When I heard this book was a pregnancy trope (one of my favorites), I knew I had to read it! I'm so glad I did! We start straight in with Eve having her pregnancy confirmed, after a one-night stand, and when I tell you just the first chapter had me hooked, it had me hooked! I found Eve's character so relatable and funny, just trying to make the best out of her situation.

My favorite character had to be Shep! He stepped up to be just what Eve needed. When her best friend, his sister, was going through her struggles and was trying her best to be there for Eve, Shep was there for her, When Eve's baby daddy was also going through his struggles, with his on and off again girlfriend, Shep was right beside her. Honestly, Shep might be the sweetest book boyfriend around! He loved her quietly for so long, ugh I loved him!

It was beautiful how each character had their growth throughout the story and the little family they had created was amazing to see! The birth and end of this book were perfectly wrapped up! I laughed, I cried, and I internally was screaming (in the best way) during this book! I 100% recommend picking up Ready or Not, even if the pregnancy trope isn't one you reach for!

I found Cara Bastone through the free short novellas she's done for Audible and just adored the way she writes love stories. Her characters are multifaceted and relevant to today's society and beliefs. When I heard there was an ARC for a new book of hers, I jumped on it. Everything I loved about her short, audible originals was also true in this longer-form book, with the addition of some spicier content as well.

Ready or Not was such a beautiful look into the 9 months of pregnancy, the trials and tribulations that happen during that time, especially with regard to all the relationships a pregnant person has, from the relationship to the father, friends, acquaintances, even medical staff who become like family during that time. It was such a realistic representation that I was not surprised to find out Bastone herself had been pregnant while writing it.

A beautifully written, emotional and sweet read. I'd highly recommend!

Loved this book! The characters were perfect and the story would make an amazing movie.definitely a must read!

Disclaimer: I was completely drawn in by the stunning cover and did not read the synopsis before requesting. When I found out it was an accidental pregnancy read, I was thrown for a loop.

I honestly did not expect to love this one, but it was so cute, very engaging and full of heartwarming moments. I found the lack of conflict refreshing as there was no need for unnecessary drama or break ups as filler. Bastone does a great job of balancing heavy topics (grief, infertility) with the lighter moments in the book.

Shep was by far the best part of the book and is the most charming, idyllic man. The way he just constantly adores her is swoon worthy. He is the standard!!

Im not sure if it was just a weird writing happenstance or done intentionally, but I found Eve’s personality to be too carefree and nonchalant about being a single mother with absolutely no plan. This made a few parts of the story to be unrealistic - a non-spoiler example: when she walks by a daycare (near her work!! that she has surely passed before!!) and suddenly realizes she’s going to need childcare.

Read if you like:
-slow burn
-single POV
-friends to lovers
-best friends brother

** thanks to NetGalley and The Dial Press, Random House for the ARC and chance to read and review **

Ready Or Not ended up being a cute book. There were some times throughout that I struggled with but overall it was enjoyable. Very slow burn. Friends to lovers and best friend’s brother. There were so many sweet moments that made me swoon. I would rate it 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 for the gorgeous cover.

Ready or Not is a cute friends-to-lovers romance with a pregnancy plotline thrown in. While these are common romance tropes, I think Ready or Not executed them really well! I especially found the small cast of characters to be well developed. I would recommend to anyone looking for a nice romance novel.

Oh, lord, this was charming. It’s very much a book about pregnancy and motherhood, which is a topic I often feel somewhat removed from as a reader, but the voice here was so engaging, warm, and buoyantly funny, I was captivated from the first chapter and remained so throughout my read. It’s the genuine warmth and optimism of the voice that felt so refreshing, witty without being sarcastic or cynical, and the cast of fully fleshed out characters who are all sincerely kind to one another. The heroine is at all times surrounded by people who care about her—family, friends, coworkers, medical workers, and an adoring love interest—even if those people sometimes struggle to balance their own needs with a desire to extend themselves, giving the book a cozy, sweet, joyful vibe throughout, where no conflict feels too stressful, because deep affection and a helping hand are always a sentence or two away. The romance is equally refreshing, especially within a market that’s so reliant on tropes these days. There’s no fake dating or banter-y set up. Instead, we have a sweet, blossoming relationship with a kind-hearted love interest who showers the heroine with care and affection while she navigates her pregnancy and gradually realizes she returns his feelings. It’s simple and sincere and downright lovely. I loved that while he’d obviously been head-over-heels for her forever, their relationship developed over time, and Bastone does a hell of a job ramping up sexual tension and making the (brief) steamy scenes both sexy and emotionally resonant. The writing is enviably good, I enjoyed the hell out of this, and look forward to picking up more of Bastone’s work in days to come.

I'm a little late on posting this but this book was just fantastic. I love the unexpected pregnancy trope but this one was better than usual. Eve and her best friend Willa moved away from their Midwestern town years ago and are enjoying life in Brooklyn. Eve's working for the company that she always wanted to work at but not enjoying what she does there. Willa is married but experiencing fertility issues. When Eve finds herself unexpectedly pregnant after a one night stand, Willa struggles to be the friend that she needs. Enter Shep, Willa's newly single brother who is suddenly the warm shoulder that Eve needs. Eve is kind of helpless to even deal with what this pregnancy means or to see her child as a person but I found her struggles relatable. The pregnancy changes her life in more than one way as Eve learns to be more assertive and also allow her life to expand to include more help. The wider net of characters is really fun-I'd love more stories about this friend group.
Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Ummmm I’m obsessed??? Truly. I DEEPLY appreciate books with realistic women, especially when the story involves realistic depictions of pregnancy. This story was EVERYTHING. And the cover? 5 billion stars

I love love love when a book has a realistic view of life in general, but especially the messier sides. Pregnancy is not all glowy sunshine and white linen and it is portrayed beautifully here. The slow burn romance and sweetness of Shep make this one a book I devoured and would recommend again and again. Thank you NetGalley for the eARC!

I LOVED this book. The cover is so cute and colorful, I immediately knew I wanted to read it. The writing style is so easy to get into and I was immediately sucked in within the first few pages. The characters are easy to love, and I found myself laughing out loud at a few points throughout the book. The dialogue in the book is so close to how I speak in real life - it was kind of freaky lol! Even though everyone's experience with pregnancy is different, I felt like the portrayal of it in the book was very realistic and lined up with how my own experience was, which made me love the book even more. If you're looking for a cute book about pregnancy, I'd definitely recommend this one!

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinions.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy of this book. Ready or Not is the first book that I have read by Cara Bastone and it won’t be the last. It is about Eve, who unexpectedly finds out she’s pregnant from a one night stand. She must navigate the next nine months with the baby daddy and an old acquaintance. The storyline flowed well and I could not wait to see what happened.

Sometimes I don’t read a book right away because there’s something in the description I don’t love. Unexpected pregnancy and potential love triangles are two tropes I detest and boy did this book teach me a lesson about letting preconceived notions get in my way because I LOVED this book. Like, I couldn’t have consumed it faster. I laughed, I cried. I felt seen in a way I haven’t in a very long time, maybe ever, on page. The discussion on motherhood was one of the most honest I’ve ever read (Nurse Blank is my favorite). After a string of reading just “good” books, it was refreshing to read one that is great.

Ehhhh. Not my favorite. I’m over the floundering 20 something that can’t make decisions in her life, and the character honestly got annoying. I skimmed the last 40% to avoid a DNF. The conversations she had with her friends/nurse/coworkers about motherhood were easily the best parts of the book.

Eve finds herself with an unexpected pregnancy. She doesn’t know what will happen but she knows that she will keep the baby and everything will be ok. It has to be. After telling the baby’s father the news, she finds out he has a girlfriend (on and off again relationship). Ethan doesn’t know what to do but he wants to be apart of the baby’s life. Eve’s best friend Willa, is going through and infertility struggles and this is hard new for her to hear but she is happy for her friend. She helps in the ways she can. Shep, Willa’s brother and Eve’s friend, is the one who really steps up to help. He’s so supportive of Eve and she starts to see him in a new light.

Here’s what I liked:
Shep’s character is amazing! I loved that he was always there for Eve.
Eve’s character was a little chaotic at times and just kind of floats through and then it really hits her what’s gonna happen but I do like the fact that she didn’t wanna have an abortion and she just knew she was gonna keep the baby the whole time.
I liked the slow burn romance and how sweet it was.

Dislikes:
Ethan and how he plays into at the end and throughout is a little odd but not really I guess🤷🏼‍♀️ idk i’m still deciding on that one.
The part where Eve says ” we won’t know the gender until the baby decides what the gender is but no I don’t want to know the sex.” I get it, it’s the new politically correct thing however, I feel like this book was more pro-life but then you’re gonna throw this in there and that just doesn’t work for me. It’s my personal opinion and you can have your own but for me it was a turn off. Overall, I did like this book but I didn’t love it so therefore I gave it 3 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for my advance readers copy. This is my honest, involuntary opinion.

It took me a few chapters to get into the story, but once I did the tension between Eve and Shep was just delightful. And hey, I will always enjoy the falling for your best friend’s brother trope. It just doesn’t miss! And in this case, Cara Bastone does it well, weaving in themes of friendship, loss, and commitment, in addition to the romance.

Unless I missed it, there were little to no FMC physical descriptors. I sometimes wasn’t sure how to visualize Eve and wonder now if that was intentional, forcing the reader to form their own view of Eve and leaving room for Eve to represent anyone (maybe even themselves).

On the this-could-have-been-better side, I was confused with some of the details in the story. I chalked it up to writing inconsistencies and tried not to let them bother me too much. For example, Eve lives in this great Brownstone apartment (with no roommates), but she never really mentions how she can afford it working an entry-level job at a non-profit (which traditionally doesn’t pay that well). And then the fact that Eve’s first concern at finding out that she’s pregnant isn’t immediately how she could manage it financially. This comes up a bit later but is never really fully addressed. Since many single women decide to have abortions due to the fact that having a baby is often financially impossible, especially in an expensive city like New York, the fact that this is never fully explored just felt like a missed opportunity. It also made Eve seem really naive, despite being a total control freak who develops a special system for organizing her spices. I was also a little confused as to why Eve being good at creating a company newsletter would qualify her to join the finance team? But okay. The job storyline overall felt a little flat to me.

I give this read just under four stars. It was enjoyable, had depth and honestly was a beautiful representation of pregnancy. I would recommend it to friends looking for a lighter, romantic read.

TITLE: Ready or Not
AUTHOR: Cara Bastone
RELEASE DATE: February 6, 2024
PUBLISHED BY: Penguin Randomhouse
FORMAT READ: Kindle ARC
# OF PAGES: 400
RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
RECOMMENDATION: sure, why not?

Why did I choose this book?
1. The Cover is so beautiful!
2. Friends who love each other.
3. It was a Book of the Month Club pick.

What I liked:
⭐️Likeable characters (mostly).
⭐️ Loved the sarcastic tone of the MFC and pretty much all of the other characters.
⭐️Quick read and a good palette cleanser!



Why I only gave it ⭐️⭐️⭐️

1. It was predictable.
2. Sometimes it was a tiny bit cheesy.
3. It made me realize I don't like pregnancy tropes.
4. A tad bit spicy in a place or two. Some people would say it's mild but I don't like when a whole chapter or + is dedicated to a sex scene.

Thank you to:
Cara Bastone
Penguin Random House
Netgalley

BOOK DESCRIPTION:
Eve Hatch lives for surprises! Just kidding. She expects every tomorrow to be pretty much the same as today. She loves her cozy apartment in Brooklyn that’s close to her childhood best friend Willa, and far from her midwestern, traditional family who has never really understood her. While her job is only dream-adjacent, it’s comfortable and steady. She always knows what to expect from her life . . . until she finds herself expecting after an uncharacteristic one-night stand.

The unplanned pregnancy cracks open all the relationships in her life. Eve’s loyal friendship with Willa is feeling tense, right when she needs her the most. And it’s actually Willa’s steadfast older brother, Shep, who steps up to help Eve. He has always been friendly, but now he’s checking in, ordering her surprise lunches, listening to all her complaints, and is . . . suddenly kinda hot? Then, as if she needs one more complication, there’s the baby’s father, who is (technically) supportive but (majorly) conflicted.

Up until this point, Eve’s been content to coast through life. Now, though—maybe it’s the hormones, maybe it’s the way Shep’s shoulders look in a T-shirt—Eve starts to wonder if she has been secretly desiring more from every aspect of her life.

Over the course of nine months, as Eve struggles to figure out the next right step in her expanding reality, she begins to realize that family and love, in all forms, can sneak up on you when you least expect it.

5/5 - Loved loved loveeeeeed!!!

This book was just so so sweet 😭 I didn’t know what to expect when I picked this for my BOTM pick but I loved every second of it. I read & listened to Ready or Not and the audio was fantastic!!

I loved Eve & her inner monologues but more than that I loved reading about her pregnancy journey 🥹 the pregnancy trope can be a weird one if not done properly but this was 👌🏼👌🏼👌🏼.

I also really enjoyed all of the side characters, Shep was just absolute perfection!

I'm completely blown away by how quickly this book sucks you in and makes you fall head over heels in love with every single character (even the annoying ones!) I didn't expect to read a book about a surprise pregnancy, because I am an idiot that doesn't read blurbs if it's a romance book that I'm going to throw into my Book of the Month cart anyway, and when I got this on Netgalley I instantly dove right in.

Eve is charming. She is the perfect lead for this novel, and she had me in stitches, and having been pregnant twice I just understood so many parts of this novel down to my aching lower back. The not quite love triangle was really spcecial, and this is just a book that I felt I hadn't read before (which is uncommon when you tear through probably 20-30 romances a year?) Cara did something really special with this book and I so thoroughly enjoyed myself. I laughed out loud, I felt her loneliness, I grieved with her, and I celebrated her triumphs.

Derek and Shep were both really interesting male leads, and I really enjoyed watching their arcs through Eve's eyes. What a road they take you and Eve down throughout the book. It was really interesting to see her prevail through every slight, every emotion, and every good and bad thing that happens to her through the novel.

I loved this book, and I highly recommend it for any romance lover, especially for someone looking for something a little more out of the box!

4.5 ☆

i can't remember the last time i enjoyed a romance book so much, but ready or not hit all the right spots for me. just so sweet and full of heart! i loved how it explored love in all the shapes and forms it can take, not just the romantic kind. some parts were maybe a tad bit underdeveloped, which is why i can't give it a full five stars, but it wasn't a big issue at all and it didn't detract from my overall enjoyment. like seriously, this book was kinda everything idk!

thank you to prh international for the free book!