A twisted female friendship that goes too far? How could I not like this! While I do think the ending wrapped things up perfectly. I just felt like it was missing something.

I discussed Lovering’s books after Tell Me Lies was adapted by Hulu and I’m so happy I did. Lovering does a really great job of depicting toxic relationships. There’s not that many books out there that focus on toxic female friendships and I’m happy that Lovering decided to give her own spin on it.

Billie and Cassie are two women who have been friends since childhood. Like many, they’ve drifted apart over the years and Billie wants what they once had. I love how modern this story is and how you can relate to both women. Cassie has become a superficial influencer and Billie is on the outside looking in at her life through Instagram.

The story is told by two povs. I loved reading both sides of the story along with past chapters. They were bonded through trauma and secrets and trauma brings these two together again. I was on the edge of my seat while reading and couldn’t put this book down!

After reading the first chapter, I knew I’d be hooked. I was drawn into this book so quickly and stayed interested until the very end. I thought it would be more thriller/mystery, but I really liked what it ended up being.

Billie and Cassie have been friends since childhood. They’ve gone through it all together and have shared secrets and trauma that have bonded them for life. Well, at least in Billie’s opinion. For the past few years, their friendship has drifted apart, which has somewhat angered and hurt Billie, who is pretty obsessed with her former best friend. All of this culminates into one night: when Billie kidnaps Cassie’s four-month-old daughter.

When I first started reading Bye, Baby I felt very drawn to Billie. I think at some point in their lives, everyone feels like Billie did. But does everyone steal their former best friend’s baby? No. This book takes a situation and makes you think about what’s right and what’s wrong and who is more wrong in these situations, and I thought it was very powerful. My opinions flip flopped throughout the whole book and I love that the author was able to do that.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and I wasn’t able to put it down. Definitely going to be a big hit in 2024. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, NetGalley, and Carola Lovering for the eARC!!

This was a face paced story about a life long friendship, secrets and the damage they can cause. I really enjoyed how character driven this story was. The author did a great job of connecting me with both POV’s. Though I don’t feel like this was a thriller, I did enjoy it.

Bye, Baby is a domestic drama about Billie and Cassie, long-time friends who live in NYC but aren't as close as they once were. Billie is desperate to get their friendship back to what it was, but Cassie is now very wealthy, an influencer, has a baby, and is just generally very superficial.
This book is not a thriller or mystery but is more about the toxic relationship between Cassie and Billie. It is told in Cassie's and Billie's POVs and includes chapters about their past growing up. Something happens in high school that bonds them forever.
I wanted Billie to give Cassie a big "F... You" for the way Cassie treats her. Cassie is too concerned with her wealthy lifestyle and influencer life that she doesn't have time for Billie anymore. Billie as a character needed to know when to cut ties.
The kidnapping was a little unbelievable because I'm sure a high-priced apartment building would have more security and/or cameras.
Overall, I was engaged in the story. The characters were flawed and not particularly likeable, but I wanted to see how it ended.

I have no idea why I thought I would enjoy this. annoying amount of brand references, idc that one character is an influencer, and what I thought would be a thriller/mystery ended up just being an slog through a friendship between two pretty annoying people. gratuitous sexual assault for no good reason I could see other than trying too hard to add ~layers~ to a character. the pace was decent and it was an easy enough read.

Cassie and Billie are the best of childhood friends, but sometimes even best friends grow apart. What they do and for each other is a complicated web of love, jealousy, and deceit. Not so much a mystery…more of a mystery mixed with drama.

Wow, “Bye, Baby” was a book that I couldn’t put down. I didn’t think I loved it as I was reading it because the characters were aggravating at times, but I found that I was thinking about the book often when I wasn’t reading it. The relationship between Cassie and Billie is very much one that could take place in real life, so a lot of the story is relatable for anybody that has grown apart from a friend in real life.

Do people in real life steal their best friends babies on accident? Probably not, but once you are reading the book, it feels a lot more possible than I thought it would when I read the description to begin with. The alternating perspectives were a nice change of pace, as we got to know both characters on a personal level. This was a good, somewhat suspenseful read that I’d recommend to anyone interested in women’s fiction with slight thriller vibes.

Thank you NG and the publisher for providing me the ARC of this book.

This book had me hooked on the first page. Its about so many parts of life. A pair of women who grew up best friends, an abusive step-father, a gold digger, an abduction....and so much more. Cassie and her best friend Billie share everything....well until Cassie meets a well to do young man and Billie feels abandoned by her. Two events impact their lives and continue to cause their friendship to change and later spiral out of control. Read this book if you have ever needed the love and trust of a good friend......I enjoyed it very much and look forward to more from this author.

Lovering's latest kept me on the edge of my seat from the very first page and I truly couldn't put it down. The element of a baby being involved added a layer of suspense and anxiety I wasn't prepared for, but couldn't look away from. A fast read that had me turning pages late into the night!

Carola Lovering does it again! This is one of my most anticipated releases of 2024 and I am SO thrilled to have been able to read it early (thank you St. Martin’s Press!!). She is the master of developing characters and the complexities of relationships... and that dynamic is ever present in Bye, Baby too.

The lead relationship in this book is a toxic friendship, which was such a breath of fresh air. I love domestic suspense, but friendship suspense totally needs to be more of a thing. As women, we all know what it can be like to have that one friend who you can’t live with or without… and this book captures that dynamic brilliantly.

5 huge gold stars for this one! Consider it a must for your 2024 TBR (out 3/5/24)

Synopsis (from Netgalley, the provider of the book for me to review.)
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A missing baby. A fraught friendship. A secret that can never be told.

On a brisk fall night in a New York apartment, 35-year-old Billie West hears terrified screams. It's her lifelong best friend Cassie Barnwell, one floor above, and she's just realized her infant daughter has gone missing. Billie is shaken as she looks down into her own arms to see the baby, remembering—with a jolt of fear—that she is responsible for the kidnapping that has instantly shattered Cassie’s world.

So begins the story of Billie and Cassie's friendship--both in recent weeks, and since they met twenty-three years ago, in their small Hudson Valley hometown the summer before seventh grade. Once fiercely bonded by their secrets, including a traumatic, unspeakable incident in high school, Cassie and Billie have drifted apart in adulthood, no longer the inseparable pair they used to be. Cassie is married to a wealthy man, has recently become a mother, and is building a following as a fashion and lifestyle influencer. She is desperate to leave her past behind--including Billie, who is single and childless, and no longer fits into her world. Hurt and rejected by Cassie’s new priorities, Billie will do anything to restore their friendship, even as she hides the truth about what really happened the night the baby was taken.

Told in alternating perspectives in Lovering’s signature suspenseful style, Bye Baby confronts the myriad ways friendships change and evolve over time, the lingering echoes of childhood trauma, and the impact of women’s choices on their lifelong relationships.

Influencers. Sigh. #getalife
This is a wonderfully suspenseful book that will keep you guessing about what the truth was that night of the kidnapping … it is not what you expect. Friendships are always tricky things but add in jealousy, deceit, lies and bitter, unpalatable truths. Crafted to be utterly readable, I highly enjoyed this book and will recommend it far and wide to friends, family, and patrons alike. #shortbutsweetreviews

This is my third book by Carola Lovering and it was excellent like the other two. This one had me on my toes the whole time and I was enthralled by the story. This story shows how complicated relationships can be as people grow older and their lives change. I liked the shift between the current day events and what happened to the two main characters starting from when they first because friends and their shared past trauma and how it shaped them.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC of Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering, published by St Martin's Press
Wow! What an awesome read! I couldn't out this book down. First novel that I've read by this author and it won't be the last. I read some other reviews saying that this wasn't their favorite novel by Lovering, but I honestly thought it was great.
The novel is told by the two main characters in both the past and the present, Billie and Cassie, they were High school best friends, did everything together, knew all of each others secrets, finished college and moved in together, fell in love with boys, and then had a falling out. Now Billie follows Cassie on Instagram and she posts about her life, she so desperately wants back into Cassie's life.
Story is told by the two main characters, I love how the reflection on the past slowly gives us Ahhha moments as to what is going on current day.
The author does a great job of making you feel for and relate to both the female main characters, and I was very happy with the ending. I will definitely be reading more novels by Carola Lovering

Cassie and Billie grew up the best of friends and were always inseparable. With one secret between them that probably kept their bond but also haunted their past. Cassie is now a social media influencer and a new mom and her and Billie have drifted apart recently. When tragedy strikes Cassie it’s good old reliable Billie who swoops in to help Cassie but is Billie holding a secret of her own and what will happen to their friendship is anyone’s guess.

This was my first book by the author although I do own her previous one and will certainly be moving up my TBR list after reading this one. I did find the book started off on the slower side but it builds pretty quick and in a spectacular way. I loved the chapters switching between the POV’s and Cassie and Billie as well as the storyline changes from past and present. I flew through this one in just over one day and had trouble putting it down. A trigger warning for sexual assault that is depicted in a graphic and detailed way. I would highly recommend this to all thriller lovers

This is what I sent to Goodreads, and did mention that it was an ARC from NetGalley.

I enjoyed it, once I realized it wasn't a thriller. It is a unique look at a friendship. It starts with Billie kidnapping her friend Cassie's baby, so yes, lots of questions about that friendship!

I am not familiar with this author, but thought this book was unique enough in plot, that I will probably look at her other titles.

I’d like to thank St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

This book that intrigued me with its thrilling elements, although it didn't fully deliver on the suspense. Throughout the story, I kept anticipating a dramatic revelation about either Cassie or Billie, but the author gradually unraveled their characters. Cassie comes across as self-absorbed, while Billie clings to their friendship due to the lingering trauma that binds them. The portrayal of Cassie as a millennial influencer was excellently done; I couldn't sympathize with her struggles because she uses her life as content, lacking genuine passion, and has a sense of superiority as a result. I appreciated that the book emphasized the message that material possessions and social media followers won't bring happiness, which was the strongest aspect for me. Despite Cassie's glamorous lifestyle filled with name-dropping and extravagant vacations, I didn't envy her because it was clear that her seemingly perfect existence had a toxic core. Overall, I enjoyed this book and would be interested in reading more from the author.

Billie West is not a kidnapper. She doesn’t even want children of her own. But in a state of chaos, she’s done exactly that---she’s taken her best friend’s baby, with absolutely no forethought or plan on what she’s going to do next. This book lured me in and hooked me from the first page. With a combination of suspense and emotional evolution of the characters, this book had me turning the pages until the very end. Another great book by Lovering! Read it; you’ll see what I mean.

Special Note: Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the third book I've read by Carola Lovering, and I've loved them all. She is masterful at writing from the points of view of different characters and in different timelines, but this is never confusing and works really well to round out the story. I wouldn't call this a thriller, mystery, or suspense novel--although it is tagged that way in some places--since we always know what happened. The only suspense is in waiting to find out when Billie's deceit will be discovered and what punishment awaits her, but that was perfectly fine with me. I enjoyed the dynamics of the women's changing relationship and found Billie likeable and understandable, despite her actions: Cassie was by far the more unsympathetic character for me. Carola Lovering is now one of my favorite authors and I very much look forward to her next book. Many thanks to St, Martin's Press and NetGalley for an e-ARC of this book--I thought it was great!

First off – 3 stars is a good read, meaning I enjoyed it but it missed a few elements that would have elevated it to 4 or 5 stars FOR ME.

This is most definitely not a mystery/thriller, despite the blurb and the unfortunate title. Not that the story isn’t without merit, just know that going into it. Best to just avoid the blurb as it gives too much away.

This is an exploration of obsession and a toxic friendship that defies understanding - until you realize the reasons behind it.

Cassie and Billie have been the best of friends since childhood, and bonded together in inexplicable ways. Now in their 30s, Billie remains unmarried and childless, while the term “gold digger” is an understatement when it comes to Cassie. She married up in a big way, is a new mom, and is now an “influencer” on IG. With her new life and rich friends, she has cast Billie aside.

Billie is deeply hurt and can’t let it go. She goes to extraordinary means to maintain the friendship, which is clearly is one-sided.

I admit to being frustrated with Billie’s character in the beginning, but we eventually learn why Billie is trauma bonded to Cassie and it all starts to make sense.

Let’s just say Billie needed years of therapy. I would have enjoyed it more if the author had included a therapist or the psychology of her character’s behaviors in the narrative. It’s no secret to anyone who has followed my reviews that I love psychologically complex characters and I would have loved to have seen this theme explored further. I had to stretch my understanding of the psychology of trauma bonding to understand it.

There’s a shocking incident that brings things to a head, and we finally get the backstory on what happened all those years ago, which sheds light on Billie’s behavior.

For me, I think the author tried to include too many themes in the story: sexual abuse, Alzheimer’s, remaining childless by choice vs motherhood, social media, influencers, etc….it’s a lot.

I also thought the evil villain in the story was a bit of a cartoonish caricature, and only needed to twirl a handlebar moustache to complete the picture. I like my villains to be a bit more nuanced.

I read 90% of this in one day and I did love the ending and the themes, even if the execution frustrated me at times. It generated a great discussion with my reading buddy, which always makes a read worthwhile.

• I received a digital copy from NetGalley for review. All opinions are my own