⚠️ CW: kidnapping, SA, alzheimers, death

I’ve seen some people poo pooing this one but glad I still gave it a chance!

Plenty of secrets and suspense between two long-time adult friends who have shared secrets from their childhood that resurface when one of their children goes missing from her home.

It’s not a high octane mess-you-up kind of psych thriller but it is still entertaining. It’s dual POV and dual timelines and the dual narrators were pretty good on the audiobook.

3.5 stars rounded up

Thank you to Carola, SMP, and NetGalley for the e-galley!

This wasn’t quite a thriller or mystery but it was more suspenseful than contemporary fiction - however you define it, it was great. I’ve loved all three of her books I’ve read so far, each in a slightly different genre. Told from the POV of two unlikeable characters, this was a page-turner and I kept telling myself 1 more chapter which snowballed into flying through it.

Suspenseful but not quite a thriller. Felt like a domestic drama. The characters were enjoyable for being unenjoyable characters and the book pulled you in. Dual timeline and super toxic friendships.

Thanks for the free copy in exchange for my feedback.

This was a total miss for me. This is more of a domestic suspense about an outgrown friendship gone really wrong.
There should be a whole lot of trigger warnings. There is everything from pedophilia to mental health issues.

Thank you Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book

Would recommend for fans of…
🍼 People Like Her
🍼 Can’t Look Away
🍼 The Couple Next Door

I’ve read and enjoyed nearly all of Carola Lovering’s books, and know I can always count on her to deliver a taut and suspenseful book that dissects every element of female friendship. Her latest, Bye, Baby, builds on that foundation, offering her most nuanced look at toxic friendships yet.

This isn’t a spoiler, as it’s mentioned in the jacket copy, but this book follows Billie, a woman who abducts the baby of her “friend” Cassie, and the path that led them to that fateful night. Even though you know what is about to take place, this book is thrilling. That element is really brought to life by Lovering’s characters. Cassie and Billie feel so real, that I’m sure every reader will identify with parts of both characters. Lovering does an excellent job of humanizing both of them. One second I was rooting for Billie, then Cassie, and then I hated them both. That roller coaster of emotions really speaks to Lovering’s skill in crafting these stories.

The one issue I had with this book, and really all of Lovering’s is how they are marketed. I’m begging her publisher to stop calling her books thrillers because that’s not what they are. Lovering’s writing hovers in the domestic/romantic suspense sphere and I feel like some readers are let down when they pick up her books expecting a pulse-pounding action. And though her stories may be lacking those thrills, Carola Lovering is one of the best when it comes to character-driven, contemplative suspense about modern womanhood. I can’t wait to read her next book!

Bye, Baby is out now. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Uhhhh…not my fave. I loved Tell Me Lies, like, wanted to crawl into the book loved it. This was not that. I think there were too many things going on, there were too many themes to try to tackle, we desperately needed a therapist to explain this stuff, and was it a thriller? It feels mismarketed. I just, no, thank you.

Wow what a ride. This book delves deep into the female friendships and how toxic they can be.

I did get very frustrated with Billie at times and the choices she was making. She would put her whole life on hold for Cassie because she craved her acceptance. I was very happy that in the end that Billie realized that what Cassie did when they were kids was for Cassie and not her. Cassie was always looking out for herself and that will never change.

Wow. This book is crazy! Unlike most domestic suspense novels, this book centers around best friends. Best friends who have gone down different paths. One is determined to bring them back together.

So she…kidnaps her influencer best friends baby?! What the fudge?

Let’s also throw in a hot cop. And some very good twists.

I’ll let you read it for yourself, but it doesn’t disappoint.

Thank you to Carola Lovering, St. Martins Press and NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book

This was my 1st book by this author. It was a very slow read. I thought it was going to be a thriller, but it opens up with the kidnapping, then starts telling the back story. Cassie & Billie’s friendship was toxic and I just couldn’t get into the story. All the timeline jumps had me confused. It wasn’t my cup of tea, but it may be for someone else.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher & of course the author for gifting me this ARC in exchange for my review.

I have a few of Carola’s books, but this is the first one I’ve read. I thought this was going to be a thriller, and I don’t really think it fits into that category. This was a slow start for me, making it hard to get into at first, but I did like the multiple POV’s (Billie and Cassie’s), and the dual timelines. Cassie was a bit much for me at times, and I really felt for Billie. Well written and thought provoking for sure.

This was a fantastic read that I flew through. I loved both Billie and Cassie as main characters and their friendship felt raw and real. Even the side characters were very well-developed. I was trying to figure out the whole time why Billie took Cassie's baby, and then was on edge during the investigation. Very well-done. I'm writing this review a little late, and I still vividly remember this story, so I am changing the 4 stars I initially gave it to 5 stars as books don't tend to stick with me like this.

Oofffh! The opening of this story had me wondering if I should keep reading 😬. As a mother I was unsure if it was the book for me. The intrigue won over and I had to find out how it all unravelled!

Unfortunately it was a bust for me. The toxic friendship relationship and revenge kidnapping didn’t win me over. I found it a little unlikely in how the events transpired.

Appreciate the ARC, but only a 2.5⭐️ for me.

Thank you NetGalley and to the publishers for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

DNF

I couldn’t get into this one unfortunately.

Let me start by saying that this book is not a thriller. It is a story about friendship and what happens to those friendships when you grow up and grow apart.
Billie and Cassie are both relatable characters who lead very different lives as they grow older. As Cassie’s world expands she seemingly outgrows her friendship with Billie. But the two harbor a very serious secret and Billie does something that absolutely rocks Cassie’s world, leaving her feeling vulnerable and unsure for the first time in her adult life.
Ms. Lovering spins an entertaining tale about friends and how life changes can alter those relationships. The characters are complex and likable, even when they do unlikeable things. It took me awhile to get into this story but once I did I was hooked. Billie’s insecurities at times make you want to shake her while simultaneously rooting for her. There’s great character development for both of these women and it concludes in an ending that will ultimately leave you satisfied.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Wow this was a really gripping read about childhood friends gone bizarre. I enjoyed how it went back and forth between the friends. and timelines. Billie's obsession with Cassie was at times really annoying but .it worked perfectly in the storyline.
Bonus points for the surname of "West"
Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martins Press and the Author Carola Lovering for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review..

Bye, Baby was a book that captivated me from the start. With it being told in dual timelines of Cassie and Billie’s past to present day, keeps you on your toes. You may fall in love with one timeline so you just want to read the other timeline fast to get back to that other timeline. I felt like I was more invested in the present timeline because I knew what was going to happen without knowing exactly how it would go down. The past timeline was interesting to read to find out how the two got to where they are now in present day. I loved reading the dynamic of how their relationship changed from bestie to nothing. It was a bit sad but sometimes that is how friendships go without meaning to. I will say the ending did shock me. It gives you hope for Billie and her life. It was a perfect way to end the story. I want to thank you for the e-arc so much! 4.5⭐️ (I just wish Cassie wasn’t so stuck up and harsh. I also wanted to know a bit more of her background as a teenager alongside Billie’s)

This is 3.5 stars for me. Above average suspense novel centered on the story of two friends who have drifted apart. It went in a direction that I did not expect.

This is a struggle for me to rate. Going with middle of the road 3 stars. Let me dissect my thoughts.....

Liked: I wanted to like this premise and I always love to read about female friendships. I did feel tense several times waiting to find out what would happen/ how the story would unfold. Alex was super sweet! When Billie let herself feel how she felt their relationship was lovely to read. And I love a good flashback/ multi-timeline, this one was good and the past timeline unfolded at a good pace.

Didn't like: This was super slow, like: I was 20% in and my husband asked me what the book was about.... I couldn't really answer because nothing (other than "The Big Thing") specific had happened between the characters. We get a slow background of their relationship and it wasn't a bad read but I found myself bored at times.

There were parts of this that got me FIRED UP. Women are not MEANT TO be wives and mothers. We are on this planet for other reasons than supporting tiny humans that don't feed themselves or clean or pay bills or, really, contribute anything to the household (lol). The Cassie & McKay friendship is SO FREAKING TOXIC. It was well-written because it made me cringe so hard but it was hard to read at the same time. The ending was such a disappointment, sadly.

(Do we see how I'm struggling? This entire review is a mess of contradictions: it was well-written but hard to read???? What is wrong with me LMAO)

This one is a little hard from me to review. While I did enjoy it, I consider it women's fiction instead of a thriller. This book was also a slow burn for me. It felt twice as long as it actually was.

When the book opens, you know right away that Billie is responsible for the kidnapping of Cassie's daughter. I definitely wanted to keep reading to find out what events led up to that point. I liked the dual POVs between Cassie and Billie, as weĺl as the flashbacks. Billie was likable enough but frustrated me at times. Cassie was only bearable after the kidnapping. I liked Jane and Alex the most.

There were no twists in this one. It was more about the relationship between Billie and Cassie and the traumas they dealt with when they were in high school, as well as the aftermath of Cassie pushing Billie out of her life after college. It was well written, and I liked how the ending was done.

Thank you, @netgalley and @stmartinspress, for the #gifted e-arc!

3.5 rounded

Bye, Baby was an incredible story of two female friends who naturally start to drift apart. Written from multiple timelines, the characters were so well-developed and I could not decide who I was routing for, even when I knew I shouldn't be routing for one of them!

Carola Lovering did an amazing job of setting the pace for this story, even when nothing crazy was happening, I found myself hooked to every word and flew through this one. I loved the small romance written into the plot, and loved the theme of self-discovery and it being ok to grow apart. Overall, highly recommend!