I'll be honest the time hop troupe doesn't do it for me. I wanted to like this book because I have really enjoyed Cousen's other novels, but I couldn't get into this one.

*Very cute, feel-good romance
*Be careful what you wish for
*True to life descriptions of married life and being present as a parent
* A little humorous
*Liked Lucy’s supportive parents
*Loved watching Lucy go from clueless to embracing an unfamiliar lifestyle
*Made me wonder if I would stay or go back. Would things turn out differently?
*Includes discussion questions

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

OMG this book was everything! I LOVE magical realism and this author did a phenomenal job in bringing that trope to life in this book. I laughed out loud and certain parts and totally fell in love with the characters. I am going to purchase a physical copy for my at home library!

Doesn’t everyone always wish they could just skip to the good part, but what if skipping to that means you don’t feel grown up, your friendships are different and your family knows you’re acting weird. This book was so wonderful and a great reminder that our successes today doesn’t show the problems and growing we each had to do to get to that good part. It also showed how wonderful it is to grow. This book gave me so many feelings about growing up as an adult and what my future may hold. The characters were wonderfully written.

4.5 rounded up for Goodreads

If you enjoy movies like 13 Going on 30, BIG, or Seventeen Again then this is the book for you.

This book is about Lucy who feels she has been on enough bad dates, had enough bad days at her job, and is just tired of waiting for life to happen - she comes upon a wishing machine and wishes to skip to "the good part" of her life.

The next morning, Lucy awakes to find out she has her dream job, her dream husband, and 2 adorable kids - but she is still the young Lucy inside and is panicked about taking on the role of her future self.

She comes to realize that maybe the good part is also the journey in getting there.

I really love the way this all played out, I enjoyed Lucy and her future husband getting to know each other, Lucy and her kids bonding over school projects, and the adrenaline-rush of an awesome pitch at work. However, as much as I (of course) wanted the book to end with Lucy in her future life, I can also appreciate why it ended the way it did.

Life is all about the choices you make along the way.

I'm not usually one for time travel stories, but this one really grabbed me. A great read that's reminiscent of 13 Going on 30, it tells the story of Lucy who somehow, in wishing for the perfect life, wishes away a good chunk of time. Will she remember the missing parts, will she stay as "future me" or find a way to return to her old self? The story had some very thought provoking aspects, and was an easy read.

It was an interesting story where Lucy wishes to get to the good part of her life. She gets her wish, but it isn’t everything that it’s cracked up to be. We get to see her family life and career jump forward 16 years.

It was a cute story and I really enjoyed the ending, but some parts took a while to get through.

Today on “another book I waited too long to read and am now kicking myself for because I absolutely adore it”

THE GOOD PART by Sophie Cousens 5⭐️

This made me laugh out loud, cry, and giggle with giddiness. As someone who really struggled in their 20s figuring out who they were and what they wanted to do with their life, I resonated so much with Lucy in this book.

Lucy is 26 and over it. She’s exhausted, living in less than ideal flatmate conditions, still a runner at work despite her great ideas, getting by paycheck to paycheck and yearning for the future when her life is good and dating isn’t a struggle. After a night out and a special wish to get to the “good part”, she wakes up in a strange bed, next to a strange man (her husband?!). She’s now 42, with her dream job in tv production, two children, and 16 years of life behind her that she doesn’t remember.

What follows is a profound finding of self, with Lucy questioning the kind of person she wants to be, a romance so deep and full of partnership, and thought-provoking moments about life, loss, and loved ones. Ultimately she has to decide - is life about the destination or the journey?

Maybe it’s because Sam reminds me of my own husband or my deep love for time travel stories or my connection to the themes of friendship and loss but this one was perfection to me. While Lucy was a challenging narrator in the pre-part of the story making me cringe, she sounds exactly like I did in my mid-20s.

For fans of 13 going on 30, this time tomorrow, the do-over and the family man, this one is an easy sell.

Vibes:
Magical realism
Time travel
Nature characters
Realistic and healthy relationship
Family
Parenthood
Balancing career and motherhood

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced copy of The Good Part by Sophie Cousens.

This book was so very special! The Good Part tells the story of Lucy, a 20-something single woman who just couldn't catch a break. Lucy stumbled upon a wishing machine and wished to skip forward to "the good part" of her life. Waking up as a middle-aged mom of two, wife to a dreamy husband, and the boss at a high-powered job, Lucy is confused by what has happened. I loved discovering alongside Lucy all about what had happened in her life since she made the wish. Watching Lucy fall in love with her life was such a special journey. Highly recommend this book!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this gem!

I really like Sophie Cousens. I think she’s a great author and I’m definitely a fan. The writing in this was really good. It just didn’t work for me from a plot standpoint. I find that time travel plots are either funny and light-hearted or give me anxiety and this one definitely was not the first of those.

Lucy is in her 20s and having a tough time (we’ve all been there) so, at a particularly low point, she wishes that she could just skip to “the good part” and she wakes up sixteen years in the future.

I like the message about life never being perfect no matter what stage you’re in. Essentially, there is no “good part”. There is only living in the moment and doing our best. I remember being in my 20s and wishing I could be done with dating and just get to “the good part” so I get where this plot idea comes from and I also get why other people really liked it. This was way more women’s fiction than romance in my opinion and it was more emotionally draining than I was expecting. I found myself skimming a lot of it and really just wanted to see what happened at the end.

And I didn’t like the ending AT ALL. I think people will either love the direction she takes it in or not. I did not. But that is completely a personal preference and there will be people who love it.

I think this is worth reading as Cousens is still a wonderful author. Go into it knowing it’s not as light-hearted as her past books. This one just wasn’t my favorite.

First of all, I need to say that I do not consider this a romance and I DEFINITELY don't consider it a romantic comedy as I have seen some people label it. THE GOOD PART is Women's Fiction with a hint of romance.

I'm not usually a reader who likes paranormal reads (in this instance, time travel), but THE GOOD PART did a really good job of engaging me in the story, and I found myself completely invested in these characters and how this whole situation was going to pan out.

While this book definitely draws inspiration from films like Big and 13 Going On 30, please know that it tackles sone seriously tough topics surrounding death and grief.

THE GOOD PART is a book I really enjoyed, even when it was quite slow in parts, and that I would recommend to readers who want a bit of a different story with a very emotional edge.

𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
𝗦𝗧𝗘𝗔𝗠 𝗟𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗟: Rated PG / Kissing and awareness that characters sleep together. Closed Door.
𝗧𝗥𝗜𝗚𝗚𝗘𝗥𝗦: death of child, death of friend
𝗙𝗘𝗘𝗟𝗦: 4/5 - Tackled some seriously tough topics.

I turned on some old film soundtracks and opened this book on a gloomy Thursday night, after a particularly bad day of work. What a wonderful omen this book turned out to be. I want to call all my friends and go to karaoke, or have them over for dinner, and tell them I love them while we are young and broke. I want to go to bad dates, so I can tell the love of my life about them when we are picking risotto off the floor. Sophie Cousens has once again written a beautiful, touching love story that makes me want to live a better life. She's Elizabeth Gilbert and Emily Henry's wise British niece. Sam and Lucy's love is so comforting to read, like waking up in a king sized bed with a fluffy duvet after years of sleeping in a damp apartment. I feel like I can picture every moment of their sweet flirtatious banter. And is there anything more wonderful than falling in love for a second time? I will be thinking of this book for years, and recommending it to my own Roisin, Faye and Zoya.

Thank you Netgalley and Penguin for an an ARC of this book! I feel like everyone has at one point of their life wished they could fast forward to when you having things supposedly figured out. This book follows Lucy, a 26 year old living with three friends in a teeny apartment , working for pennie’s , and praying to fast forward to life when she has it seemingly together. She makes a wish after a bad online date and wakes up 16 years later with a gorgeous husband and two kids. While this may seem like many movies we have all grown up, we start to question whether anyone , no matter how much success, money, or “ perfect” family actually have it figured out.

Feel good story! Skip the messiness and skip to the part of life that everyone wants to enjoy. I really enjoyed this book!

I love books featuring elements of magical realism and The Good Part completely nailed it. It's a book filled with hope, romance, time travel, granted wishes, and magic and it's overall a beautifully written book. I was completely engrossed in Lucy's story and adored watching her discover what her life could potentially be.

And can we talk about Felix? The cutest little guy. If you've read the book already, you know what I'm talking about.

As I read it too, I felt like it had elements from a lot of different movies - BIG, 13 Going on 30, and Time Traveler's Wife, just to name a few.

Let's talk about the ending. I'm not normally a fan of anything resembling a cliffhanger, but man did that ending work perfectly. I won't spoil it, but it's wonderfully done.

Highly recommend this adorable book. It's a good one!
4.5 stars/5
Thank you Putnam Books and NetGalley for the eARC!

4 ⭐️

This book was such a fun premise and I LOVE a magical realism/time travel element in my books!!! It also had a refreshing amount of romance without being overpowering/cheesy rom-com. Sophie's writing is flowy and strong, witty and intentional. The characters were enjoyable and feel-good, the story was engaging, but I felt the ending was a tiny bit rushed. Overall a very refreshing romance and one I will definitely recommend.

"The Good Part" by Sophie Cousens is a captivating and heartwarming novel that skillfully weaves humor, romance, and genuine emotion. The characters are well-developed, and the storyline keeps you hooked from start to finish. Cousens has a knack for creating relatable, witty dialogue that adds a delightful charm to the narrative. This book is a delightful escape into a world of love, laughter, and unexpected twists.

I absolutely LOVED this book! This was such a good use of the time travel/flash forward trope. I'm sure everyone has had a moment where they feel stuck or stagnant in their life and have wished to just "skip to the good part." This book is such a good reminder that the journey to get where we are is worth living through even if it is not always the most fun. I will read absolutely anything Sophie Cousens writes but this is my favorite of her books so far!

I loved The Good Part so much! Sophie Cousens quickly became one of my favorite authors with her first book, and I am always eagerly anticipating the next. I’ve definitely had the same feelings as Lucy, wanting to skip to the “good part” of life, and even though you know going into the book what the message is probably going to be, I still found myself rooting for Lucy and falling in love with her little family. There have been quite a few Groundhog Day-type books recently, and I loved the execution of this one. It was a cozy, comforting read, and I’m definitely going to be buying a hard copy for my library. Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the eARC!