Reviews with content warning for Medical content - Ready or Not

Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

Ready or Not by Cara Bastone

29 reviews

abidavisf's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Somebody call the Louvre cos we’ve got ourselves a masterpiece.

Cara Bastone is a genius. Her writing is gorgeous. It’s casual and simple while also immensely clever. It’s hilarious and raw and friendly. Ready or Not is your best friend telling you about their day. It’s your own stream of consciousness, guiding you through life, making subtle observations about inconsequential events and overthinking everything.

Eve is a badass. She is all heart, even when she thinks she isn’t, *especially* when she thinks she isn’t. Eve is love and bravery. She cares and she craves and she feels so much. I adore her. She is also hilarious. I can’t figure out if I’m more inclined to be her or be her best friend.

Shep and Ethan are two sides of a coin, opposite and yet so similar. Both men are in touch with their emotions. Both men are genuinely good. There were moments in this book that had me frustrated with Ethan but nothing ever made me doubt his integrity or his intentions. Shep is, of course, perfect. No notes. I hate saying that, but it’s true.

I love that Ready or Not is just a story of an accidental pregnancy and figuring out what the ever-loving fk you’re going to do about it. This is a book about dreams and friendship and found family. It is a book about accepting flaws, your own and those others. It is a book about honesty and openness. There are some really hard-hitting themes in Ready or Not, from infidelity to infertility, and all of them are handled with grace and respect.

I am over the moon to be able to go and read Cara Bastone’s entire bibliography.

Content Warnings

spindere11a's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

josielaurette's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I LOVE THIS BOOK SO MUCH. It’s SO GOOD and SO FUNNY and I just love it.

Content Warnings

shawniejo's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional lighthearted medium-paced

3.5

Content Warnings

ambercunningham's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

dolphinchick93's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

jourdanicus's review against another edition

Go to review page

funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Ok wow. I am very childfree so I really didn't expect to like this book, honestly? I heard it described in a podcast though and based on the way the host talked about it, it sounded like it would fit my interests somewhat because friends to lovers is my favorite trope.

And this worked for me! Of course pregnancy and having a child was a central part of the plot, but I loved that Eve still got to be her own person AND have conflicted feelings about pregnancy. Even though I can't relate to ultimately ending up wanting a pregnancy/child, like... My life would be boring if I only ever read books with characters to whom I could relate perfectly. So, I thought the pregnancy theme was written really well for readers of any lifestyle.

The best part for me was the semi-slow burn (NOT boringly slow) friends to lovers element. I CAN highly relate to that trope in my own life, and it's one of my favorites in fiction. For others, there may not be enough conflict, but I love when characters are kind to each other and want to work things out but aren't afraid to lovingly call each other out on their flaws. That's what I got here.

Finally, the intimacy was also a bit slow-burning, and I tend to like my characters to have sex early and often 😂 but there was more than enough going on in the story that I didn't feel like I needed that here. Eve had other things to work out, and the pacing and balance of the romance with the other themes was really well-done. When sex finally appeared on the page, it was REALLY good. 🥵😧🥰

This ended up being my most surprising 5 star read so far this year!

Edited to add: idk how I could forget to mention how great the narrator was. Probably one of the most expressive audiobook narrators I've listened to. I hope to find more of their work!

Content Warnings