When Nora meets socialite Evelyn Elliot, she is struggling financially and losing hope that her and her husband will have a family of their own. As she gets to know Evelyn, Evelyn makes it her cause to carry a baby for Nora.

This story kept me on my toes because I knew there was going to be some drama. I enjoy books about surrogacy. This one wasn’t a thriller like recent surrogacy reads I’ve dived into, but it was just as entertaining. I loved the subplot of the designer vintage outfits and the backstory. I thought it was all real and googled it to find out it wasn’t, but it felt so real! I sped through this book and enjoyed it thoroughly.

“Just because you know there’s a chance the thing you’ve been wishing for most in the world but come true, doesn’t mean it can’t completely bowl you over when it does.”

The Favor comes out in paperback 4/2/24.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of The Favor by Adele Griffin in exchange for my honest review and opinion. WOW, I loved this book. Don't let the pink cover fool you as you will be drawn in to this tense thriller from the first page. I wasn't expecting this and boy did I love it! Great book!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of The Favor by Adele Griffin.

The Favor is a lovely book, but it gave me great anxiety! I read ahead to the end to find out how it ended because I was so sure it was all going to fall apart.

Nora is a 30-something who has been struggling with infertility for years. One day, socialite Evelyn walks into her consignment store and drops a few thousand without a thought. The two of them bond over a poet and Evelyn decides that she's going to be friends with Nora. Nora quickly gets whipped up in Evelyn's life and the personal and business start to merge until she's overwhelmed by Evelyn's desire to act as a surrogate.

I never really bought Evelyn and Nora's friendship. Evelyn used Nora for her style and because she was almost desperate for money to pay off her and her husband's debt. Evelyn had all the power in the relationship and when she told Nora she wouldn't sign a contract, all the sirens started going off in my head.

Spoilers: it all ends up rather happily ever after. There are some bumps and I would have really liked a few chapters with Evelyn's POV, especially after she has the baby.

Overall, a fine book. Maybe I read too many thrillers because I was sure that Evelyn was going to take the baby and run with all her resources with her. I'm glad it didn't end that way.

This book had the potential to go spiraling off a cliff! Thankfully, it did not.

Sometimes friendships are true, but when there is a divide in the social class of the friends, it can cause issues. But only if you let it.

I enjoyed the friendship between these women and how it opened up a whole new world for Nora. Evelyn felt like she was being a true friend, but the money and opportunities did cause some friction. When you aren't used to a world based on money, it might make someone feel uncomfortable.

This was a great story, and we give it 4 paws up.

Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for accepting my request to read and review The Favor on NetGalley.

Friendship, marriage, surrogacy, infertility, financially secure, and financially struggling were all concerns in the story. Griffin writes the interweaving characters and their respective problems seamlessly.

I liked that in the darkest times Griffin kept the characters dialogue respectful. She wrote well pain, fear, and anger as well as happy and excitement. She did so with class.

I would like to see more books like this. Smart, well-written characters and current issues.

I would recommend this to mature teens moving to young adult, and mature reasonable adults.

I so enjoyed this book. Trigger warnings: deals with not being able to have children and surrogate. The book has all of the feels. Thank you #NetGalley, #SourcebooksLandmark, #AdeleGriffin and #TheFavorANovel for the book for my honest review.

As someone who struggles with infertility this book hits close to home. However, it ended up being moreso a book of female friendship and where the line is drawn at doing a favor for a friend.

Have you ever read a book that left you in a puddle of tears but yet feeling like a friend is hugging you? This is the only way I can describe after reading this book.

It’s closing time for Nora Hammond and she’s ready to put her feet up and spend the evening with her husband. Nora works at a high end vintage women’s clothing shop. To her surprise a desperate woman customer tries to enter the shop. The woman introduces herself as Evelyn Elliot and she knows exactly what she wanted and Nora was successful at locating the vintage finds she was searching for. Nora had not made a sale at this price in some time. That encounter with Evelyn was about to change Nora’s life forever.
Nora is happily married to her husband Jacob. From the start of their marriage, they planned to have children. Their attempts, have been unsuccessful. Their attempts at IVF had been unsuccessful. They are still childless and a lot of debt.
As Nora’s and Evelyn’s friendship blossoms, Evelyn decides to give Nora and Jacob the ultimate gift. Evelyn offers to be the surrogate for their child. Nora is not sure what to think she begins to wonder does Evelyn have an ulterior motive for her decision? Could Nora’s and Evelyn’s friendship survive during the course of the pregnancy? We follow these two on their journey. The Favor explores the themes of infertility, surrogates, marriage, family, wealth inequality, and parenthood and friendships.

This book was intense and can show the many nuances of friendships. Nora was having a good time with Evelyn, but once she decided to carry the baby for Nora things started to change and warp. Some of the book is finding out what's in Nora's head and what is reality. This is an easy read, but is thought provoking and keeps your interest.

*I received a free copy of this novel from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for my honest review.*

Nora works at a vintage second hand store in NYC. Nora and her hubby want a baby but are infertile and have run up huge debts trying to have a baby. Nora has a chance encounter in the store with socialite Evelyn who she bonds with over some famous names and, after sharing their darkest secrets, Evelyn offers to carry Nora's baby. She even low key hires Nora to work for her as a stylist which pays off a lot of the debts.

I think that some of the book is supposed to make the reader connect with Nora as a wannabe socialite and social climber who has the connections with the clothing, but I really just found her as needy and desperate. I had a hard time feeling sorry for Nora or Evelyn and didn't connect with either of them. I felt bad for Nora's hubby for being in the situation.

I enjoyed the writing, but I think my lack of a maternal desire affected my pleasure with the story.

This book touched on some important cultural topics that are certainly relevant in todays society - surrogacy and the impact of social media.I loved the authors style of writing and enjoyed the beautiful prose.

Unfortunately this book didn’t work for me and was a DNF but I am sure other readers will feel differently! Thank you for the ARC!

Some favors are too rich for the reward and will have lasting impacts. When Nora let Evelyn into her shop right before closing time, she wouldn't imagine that Evelyn would become such a central component of her life.

Orbiting around Evelyn, Nora puts herself second and bows to Evelyn's whims. When she realizes that something is seriously wrong with their relationship is it too late to giveback her 'generous' gifts? Adele Griffin kept me guessing throughout the novel as I tried to figure out what would happen and how sinister, the outcome.

Thank you to #NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. That was my first Adele Griffin novel but it won't be my last.

This is a moving story about friendship, infertility, and motherhood. For some, motherhood comes easy but for others it takes a lot more work. Griffin takes such care to dive into the different and difficult issues that come up when a couple very much want to have kids but aren’t able to. She writes from experience, and it shows. I would recommend this book about friendship and motherhood to anyone who enjoys those types of stories.

I wasn't very sure of the friendship that was at the heart of this book. It seemed very one-sided to me, even when one of the main characters decided to become a surrogate mother to the other. I felt like Nora was too in awe of Evelyn to be her real self around her, and I felt like Evelyn used Nora - first as a personal assistant and stylist; and then when Evelyn decided to become a surrogate, she didn't really consult Nora and her husband, she kept them out of the loop throughout the pregnancy, and used the whole situation to gain popularity on social media. I feel like the tables had turned somewhat by the end of the book, but I still would've like to see Nora stand up for herself more.

Overall, I liked this story, but was bothered by aspects of it. I did feel like it was a new and interesting take on female friendship and surrogate pregnancy. Thank you to NetGaley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this.

I’m so glad I was accepted to read this book here on NG. First time author for me but won’t be the last I read from her. I love the story of two very different women meeting that resulted in a friendship. There were some hard topics such as infertility but these topics are important and should be represented more. Heart-warming and engaging I truly adored this book.

I thought the idea of this book was definitely cute. I really enjoyed the fashion and the glamor of the world that Evelyn lives in and that Nora got to experience a little of. Having Evelyn carry a baby for Nora was something that you had to suspend reality a bit for. Just didn't seem likely. It was a fun and quick read.

This book covered a lot of issues … infertility and surrogacy; and emotions … unconditional love, friendship, and financial instability. While I could appreciate the high-end clothing store, the constant focus of the fashions and Evelyn’s wealthy life were a little too much. I didn’t connect well with either of the main characters and that left me wanting more from the book. But I could see how this book could offer lots of things to talk about for book clubs. So, it may be just the thing you would want to read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladybugsbookreviews.com/. Over 1000 reviews posted!

Contemporary fiction novel centered around wealth inequality, friendship, and surrogacy. While working in a vintage clothing shop, protagonist Nora meets socialite Evelyn Elliot and is immediately drawn into her orbit. Their lives couldn't be more different, but they quickly form an unexpected friendship. Nora gets to experience a bit of the elite lifestyle that Evelyn enjoys, and she happily accepts the payments she receives from helping to style Evelyn. The money goes a long way towards reducing the debts that Nora and her husband Jacob had accrued in the process of trying to conceive. Then Evelyn offers an unthinkable gift: to be a surrogate for Nora and Jacob, giving them the baby they had longed for. But can the friendship survive this added stress? Pick up The Favor and find out.

I really enjoyed this novel. Had moments of both laughter and tears. It's easy to imagine falling into the orbit of someone like Evelyn. She's just so vivacious, though her privilege would be frustrating to deal with. There's such a big power imbalance between the friends, and I was afraid that Evelyn would take advantage of Nora. She may do so a bit, but it's also an honest friendship. Infertility does not make for easy subject matter, and I'm glad that the author found a way to deliver a lot of information in a compassionate way. My heart truly went out to Nora, and even to Evelyn by the end of the story, which is a sign of great characterization. Would recommend.

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.