I’m not quite sure how I would categorize this book. A psychological thriller, but without any murders or actual damage done? A who-dunnit where you know from the start who-dunnit and why-they-dunnit? It is really a book that is more about the complexity of relationships but reads like a thriller. Whatever it was, I loved it and appreciated the chance to read an early review copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

The queen of toxic relationships is back - this time with a turn - a toxic friendship! The relationship between micro-influencer Cassie and her childhood best friend, Billie, can only be described as toxic, unhealthy and beyond damaged. The alternating viewpoints and timelines kept me turning the pages eager to see how this one would play out.

4.5 stars and another winner for Carola Lovering!

Thank you to St. Martins Press for an advanced copy. All opinions are my own.

I seriously loved this book! It was so well written and the characters were so fully fleshed out. I rarely see it done this skillfully, especially without boring the reader. I wasn’t even slightly bored, I read this book until the wonderful ending! She is clearly a very talented author, I’d love to see what else she comes up with. Billie was completely likable and nuanced, I found myself wishing that things turned out differently for her so fervently! Cassie was less charming, but I couldn’t hate her. This author is damn good at what she does and I was so very sucked in until the very last word!

"Tell Me Lies" made me a Carola Lovering fan, and she has not disappointed since. "Bye, Baby" is as dark and thrilling as ever and may be my favorite work she's ever done.

OMG THIS BOOK! Let me say that I was addicted right from the first page and couldn’t wait to keep reading. The suspense was crazy and the tension and betrayal were incredibly thrilling to say the least. This book kept me on my toes trying to figure out what the truth was and how it was all going to end. I didn’t want to put this down and Carola did not disappoint with this one!! Thank you Carola, St. Martins Press, and NetGalley for the arc!!

4.5 stars!

This is the story of a friendship between Billie and Cassie. They became best friends at age 11 and were inseparable until about a year and a half ago. When they were young, they spent all their time together and shared deep- dark secrets, and vowed that this would how they would always be. Billie is content with her life and her status whereas Cassie has always strived to achieve a higher status and will do anything to make that happen. As Cassie climbs the social ladder to make that dream a reality, the gap between these two widen and widen until Billie hardly recognizes her friend at all. Billie can't let the friendship go that easily or all the hurt that has come along with it and one day she snaps and does something unthinkable.

In my opinion, I wouldn't categorize this has a thriller- mostly a women's fiction story with suspense. It's about childhood friendship and that morphs over time. It's about letting go of the people you thought you knew to allow them to become the people they want to be- even though that hurts. It's about love, resentment, promises, secrets, and loss. I really enjoyed this story and I felt really empathetic toward Billie the most, but toward all the characters really. It felt like it could be a realistic story about childhood friendship.

CW: childhood trauma
sexual abuse

I haven’t read anything by Carola Lovering, but after reading Bye, Baby, the rest of her books are going on my TBR list. Bye, Baby was a fast-paced domestic thriller that kept me on the edge of my seat. I couldn’t put it down! Highly recommend to anyone who loves books featuring toxic friendships and complicated relationships. (One thing to know going in is that this book does contain lots of abuse and trauma.)

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read the ARC.

Carola Lovering reads the diaries I don’t write and exposes my most sacred insecurities through her writing. At around 61% through the book I put it down fearing how much I identified with the “villain.”

Jealousy being her biggest crime. Admittedly I’ve been upfront about how jealous I can be -not materialistically, instead how people choose to spend their time. The main character, Billie, feels similar. She just wants her best friend back.

Growing up Billy and Cassie were thick as thieves and knew all of each others secrets. They were forever bonded by something that happened in high school- a secret they would take to their graves. As they grew older, Cassie married, opened a signature boutique, had a baby and chronicled it all on Instagram. Her stories being the only window Billie had into her childhood bestie’s life. Billie couldn’t understand why Cassie pushed her away, and clung to the hope their relationship could be revived.

When Cassie’s baby goes missing, all she wants is her best friend Billie by her side. By morning the baby is mysteriously returned, and Billie is back helping Cassie process the trauma.

Lovering writes from both Billie and Cassie’s perspective giving you full view into the story as it unfolds. Her writing is brilliantly vivid and I can’t wait for you to read this one. If you haven’t read “Too Good to be True,” “Can’t Look Away,” and/or “Tell Me Lies,” consider reading them all this summer your assignment.

“Bye, Baby,” is our next March. Thank you thank you thank you Marissa Sangiacomo , @stmartinspress @netgalley and @carolatlovering for the early read. I can’t stop thinking about it or talking about it.

Bye, Baby
A Novel
by Carola Lovering
This was a great read. Damn, my mouth hit the floor and blew my socks off. Billie West was one I could most relate to. Cassie is the usual "Look at me, look at my life" hundreds of times. I despised how mean she was to a friend.I read it and loved it.

This was sooooo good! Cassie and Billie’s friendship is not your average. Growing up together and being best buddies includes secrets that can never be shared. It’s kind of an obsession but to me it was sad when one had to deal with so much trauma in her childhood. A good example of stupid media influencers and their ridiculous lives. Love how this ended. I love this author !

6/9 - I have ten books currently sitting in my NetGalley TBR. Why am I reading the one with the furthest out publishing date? This novel pulled me right in, even as I’m hating on characters and feeling frustrated with them.

Readable - so very readable.


6/10 - I finished reading and holy sh*t was I impressed with Bye, Baby; even as I was shaking my head at the behavior of the characters and the type of friendship between Billie and Cassidy, historically and present day, I kept reading because the urge to know what and how was compelling.

I really appreciate the invitation from St. Martin's Press to read an ARC of this title - an extremely fun to read, wtf is going on here novel (and do I even need to mention that this one is a recommendation - I didn't think so either 😊)



Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the DRC!

I was rather bored with this story. It describes all kinds of fashion, housing, and influencer stuff. It drug on forever before something actually happened worth knowing about. The blurb was better than the entire story. I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book.

Another great one from Carola!!! I loved the details of both characters. So much happened but it wasn’t too much. I couldn’t wait to find out the ending.

Thank you to NetGalley, Carola Lovering and St. Martin's Press for my eARC! Publishes March 5, 2024!
A quick paced plot that kept me wanting to read "just one more chapter". Told between two narratives, Billie and Cassie, and two timelines, now and then (then being when Billie and Cassie were growing up).
Billie is ~slightly~ obsessive towards Cassie. While Cassie is pulling away from the friendship, Billie wants literally nothing more than the friendship to last. On the eve of Cassie's birthday her husband throws her a birthday party. While a miscommunication with the nanny left them with the baby for the evening, they improvised by placing her in her stroller out on the terrace. They're nine floors up and the weather is beautiful. What could go wrong? Although Billie didn't snag an invite to this elite party, Billie finds herself with the baby in her arms... Ironically, while their friendship is practically nothing at this point, the first person Cassie wants is Billie.
Will she get away with it while keeping her new relationship with her boyfriend, Alex? Is this what brings Cassie and Billie back together? While the police see her on footage?

I found this book to be very entertaining. It kept me wanting to know more. It was anxiety provoking and put me on the edge of my seat because you want her to just not take the baby? Is that too much to ask? Even though that is the whole plot you want to scream at her "Don't do it!".
I was skeptical about reading this author, the same one who brought you Tell Me Lies. I felt there was no ending to her last book in my opinion, it could have wrapped up better in the end. Bye, Baby was wrapped up nicely and because of this, I would recommend.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read this ARC!

MY GOODNESS THIS BOOK! I received an email from St. Martin's Press letting me know that they wanted send me a copy of this ARC based on my pervious reviews with them. I was a bit skeptical because I had not personally picked out this book to review but I liked Carola Lovering's pervious books so I decided to give it a shot. Let me tell you, this book is phenomenal. I was in a bit of a reading slump but this shot me right out of that hole. It was a fast paced dual timelines/POVs, what more could I ask for? Oh yeah, it was also a bit of a psychological thriller mixed with the sometimes messy friendships that come with being childhood bestfriends. Carola Lovering did an excellent job of keeping the reader invested from the prologue. The writing was so entrancing and made it feel like a movie; the reader could see the play out that was Cassie and Billie's friendship from their teen years to today. Although you get to see both sides (past and present) through the respected POVs it really makes the reader wonder, who really is more at fault? Is Billie really as "crazy" as Cassie's new friends lead her to believe or is Cassie just that much of an manipulator?

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review.

I shelved EVERYTHING to read this book. The blurb totally hooked me. Carola Lovering does a phenomenal job at giving the readers relatable characters with intense well-developed back stories. BYE, BABY was no different. I’ve never understood when people say they wanted to toss the book or their kindle across the room but that is exactly how I felt when I finished this book. Cassie was detestable and I wanted nothing more than to see life humble her. Billy I adored and completely related to. She was genuine and was clinging to a friendship that she didn’t understand why it had become one sided. That kind of rejection is hard. This book evoked a lot of feelings as a woman who has experienced friendships like this. I highly recommend this book!

Lovering’s books are always satisfying and compulsively readable. And highly underrated in my opinion. This book delivers a double punch- not only is it a thriller (and a great one at that)—it’s also a commentary on friendship and social media and toxicity and childfree women and so many other things. This one’s a must read in my opinion.

First things first: I loved Carola Lovering's debut novel Tell Me Lies, which at times felt so excruciatingly true-to-life I feared she'd read my diary. So with that context, I'll admit I started off skeptical of Bye, Baby, which seemed far less realistic - how does someone accidentally kidnap their frenemy's baby?! But by the halfway point, I no longer cared about plausibility - I was absorbed and more than willing to go along with every twist and turn.

The dynamic between Billie and Cassie, who are lifelong best friends (if you ask Billie) or who have grown apart for the better (if you ask Cassie), is taut, discomfiting, and completely riveting. The balance of power between them is always clear - though not always consistent!

I will say I don't think the blurb strikes quite the right tone. It implies (1) that it's a total mystery to Billie how she wound up with Cassie's daughter, and (2) that the story revolves entirely around Ella's kidnapping. (While critical, it's not all-encompassing - and I found the aftermath the most fascinating part anyway!)

So to be clear, this isn't your classic who-dun-it thriller - or, as I originally imagined, a plot that feels in large part like it could have been lifted from your own life. (At least, I hope no one can relate too directly to the specifics!) But if you're willing to suspend some degree of reality for the sake of a great story, and if you're intrigued by complicated characters and treasured yet toxic bonds, I strongly recommend. (And if anyone at Hulu is reading, Bye, Baby would make for a spectacular screen adaptation! Just saying...)

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

Carola has become one of my favorite authors. When I saw this book come to my inbox I was so happy!! Carola’s writing just keeps getting better and better. Bye, Baby was SO GOOD.!

I loved the New York City setting and a glimpse into the life of the wealthy. The two main characters both had very interesting POV’s. The pacing was also perfect as were the twists that crept up throughout the book. . The roof incident I was able to predict as the scene unfolded, yet it didn’t take away anything from the book at all. I loved the characters of Remy, Jane, and Alex. As for the two main characters,Cassie and Billy: one I liked, the other I did not care for and was angered by her actions in many parts of the story. . If you have already read the book you will likely know which female main character was likable, despite being flawed. I felt sorry for her many times as the story went on, especially regarding her mother’s health matter.

I love books about female friendships and this friendship was very twisted. Bye, Baby was an unputdownable, clever book. I really loved it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and to the publisher for the ARC.

Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering A fast paced, gripping read. Multiple POVs, mutiple timelines which are all well written and expertly interwoven. Billie was the bestest friend (except for that one misstep), Cassie not so much.
Thank you to Marissa Sangiacomo for recommending the book and the author,,St martins publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to preview the book.