Reviews with content warning for Abortion - Bye, Baby

Reviews tagging 'Abortion'

Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering

25 reviews

meagan123's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

hollispaige's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

3.5

I’m not sure where to go with this review? I think i loved this book because it really had me empathizing with the “bad guy.” Both of the main characters sucked, but the snobby one (Cassidy) sucked the most. Some aspects were not my usual read; and others were. It definitely kept me coming back, and i would totally recommend to friends.

Content Warnings

onewoman_bookclub's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark tense medium-paced

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

Thank you NetGalley for the gifted copy!

Content Warnings

mackenzierm's review against another edition

Go to review page

Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

Billie West is in a NYC apartment when she hears the terrified screams. Her lifelong best friend Cassie is one floor above and has just realized her daughter is missing. Billie is shaken to look down into her arms and see the missing baby that has shattered Cassie's world. BYE, BABY is the story of Billie and Cassie's friendship, filled with secrets and shared trauma, from the time they met in seventh grade up to now at 35 years old. Cassie is a fashion and lifestyle influencer and married to a wealthy man with an infant. Billie is single, childless, and is hurt that she no longer fits in Cassie's world with her new priorities; Billie is ready to do anything to restore their friendship.

BYE, BABY is labeled by some as a thriller but I think that we should be careful with this labeling as it may lead to some false expectations as to what this story entails. I'd be more inclined to state that it is a women's fiction novel with a mix of suspense and psychological drama.

That aside, this novel is a fantastic read and is incredibly bingeworthy. I was quickly hooked into the story by the clever prologue that tells us what happens but not the how or why. BYE, BABY is told in alternating dual POV (Cassie's and Billie's) in the days leading up to the event described in the prologue and the days following. There are some chapters interspersed from the past that highlights how close of a bond Cassie and Billie shared from a young age up to the present.

Lovering does an excellent job at depicting a friendship that has lasted for 20+ years but now is showing the stress of time as the two slowly drift apart as their priorities and interests change. The exploration of the many facets of a friendship, the influence and impact of social media, and overall narration of the plot is highly compelling. Each character is well developed and dynamic if not always likeable. I really enjoyed the side characters: Jane, Alex, Grant, McKay, etc as they each provided a solid support system for both of the main characters. The ending is truly well done and ties up everything neatly.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher, St. Martin's Press, of this advanced digital copy for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for an honest review! All opinions shared are my own.

Content Warnings

sierra_liv's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Bye, Baby | Carola Lovering
4⭐️

Brief synopsis: Bye, Baby follows Cassie and Billie, two childhood BFFs who have grown apart as adults, but are tied together by traumatic events from their childhood. These events are slowly revealed and help explain their incomprehensible, obsessive “friendship”. The pair is later brought back together as adults when Cassie’s baby is suddenly kidnapped.

This was my first book by Lovering and it won’t be my last! A bingeable book with an interesting set of characters. Honestly, I didn’t really love any of the characters, but sometimes I enjoy reading books with unlikeable characters! This was definitely a character-driven plot. Personally, I wouldn’t classify this a “thriller”, leans more towards domestic drama/suspense. I loved the short chapters, dual POVs, and alternating timelines (past/present). The influencer plot was little annoying, but seemed realistic 🤣🤷🏼‍♀️

A couple small issues with this book…Billie’s obsession with Cassie drove me crazy (especially at first). After learning about their secrets though, I could understand Billie’s reasoning a little more. She was almost toxically “bonded” to Cassie. Also, then ending UGH. I had to suspend disbelief a little too much and it tied up a little too nicely for my personal preferences. However, this was a well-paced and intriguing story about friendship, secrets, and lies. Definitely recommend for a binge worthy, drama-filled read!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Carola Lovering for providing me with a gifted copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Content Warnings

heather425's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

3.75

This book was about a friendship or rather two frenemies. Billie and Cassie meet when they're in middle school. They're now in their mid-30s, living in NYC, and over each other. Kind of.

Cassie is a gold digger, who has been trying to get into the world of old money since her dad lost their family fortune when she was a child. Billie is in awe of her the moment they meet. Billie's home life is not good. Her step dad is a perv and her mom has early Alzheimer's.

The book alternates between the women both in the past and present day. Both are very flawed and it was hard to like either of them. Though part of the uncomfortable feelings were seeing parts of myself in both. Female friendships can definitely have a lot of jealousy. Which is part of the issue with Cassie and Billie.

Lovering kept me interested with her writing style. The drama about the baby wasn't interesting, but the thoughts and actions of the women kept me engaged.

Check this out when it hits shelves March 5. Thank you to netgalley for the arc!

Content Warnings

emstewart23's review

Go to review page

dark emotional medium-paced

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

3.0

Thank you NetGalley and McMillan Audio for an advanced audio copy in exchange for my honest review. Overall this book was a bit unexpected for a thriller. Yes there were parts that were suspenseful but I kept hoping that there would be twists and there just…weren’t. The audiobook narrators were fantastic and I love how different their voices were to add to the juxtaposition between the two characters. I would strongly recommend to the publisher to add a content warning at the beginning of the book, or for readers to be aware of them prior to reading. There was some very graphic content. I enjoyed my process of reading this book as a nice escape but overall I was left disappointed with the ending and not sure if this would be one I would remember.

Content Warnings

trop_de_livres's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

This is a hard-to-define novel. Billie and Cassie are our main characters. These two women have been best friends since they were girls, but have had a major falling out. Cassie is a mommy influencer and Billie has a successful career in travel, all the while pining after her old friend who has cut her out of her life. While navigating their glamorous lives in New York City, they are both haunted by a secret from their past. One impulsive act will be the catalyst to changing Billie’s life.

Right after my recent pronouncement that I was burnt out on books written in this style (first person present tense, alternating POV chapters) I will have to eat my words and say that this one worked much better for me. It might be that I listened to it for the most part (using the Read Aloud function…not the best way to listen due to the robotic voice, but when it’s first-person narration, perhaps listening is the key to my enjoyment of this style?).

This is sort of a domestic mystery without much suspense, but the story did keep me interested, although the pacing was too slow. It’s more about female friendship and living with the choices we make. It feels a bit like what used to be called chick lit (lots of references about social media, brands, etc) but the characters have more emotional depth than your run-of-the-mill genre fiction and this one gets dark and quite disturbing at times. New York City is definitely a character in this novel, and the many references to brands, etc could equally be seen as world-building and essential to the story, so this is why I have trouble really defining what kind of book this is. Superficial on one level, but emotionally deep on another.

I really appreciated the theme of motherhood since it is still strangely and sadly taboo to declare that you don’t want to have children. Many of the emotional elements resonated with me on many levels. I think it’s important to know that this is not a thriller, but more of a psychological study of friendship, with some mysterious elements. Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for letting me read this in exchange for an honest review.

Content Warnings

pomoevareads's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.0

Lovering has crafted a well paced story of two best friends, who are no longer best friends-but only one of them seems to know that. Jealousy, hurt, and misdirected threat, are at the heart of Bye, Baby.

Billie and Cassie have a long and complicated friendship. They hold secrets and are connected by the bonds of these secrets. But when Cassie marries the blue blooded trust fund receiving Grant and begins hanging out with his crowd and posting her grandiose lifestyle with her Instagram followers, Billie is left to wonder where or if she still fits into Cassie’s life. Then one night Cassie holds a big birthday bash, after telling Billie that she was staying in and having a quiet night, and the uninvited Billie discovers this while checking Cassie’s Instagram stories. During the party, Cassie’s infant daughter, Ella, goes missing. The story opens with Billie sitting on a sofa with Ella in her arms.

Taut and juicy, Bye, Baby delivered the drama. If not for my brain telling me I needed sleep, I would have continued reading this one all the way through in one go.

My favourite structure of before and now and sustained pacing made this book a solid read that I would highly recommend to other readers. There are a few trigger warnings outside of the obvious kidnapped baby; I will post the warnings in my StoryGraph review.

Thank you to @stmartinspress for reaching out to me to offer me this book, knowing that I would enjoy it and to @netgalley for the ARC. Bye, Baby publishes March 5, 2024. I am sharing my honest opinions on this selection.

Content Warnings

cassiereadsbooks_'s review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

More...