Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the arc. Ready or Not is fine. I will say, it really feels more like adult contemporary/women's fiction than a romance novel. I wouldn't necessarily have picked it up if I knew that going in. The relationships are a little more complicated than your typical pregnancy romance, and I felt like it played out in a satisfying way.

Oh my, did I love this book! The characters, the laughs, the chemistry, the history, the slowburn romance, the spice, the heartbreak and frustrations that they went through-SO good! And of curse-the dogs! A dog bar, what a fun idea! At the end of the day, the best character is Shep! We could all use a Shep in our lives! Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Loved this book so much!!! The slow burn, the characters, the deeper meaning of the story. I love how even though it was about a surprise pregnancy it was so much more than that. The writing was great, I laughed, I cried, so well done. This is not a typical rom-com and I think that is what made it so much better! Will definitely be recommending this one!

I really enjoyed this sweet friends to lovers romance. Eve finds out she’s pregnant after a one night stand and her life is turned on its side. Her best friend Willa isn’t exactly happy for Eve but Shep, Willa’s brother, is excited and so supportive during Eve’s pregnancy. The father of the baby, Ethan, is dealing with his own issues and is an unreliable source of support for her despite his desire to be involved. The story moves through Eve’s pregnancy and how she comes to terms with the changes happening in her life in a humorous way but touches on some serious topics with grace and understanding. Her relationships shift a bit and while her feelings are raw she opens herself up to a love that she may have been afraid of in the past. I found myself wanting to just give Eve a huge hug and some maternity pants and by the end I was cheering for her to claim what she wanted instead of being afraid to take a leap.

I’m so glad I read this one, it’s a great book with just the right amount of humor, a little sadness, and a touch of spice. Perfection!

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for sharing my review but all opinions and words are my own.

I <3 Shep. These 3 stars are for him and him only.

When I saw the premise of this book on Netgalley, I was SO excited. The cover was cute. Surprise pregnancy, friends-to-lovers,
anddadd a conflicted baby daddy? Sign me tf up. I loveeee surprise pregnancy books where the plot includes the pregnancy and not just at the last 10%. However, even though this book had everything I wanted, the execution fell a bit flat for me. Except for you bb Shep. You did great sweetie.

Ready or Not follows Eve after she accidentally gets pregnant from a one night stand. Her baby daddy is ... unreliable to say the least, but she has her best friend Willa and her older brother, Shep. King.

First things first. The writing. I feel like this book would've been SO MUCH better if there was about 70% less internal monologue from Eve. It was hard to process the plot because every two seconds was Eve thinking about something then getting off track. I guess it could be seen as quirky but for me it did not add anything to the story. If anything, it made her character seem immature. Next, Willa. I think her character was NOT a good friend and a lot of her messiness towards Eve was
"forgiven" based on a they've been friends forever and she was going through some stuff basis. Going through things explains your actions but does not excuse them! !!!
And Ethan, the baby daddy. (lowkey a spoiler?) All scenes involving him felt a lil
more women targeted rather than focusing on him being A ROSS (iykyk).

Now, Shep. Love him dearly. He was everything and the saviour of this book. He gives all the vibes of a cinnamon roll/golden retriever. He was there for Eve from day one. He remembers everything he says and is such an acts of service king. "Because I went shopping and thought of you." MY HEART. This book needed about 50% more of him.

Thank you to NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Chalk this up as another book I didn’t know I needed. Being a new reader to the romance genre, the “surprise pregnancy” trope was a fresh take. READY OR NOT follows Eve Hatch after she becomes pregnant after a one night stand. With no close family of her own, Eve must navigate her impending motherhood with a found family of her choosing.

This nuanced debut features well-developed characters that you will enjoy watching blossom. I love the way Cara Bastone highlights the hardships of new motherhood and the importance of seeking out support, because at the end of the day our people are all we have.

Grab your copy from Book of the Month!

RATING: 4/5
PUB DATE: February 13, 2024

READ THIS IF YOU:
-Are intrigued by an unconventional love story with one open-door scene
-Can’t resist a “will they/won’t they”
-Have ever been pregnant and hormonal or know someone who has

Many thanks to the publisher for an electronic ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

So much more than a romance -its also a love story for friends, family, and herself. Shep felt a little too good to be true, and yet, I wanted to watch the Hallmark movie of him ASAP! I laughed. I cried. I feel like I learned a little something about how to better support my friends during pregnancy. This was such a sweet read!

“I have no idea how long I’ve loved you. Maybe always.”

Eve and Shep. She accidentally gets pregnant by a man after a one-night stand. He wants to be apart of the journey and the baby’s life but the only thing that’s holding him back is his girlfriend. Luckily, she has her best friend’s older brother to help her throughout the whole pregnancy.

YOU GUYS. THIS BOOK. 5+ STARS. A FAVE READ. I completely devoured this book! It was charming, entertaining, heartfelt and emotional. I love how this book focuses on Eve’s journey to motherhood and it just felt very raw. Seeing Eve and Shep’s relationship progress was so beautiful; every moment between them was tender. Also, Shep is THE MAN. I love how mature he was when it came to Eve and Ethan—like he wasn’t threatened or jealous at all.

🍼READ IF YOU LIKE🍼:
- friends to lovers
- best friend’s older brother
- slow burn
- “it’s always been you”
- found family
- childhood crush
- golden retriever hero
- secret pining
- accidental pregnancy
- nyc setting
- strawberry french toast & raspberry lemonade

cw: death of loved ones, infertility issues, mention of abortion and miscarriage, grief

Thank you to @thedialpress and @netgalley for the advanced copy! Ready or Not is available on February 13, 2024!

If you enjoy delightful, character-based romances, this one's for you. For me, really. Cara Bastone's Ready or Not follows the emotional journey of a surprise pregnancy. Eve is a young woman in a job only adjacent to what she wants to do --she's in admin in a wildlife nonprofit rather than actively working on policies to save endangered species. Her romantic life is nonexistent (it's been a couple of years since the last of the Dereks), her parents are dead and she's not close to her much-older brothers. Added to this are that her best friend is struggling with infertility, and her best friend's mother, the woman who truly mothered her, recently died.

Not the best time to discover she's pregnant, but also, tentatively, not the worst. She decides to stay pregnant and it's manageable. Especially if she mostly tucks the thought of having a baby out of her mind and instead thinks about dealing with what's going on with her body. The only person who is excited about the baby is her best friend's brother, whom she grew up with and has remained close to, more or less. The biological father is surprised but not horrified; however since their one night stand he has gotten back together with his long-term girlfriend.

Her best friend finds it difficult to deal with her pregnancy but it's Shep, the brother, who is there for her, going with her when she tells the father, bringing her food, making sure she drinks enough water…

It sounds a little earnest, doesn't it? But it doesn't read that way. It reads visceral and feels real, as though you're watching your best friend straighten out her complicated life, or better yet (and it does feel this way) watching yourself do so. Honestly, I couldn't put it down. Hello, 2 AM my old friend.

I’ve loved all of Cara Bastone’s previous releases; this one feels especially grittily realized. And Eve and Shep are charmers, flawed and real though they are.

i saw slow-burn. i saw friends-to-lovers. i saw accidental pregnancy and i said I NEED YOU.

these are my three favorite tropes wrapped up into a book so good i literally forgot where i was whilst reading it because i was *that* into the story. putting down the book was like waking up from the best nap of your life. you’re not sure what time it is. you’re not sure who are. but man, you feel great.

synopsis: eve is happy in her comfortable and predictable life. she always knows what to expect… until an out-of-character one-night-stand ends in an accidental pregnancy. now, her entire world is flipped upside down. the person who steps up to be there for her? her best friend’s brother, shep. and maybe it’s the pregnancy hormones or maybe it’s the fact that eve is starting to see her life in a whole new life but… was shep always that cute??

GO READ THIS BOOK. why? because it’s just *unintelligible noises of delight* i knew from page one that this book was going to be a stand-out. the writing has that pizzaz. the kind that pulls you right in. it makes you laugh. it gives you the warm and fuzzies. it feels like a swarm of butterflies in your stomach.

look, i know the accidental pregnancy trope is polarizing… but just forget about that for one second because this slow burn was DELICIOUS. it is pulled out like taffy. and shep? oh, shep. sweet golden retriever, best friend ever shep. my heart rate spiked when he hit the page. this is not your average accidental pregnancy trope book. she’s not ending up with the baby daddy. there’s no insta-love. it’s about real, messy, imperfect love in so many forms. (you’re going to fall in love with eve’s best friend willa, too.)

i know a book is good when it makes my body physically react. like blushing, laughing, squealing. i wanted to do NOTHING but read this book. and the way i was on the edge of my seat waiting for these two to FINALLY KISS. i have not felt this giddy over a book in so long.

I started reading this book before bed thinking it would be relaxing and cute. I figured I’d read a few chapters then go to bed. That didn’t happen this book was way too good and traps you I couldn’t put it away. It’s so cute and funny and doesn’t sugar coat pregnancy like a lot of other books do. The characters are so realistic it makes it refreshing to read, the love is something to dream about though! Definitely need to get a physical copy when it’s released!

I really enjoyed Ready or Not. The story was so cute and made me feel a full range of emotions. I laughed I was sad and I even cried a little bit there for a while. Definitely will be grabbing a copy for my shelves!

This review has been posted concurrently to Goodreads and Storygraph.

We are barely into the new year, and I might have already found my favourite book of the year!

I am a huge fan of Cara Bastone's writing in general, but even so, I was not prepared to love Ready or Not as much as I did. This book was like a warm and fuzzy blanket on a cold day, and a total antidote to the dark romances I've been reading recently. I absolutely loved it!

In a romance world populated by aggressive alpha heroes, Shep stands tall as a genuinely sweet and lovely man who unabashedly loves Eve with his whole heart, and it turns out that I am completely down for that. The evolution of Eve & Shep's relationship from friends to something more is a slow-burn delight, unfolding over the course of Eve's pregnancy but rooted in their long history as friends. I also loved the way both Eve and Shep interacted with Ethan over the course of the book; this added a welcome depth to the story. And Eve and Willa's relationship was so complicated and messy and true to life - their bond was wonderful and at times it seemed almost painfully real - one of the best depictions of a true friendship I've seen on the page.

I can't say enough how much I enjoyed this book. My thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing this book for review consideration (I was so excited to get to read it a month before my preorder becomes available!); all opinions above are my own.

3.75⭐️ This was very sweet. I especially liked the last 20% and I think the relationship that was the most fun was Shep and Ethan. I loved Nurse Blank/Louise.

Not a big fan of the accidental pregnancy trope that seems to be popping up lately.
But thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book just the same

It was such a cute book. I had some tough moments in the beginning, trying to get into it, but once Ethan's character showed up, it felt as though the story climbed. Every character is so individual and I loved the way that they were all easily imaginable. Whether it was Willa or Eve, or Ethan or Shep, all characters were so unalike that it made it feel real! I hadn't read any Cara Bastone before but this might just make me want to read more of her work!

This one surprised me in all the best ways! A pregnancy trope is never my favorite and this one made the pregnancy the whole plot - but I fell in love with these characters and Bastone’s writing. Shep is actual perfection - like, could not ask for a sweeter “he loved her first”. And Ethan and Bones are the best duo, I want a whole story about their HEA please. Willa and Eve’s friendship was one of my favorite parts of this, they were so human and honest and loved each other through it all. And following Eve as she figures out exactly what she wants out of life was a true gift. The narration was also so good!

Thank you to PRH Audio, Random House and NetGalley for the ALC & ARC.

I’m going to have trouble describing just how much I loved this book, I already know it!

When Eve has a one night stand and winds up pregnant, she decides that she does want the baby, even if it means going down this path alone. She quickly finds she will never be truly alone as the relationships in her life grow deeper and more meaningful.

This book pretty much had everything. Heartwarming moments, parts that made me squeal with a ridiculous grin on my face at cute parts of the love story, so many lines that made me burst out laughing, and several that brought tears to my eyes. I’ll be the first to say I can’t stand an accidental pregnancy storyline, but holy crap was it done well here! We know at the very start that Eve is pregnant, and that she is going to be one hilarious pregnant woman to follow, and that may have made all the difference. Her fears, her hesitations, her sudden realization that her life was going to change- it all felt incredibly authentic and true to life, and I adored her character.

I loved the love story here as well. It was full of tenderness and sweet moments, but also plenty of pregnancy hormones and lust. Hello new book boyfriend, who easily puts Eve first in every single one of his actions.

This was one of my favorite books of January, and I cannot wait to read more by Bastone in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House- Dial Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This book, y'all. The cover? Gorgeous. The plot? Stunning. The humor? Feels like talking to your bestie over brunch.

I know a lot of people are reticent because the plot surrounds an unexpected pregnancy. Honestly, that's not a big deal for me at all so long as the blurb is up front with it. Within seconds, we know that Eve is pregnant! But more than that, we see how it affects her and her relationships. I also really liked that this book wasn't about her falling in love with someone that she "should" - i.e. the baby daddy. This book is about the unsung heroes of our lives - our best friend's brothers, our stern nurses, our consistent waiters. Eve is an absolute disastrous delight and Shep provides such a nice balance to her. Their chemistry is downright precious and I want these two goobers protected at all costs.

*Thank you to Dial Press and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review and to PRH Audio for the gifted ALC*

I really wanted to straight out love this book, but it was quite the trigger for me. I've dealt with infertility and a best friend who couldn't handle it after I got pregnant. While I enjoyed the love story with Shep and the coming to terms friendship with Willa, I was rooting for Ethan the most. He tried so hard to be the best, fell short so many times, but in the end he stood his ground. I would consider reading a novella about Ethan and Shep's bromance.