Having liked two other books by Carola Lovering, I was excited to receive an ARC from NetGalley. Unfortunately, this one didn't live up to my expectations. The plot revolves around 2 women who had been best friends growing up but had very much so grown apart. One now has money and a baby while the other is single and poor. Without giving away too much, there is a shocking incident that harms both women as well as some backstory to shed some light on why these two are not close friends. This really was more of a domestic drama book. I didn't really think it was a mystery nor a thriller. For that reason, it was just an average read to me.

Carola Lovering is back! I didn't love her last book Can't Look Away, so was nervous to start this one. Fortunately, it had a somewhat similar feel to Tell Me Lies, while the plot was completely different. Lovering does such a good job with characters and details, it makes everything feel real. There was also a great amount of tension in this story which made it truly unputdownable. Would definitely recommend!

First i am having a really hard time rating this book. Although it was a story that definitely captured me from the beginning. But it was disturbing. And yes it is about a missing baby but only for a short time. Most of the story is about Billie and Cassie’s very toxic relationship. I will leave it at that as not to tspoil the story. I don’t like leaving spoilers. This is my first book by this author and I’m not sure I want to read another. I received this ebook from Net Galley and this is my honest opinion.

Carola Lovering never disappoints! I find her books to be incredibly fast-paced and difficult to put down - this one was no exception! Billie and Cassie both encompassed unlikable / unreliable characters that you somehow continue to root for no matter what they do. I will continue to pick up anything Lovering writes as I think she does a fantastic of job of keeping the reader on their toes.

4.5 ⭐️

Billie & Cassie, Cassie & Billie.. they were two best friends that were inseparable at childhood and went through a lot together but once they got to adulthood they started to drift apart. This book takes you through a journey of friendship, betrayal, grief, adulthood, navigating relationships, and more. I was pulled in from the beginning, and believe me you will saying “just one more chapter” until you finish.

Cassie is a famous influencer and has a beautiful baby girl Ella. Cassie lives in an amazing home married to the handsome Grant Adler. She seems to have it all and doesn’t mind sharing it with her many followers on Instagram. Billie a single girl living in New York working for a great travel company and is trying to live her life but misses her friend Cassie who seems to be pushing her away as of late. The one thing that keeps her in touch is her Instagram. After some awkward drinks and dinners together Billie wasn’t invited to Cassie’s birthday party, and this is the night that turns everything upside down.

Grab a copy when it comes out March 2024!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC copy of Bye Baby!

First of all, I really didn’t know how to rate this one. I had to sit here and think about it a minute. Sooooo here it goes.

This is the story of two childhood friends, Cassie and Billie. Told from both POV. It starts with Cassie screaming for her baby, as Billie looks down and sees she has baby Ella. From there it goes back to past to when they first met and to the current time.

Cassie is the most hideous character ever. Sad as she seems, she is terribly shallow, money hungry, doesn’t care about anyone other than herself, disgustingly judge mental, and did I say hideous? Sometimes I found it hard to read her lines. In my mind…. I’m like…. Who tf talks like this? Obviously there are people out there that are just like her. Self righteous and obsessed with social media.

Okay, enough about Cassie. Let’s talk about Billie. I actually really loved Billie’s character. She’s real, caring, pretty normal and seems like a kickass chick. Oh, other than the fact that she’s obsessed with Billie and how their friendship has dissipated. I just couldn’t stand how Cassie continued to treat her like crap, yet Billie always appears desperate for her friendship. If someone treated me like that….. bye bye.

This touches on family, motherhood, marriage, career choices, sexual abuse, and even murder. I felt Lovering just dragged some parts out a bit. I know the point to show us how this friendship developed and crumbled to the ground…. But plenty of parts could have been omitted. However, I found that I could NOT PUT THIS DOWN. And this really isn’t even a thriller. I did enjoy the ending and how everything was wrapped up in a nice bow. I struggled with the rating but all in all I rate this 3.5 rounded up to 4 ⭐️!

I’d like to thank St Martin’s Press, Carola Lovering, and NetGalley for an advanced copy for an honest review.
Expected publication date is March 5, 2024

Toxic friendships? Count me in!

I really enjoyed this story and I loved the dual perspectives- it really worked and made the story that much better. My one gripe was I felt like there were so many themes and side storylines that kept me sidetracked from the main plot / story. Other than that, I couldn’t put this down and would suggest looking into the many triggers this book has.

This was a great book! So thrilling and page turning. It was hard to put it down. I cannot wait for Carola Lovering's nect book!

I enjoyed this book the least out of Ms. Lovering’s novels. I didn’t like either of the main characters. And the stakes that the plot was centered around just didn’t seem very high to me. I’ll continue to read future books by the author, but I wish I had given this one a pass.

This book was so good!!! Billie and Cassie were best friends, but life has caused them to begin to drift apart. One night, an event happens that completely changes everything. This book was such a wild ride. I thoroughly enjoyed it and read it all in one day since I couldn’t put it down!!!

This was my first book by Carola Lovering. I received an Advanced Reading Copy from NetGalley (book releases in March 2024). The description of the book seemed right up my alley so I requested it and was approved.

Y’all, I read it in 24 hours. The story is told in present and past tenses, from both Billie and Cassie’s perspectives. At times it was a little challenging trying to keep up with who was narrating which parts of the story and what timeline I was in. And I do think it would be difficult to keep up with this one as an audiobook.

The story of Billie and Cassie’s friendship is told over a period of 20+ years. Neither character is extremely likable, but the story of their friendship is relatable…well, most of it. Like many childhood friendships, theirs changes over time. It has its highs and lows. And while they share a very haunting secret, they also keep their fair share of secrets from one another.

Their bond is tested over the years as they find themselves literally obsessing over the other one’s attention (especially in Billie’s case)…but rarely at the same time. And somehow, in the midst of ultimate betrayals (yes, betrayals as in plural tense), there is still ultimate loyalty to one another.

The story definitely got a little weird at times. Who takes their best friend’s baby??!! But there were so many layers and pieces to the story, that it definitely kept me reading.

Oh, and there is also some side romance and heartbreak stuff in the story too. A little something for everyone.

Expertly crafted, this may well be the best organized book I’ve ever read?

Fantastic pacing, an actual great use of dual POV with flashback thrown in including info that was always relevant to the main plot. I never felt like I was reading anything just for the sake of words on a page. POVs swap at perfect intervals, flashbacks don’t feel like they are just dragging out the main story for suspense sake like many similar books do, and the cast is kept small, down to only characters with a significant effect on the plot. just *mwah* chefs kiss.

This is, by far, a character driven book. Which may be odd for what is being described at a “thriller” (though as others have said, it’s not quite a thriller, but it definitely evokes the same anxiety a thriller would), but our two main characters here are so well built that they truly were the stars of this novel. So clearly visualized, I had every bit of this cast perfectly clear in my mind the whole way through.

Often character driven books suffer in their plot, and although all things considered the plot was simple and straightforward, this was never a negative thing. you know what’s going to happen from the start, there’s just an air of excitement waiting to see exactly how it all goes down, and then the anxiety in the aftermath, waiting for the ball to drop and for the consequences to hit.

I could not put this one down. when I got halfway I realized I was doomed to a night of reading until 4am to see how it all turned out. Maybe my only disappointment was the end was quite quick. I’m usually the person begging for a book to be cut down, but I truly believe a chapter or 2 more here could have really smoothed out the ending in a bit more of a satisfying way.

A fantastic read all around, going into a book knowing absolutely nothing and coming out the other end a 5 star read it always going to be one of the best feelings.

I just can't get enough of Carola Lovering's writing style and her way with words. I feel so connected to her characters and I loved the themes of toxic friendships and obsessions in this.

Great book, I could not put it down! Had a pit in my stomach the whole time, similar to when I read Tell me Lies, but this time the focus was more on a toxic friendship. Still thinking about this book and want all my friends to read so we can discuss!

I liked this book! The title is what originally peeked my interest but as I began the book I was quickly hooked on the characters and what was going to happen next. Well written and good plot!

Big thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the eARC of this book.

Overall, I would rate this novel a 3.5. I had planned to give it 4 stars, but the ending fell flat and just seemed anticlimactic to me. I just wouldn’t classify this book as a true thriller. However, I liked the overall theme of how “friend breakups” can be harder than romantic ones.

I devoured this book! From the first few pages, I could tell that I would be hooked. Similarly to Corola's first book, I finished this as quickly as my schedule would allow. A lot of the observations around motherhood, female friendship, and NYC social dynamics rang true. Not many books have shown an empathetic portrait of both a new mother and her intentionally child-free counterpart. Thrilling, addictive, and observant.

I’ve never read a book like this one before! I was truly anxious to know what happened. This was a quick read!

You know from the beginning who takes the baby. But learning the history behind these characters is interesting. The suspense isn’t based around ‘what’ happens, but ‘why’ it happens. So, this one may not be everyone’s cup of tea.
I really enjoyed it overall, and I liked the ending!

This is my first time receiving a book that hasn’t been published yet. A huge thank you to Net Galley!

This is the first book I’ve read by Carola Lovering and it won’t be the last. An interesting commentary on motherhood and toxic friendships. I was captivated from start to finish

I went into this expecting a thriller, and I was excited after reading the prologue, but it wasn’t what I would consider a thriller. The story was decent and I liked the jump between timelines. Cassie’s character, in my opinion, was unlikeable.. so I found myself routing for Billie even though she didn’t make the best choices. I would recommend this, but not as a thriller.