A review by minimicropup
Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

This was fascinating! It was easy to sit back and listen to the story unfold.
 
Energy: Sanctimonious. Preoccupied. Hopeful.   
Scene: 🇺🇸 Greenwich Village in Manhattan NYC
Perspective: The story centers around our two main characters before and after the events of October 13, 2023. The two were former besties - one is a child-free luxury travel consultant, the other a mommy influencer with a clothing boutique. We also get past timeline glances of their friend and family dynamics as preteens through to new adulthood. 
 
🐩 Tail Wags: Character development. Writing style. Overall story.
 
🤔 Random Thoughts:
I love that the characters were described up front when the author had a specific image in mind. And it went beyond hair and eye colour. 
 
The characters have depth. Cassie was insufferable to me, but I can see others loving the drama she brings and identifying with her situation, even if not her personality. I fully expected Billie to be unhinged, but surprisingly, nope. She even has some relatable moments around the crazy situation she’s gotten herself into. 
 
There’s also great character development. And it doesn’t go so far that we gotta suspend all disbelief about how much they can change. 
 
You can probably already guess this is very character-driven and more of a slow-burn friendship study. Not boring at all, but if you were expecting over-the-top unhinged fast-paced domestic thriller tropes, this isn’t that. 
 
On that note, if you read a lot of thrillers and have come to expect suspense from characters investing tons of energy into hiding their secret pasts or withholding details from the reader, this is a refreshing break from that style. 
 
🤓 Reader Role: Hearing the characters’ minds, but only what they choose to share or what they’re aware of. Kind of like we are meant to listen and then have time to analyze them. 
🗺️ World-Building: Enough detail to imagine the neighbourhood, and easy to find the areas on Google Earth and YouTube. 
🔥 Fuel: Why is Cassie suddenly excluding Billie? Why is Billie so eager to win Cassie’s favour? What will Billie do with Cassie’s baby? Why did she take it? In the second part, we get drama over what will happen to Billie after the baby incident and how she navigates the situation. 
📖 Cred: Realistic to hyper-realistic. 
🚙 Journey: People-watching in the park. Sometimes with binoculars. At night. In windows. 
 
Mood Reading Match-Up:
  • Fallen leaves. Autumn breeze. Street food sizzling. Baby powder. Phone notifications. iPhone keyboard clicks. Selfies. Sirens. Baby crying. 
  • Where Did It All Go Wrong friendship study
  • Psychoanalyzing characters and romance with a touch of understatement and irony
 
Content Heads-Up: Sexual content (consenting, pressured). Birth, breast-feeding. Sexual assault, abuse, rape (teen into adulthood). Dementia, early onset Alzheimer’s. Loss of a parent. Narcissism. Classism. Bullying (adults). 
 
Rep: White and ambiguous Americans. Lesbian. Heterosexual. Cisgender. Childfree by choice.
 
📚 Format: Library Audio
 
My musings 💖 powered by puppy snuggles 🐶
Expand filter menu Content Warnings