I adored this book! As someone currently aged in Lucy's "lost years" (26-42), I felt like Sophie Cousens perfectly captured what it feels like to be in your mid-twenties just waiting to achieve your life milestones, as well as in your "good years," where you're longing for the ease of your youth.

I do wish we got more time with Lucy's friends at 26, especially since one of them is so central to her life. I felt like we barely got enough pages to establish why that friendship was important to Lucy.

Overall, this was a charming and light read.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

I absolutely enjoyed this whimsical book by Sophie Cousens. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

Lucy is 26 year old underpaid and overworked TV runner who finds a wishing machine after a dreadful night out. She wishes to skip to the good part of life where she has everything in order, a solid career; and a good man. When she wakes up, she finds herself at age 42 seemingly having all she ever wanted. But, life is never really quite what it seems and she has to work to pretend to know who she is and what she does at this stage of her life only to discover that even the good parts can be wrapped in tragedy. Lucy’s family is absolutely adorable and I love the characters in the book.

The Good Part is a relatable, fun, sometimes sad, and often heartwarming story. One of my favorite reads this year!

I have absolutely loved all of Sophie Cousens previous books, so when this book became available on Netgalley, I jumped at the chance to read it early. Thank you Netgalley, Penguin Random House and Putnam Books for this copy!

Lucy, a twenty six year old, is struggling with her position in life. She makes next to nothing, lives in a flat share with three other people, and has a job where she doesn’t feel valued. After a terrible night where she fights with her best friend, she finds a wishing machine (think Tom Hanks in Big) and wishes to skip to “the good part” of her life. She wakes up forty-two, married, with two kids, and running a production company. The rest of the book follows her trying to play catch up on what happened in the 16 years she missed and desperately trying to get back to her former life.

As a forty-two year old, it was so easy to relate to this book. I loved when she first looked in the mirror and could not believe what changes had taken place. Her reaction is still my daily reaction.

I find it interesting what Lucy thinks “the good part” of life would be. She has a stable life, with income, a family, a great job but there is still the worry, the looming questions, the what ifs, the tragedies. Lucy seems quick to reject this life first out of shock and then later because of the moments she’s missed.

I could not predict the ending of this one. And I probably could have used a little more wrap up after the resolution (but I say that in every review I write). This one left me with a lot of thoughts about my own memories, regrets, and dreams, especially being the same age as the main character.

As always Cousens provides an entertaining and thoughtful read where you can’t help but fall in love with the characters.

This book was an absolute charm! offering a light-hearted and enjoyable read. It served as a great reminder that we should embrace the current phase of our lives instead of fixating on some elusive "better" future. The whole "Be careful what you wish for" theme was pretty on point here. It gave me major nostalgic feels, like those awesome rom-coms straight out of the 90s. While not groundbreaking in its uniqueness, it definitely delivered a solid dose of entertainment and satisfaction.
Its not going on the favorites shelf but it was still a sweet read nonetheless.

Thanks to NetGalley I received an advanced electronic copy of the book to read and provide a review.

Everything Sophie Cousens writes is a pure delight. This was no exception. This was women’s fiction / romance with a touch of fantasy time travel, but all of it felt nostalgic, authentic and real. I’ve had the exact conversation with my own close friends that Lucy had with herself as she struggled to understand the chaos and beauty of life in your 20s and then in your late 30s/40s.

The writing is addicting, the story is compelling, and I love/appreciate the lessons learned and how they were protested. The whole book is the good part!

“…and that every breath I take is the good part.”

This novel was light and fun and just what I needed after a couple of dark novels in a row.

Twenty-six-year-old Lucy Young is sick of being broke, sick of fetching coffees instead of pitching her TV ideas to higher ups, sick of terrible dates, and sick of living in a squalid flat with flatmates that don’t restock the toilet paper they use and turn the bathtub into a place to make bone broth from a cow. After a night of too many drinks, she stumbles onto a wishing machine. Throwing a couple coins in, she wishes she could skip over all the struggle and get to good part of her life, where she has a decent career, a loving husband, a home with a ceiling that doesn’t leak on her head when she’s trying to get some sleep.

Miraculously, she time travels 16 years into the future. She has a great career, great house, great husband—and two small children she has absolutely no idea how to take care of because she has no memory of what happened in the intervening years.

I really enjoyed this.

NetGalley provided an advance copy of this novel, which RELEASES NOVEMBER 7, 2023.

The Good Part is the story of Lucy, a 26 year old aspiring tv producer who is sick of her low paying job and going on bad dates. After a particularly bad evening she finds a wish machine and wishes she could get to what she thinks will be the good part of her life with a successful career and happy family. The next morning she wakes up next to a man she doesn’t recognize and realizes she is now 42, a successful tv producer, and a married mother of 2. The premise is very similar to the movies Big and 13 going on 30. The book was entertaining and enjoyable but did not seem to have much of a new take on this trope. I did enjoy the premise of the importance of living life, both good and bad, and not skipping over the difficult parts. All of life is the “good part” with the right perspective.

I loved this book! The idea has obviously been done before, but it still felt fresh and didn’t drag. I loved seeing Lucy & Sam’s relationship develop.

This heartwarming romance follows Lucy Young who stumbles upon a wishing machine and wishes to skip to the good part of her life. When she skips ahead 16 years she has to decide if this life is worth living in.

This plot line isn't exactly anything new, I've both read and watched things extremely similar to this. However, it was still engaging. I especially enjoyed reading the points of Lucy's life through her twenties, it had a lot of impactful lessons.

I wish we saw more of Sam, he was very supporting of Lucy and careful with her. This almost felt like a slow burn, which normally I don't like- but it just made sense with this novel (and I can't complain it went perfectly).

This charming book was a reminder to relish our lives in the present, not keep worrying about the past of future. I would definitely recommend if you're looking for a entertaining romance that will make you both laugh wholeheartedly and cry streams into a river.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Group PUTNAM, and the author for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date 7 November 2023

What if you could skip to the 'good part' of your life?

Lucy wishes for just that and wakes up 16 years later to a life she doesn't recognize. She's married to a hottie, has her dream job as a TV producer, 2 kids and an objectively amazing life.

The time travel elements make this book what it is and are done so well! The side characters, Lucy's friends, and everyone in this book make it special.

Absolutely loved it.

A book for when you need a little magic and a little inspiration in your life.

Lucy is 26 years old and life isn’t going the way she wants. After a particularly bad day she happens upon a magic wishing machine. She wishes to skip to “the good part”, the part of her life where she has it all figured out, the part of her life where she’s married to the man of her dreams and finally has her dream job.

To her surprise, the next morning she does! But she learns that “the good part” can still be complicated. Feeling like an imposter to everyone around her, she has to learn to live this new life with no memory of the past 16 years, unless she can find a way to get back to her 26 year old self.

This book was INCREDIBLE. There were so many things to love. This was a fast paced and funny story ( all my annotations are just lol!) There’s comedic timing in this book I don’t think I’ve seen anywhere else. Lucy was a great MC, and I loved seeing her journey. Her journey is a great reminder to live everyday like it’s a gift because every part is the good part.

I loved the relationship between Lucy and Sam. There’s something about the way they are written that don’t just make me look forward to being in love, but make me look forward to falling in love.

13 Going on 30 is one of my favorite movies, and I feel that this book captures that same magic. Dare I say, even elevates the story. The way I will always go back to re watch that movie, I will go back and reread this book.

It would seem that Sophie Cousens is incapable of writing a bad book - she’s absolutely killed it again with The Good Part. I LOVED loved loved it.

Lucy is having a rough go of it. Her promotion at work wasn’t really a promotion, she only seems to be going on bad dates lately, and her best friend/roommate just dropped the bombshell that she’s moving out. After one particularly bad night, Lucy wishes on an old arcade wish machine that she could just skip to the good part of her life - and it works. Lucy wakes up in a nice house, with a great job, and a handsome husband. The only problem? She can’t remember the last 16 years of her life.

This book had a little bit of everything I love. Great character development, romance, humor. Basically all the trademarks of a Cousens novel. I can easily see this becoming a film some day, but in the meantime I’ll happily reread.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Love this book! The time travel premise feels fresh and the ending is picture perfect. Definitely plan on suggesting to my book club. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Life is a cultivation of moments filled with chased dreams, messy situations and wrong turns. We wish away those difficult days wanting to the 'Good Part." What we don't realize is those challenging circumstances make us cherish our family, friends and special moments in our lives. If we didn't have those difficult times, the alternative wouldn't be so sweet.

Down-on-her-luck Lucy Young is struggling to make ends meet. Every time Lucy thinks she's chosen the right path, there's another detour ahead. After a disastrous evening, she finds herself wishing to get to #TheGoodPart. Waking up, Lucy doesn't recognize herself or her surroundings. Overnight she's aged from 26 to 42 and she's married with a family.

Lucy's reached the pinnacle of her career but is struggling to come to terms with losing 16 years and what happened to her life. She's realizing that everyone faces challenges but while embracing her new reality, does she want her old one back? What does it mean to have a good life and that question will require Lucy to make a difficult decision.

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher for the early edition of #TheGoodPart in exchange for an honest review. I'm a fan of Sophie Cousens' books as she has readers question their choices, dreams and realities. While reading the novel, it made me consider what I want in life. I'm grateful for what I have but I'm guilty of wishing away those dreary days in favor of the future. What happens when we reach the end of our road but haven't enjoyed the journey?.

To close, it's time to Frostify my review as it echoes how I live my life.
"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference. (Robert Frost)

Sophie Cousens’ books are always a yes for me. This book was no exception. It covered friendship, loss, love and the struggle to have everything all figured out. It reminded you how fleeting time is and it made you laugh along the way. All of the characters, big and small, were well developed and a pleasure to read. This was an absolute favorite of mine!

This one took me a minute, but once I was in it, I was hooked! This sweet and swoony time travel romance asks the question - are the good parts of life all that good without the hard parts mixed in? Lucy Young has to grapple with this question when she finds herself fast forwarded 16 years and discovers many hoped for (and unexpected) parts of her life in place. Another wonderful read by Sophie Cousens!

review from goodreads:

ohmygosh who is cutting the onions?! i’m crying over here over that ending. i wanted lucy to stay in the future because i loved sam, felix, and amy so much.

this book was so wholesome my heart couldn’t take it. this follows the story of the main character, lucy, forming bonds with her family sixteen years in the future, and is also on a self-discovery journey. this happens after she makes a wish to skip to “the good part” of her life on a wishing machine.

i loved the idea of magical realism, and i think the author did a wonderful job at incorporating it within the story. also reading about the struggles and happy times of motherhood made me have a new appreciation for my mom.

i do wish we got more details and scenes with sam. he is def a top tier, supportive book husband, and i just wanted more of him. i mean he was so understanding and careful with lucy while she was going through her “memory loss”🥹🥹

huge thank you to netgalley and penguin group putnam books for the arc!

4.25⭐️

Thank you Sophie Cousens, G.P. Putnam’s Sons, and NetGalley for this arc in exchange for my honest review.

This was my first book by Sophie Cousens and it immediately drew me in. The characters were lovable and I really enjoyed the story until the end. I was shocked by the main character’s choice and genuinely had a hard time wrapping my head around why she chose what she did. After thinking about it more, I understood some possibilities on why she chose the way she did. It really changed how I felt about the book by the end. While the ending may not have been for me, I still recommend giving this book a read!

Rating: 3.5 stars

I flew through this book. It loosely reminded me of one of my favorite books, Liane Moriarty’s, “What Alice Forgot.” I loved Lucy’s self-discovery and rediscovery of family love as she navigates her granted time leap to “the good part” of life. Lucy’s family 100% had my heart.
Lots of food for thought- most basically, “What is ‘the good part’ of life?”

Thank you #NetGalley and #GPPutnamSons for the ARC e-book

This one got me out of a reading slump! It was adorable, heart warming, it was everything I needed. Don't read reviews...just read this book!