Thank you so much @StMartinsPress for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 05 March 2024)

SYNOPSIS | Billie & Cassie have been best friends since school, however recently Cassie has begun to pull away. Cassie blames her distance on being so busy launching her clothing company and having a new baby, but Billie suspects that she has outgrown her despite her going to considerable lengths to maintain their friendship.

WHAT I LIKED:
- that we learn the whole premise of the book within the prologue
- the dual timeline really helped solidify Billie & Cassie's relationship as children & how that has shaped them as adults
- a lot of unlikeable characters
- more of a social commentary on women's friendships, motherhood and social media than a true mystery / thriller

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- it felt slower paced from Part 2 onwards
- wanted more of a conversation around trauma bonding

I did not know what to expect of this book and I am so glad I read it without knowing! It was such a well written thriller without the cheesiness that can develop in some of them. I loved the toxicity of the relationships and it made you think about similar relationships in your own life (past or present) I could not put it down!

I definitely went into this book thinking it was a thriller, but it was not. No thrills. Once I realized this, I was able to enjoy the book a bit more and really feel Cassie and Billie’s toxic, messed up friendship. While there was no suspense, there was DRAMA. So much drama and I was here for it. I really appreciated the depth of the characters and the overall story itself. I think if you enjoy contemporary fiction, past trauma, and toxic friendships, then you could really enjoy this book. If you’re more into thrillers, mysteries, and suspense (like myself) this book isn’t for you.

Thank you Netgalley for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the eARC!

This is the second book from Carola Lovering I’ve read and I really enjoyed it! I think it’s safe to say that she is now an auto-buy author for me.

In this book, we get two alternating POVs from former best friends Cassie and Billie. We also get flashback chapters from Billie’s POV where we get to see firsthand the making of their friendship and who they used to be with each other, as well as the events that led them to where they are now.

This is about dependent relationships and what happens when one takes a step back while the other is clinging on desperately; when one wants to move on and the other wants things to stay the same. It also shows us that sometimes, the people we love the most aren’t always the people we’ve made them out to be in our own minds.

This was dramatic and suspenseful yet totally believable. While it’s definitely a more extreme version of a friendship turned toxic, I understood how Billie could be pushed to the edge to do what she did and then how she attempted to get out of it after she realized her mistake. I actually sympathized with Billie and felt constant stress at the potential of her getting found out and what that could mean for her.

I thought there was great character development as well and felt that I really got to know each of the characters which definitely added to my enjoyment of the story because it kept me invested in what would happen to each of them.

The writing style itself is well written but also very easy to read. When combining that with the suspense of the story, it made for an extremely bingeable book that I read in under 24 hours.

There is also a heavy emphasis on motherhood and whether or not that is something that is meant for everybody and I appreciated Lovering’s commentary/message on the subject that no, not every woman needs to be a mother and that’s okay.

Overall, this was a great book and one that I’ll be thinking about for some time. I plan to pick up a physical copy for my shelf and look forward to reading more of Lovering’s books in the future!

This is my favorite book I've read in a long time. Probably since I read another book of Carola Lovering's called Tell Me Lies. This book really resonated with me for many reasons. I could relate so closely with Billie. Girl friendships that begin in adolescence are such precious and delicate affairs. We have these attachments because of history and nostalgia when sometimes we have to face that we change and grow apart. This happened with Billie and Cassie and as usual in these situations, one was holding on and the other pushing away. I couldn't understand at all why Billie took the baby- like, what an insane thing to do (not a spoiler- literally in the prologue) but I found myself rooting for Billie anyway and I thought Cassie and her friends were insufferable snobs. I loved the way the story changed povs and also told us about Billie and Cassie's history. I read in other reviews that this was about a toxic friendship, but I don't think this was toxic. I think the friendship had just run its course and both girls were no longer who they used to be. The conflict came from one party still fighting for the relationship and the other pushing it away, which can definitely be devastating. I just really love the way Carola Lovering writes. She might be my favorite author as her books hit me super personally and leave me haunted by the characters long after I close the books.

This is a very well written book, with a lot of "hot takes" in it. What do I mean by that? Well, it's sort of a casual treatise on decades old friendships, on social media, on expectations on women in today's society. Spoiler alert, that last one isn't much different than it was in yesterday's society.

I was enjoying this book very much until the end. I did not like the ending at all. Ha. That is likely just me due to some things going on in my work life right now, where I need people to just do their jobs, but I can't help the timing for when I read it.

Will I read more from this author? Absolutely.

At the core this book is about female friendships and all the wonderful memories and toxic trauma that can come with it. I picked this book up and didn’t stop reading it until it was over, I loved it, related to it and never wanted it to end. Thank you so much to @stmartinspress for my copy!

This book is about friendship at it's core - how friendships grow and develop, and how they fall apart. Jealousy tearing them apart. Secrets bonding them together. But ultimately, it's about friendship.

What a friendship can't handle, is when one friend causes another to experience trauma, even if it's an accident.

I really enjoyed the character development of Billie and Cassie. I feel that Carola did an excellent job feeding backstory and present together so that the reader has a whole picture of the characters and the why behind the current actions.

There were a lot of emotions in this book, some good and some bad. It was the perfect way to draw me in and get me attached to the characters and to the plot.

3.5 rounded up to 4.
I had a hard time putting a rating to this book because there were so many things happening/not happening. There were so many subjects brought up in this story and while some of them really mesh together well while some could've been left out and not changed the story. It took me a bit of time to really get into the story but once the buildup starts happening you end up getting hooked. This book was like watching a shipwreck happen, you know it's going to end badly but you can't stop watching it. I liked how we got both sides of the main characters and you can't help but love/hate both of them. It shows how a lot of people and relationships are so fake and toxic nowadays and I felt like I could relate. One thing I had a harder time with was the ending. The buildup was so high and you expect a huge ending and it just sort of fell really flat and I was a bit disappointed by it. At some points there are so many things happening at once between the flashbacks and the current timeline that it feels like nothing is happening and it starts dragging a bit. Overall it was a good book but not the thriller I was expecting at all.

Billie and Cassie are best friends. Terrible things happen and they keep secrets that can never be shared. After college, they both move to NYC. Cassie and Billie grow apart after Cassie gets married and has a baby. However, things take a turn when Cassie’s baby goes missing from their apartment the night of her birthday party.

This book has great potential and I really loved parts of it. However, I feel like it had no real plot and was very anticlimactic. I did love the author’s writing style, though.

Billie and Cassie’s relationship is a complicated sisterhood. I found Cassie’s entitlement very cringey. The “twists” in this book were highly predictable . Although it wasn’t my favorite thriller, it was an easy read.

Billie and Cassie have been friends forever, they know all each others darkest secrets. But they have grown apart. Cassie always dreamt of getting back to the luxurious life she had before her father squandered all their money away and Billie is dealt a bad hand at home with a single mom. There were a lot of issues in this book that could have been dealt with a little better. Both characters are unlikable and never redeem themselves. This book is about a toxic friendship and the codependency that comes along with that. I really needed more from it. I was hoping the ending would be more thrilling.

Thanks to the publishers and netgalley for the advanced copy.

The story of two friends Billie and Cassie and their relationship that became toxic. Described as a mystery thriller this novel is more of a psychological drama. Through childhood trauma and terrible secrets the friendship comes apart. At first it appears Billie can’t seem to let go and not until we read the story of their past do we begin to understand her. Billies spur of the moment unforgivable action is the result of years of built up anguish. This is the crux of the story, told in both past and present, There is a lot to unpack here from sexual abuse to rabid social climbing and the pressure of what is expected of women in society. In the end there may be some healing, growth and understanding at least for Billie. Good character study here. Certainly worth the read. Thanks to Netgalley and St Martins Press.

Women’s fiction has really done it for me this past year and Bye, Baby is the next one added to the list of ones I have really enjoyed.

Carola Lovering brings us a story of childhood best friends who we get to see grow up together. As Billie and Cassie grow, we see the dynamic in their friendship change. There are dual perspectives and plenty of lies and secrets.

Bye, Baby does have a thrilling feel to it. It reads incredibly fast and honestly, I couldn’t put it down.

Lately, self-care has been a top priority and I’ve started paying attention to Influencers and what self-pampering, spa-day beauty, and make-up products sit in their amazon storefronts… Preface said, I was instantly taken by this book whose one of many major characters happens is an Influencer: huge follower count, online store as well brick and mortars slowly growing into a local chain, always selfie ready for followers who recognize her as she runs errands… I especially liked the irony behind the scenes after posting “lives”” and “stories” (ex: showing off gorgeous dinner spreads but failing to give credit to the housekeeper who actually did the cooking, cheerfully greeting followers in the a.m. with a steaming mug of coffee lovingly made by her husband… but without the filter after the story has been posted, the curse words fly as she nurses a raging hangover, an introverted husband who seeks more privacy for his family, etc.) Over time, priorities change. Friends change. Relationships with immediate family become strained as surface-level superficiality take over genuine authenticity. As her popularity and follower-count grows, people throughout her life get replaced by those more attractive, more financially stable, by those with more sway and influence. It’s all fine and exciting for this major character until her birthday bash… until her 4 month old baby daughter goes missing. Her world takes a spiraling plunge as she realizes that the elite who made her guest list are people who don’t truly know her and don’t know how to care for her or be there for her, who are people she doesn’t truly know, and are the people she can’t stand to be around during her darkest, most devastating moment. And just how much do her fanbase and haters know about her? Has she shared too much for the sake of her success? I don’t want to spoil Baby Ella’s fate. Cassie’s drastic fall and humbling journey in navigating survival mode, fear and paranoia, as well attempts to deliberate the who, why, and how of Ella’s kidnapper, and coming to grips with what “normal” and “reality” truly is was quite the trip!

An addictive, compulsive read - I couldn’t put this book down! Suspense… drama… relationships… this dizzying tale of dueling timejumps and differing POV’s could fare well as a movie or television series. I’m certainly interested in reading prior books by this Author.

Thanking #NetGalley and Author Carola Lovering for this #ARCRead in exchange for my honest review

#NetGalleyJournal #GoodreadsChallenge2024 book 12 in 2024
#CarolaLovering #ByeBaby #Goodreads #GoodreadsChallenge

Good book, fast, easy reading. Although, I definitely wouldn't say it's a thriller...maybe a little mystery. The story is good though, interesting characters, even though they are not very likeable, which I'm sure is on purpose. I'd say it's a great beach or snow day read.

Thanks to netgalley, the publisher and author for the chance to read this advanced copy.

3.5 stars

How does an author manage to write characters that make you swing from hating them one moment to pulling for them to get their life together in the next? Somehow, Ms Lovering manages to do that very thing in this novel of toxic friendship, making mistakes, and finally growing up. The pacing was a little slower than I usually prefer in my books, but I felt satisfied by the ending in the main.

Bye, Baby
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the eARC! This story is fast-paced and had me instantly intrigued. While the events weren’t exactly thrilling and nothing with malicious or nefarious intent really happened, in my opinion (not that bad things didn’t occur) I’d call this a suspense more so than a thriller. Even though I found most of the book to be in the “falling action” part of the story it was never boring. The writing was well-done and I greatly appreciated the dual POVs. This won’t be for everyone, but I enjoyed it and would absolutely read more by the author!

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this book but I really liked it. Cassie and Billie’s relationship is one that I don’t think I would ever want but it was entertaining to go along for the ride. I liked the duel narrator and the back and forth between Cassie and Billie. The story went quickly and I was just waiting for the shoe to drop. This is a book about a toxic friendship that they didn’t realize was toxic until they were forced to face what had happened.

"𝐏𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫. 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬. 𝐋𝐨𝐲𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐟𝐭. 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐝𝐢𝐝."

I loved Carola Lovering’s Can’t Look Away, which was a strong romantic drama with a touch of suspense, so was looking forward to picking up her latest.

Lovering does a domestic drama so well, specializing in relationships; this time, instead focusing on a romantic one (although that does come into play some with the lovely Alex), the core of this story is about a longterm friendship; Billie and Cassie have been friends for most of their lives, but things have segued in different directions. Billie, in particular, doesn’t feel the same connection since Cassie became a mother; Lovering makes some salient points about women and how they are treated if they choose to not become a mother. I liked how the narrative switched between Billie and Cassie’s current day points of view, but also gave looks into into the past to see how the relationship was, and how it shifted as they became older. I also loved Lovering’s reference to Billie reading an old Lisa Jewell psychological suspense novel, and it had me wondering which one it was! Although not a thriller, I felt on edge as I read, as I just couldn't see how this story was going to end well, between Cassie yearning to know who took her baby, Billie trying to hide the truth, and her new boyfriend Alex starting to piece together what happened; Lovering wraps things up in a realistic, broken, and yet hopeful sense.

Bye, Baby is a story of longterm friendships, obsession, feeling needed and trust. It is another page turning character-driven story that has me anticipating Lovering’s next. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for the ARC!