Starting off shaky, Sophie Cousens turns things around in THE GOOD PART, an intriguing story that toes the line of fantasy, following the struggles of a twenty-something dealing with the reality of a far-fetched wish coming true.

It takes a few chapters to get onboard with Lucy as a protagonist — quite frankly she’s not the most likable MC, nor does she adjust in the way you’d expect upon waking up one day sixteen years in the future, living the life she’s always dreamed of. (To be fair, this is purely subjective, and you could argue there’s no one-size-fits-all response to such a bizarre circumstance.) But time — and a few carefully placed plot devices — allow her to win you over.

From there, Cousens delivers a clever, fast-paced plot that manages to slowly reel you in, balancing humor with grief — and in many ways, serving as an ode to motherhood — in a surprisingly poignant way.

I can see this read not appealing to everyone, and I think that largely has to do with the description not being the most reflective of what this book is all about (I’d honestly suggest the entire thing be reworked so it better matches the actual story) but I expect that those who do enjoy it, will do so fiercely and with little restraint.

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC.*

𝘊𝘢𝘯 𝘸𝘦 𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘱 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵? 𝘿𝙞𝙣𝙜! 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯.

When spotting the title for Sophie Cousens’ novel 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵, I couldn’t help but recall the many TikTok videos that utilize that popular sound to help convey flash-forwarding to more exciting points in time. But in the book, skipping years ahead turns out to be overrated…

Lucy Young’s life isn’t going well. At 26 years old, she aspires to be a TV producer, but she’s still stuck running errands and making tea. She’s living paycheck to paycheck in an awful building with inconsiderate flatmates and neighbors. She at least has a lovely group of longtime friends. But after one particularly horrible evening involving an argument with one of them, a disastrous date, and a dead mobile phone, she finds shelter from a literal storm at a 24-hour newsagent’s shop. There, she comes across a vintage fairground machine that claims to grant wishes, and Lucy does what you would expect any frustrated protagonist to do—she wishes to skip to the good part of her life.

When she wakes up the next morning, she’s Lucy Rutherford, a 42-year-old executive who co-runs a children’s television production company and has a beautiful home, high-tech car, handsome and supportive husband, and two young, precocious children. Unfortunately, she also has no memory of the last 16 years. While it her life may seem picture-perfect now, she struggles to get up to speed and manage her hectic and demanding professional and personal lives. It is chaotic and completely overwhelming, and she feels like a failure and imposter at nearly every turn.

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵 could have easily have been an overdone, predictable story. Lord knows we’ve seen the wishes-gone-wrong trope before. However, Cousens writes with such sincerity and genuineness that you can’t help both empathize with and root for Lucy, despite sensing that perhaps you’ve read or watched this kind of thing before. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘎𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘵 is a sweet, amusing tale about appreciating life—the highs, lows, and in-betweens. 4.25 stars.

Thank you to G. P. Putnam’s Sons and NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. This review shared online on May 29, 2023 to Goodreads here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5571898797.

A delightful read! Have you ever wished to wake up with a perfect partner, beautiful home, sumptuous wardrobe, and amazing career? Lucy has and now she is dealing with the consequences...

The Good Part is a sweet story and somewhat of a cautionary tale of being careful what you wish for. It navigates some tough topics in a lighthearted way. It is a reminder to appreciate all of the days, whether good or bad, and all of the moments whether they seem insignificant or not.

Lucy is funny and likable, and it was fun to follow her on her own version of a "13 going on 30" adventure. I think fans of the author's other works like Before I Do and Just Haven't Met You Yet, will enjoy this novel as much as I did. Recommended to anyone looking for a feel-good read with a dash of romance. 4.5 stars.

Thank you very much to Putnam Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.