

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*ARC review*

3.75
I feel personally attacked by this book 😂 As the proverbial black sheep of my suburb this was mildly triggering! I kid, but I definitely related to Fallon feeling the way she did. I sometimes dislike reading books that feature MCs of my same age because I see too many close ties to my own life and it becomes a reflection of that rather than an escape into their life.

Having said that, it really does capture the essence of what it can be like in these communities. The bonds you share with mom friends can be strong, but as your children grow and circumstances change so do those relationships. It can be hard to find a way to maintain those relationships and difficult to let go of them when they’ve run their course.

This was well written and I enjoyed going through it all with Fallon. Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape media for sharing this story with me in exchange for an honest review.

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I received The Friendship Breakup by Annie Cathryn through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review, here it is!

This was my very first Mom-com and I really loved it! It was funny, thought-provoking, clever, and very relatable.

☆☆☆☆

We meet Fallon, a mom of one, who has been a part of a group of moms until recently. She's been dropped and doesn't know why.

These women met because of their babies and bonded because of motherhood. As a mom myself, I really connected with the struggles and triumphs a lot of them went through. Although I do not have a group of moms like the ones in this story (thank goodness) I could associate with the feelings of how hard it is making friends as a mom (even just as an adult) and not wanting to lose the friends you have.

I loved that underneath the humour of this story there were a lot of issues that were addressed like, dealing with your past, feelings of abandonment, postpartum struggles, infertility, marital issues, and finding yourself after becoming a mom.

Thanks to DreamscapeMedia, NetGalley, and author Annie Cathryn for this ALC to honestly review. This book is out now! Go get it!

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I got this as an ARC from netgalley in audiobook format - thank you!

I enjoyed the narrator and would be interested in future stories from this author. However, I found this book to be...irritating. The POV is of a mom who has no self awareness and I was hoping for more growth in a woman who is a mother and a grown adult. The story was engaging but relied heavily on a miscommunication trope that I do not enjoy. It feels like a self help book for white suburban moms who are self-=centric when reflecting on their own life challenges.

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The Friendship Breakup is the emotional story of Fallon, navigating the waters of motherhood, marriage, and friendship in a suburban town while starting her own business. Fallon learns many lessons about herself and what she is willing to accept in her life.

I really enjoyed the story as well as the narration style.

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I really enjoyed reading this book with my ears. The narrator’s pacing was fabulous and I felt the emotions in their voice!! Loved it.

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I really enjoyed listening to this and taking a break from Romance. Fallon is almost 40 in this read, she is trying to start her chocolate business and has run into a problem with her friendships. She has stopped being invited to girl days and her best friend has ghosted her. Though out the book you learn the different friendships that Fallon has, and how each of those friendships affect her life. There are so many important lessons in this read. I personally enjoyed the read, and the narrator was amazing. Reading about Fallon and how she has had these friendships because of where she lives, and they all became new moms around the same time. This book goes over the importance of friendships, and the way people come into your life for a reason, a season, or a lifetime. It really made me reflect on my own friendships and relationships. It also was very intriguing because it kind of felt like I was reading a "Real Housewives" show with how many wild things happened and the drama between the friendships. Such a fast paced and fun read, I can't wait to read more from Annie Cathryn!

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the ALC of The Friendship Breakup.

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We meet Fallon. SAHM of 1, starting up a chocolate making business, and trying to keep her mom friends.

Phew, mom friends. I get it; I really do. They can be a difficult bunch. In Fallon’s case, she has no clue why these ladies are “ghosting” her suddenly. I could totally feel the heartbreak. It’s a terrible feeling when people who you consider your friends start proving differently.

I love how this book showed the true crazy moments of being a mom. There are times when you feel like you have it all together, and then bam — chaos again lol. I could definitely relate, and I enjoyed how relatable a lot of these characters were.

This isn’t the type of book I normally would grab for, but I really enjoyed it & will recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

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The main character was so pathetic that she kept begging for friendship of someone who clearly didn’t want it and sabatoges other relationships because of it. It is very cringe but it was great that she finally had some growth at the end.

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The Friendship Breakup by Annie Cathryn was both funny and heartbreaking. It was not my usual preferred genre but I enjoyed it more than I expected. For a debut novel, I was quite impressed how well plotted it was and how well the characters were developed. I listened to the audiobook of The Friendship Breakup that was narrated very well by Brenda Scott Wlazio. It was fast paced and drew me in immediately. There were a few scenarios that occurred in the book that I was easily able to relate to and even visualize myself in at some point in my life when my children were growing up.

Fallon Monroe was an almost forty year old wife and mother that lived in a suburb outside of Chicago. Her husband was a successful doctor and her seven year old daughter was smart, insightful and very good at soccer. From the time Fallon’s daughter was still a baby, Fallon had met her best friend, Beatrice. When Fallon desperately needed a helping hand, Beatrice came to her rescue. From that day on they were as close as two friends could be. A few other moms joined this close knit group of mom friends. They helped each other get over the hurdles of being a mom and knowing the right things to do for their children. Fallon tried desperately to balance her life. She had to carefully balance school drop offs and pickups, attending to her husband’s needs, being a soccer mom and going to her daughter’s games and at the same time devote herself to growing her chocolate business. It was hard to balance everything but she was trying. At least Fallon had the support of her mom friends when things got hard. Then the most unimaginable thing happened to Fallon. With no explanation or clue about why, Beatrice and her other mom friends started ghosting her. They ignored her, left her out and made it clear that they wanted nothing to do with Fallon anymore. What could Fallon do to remedy this situation?

Fallon wanted to win back her friendships, especially Beatrice’s friendship, so Fallon decided to plan a Mexican Fiesta and invite all her friends. The concept was perfect with lots of margaritas and a piñata filled with small bottles of tequila. Everything that could have gone wrong went wrong. Fallon’s party was a disaster! By the conclusion of Fallon’s well planned party, there was an uninvited stripper, glass everywhere and an ambulance.

Desperate for friends, Fallon went on a friendship app. and met two women. After getting together with these women several times, Fallon unexpectedly discovered something she had no idea about. One of Fallon’s new friendships led her to uncover a secret that concerned her best friend, Beatrice. The revelation of this secret led Fallon to make some very difficult but necessary decisions.

The Friendship Breakup by Annie Cathryn made me laugh out loud at times and also sympathize with Fallon for what her friends put her through. I enjoyed following Fallon’s journey of self discovery and reflection in The Friendship Breakup. Annie Cathryn was able to also weave the more serious and sensitive topics of divorce, marital affairs, mental health issues like panic attacks, adoption, self esteem and confidence and therapy into her well written debut book. The Friendship Breakup focused on the themes of female friendship, betrayal, family, loyalties, self reflection and acceptance, insecurities and following one’s dreams and aspirations. If you love chocolates like I do you will also enjoy the descriptions of all the different varieties of chocolate Fallon made and sold. My mouth was watering to taste them! After listening to The Friendship Breakup I look forward to Annie Cathryn’s next book. I highly recommend this book.

Thank you to Dreamscape Media LLC for allowing me to listen to the audiobook of The Friendship Breakup by Annie Cathryn through Netgalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

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Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I was so pleasantly surprised by this book. I absolutely loved everything about it from the storyline to the characters.

Thoughts:
-While I’m not a mom like the MC Fallon, everyone goes through friendship struggles so it can be relatable to everyone
-Everyone knows a Fallon, so it made reading about her easy to understand and empathize with. She's just a mom trying to juggle her daughter, husband, friends, and up-and-coming business. Her insecurities were all explained fully and she was given such depth
-I loved her relationship with Elenor and how when the whole town turned on Elenor, Fallon knew she was a true friend and had her back
-Cathryn did a great job writing a light and fun read that included real-life problems. I laughed out loud quite a few times at the dramatics of small-town PTA parents
-Watching Fallon find herself and grow into the best version of herself with her supportive family and friends was heartwarming. I felt like her friend cheering her on
-I’m a big fan of when books normalize going to therapy and Cathryn beautifully wrote Fallon’s growth through therapy without making it seem like a big dramatic thing
-My biggest takeaway is the important message that you can’t save every friendship no matter how hard you try. That it’s okay to prioritize your own mental health over saving a friendship that you’ve outgrown or one that likely can’t be saved

I genuinely enjoyed this story and absolutely adored the ending!

Thank you Netgalley, Annie Cathryn, and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to review this book!

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This book was a whirlwind! Though I could not relate to the hardships of being a mom like Fallon, I did feel for her. It was a fun and entertaining book and I was not expecting to like it as much as I did! I will now keep and eye out for more titles from this author.

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First off, huge thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the chance to read and review this book. This book had me from the very first chapter. I LOVED the narrator's voice and found myself going on random drives just so I could listen to more of the book. The book is fairly predictable, but if you've ever gone through a rough patch with a friend, you'll be able to really relate to this book. This book brought a new understanding to what happens in friendships.

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This was good, and the characters were likable. It was extremely predictable though, and the main character was pretty naive. I liked that this book was about friendship.

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The Friendship Breakup is a refreshing take on what it’s like to be a mom in suburbia and is aptly referred to as a “mom-com!” It’s highly entertaining while addressing topics such as family and friendships as well as betrayal and breakups.

I can relate to Fallon as I’ve had a few friendship breakups in my adult life and while they were not fun, it was a reminder that some friends are in your life for a reason, some for a season and some for a lifetime.

This is the heartfelt, life changing story that will have you thinking about the characters long after you’ve turned the last page. I gave this story 3.5 stars rounded up.

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Okay, so here is the thing. I really am DNFing books very early on when they are not hitting right and this is the reason why I did not even get pass 5% of this book.

So FMC is 39 years old and acting like she is in HS with some bullshit drama that we don’t know about. For most of the 5% I did listen to this book is all in her head what’s she’s thinking and I am not in the right mind set for this.

It’s cringe and just not for me. I’m not sorry.

Thank you so much netgalley for the audiobook version of this book.

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What a refreshing book! Everyone has been through a friendship breakup, or encountered a "what the f*ck" moment with a friend, and this book hit the nail on the head. Not only does the plot touch base on friendships, but also marriages, infidelity, and other relevant topics.

If you're looking for a good time, then this is the book for you! I flew through this audiobook in two days and very much enjoyed the narrator. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.

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This felt like high school drama in an almost 40-year-old body. Fallon, a mom of two, can’t understand why her mommy friends are not speaking to her. Instead of being an adult and going up to them to try to talk it out, she is overly concern with what they think of her and what she may or may not have done. They are all adults. Be adults. Throughout, Fallon kept referring to friendship on a 7-year path. Any friendship that passes that 7-year mark, will be a friend for life. Will these mommy friends pass that 7-year mark? The story was entertaining, especially the chocolate and the stripper part. Fallon did have some personal growth over the length of the story, but I wish other characters did too. It was refreshing to read about friendships that may or may not last instead of romantic or sexual relationships. This was a mom-com that felt more like a YA.

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Fallon Monroe is being ousted from her friend group. Though several attempts at winning the friends back, parenting, starting her new business and attempting to meet new friends, Fallon's story is relatable to mothers juggling it all (especially those of us who feel like we're failing!)
While the subject itself can be difficult, the book is written with such comedy and layering it was an enjoyable read and a balm to mom struggles.

#arc
#netgalley
#thefriendshipbreakup

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I couldn't wait for this book to be over. I LOVE drama... Love it . BUT this.. it was so bad. It was a version of high school all over again. I cant even put words to how bad theses women treated each other.

Towards the end, i grew to like the protagonist better and her story on how to better herself and how she is does what she needs to to get better and the adoption story.

Sorry
-- the voice actress' voice was so whiny. It didnt help the story.

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