I’m having such a hard time with this review because while I don’t think the book was bad I just didn’t enjoy it very much. I think going in with expectations of a thriller was not the right mindset. This book was not suspenseful or mysterious at all. It was drama drama drama and I think if I had been better prepared for something more domestic I might have enjoyed it more.

I liked the dual POV and timelines a lot. I thought switching between each character gave a lot of necessary context for their relationship to each other and learning about their friendship as kids solidified a lot of the feelings of codependency. I did not care for either woman though. Both of them had a lot of issues with how they communicated not just with the other but everyone around them. I know that’s part of the drama but it just got so annoying.

The premise was interesting enough but unfortunately the execution ending up being very boring for me. If I hadn’t have had the audio to help push me along I might have not finished. I think a lot of people will like it because, as I said before, it’s not a bad book. It just didn’t fit into what I needed from it to work well for me.

Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering is a domestic thriller, which tells the story of a friendship that changes over time as the two women grow from pre-teens to women in their 30's who are on differing paths. Lovering uses a dual perspective, dual-timeline writing style that allows the reader to find out secrets and truths slowly over the course of the novel, which adds to the anxiety induced by two not-very-nice main characters.

The reader knows who kidnapped the baby from the very beginning of the book. The suspense comes in finding out why and how it came about, and then, how it is going to be resolved. a To be honest, I didn't find this domestic thriller to be especially thrilling or suspenseful. I did, however, see it as more of a relationship study, with the ebbs and flows of the girls' friendship over the years extremely realistically portrayed as the BFFs grew up and grew apart. What I struggled with was that both women were, to me, not sympathetic characters, in fact, I disliked each of them very much albeit for different reasons. It was difficult to feel sorry for them or for their circumstances, as neither one made great decisions.

As domestic thrillers go, Bye, Baby will not be tops for my recommendations, though it was a pleasing enough read--just not an edge of your seat thrill ride.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the digital ARC of Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering. The opinions in this review are my own.

[3.5 Stars]

You should be able to trust your best friend - especially your childhood best friend - right? For Cassie Adler and Billie West, this is unfortunately not the case. After 20 years of friendship, it is clear that they are no longer the friends they once were - and that the secrets they're hiding are detrimental to the other party. However, when Cassie's infant daughter goes missing, the only person she wants to comfort her is Billie - who also may or may not have stolen and returned this child. Over two weeks they rekindle what they once had, but it won't last long. Once the truth comes out, their worlds are shattered even further. Will Cassie understand Billie's motives or is it too late? How will this affect their friendship going forward? They may never recover from this tumultuous night.

I wouldn't classify this book as a mystery/thriller - at least not compared to the usual books I read in this genre. I'm not sure how I would classify it, but I was expecting more twists than the book had. That being said, I did enjoy this book and read it in roughly a day. As some of the twists began to unfold, I found myself wanting more and more from these characters. There were certain parts of the book that I felt could have gotten more attention, but overall, I enjoyed the ride this story took me on. If you do not come at it from a mystery/thriller perspective, I think you'll really enjoy this book!

Cassie and Billie were best friends, from school chums, through college. They were a solid twosome. But Cassie had plans to move upward socially and Billie had no such desire. She wanted to go to college, get a good job, and she wished her mother would come back from dementia. They experience a tremendously momentous occurrence that changes their lives forever.

Cassie is now a new mother, married to a man whose family is wealthy. And she's moved on from her friendship with Billie.

But can such good friends ever really sever their relationship? Until one fateful night when a second tremendously momentous event happens.

The story is told in different timeframes, from each woman's point of view. The reader knows what has happened and it could be gut wrenching, knowing what could happen.

I thought the book was very well written and the story ties all the bits together really well.

Billie and Cassie have been friends since they were children. Now they are 35 years old, living in New York. Cassie has achieved everything she wanted - rich husband, beautiful baby, owning a shop and online business, and quickly becoming a popular online influencer. Billie is still single, working as a luxury travel agent, and wants nothing more than to become part of Cassie's life again. As Cassie rejects Billie again and again, Billie becomes desperate to work her way back into Cassie's inner circle.

This was one of those books that you think is about one thing, but is actually about something else. There's a compelling backstory that ties these girls together, but it's also a great story of friendships ending for whatever reason and the person who isn't ready to say goodbye yet. Cassie is the pretty social media girl you just want to dislike on principle but you'd have to be pretty cold-hearted to not feel for her when her baby goes missing. Billie just wants her friend and nothing she does turns out the way she wants.

I definitely recommend this one.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Available March 5, 2024.

3.5 stars. With her first three novels, Carola Lovering seemed to have found her niche exploring toxic romantic relationships and the emotional fallout resulting from those entanglements. In Bye, Baby, a toxic relationship is still central to the story -- but this time, it's best friends instead of romantic partners.

Billie and Cassie became instant best friends at age 12, when Cassie moved to Billie's upstate New York town. Now they're in their mid-30s, and their lives have taken very different paths. Cassie married into a wealthy family and lives with her husband and new baby in a swanky Gramercy Park apartment, growing her followers on Instagram as she promotes her upscale boutique. Billie, meanwhile, is successful but single (and childless by choice), and spends her evenings watching Cassie's charmed life unfold through Instagram stories. The women have grown apart, something that Billie refuses to accept. Billie will do whatever it takes to stay in Cassie's life -- even if that means kidnapping Cassie's baby.

Bye, Baby unfolds on two timelines, delving into both Billie and Cassie's current relationship and the past events that caused Billie to trauma-bond to Cassie so strongly. It's not a thriller, but instead a domestic drama/character study that explores the psyches of two women, one of them incredibly damaged. Lovering really excels at this -- painting complex portraits of her characters, exploring the dark things that affect their mental states and the ways they are shaped by their trauma. Billie is such an interesting character, sympathetic both in spite of and because of her choices, while the portrayal of Cassie is much more shallow. I would have liked some past chapters narrated from Cassie's perspective to understand her a bit better. I never connected with her and didn't feel much for her aside from annoyance.

Lovering infuses the plot with lots of interesting commentary surrounding influencer culture, materialism, and the way women's choices are perceived, delving into difficult topics like Alzheimer's disease, sexual assault, and social discrimination and classism. Bye, Baby is a deft exploration of a toxic female friendship from both sides: how it feels to be the one holding on, and how it feels to be the one pulling away. Thank you to St. Martin's Press for the early reading opportunity.

I have thoroughly enjoyed all of Carola Lovering's novels. Her writing is tight and propulsive and I can never put down the book! Bye, Baby is no different and has everything I love: a complex, dysfunctional friendship, the dark side of the influencing world, rich people behaving badly, a love story, NYC, and a sprinkle of fashion.
I particularly loved the angst I felt in the second half, and was eager to know how it would all resolve.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley! This was an interesting read/ thriller. The buildup to the mystery was done pretty well but the ending was a bit lackluster without a clear ending. Definitely more of a suspense than thriller and the epitome of a toxic friendship!

Wow! This was such a well-crafted story! I love how she contrasted the friendships and relationships of Cassie and Billie. It wasn't exactly suspense, but it read like a suspense novel and kept me turning pages.
My only wish is that the strong language had been cut back- not a fan of all the f-bombs

I want to thank the author and the publisher for this book.

I really wanted to love this book as the concept was one that intrigued me. Cassie and Billie have been friends for what can be described as a lifetime. They met when they were twelve and bonded over their unspeakable trauma, kept each other's secrets, and a world where they were the only ones to exist. As time passed, things began to change as they grew up and grew apart.

It can be said that Cassie has a lot of what Billie aspires to have and does what she aspires to do as well. Cassie has a very wealthy and luxurious lifestyle and what appears to be a happy family through the eye of the media. One day, when Billie is feeling hopeless about the friendship, she makes the decision that will change everything.

I really wanted to enjoy this book; the author's writing style is unique and captivates you in the first chapter. However, I feel the book was dragged on; I understand the timeline is to show the friendship dynamic and what led to Billie doing what she did. As we got further into the story, it was apparent that neither of these characters were happy or likable. I also don’t think this book should have been labeled as a mystery and certainly not a thriller. This book is just a character study about a friendship that turned toxic and the various life experiences that follow.

Overall, I appreciated the chance to read this novel; however, it just wasn't for me. I felt that the ending left me confused and frustrated as well, and the book did not meet the expectations set based on the genre and blurb.

Wow, this book!!!! I wanted to really sink in and read this and enjoy the ride by Carola Lovering. I loved her previous novels, but this one tops them all. If you are looking for toxic friendships, strong themes, twists/turns and OMG reveals (especially why a character goes to such extremes) this book has it all. (Yes, this book has an unfortunate title).

Why did this book start with such a bang when it feels like it should be the reveal? Read to find out. I like how the big event happens but then the following chapters is a countdown to why. LOVE THAT!

Billie and Cassie are lifelong friends until Cassie gets married. Cassie pretty much turns her back on Billie because she does not wants to put the past behind her, especially parental financial issues. Cassie marries someone wealthy and becomes a mother. Billie is dating a police officer and is childless. Cassie puts her whole life on Instagram. Billie is deeply hurt.

I was really starting to dislike both of these characters and the very different lives they hold and why each has a grudge with the other.

BUT OMG, when you get to the why!!!! HOLY CRAP!!

You will either be #teamCassie or #teamBillie.

I am definitely gettinng this book at publishing date. Very much recommended. I hope Lovering's next book is just as good as this one.

Thanks to Netgalley, Carola Lovering and St Martins Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Available: 3/5/2024

Loved this book! Love the multiple perspectives and the twists as well! I will say at first it was kind of slow but then I got in to it!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy. This was my first book by Carole Lovering, and it won’t be my last. Bye, Baby is fast paced and I found that I didn't want to put it down. It alternates between the perspective of Billie and Cassie, two best friends who have a twisted relationship. The story navigates between the kidnapping of Cassie’s baby and the aftermath, along with the past of both Cassie and Billie.

Read if you like:
👯‍♀️ Stories about Friends
⏳ Past & Present Timelines
2️⃣ Dual POV
🤫 Secrets

This book is truly the exploration of best friends that drift apart and the consequences of lack of clear communication and resentment when a friendship dims overtime with one party pulling away and the other not understanding why it’s happening because they have poured all of themselves into the relationship. It’s messy, it’s toxic, it’s full of lies, confidences, and ultimately trust even when the relationship is falling apart.

There is one part of the story that got to me a little bit, and as someone who doesn’t normally become bothered by things and doesn’t check trigger warnings I would recommend people go in knowing there is a scene that was detailed enough to take me back that depicts non-consensual sexual contact between two characters.

Overall I think I landed somewhere right around loving this one because it was very bingeable and kept me hooked from start to finish.

Thank you so much to the publisher for my ARC in exchange for my honest review!

“Bye, Baby” ended up being our bookclub pick for this month and I am so excited to talk with my friends about this one at the end of the month! There is just so much to unpack! I did feel this one is more of a domestic drama vs a thriller, but I honestly loved that. I enjoyed the exploration of the complex feelings of motherhood and friendships, even though I did struggle to connect to either of the main characters. I read “Tell Me Lies” by this author last year so I had a feeling this one would be pretty shocking as well, and I was not disappointed! Thanks to NetGalley and publisher for the ARC!

Thank you to @stmartinspress and @netgalley for the ARC of #byebaby by Carola Lovering!! I absolutely loved Can't Look Away by this author and was excited to dive into this one.

Cassie and Billie were best friends as kids, getting through hard times and all the ups and downs of adolescence together. Now, things are different. They both live in NYC, but that is where the similarities end. Cassie is married to Grant Adler, a rich hedge fund manager from a wealthy family, and she has a four month old daughter named Ella. As an influencer and small boutique owner, her days consist of making videos, sharing discount codes, and chatting with buyers as her nanny watches Ella. She has many friends that are as plastic and shallow as she is, and they meet up to discuss their children and houses in the Hamptons.

Billie, on the other hand, works for a travel agency and lives alone. She's casually seeing a new man, Alex, but has no aspirations to have kids. She has a couple of good friends from college, as well as her boss Jane, but doesn't even have her own social media page.

She does, however, closely watch Cassie's. Billie misses Cassie. Her attempts to get ahold of and see Cassie always fall through, and she can't help but resent Cassie's new life and new friendships. Cassie has seen Billie through some of the worst times of Billie's life, and they even share a horrible secret.

One night, Billie's jealousy and resentment come to a head, and she does something awful to Cassie. Something temporary, but something absolutely awful. Not knowing Billie was behind it, Cassie reaches out to her for support. But what happens when Cassie finds out?

I enjoyed this book, I was wondering what would happen next, but it fell a little flat for me. I really thought Cassie was going to get her redemption, but it seemed like as soon as she found out that Billie was behind the "kidnapping", she forgot what was truly important and shrunk back into her vapid and shallow lifestyle. I think I was expecting a thriller, but it was more of a contemporary fiction with thriller elements. Still worth a read though!! It comes out this Tuesday, March 5th, everywhere books are sold.

Rating ⭐⭐⭐

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc of this novel!

So! This was definitely not what I had been expecting and I mean that in a good way. I obviously thought I'd enjoy this, otherwise I wouldn't have asked to read an arc of it. I just didn't think I'd like it as much as I do. Let me try to explain... if I can, without spoiling anything.

Going in, I kind of already knew how certain things would go. In the end, I was right. However, the journey was honestly fun. The pacing was great, I was never bored. The characters were complex and while I can't say I liked any of them, there was depth that led to me understanding the things they did. Actually, to be completely truthful, I could relate to Billie in some ways. But I think it is safe to say that everyone has things they don't like about themselves.

Bye, Baby was actually crazy and had me questioning my sanity for the better part of the novel.

Cassidy and Billie grew up together and were the best of friends. They end up terminating friendship in their late 20s and Billie can’t seem to move on which leads her to questionable choices.

Billie was the poster child for mental health issues. She made some decisions in this book that will make your head spin. At times I would have to put my phone down, and just have to center myself because her rationales for what she did was just insane. Cassie was moderately insufferable to say the least but didn’t deserve to suffer like she did.

All in all, a wonderful story that kept my heart rate up, waiting to see the outcome of this thriller novel. I’m not sure the punishment necessarily fit the crime for Billie, but I really enjoyed it and can’t wait to read more!

Thank you Netgally for the ARC in exchange for an a honest review !

It's weird to like a book when the characters are so hateful (and not in that fun way). Cassie is absolutely horrible. When they meet as teens, Billie is so wounded she is just thrilled Cassie sees her. Watching her beloved mother fade and her new stepfather leer, it is no wonder. But Cassie is selfish and materialistic. Billie just ignores it.

Billie isn't likable either. She is obsessed with her friend, who has left her behind as an adult. She takes her baby. But I felt bad for her. She does not have a good beginning. She's actually doing surprisingly well with everything considered. Still, she does something pretty unforgivable.

The ending was a little too neat and clean for my liking. Still, there is a tenseness throughout. Will Cassie find out? Will Billie come clean?
It was enough to keep the story going.

I had read [book:Too Good to Be True|53137955] by Carola Lovering previously and enjoyed it. I chose this book because the description sounded interesting. I had to find out why Billie West took her best friend's baby. Unimaginable!

Description:
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.

My Thoughts:
This is a gripping tale of a relationship where one friend is obsessively dependent on the other. This is a good mystery that kept my attention and there is a chilling plot. I didn't like Billie or Cassie, but I did feel sorry for Billie's past experiences. The plot moved quickly and kept my attention. Secrets from the past were revealed slowly as the story built. The friendship was central to the story and learning the various nuances to this relationship kept my attention.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press through Netgalley for and advance copy. Expected publications: March 5, 2024.