This was my first book by this author, I really need to read more of her books. I wouldn’t call this a thriller but more a drama/suspense. We know from the opening chapters that Billie is responsible of taking Cassie’s baby. And then we go back in time to find out why and how that happened.

Cassie and Billie have been best friends forever but lately they seem to be drifting apart, despite all Billie’s efforts. Cassie is happily married and has a new baby, and Billie is single and childless. But they have a past, and secrets that bind them forever.

This is a dark story of complicated relationships, adults behaving badly and motherhood. I have said it before and ai will say it again, Karissa Vacker is an awesome narrator and I love listening to her tell stories. I listened to this in 2 sittings, it was very addictive.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book to listen to. Released on March 5th

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan audio. This was not so much a thriller as it was about the power of childhood friendships, toxic relationships/family drama. I appreciated the past storylines which gave us more insight into why Billie felt so attached to Cassie which initially didn’t make sense to me since Cassie wanted nothing to do with Billie. I did feel myself getting bored with the influencer storyline and all of Cassie’s shallow friendships. Also, I was expecting more of a wow factor in the end and it just never came. Overall it was enjoyable but not jaw dropping. Definitely check TW as there were some disturbing and hard to read chapters.

There’s something I love in books about women behaving badly and that was definitely the case in this one. Childhood best friends have lost their connection. Billie doesn’t see much of Cassie in person but she sees her multiple times a day on Instagram loading her mommy and lifestyle content. They are slowly reconnecting but it’s hard. Cassie is focused on her affluent life, her husband and above all her daughter. Until one day her daughter goes missing. I don’t want to say too much but I couldn’t stop listening to this one!

Huge thank you to @macmillan.audio and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Carola Lovering pulls off quit a feat with this book! There were so many times that this one could have potentially gone off the rails for me and been a bust, but overall I enjoyed this one! Most of the characters are fairly unlikeable, but they have moments when you can empathize with them and the choices they have made and continue to make (a feat in this regard since sometimes books with all unlikeable characters lead to unlikeable books). The plot was suspenseful enough to keep me listening and engaged and many of the plot points felt fairly realistic (a feat because some of those plot points could have made me want to chuck the book across the room in frustration but I was able to roll with most of it). I did like the messages the author sent about money, wealth, class, womens roles, the decision to have children, and more. The one downside I will comment on was the ending in that it wrapped up WAY too nicely for all that went down in the book. But overall this book is a win!

BYE, BABY follows two women in a complicated friendship. Billie and Cassie were friends going up, the type who would support each other through anything. In the present they’ve drifted apart. Cassie is happily married, a new mother, and a businesswoman. Cassie seems to do it all, everything except keep up with her old friend Billie. Billie is single and not sure she’s cut out for a relationship. The pair share a complicated history and soon their present will be more complicated too.

When Cassie is celebrating her birthday, her baby girl is sleeping peacefully. Billie happens to hear the baby crying and take her as any friend might do. Problem is, Billie wasn’t invited to the party and shouldn’t have been there at all. Now Cassie is reaching out to her oldest friend, not knowing that Billie is the one who has her missing daughter.

I enjoy stories about friendships and that is definitely at the core of this one. It isn’t, however, a healthy friendship. Neither of these women is particularly likable. I don’t always need a likable character when reading, but I did want to feel more connected to them. As the book goes along and we get flashbacks to Billie’s and Cassie’s past, we start to see why they are the way that they are and they go through some very rough circumstances (check out the trigger warnings for this if there are some that would be an issue for you). I did feel for their younger selves a lot more, especially Billie.

While this was billed as a suspense according to the blurb, I read this more as a family drama with secrets being uncovered. I didn’t feel quite as much tension as I wanted. Still, it was an easy listen and it did keep my interest, even if it wasn’t one that I felt the need to binge read.

This is one I’d recommend to someone who likes stories of adults behaving badly and toxic friendships with a bit of suspense mixed in. I will definitely pick up more from this author in the future.

I wouldn't call this a mystery/thriller. It definitely wasn't what I expected, however, I really enjoyed it! The audiobook narration was great! It gave the book a different feel than if I had read it. The timelines went back and forth from present to past and from both points of view which I thought was a fantastic way to tell the back story at the same time as the present story, This is more a story about a toxic friendship with some suspense thrown in. Cassie and Billie have been friends through all of life's struggles and biggest changes. They've gone different ways in life, but they are share a secret from the past that binds them together. When tragedy strikes Cassie reaches out to Billie first, instead of her mom friends that she's close to. Her friends think Billie is pathetic because she's not married and doesn't have kids of her own yet. Expectations of being a mother in today's society, stigmas associated with motherhood, and ties that bind all add to this story. It was well written and kept me interested to the point that I didn't want to stop listening. Thanks NetGalley for

What would you do if your baby was kidnapped? What would you do if you found out your best friend did it? Billie and Cassie have been friends since childhood but now that Cassie is a popular social media influencer married to a rich socialite, she is leaving her humble beginnings behind, including her best friend Billie. When Billie happens upon a party she wasn't invited to and hears Cassie's baby crying unattended, she grabs her without thinking. Even though she quickly returns the baby, Cassie is fearful that the kidnapping was a message that more harm is meant for her child and she quickly falls on her oldest friend for comfort. But can Billie keep this secret and can the friendship survive this secret if she can't? The narrator of this book was good, but I found the story to be very repetitive. I felt like there was drama that could have added to the story but instead we just kept repeating the same memories from the past and hurts of the present. Good idea for a story that just fell flat for me personally.

I've absolutely loved some this author's previous books but this was not my favorite. I kept waiting for something surprising . . . some twist. But it didn't come. The ending was also thoroughly disappointing. The one thing I did like was the message behind the book but, unfortunately, that wasn't enough to save the book for me. The narrators were . . . fine. Hope you have better luck.

Bye, Baby comes out next week on March 5, 2024 and you can purchase HERE.

I'm not a baby person. I used to assume I'd become one, eventually, like most of the girls-turned-women I've known in my life, their voices rising in pitch at the sight of a chubby baby arm, the creased rolls of a tiny wrist cuff. I kept waiting for it to happen. But it hasn't. I am thirty-five years old, and I've never felt that particular tug.

An absolute 5 star! I enjoyed my time with this thriller had fun guessing! Was surprised by the ending fun time!

I received an Advanced Listeners Copy courtesy of MacMillan Audio and NetGalley. I enjoyed Lovering’s last book so I was excited for this one and the synopsis made me even more excited. This book hooked me from page 1. I really enjoyed the dual POV and the fact that the characters weren’t the most likable, but I still enjoyed hearing their points of view. Usually, when I don’t like the characters, I don’t enjoy the book, but that wasn’t the case here. A couple times I thought I had some twists and the ending figured out, but I was wrong. The resolution was not what I was hoping for, but I still very much enjoyed this book.

I decided to do the audio for this one since I love Karissa Vacker! The narration was great but there were some TW that I am sick of in thrillers - Pedophile troupe is not my jam.

Similar to other novels by Lovering, Bye Baby is more of a friendship drama than a thriller, although the cover and description seem very thrillery. There's some suspense to the drama, though, and I know by now not to expect thrillers from this author even though they seem to be marketed as such.

Despite the genre, I was hooked. This author has a particular skill for weaving the most toxic of friendships! It's an interesting look at how friendships evolve over time, sometimes unevenly. I found both main characters to be rather unlikeable, but I was fascinated by their toxic interactions and certainly wanted to see how things would play out for Billie.

I did feel like the book was over halfway through. Usually books like this climax around the 80% mark, with some wrap up and explanations and then it's done. With this book, though, all the questions posed by the summary were answered by the 50% mark. The ending felt way too drawn out for me--I was expecting a final reveal, but nothing else came.

As a fun aside, I drove through Red Hook one weekend while I was listening to this book! I don't live far from there, and drove by on the way to go hiking at Indian Head.

Karissa Vacker is one of my favorite narrators, so I always jump at the chance to listen to one of her performances. Helen Laser is new to me, I think, but I adored her performance as well!

Well this novel did a number on my anxiety! Be mindful that this is billed as a thriller but it was more of an interesting character study about two best friends and how their relationship has changed over many years peppered with some drama and mystery. Both Billie and Cassidy made some extremely questionable choices and were highly flawed. I jumped between listening and reading this one and would recommend either format - the dual narrators (Helen Laser and Karissa Vacker) were great and played both MCs so well.

This was…fine. I don’t know if I just wasn’t in the mood for a thriller, but I did not connect with this story at all. I found the twists and turns to be a bit predictable.

5 out of 5 stars

This was a really fun mystery/thriller and it has been a long time since I read a good mystery. I have been reading a lot of fantasy novellas and this really hit at the right time. There is nothing better than a good toxic friendship and two time lines to keep me entertained. I read Too Good to be True by Lovering and I really enjoyed it and this was just as good. The narrators Helen Laser and Karissa Vacker did a great job voicing Billie and Cassie. I will say that I found myself kind of more on Billie's side.

4.5-4.75 stars rounded up

WOW. I loved this. The narration was fantastic as was the plot. I loved the current days storyline and the switching to the past, it felt seamless and well done.

The character development was really good, especially of Cassie. Initially, I thought her part in the ending seemed..,off but after thinking about it I changed my mind. That’s totally what would happen!

I only didn’t give this 5 stars because I’m not 100% sure I believe the ending for Billie and I had big anxiety throughout the book as to how the deception would play out!! (For real! I was so uncomfortable!)

Great book that I definitely loved!

Advanced reader copy from NetGalley + St. Martin’s Press but all opinions are my own,

A TWISTED MEAN GIRL THRILLER!
Trigger Warnings: Sexual Assault and Kidnapping

Cassie and Billie have been best friends since they were 12. Now in their 30's, they haven't spoken in months. Billie was supposed to be the maid of honor at Cassie's wedding, but she chose her Harvard Sorority sister, McKay, instead. Billie's hurt runs deep. She and Cassie share a secret they hold forever locked in a vault since they were in High School and now Cassie will barely give her the time of day. Really, they live in two different worlds and run in separate circles. Cassie is extremely successful launching her new clothing line. Her husband, Grant is funding all of it and Cassie maintains her pristine new mom SOHO identity on Instagram with 48K followers. Billie still shops at thrift stores. Billie is not on Cassie's radar. But when Cassie's new baby goes missing, Billie is the first one she wants by her side. Finally, they are back together.

I found this novel to be thrilling and unputdownable. The audio edition is THE WAY to receive this messy drama! Helen Laser was genius in her audio interpretation of each character. Her POV differentiation of Cassie and Billie had me completely pulled in. I just don't think I could have experienced it the same way reading it on paper. Helen just gives the necessary "in the theater" experience needed to push this story over the edge. The writing is phenomenal in capturing Cassie and Billie as polar opposites. The non-linear timeline and dual POVs were completely necessary to the build up. The pivotal moment in the middle of the book nearly had me screaming and jumping up and down. The dramatic irony is so juicy you will need a mop at the end. Every moment and every character was completely necessary to the plot. You will hate Cassie on your inhale then be rooting for her on your exhale. Your empathy for Billie will have your heart breaking in one moment then have you shaking your head in the next. I had to skip through a couple of uncomfortable sexual content scenes, but that's easy with an audio version.

Thank you so much NetGalley, MacMillan Audio, Carola Lovering, and Helen Laser for the opportunity to get lost in this wild Audio ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Reading challenge category – 2022 52 Book Club: Involves a Second Chance

Thank you to #NetGalley for the ARC copy.

"Bye, Baby" by Carola Lovering offers an emotionally charged story that delves into the complexities of friendship, secrets, and the lasting effects of trauma and loss This book follows the intertwined lives of Billie West and Cassie Barnwell, two women who have been best friends… until recently.

Lovering captures the intricacies of female friendships, portraying the complexities of loyalty, jealousy, and forgiveness with nuance and authenticity. Through alternating perspectives, readers are given insight into the inner worlds of both Billie and Cassie, as they grapple with guilt, regret, and the desire for redemption.

While adding to the storyline, I had a hard time with the “influencer” sections of the book. It made it difficult for me to feel any type of kinship with Cassie’s character and just made her thoroughly unlikeable to me.

Overall, "Bye, Baby" is a slow burn but thought-provoking novel that will resonate with adult women who have grown in and out of friendships.

*Something new – I saw another user who created music playlists for books, and these are the songs that I thought of as I was reading this one:
1. Fight Song – Rachel Platten
2. Say Something – A Great Big World
3. Love is Strange – Mickey + Sylvia
4. Exile – Taylor Swift ft. Bon Iver
5. Hold On – Wilson Phillips
6. You’ve Got Mail Suite – George Fenton
7. Where’d You Go – Fort Minor ft. Holly Brook and Jonah Matranga
8. Supermarket Flowers – Ed Sheeran
9. Chicken Fried – Zac Brown Band
10. Colder Weather – Zac Brown Band
11. Lost Cause – Billie Eilish
12. Stronger – Kelly Clarkson
13. I Don’t Love You – My Chemical Romance
14. Let Her Go – Passenger
15. Second Chance – Shinedown

3.5 stars, rounded up
I liked this book because it explored some interesting themes. Good interplay between past and present.

Billie and Cassie grew up together and share some secrets from their pasts. As the years have gone by, the two have grown apart and now Cassie is married with a baby and Billie is single and still trying to find her way in life. It all comes to a head one night when Billie kidnaps Cassie's baby (not a spoiler, this happens in the prologue). What led to this event, and what happens now?

This is an intriguing domestic drama--it is less about the kidnapping and more about the way relationships are formed, grow, change, and evolve over time. I can't say that I could identify at all with either Billie or Cassie. I felt like Billie should have moved on and grown up--she is 35, it's time to mature and realize that not every friendship is "for life" no matter what you've been through in the past. Billie put way too much emphasis on whether or not Cassie was her "best friend", so much that it really stunted her own growth. And Cassie was so materialistic and performative I couldn't relate to her either.

Overall though, I liked the message about whether or not motherhood is for everyone, and I liked the way the flashbacks were used to flesh out the story. I listened to this as an audiobook and despite the fact that I don't always mesh with Karissa Vacker's narration, I thought it was pretty good in this case, and Helen Laser did an equally good job with her voicing.

Lovering's books are often hit or miss for me, but this one was an engaging examination of friendship and the paths it can take through life.

Bye, Baby by Natalie Barelli explores the complexities of friendship, the repercussions of past actions, and the lengths people will go to in order to maintain connections. Set against the backdrop of a chilling disappearance, the story follows Billie and Cassie, whose once-close friendship is marred by secrets and resentment.

The novel opens with a gripping scene as Billie discovers her best friend Cassie's infant daughter missing, sending shockwaves through their lives. As the narrative unfolds, Barelli skillfully delves into the tumultuous history between Billie and Cassie, revealing layers of tension and mistrust.

One of the book's strengths lies in its exploration of toxic relationships and the impact of childhood trauma on adult dynamics. However, the characters themselves may not resonate with all readers. Both Cassie and Billie are portrayed as flawed and unlikable, which can make it challenging to empathize with their struggles.

Additionally, the plot occasionally stretches believability, particularly concerning the mechanics of the child's abduction. While the suspenseful storytelling keeps readers engaged, some may find themselves questioning the plausibility of certain events.

Overall, "Bye, Baby" offers a compelling exploration of friendship and betrayal, though its lengthy narrative and less-than-sympathetic characters may not appeal to all readers. For those willing to suspend disbelief, it delivers an intriguing psychological thriller that keeps you guessing until the end.

Thank you NetGalley and Natalie Barelli for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.