**a huge thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and Carola Lovering for the opportunity to review an ARC of this book**

3.5 stars!

I wouldn't necessarily consider this a thriller but more domestic suspense.
the story is told in dual POV between Cassie and Billie, with flashbacks that provide backstory of their 20 year friendship and give you insight into why Billie is behaving in such a way now that she feels Cassie is neglecting her.

The flashbacks, inner monologue of Billie and stalkerish tendencies gave me total Joe Goldberg vibes (from You by Caroline Kepnes), so if you enjoyed that series, you will like this. It wasn't as well done as the you series, but its definitely in the same area!

this was my first Lovering book, will definitely be reading more from her.

Note: Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC.

Domestic thrillers are my favorite so I was happy to get this delicious read! In particular, I find female friendships to be the most fascinating and complex relationship experiences. I think the author did a wonderful job depicting the non-mutual exclusivity of some friendships' love/hate relationship. I follow many NYC influencer moms and I think the author really hit the spot with the habits and rituals of this elite population. Although we knew the plot line from the prologue, the anticipation of consequences and dual timelines really kept me on my toes.

I honestly could not predict how this book was going to end and it really wasn’t anything explosive , but it’s always nice when you can relate to characters or storylines. That’s what makes reading so human!

My favorite quote from the book: “And isn’t that a requisite of loving someone—to grow complacent to their most fatal flaw? To suppress the urge to change them until it all but disappears? The practice resembles acceptance, but the process is more painful. It’s more like sacrifice.“ This reminded me of Tinx’s fatal flaw theory where “once you realize each friend’s fatal flaw, you either have to accept it and choose to not be bothered by it or rethink the friendship.”

This captivating book skillfully weaves a narrative that immerses readers in a rich tapestry of suspense and drama. The plot unfolds with meticulous precision, keeping the audience on the edge of their seats as the story takes unexpected twists and turns.

One of the standout elements is the author's ability to tackle difficult themes with grace and depth. The narrative doesn't shy away from addressing complex and profound aspects of the human experience. It invites readers to confront challenging ideas, prompting introspection and sparking conversations that extend beyond the confines of the book.

The characters in the story are crafted with intricate detail, each contributing to the overall emotional resonance of the narrative. Their struggles and triumphs are portrayed with authenticity, making them relatable and memorable. As the plot unfolds, the reader becomes emotionally invested in the characters, adding an extra layer of connection to the unfolding events.

What sets this book apart is its ability to seamlessly blend entertainment with intellectual stimulation. While the suspenseful elements keep readers engaged, the underlying themes serve as a thought-provoking foundation. It's a literary journey that not only entertains but also challenges and enriches the reader's perspective.

In essence, this book transcends the conventional boundaries of genre, offering a reading experience that is both thrilling and intellectually satisfying. Long after the final chapter, the echoes of its themes resonate, leaving a lasting impact on those who embark on this literary adventure.

👋👶 Bye, Baby

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martins Press for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Normally I would be the last person to pick up a book centered around anything to do with a baby, but I was hooked from the moment I read the synopsis. Told in present day and flashbacks, the relationship between Billie and Cassie is fully explored and shows how the two women gradually grew apart and led to Billie stealing her childhood best friend's baby after being lied to. Leading with the twist compels the reader to dive into the novel and not want to put it down. I was viscerally angry at having to pause reading to sleep last night.

One quote that will always stand out to me and made it an instant 5 star read was "I think of the basement, of what he did to me, of Cassie keeping it all in a locked corner of her heart. Of the love between two best friends that dies but doesn't disappear. There's still the soul of that love. It goes somewhere."

This book will appeal to anyone who has been part of a toxic female friendship and knows that their friendship ending was the best situation but still mourns the loss of their friend.

Great book!! Lovering kept me hooked throughout the entire book. Her characterization was on point, and the book really moved along nicely with a blend of past and present and the two different points of view! Loved it! Will be a must read author from now on, in fact, getting a book I already had of hers off my shelf to read next!

Two best friends, since they were 12, Billie and Cassie have grown apart. Cassie is a new mother with a rich husband who is trying to become a successful entrepreneur and influencer. Billie loves her job but can’t understand why Cassie has no place for her in her new life.
Told in the present, and in the past, we learn how Billie’s life fell apart when her mother became ill. Something life-changing happened and Billie and Cassie have kept a secret for all these years. I felt like understood Billie way more than Cassie, especially when all of Billie’s trauma comes to light. Honestly, I’m not sure if I could name more than one time when Cassie didn’t come across as a rather shallow and terrible person.
No spoilers, but Billie seriously crossed the line, and I thought the consequences would’ve been more severe. This was a page flipper as I wanted to understand what brought these two women together and what tore them apart. Some hard topics, especially Billy’s traumatic relationship with her stepfather.

I really enjoyed reading this book, but I wouldn’t really label it as a mystery/thriller even though that’s what the blurb is trying to suggest. Bye, Baby is more of a suspense/drama, and it was hard to put down! I found myself constantly wanting to know what was going to happen next.

This book explores so many difficult themes…loss of friendship, new motherhood and navigating that with your partner, loss of a parent, sexual abuse, etc. There’s a lot going on in this book, but it never felt messy. It was interesting to see how my loyalties changed throughout reading, and I ended up rooting for the character I didn’t expect.

I will definitely be checking out more from this author. Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for my copy in exchange for my honest review.

4.5 stars rounded to 4. I went into this expecting more action and excitement but I was still pleasantly surprised by how gripping this was without action.

Cassie and Billie’s friendship is incredibly complex and complicated and I couldn’t get enough of it. Two POVs and two timelines weaves the way of childhood besties into adulthood.

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for an early copy of this book. All opinions in this review are my own.

I'm pretty picky about my thrillers and <i>Bye, Baby</i> came highly recommended from several bookstagram people that I follow. As far as thrillers go, I did like it a lot more than some of the others I've read this year, but I also felt that the characters just didn't make sense. The protagonist never really seems to have a good enough motive for the choices she makes and I ended up just feeling sorry for both characters. I think this is a fast-paced, easy read if you like thrillers, but once I read it, it didn't really stay with me.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

This is one of those stories where you cringe about both of the main characters making painfully awful choices in their lives and relationships. Cassie and Billie are best friends from childhood and share a dark secret. Cassie is trying to make her mark as an influencer and business owner living the high life with her trust fund husband. Making it in this world her lifelong dream. Billie has a great job traveling the world, but seemingly unable of escaping her near obsession with being Cassie’s best friend. Cassie has left Billie behind, but hasn’t completely forgotten her occasionally seeing her, never quite able to sever all ties. The story is building to a reckoning and it is as cringeworthy as their relationship. Enjoyed the story.

Overall, this book was okay. I felt as though it was long winded as the crescendo of the book was towards the middle of the book; not the end. It was a good storyline that placed emphasis on, one, hand what it looks like to be obsessed/addicted to social media and then on the other hand, what it looks like for someone to be obsessed with their past friendships and relationships who hasn't grown, I'm glad that the situations within the book ended on good terms.

This book was an emotional rollercoaster. As many reviews mention, it's leans more into a general fiction category but definitely has some thriller/suspense elements. It's about a complicated relationship between two friends. Both are flawed but the person you think is a monster actually ends up not being that bad. Very interesting.

Dysfunctional friendship abounds in this one! Cassie and Billie, now in their 30s, have known each other since middle school. They were inseparable until their early 20s, but things have changed now that Cassie is an influencer and married her rich husband. Cassie has always been a gold digger, selecting potential suitors who could fund her dream life. Grant is her perfect match, and with him comes friends like McKay who are snobby and elite. Billie tries to stay relevant in Cassie's life, but always feels left out. A family emergency brings the pair back together, but secrets threaten to tear the two apart forever.

This was a good read and shines a light on the obsessive nature of social media. Cassie was insufferable throughout most of the book, and I wanted someone to put her in her place. But Billie wasn't the friend to that, and I shook my head at her dropping everything to be by Cassie's side whenever she beckoned her. Some of Billie's actions were anxiety-producing! The second half of the novel really picked up, though I thought the end was a bit too tidy. Either way, it was enjoyable!

This story centers around two longtime friends, Cassie and Bille, who seem to have drifted apart. One night, Billie takes Cassie’s daughter from her apartment. The story is split between before and after, with narration from both Cassie and Billie.

This was a slow burn. The details of their complicated past are slowly unravelled through flashbacks. I was expecting to hate at least one of the two, but they both had such depth that I found myself somewhat understanding both of them.

I was hooked pretty immediately. It was a great domestic thriller/mystery. 3.5 stars!

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!

This is a quick pace book that can be finished in a day if you have the time. I was hooked from the beginning of this unsettling friendship between two best friends Cassie and Billie. As they grow up they end up growing distance like most friendships do as we age, but the difference with theirs is they have dark secrets to keep and as Cassie is a huge influencer on instagram she couldn’t have a poor friend like Billie and their past ruin her perfect life. As Cassie settles down with a husband and baby things with Billie began to get ruffled.

In this suspenseful drama, we get dual points of view from estranged friends, Billie and Cassie, both in present tense after Cassie has become a mother and in the past from when the girls became friends. The main premise of the book is that Billie kidnaps Cassie's baby and readers are attempting to figure out what lead Billie to this point, as well as what it means for their newly rekindled friendship. This is a very character driven story that explored friendship, family dynamics, and the difficulties of maintaining romantic relationships. There is a decent amount of suspense and drama in this story, but I would have enjoyed a little more action and thrilling aspects surrounding the kidnapping of the baby. Overall, this might be a good read for newer thriller readers or those who really like to get attached to characters and see what has shaped them throughout their lives. The author did a good job of really endearing you to the characters, and the pacing was quick enough that it didn't feel drawn out or like you were losing the plot of the story throughout the character development. Overall, I would recommend.

Bye, Baby was such an intense read covering friendship, loss, trauma, and love. Billie and Cassie were instant friends when they met as kids. When Cassie finds herself in her darkest moment, the only person she wants is Billie. Billie, on the other hand, has just made the biggest mistake of her life. Bye, Baby is a dual timeline read showing the beginning and the continual development of Billie and Cassie's relationship. Friends who would once do literally anything for the other find themselves reevaluating their place in each other's lives.

Carola Lovering has a way of making you question who the bad guy is in given ciricumstances. There is often a lot of hard topics and toxic relationships in Lovering's writing and this was no different. The complexity of change and emotions are handled so well. I caught myself relating to certain situations on a personal level. Overall, this was a great read, just a lot of heavy topics.

I love a Carola Lovering book and was so excited to be given the opportunity to read an ARC of Bye, Baby.

Rating: 3.5 ⭐️
Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering is a novel that focuses on friendship and motherhood. In the background there is a thriller built into the book. It feels like the author attempted to address several topics in this book from the struggles of motherhood, class differences, loss of friendship, being an influencer, sexual abuse and Alzheimers. That's a lot to unpack in a single story.
I enjoyed the different POV and past and present format. Though the book had a lot to mule over and left me thinking about it long after I was done, there was just something that left me feeling unsettled. Maybe that is what makes it a good read.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC of this book.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of Bye, Baby by Carola Lovering. I'm a fan of Lovering's writing style and her character development is second to none. Billie will stay with you forever because she has triumphed over so much tragedy and is so beautifully flawed. Cassie was her best friend since childhood, but lifestyle choices and a slew of other circumstances have gotten in their way. When Cassie's daughter is taken and then returned, their friendship takes a series of unexpected turns and threatens to destroy Billie's other, healthier relationships.

I have to mention that I do believe a trigger warning for victims of abuse is necessary. As Billie's mom battles early onset Alzheimer's, Billie's soon-to-be stepfather sexually abuses her. The scenes were graphic and extremely disturbing.

Unfortunately, not my favorite by this author. The plot hinges on two huge coincidences, both involving her friend/employer (will keep it spoiler-free) and pretty unbelievable in a city the size of NY. I really like the idea of exploring the changing dynamics of a long-term friendship that has a dark secret in the past, but the coincidental nature of the plot kept this thriller from really taking off for me. Enjoy the author's writing and will check out her next one!