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A review by kfmcf
Josh and Gemma Make a Baby by Sarah Ready
emotional
informative
slow-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? It's complicated
1.25
I think there's a lot in this book that's good and a lot that is a bit...confusing why it's there.
The IVF aspects of the book are by far the best. They give a look into an aspect of family decision making that's not usually discussed, especially in rom coms. The overall plot is interesting more so in concept than in excision, however, which is a but of a bummer.
My main issue with this book is the sources of conflict. First, there's this whole side where Josh won't tell her he's liked her for years - but I can't tell if we as the audience are supposed to be surprised. Also, why does he like her? It's never said and she is shown to have been a dick to him. I do appreciate that they have at least some history but their chemistry is conflicting imo.
The second point of conflict is her relationship with her boss. He sucks and nothing about him is surprising and I find his subplot entirely superfluous. His pages could have been used to further flesh out the relationship between the leads or give more depth to the FL in regards to her life goals or *something.*
Finally...there's the stupid recurring double in the fertility office. I don't like using the word stupid as a descriptor but they were nearly book ruining for me. They were in two (rather long) scenes and I almost just skipped those completely. They're not funny and they just made me uncomfortable in an awkward and cringey way.
The last critique I want to give this book is that the title is...unfortunate. I don't really want to have this title on my shelf just due to the fact that it lacks any sort of subtlety (kind of like the book in a lot of ways). I get it's maybe a bit tongue in cheek but it sounds more like a pregnancy how-to than a novel.
Overall, I wanted this book to be something it's not. It didn't entirely fail - I was entertained for a few hours - but it definitely needed some refining.
The IVF aspects of the book are by far the best. They give a look into an aspect of family decision making that's not usually discussed, especially in rom coms. The overall plot is interesting more so in concept than in excision, however, which is a but of a bummer.
My main issue with this book is the sources of conflict. First, there's this whole side where Josh won't tell her he's liked her for years - but I can't tell if we as the audience are supposed to be surprised. Also, why does he like her? It's never said and she is shown to have been a dick to him. I do appreciate that they have at least some history but their chemistry is conflicting imo.
The second point of conflict is her relationship with her boss. He sucks and nothing about him is surprising and I find his subplot entirely superfluous. His pages could have been used to further flesh out the relationship between the leads or give more depth to the FL in regards to her life goals or *something.*
Finally...there's the stupid recurring double in the fertility office. I don't like using the word stupid as a descriptor but they were nearly book ruining for me. They were in two (rather long) scenes and I almost just skipped those completely. They're not funny and they just made me uncomfortable in an awkward and cringey way.
The last critique I want to give this book is that the title is...unfortunate. I don't really want to have this title on my shelf just due to the fact that it lacks any sort of subtlety (kind of like the book in a lot of ways). I get it's maybe a bit tongue in cheek but it sounds more like a pregnancy how-to than a novel.
Overall, I wanted this book to be something it's not. It didn't entirely fail - I was entertained for a few hours - but it definitely needed some refining.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Vomit, Infertility, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Blood, Child death, Death of parent, and Grief