Published on Goodreads 9-2-23

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for an early copy of Cara Bastone's latest, "Ready or Not". Bastone's "Forever Yours" series is a comfort reread favorite of mine, specifically "Just a Heartbeat Away". Her newest book, "Ready or Not" gives that same feeling of wanting to hold on to characters long after the book is finished. Bastone does an amazing job using Brooklyn as a character and the power of friendship and connections to fuel the plot.
The tiny scene in the book describing the difference between gender and sex felt especially timely and poignant.
Prior to this book, had someone asked if I would rate an unexpected pregnancy book a 4.5 stars I would've thought it not possible. It is a testament to Cara Bastone's strong characters and emotional descriptors, that I loved this book as much as I did.
Cara Bastone books are always an automatic read for me, but this one quickly became one of my favorites.
4.5 stars

Love this book!!!


Thank you soooooo much netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advanced review copy if this book💗
"I voluntarily read and reviewed the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

I went into this book with a preconceived notion about how this book was going to go, but what I didn't expect was how it was going to make me feel at the end!

I absolutely fell in love with Eve's character, she is just a lovable and anxiety ridden woman and is so so so relatable! She has a one night stand with a gorgeous bartender and a few weeks later is met with a surprise pregnancy! What comes after is where the real meat and potatoes of this story starts for me. She is counting on her best friend Willa to help tell Ethan about this pregnancy, but instead is met with her best friends older brother Shep! I fell for Shep almost as immediately as I did for Eve. You can tell in the way Shep immediately starts taking care of Eve how much he loves her, even if she doesn't know or show it back.

I think Eve secretly hoped for her and Ethan to work out, but in the end knows the way they ended up is best for everyone involved. I also love how supportive Willa is about her and Shep because it's a tricky relationship which can go either way if mismanaged. I feel like all the characters in this story had an important role in place and it worked so seamlessly.

Such a fun story! So cute and adorable, sweet and funny. A premise I never would have thought of. Loved it!

I really enjoyed this one. The characters were relatable and fun, and i loved seeing the dynamics between ALL the main/secondary characters, romantic and not. Very interesting twist to have the entire story taking place within the duration of a pregnancy! I’d love to see more from this author.

I did not think I would become so attached to the characters in this book or to the story. I’d read Bastone’s Seatmate and found it really fun and endearing but this book is BIG emotions and challenging circumstances and has so much depth and heart that it really pulled me in.

It could have been cheesy, with more of a love triangle but Bastone creates complex characters that don’t do your typical things. I think I read this at a very tender time in my life but it worked for me.

CW: death of a parent, pregnancy, childbirth, infertility

Thanks so much NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group.

Eve has a steady and comfortable life that is predictable. She suddenly finds herself pregnant from a one night stand. This makes all of the relationships in her life feel unsteady as she tries to navigate life with a baby on the way.

This was a good read! I liked Eve and how she was able to learn how to figure out what she wanted. All of her friends and even the baby daddy were all decent people. There is some friend to lovers romance. I liked how Eve kept correcting someone when they said gender, and she explained the difference between sex and gender. My favorite character was the nurse, and I thought she took on the mother like figure that was absent from Eve's life.

My one annoyance is that this book did not feel realistic enough for me. Yes, books are an escape and there's always some sort of ending, but I don't think Eve really figured out how much of her life was going to change with this baby. I really wanted some sort of epilogue to see how everyone was doing on so little sleep. Still, I liked this book a lot and want to check out the author!

Just finished this delightfully charming book. I enjoyed this story and the realistic struggles Eve went through. It wasn’t all peaches and cream, without being demoralizing. It was nice to see a quasi love triangle (but not a real live triangle) that didn’t pit the two possible interests against one another in any toxic way. I always do appreciate a plucky heroine who, while she can do it alone, doesn’t have to!

I’ve never met a Cara Bastone book that I didn’t love! This story captures so many of the feelings of pregnancy so perfectly. Although the main characters finds herself unexpectedly pregnant from a one night stand, I think that anyone that has been pregnant can relate to the feelings that are presented throughout the book. It is full of heart and the relationships are great! No one in this story is perfect, yet they all come together in best possible ways!
Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
Spice Level: 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5

I loved this book!!! I really enjoyed the authenticity and exploration of relationships that was in this book. I was enthralled. I don’t like the pregnancy trope. But this book is so much more!

Shep, the love interest, has such golden retriever, cinnamon roll energy. He is the epitome of a Midwestern mama’s boy, such pure sunshine that it’s not entirely believable.

This isn’t a reverse grumpy/sunshine scenario, however. Eve, our indecisive heroine, is a bit of sunshine herself, or at least a little quirky, but definitely more rainclouds than Shep.

Ethan, the baby daddy, is also interesting, and I like how the author shaped such a multidimensional character who feels really authentic.

The end result of the story might be too cozy and perfect to be realistic, but it does make for a nice hug of an ending.

Wow.

This was my first book by Cara Bastone and now I need to read everything she has ever published. This was amazing. The characters are amazing. The writing is amazing. The relationships and friendships are amazing. I cry very easily while reading, but books don't often make me laugh out loud. This one had me doing both multiple times.

The book is present tense and in one point of view and typically when a romance is only one point of view I will be wishing that we also got to see the love interests thoughts, in this case it never felt like anything was missing. I won’t be able to accurately describe the authorial voice, but it felt both like the main character was speaking directly to me but also like an internal monologue to herself? It was maybe the most I’ve ever felt like I was in another persons head.

I loved Eve as a main character, it was a joy seeing how all of her relationships developed. I also really liked that this never felt like a love triangle to me even with the complex dynamics.

I will definitely be purchasing a copy of this book to reread physically it was amazing.

CB is such an underrated author and just knows how to write the most beautiful love stories that are sexy yet feel real and attainable. I was so excited about this ARC and it was a lovely story about making your life what you want it to be. A fun take on an accidental pregnancy. Thank you NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review. This is out next Feb!

I am a huge cara bastone fan, so when I saw this book I jumped on it so fast, and when I got accepted for it I devoured it. It feels more heavy than her last couple books have been, but I loved the story and even teared up at the end.

I feel that I need to start this by saying that I have never been a fan of the surprise pregnancy trope (or really any pregnancy at all). It’s simply not my jam. I don’t dig it. And so that is why this book was so monumental - because it is 1:30am and I’ve just finished and I have tear tracks dried to my cheeks and my heart physically aches.

Somehow, Eve’s pregnancy manages to be both the focal point and not the point at all. It is the cog around which everything else spins. The genuine, bone-deep, years-strong friendship between her and Willa. The heart wrenching and gentle presence of Shep’s care. Isamu’s quiet but focused awareness. Even Ethan’s wild, chaotic loops through every possible emotion. Every character is multifaceted and real and while some of those facets are deeply flawed, they are allowed to live through them and in them and they are accepted (even when begrudgingly) by the people around them.

The overarching theme of this book is all of the different ways there are to love, and how they can all be different and equal and entirely unexpected.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for this ARC! This was such a delightful read! The “unplanned pregnancy” trope has been done a million times, but Cara Bastone cultivated a beautiful story with heart, endearing characters, and a lot of laughter and small squeals of joy along the way. Completely adored this story!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for this ARC of Ready or Not by Cara Bastone! Eve has an unexpected pregnancy with Ethan. She wanted to hopefully end up with him in the end, but she learned Ethan's situation is a little bit more complicated. Throughout her pregnancy, her friends are there every step of the way... once she tells them that she is pregnant. I loved the story between her and Shep... also, with what happens toward the end of the book. I loved the main characters and enjoyed how the book was written in POV, mainly by Eve. I would totally recommend this book!

Publication date: February 13, 2024
I will be posting my review to my TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and Goodreads!

When requesting this book, I never could’ve imagined I would love it as much as I do. It is a swoon-worth, comical, realistic book that stole my heart from the first few pages.

Shep is the ultimate book boyfriend. 😍 Eve is witty and funny and her relationship with Shep is so real and consuming.

I loved the friendship with Willa and how the story evolves with Evan. It is such a well-rounded, feel good story.

This book is out 2/13/2023 and I will definitely be reminding everyone to read it when it releases.

Thank you @carabastone and @netgalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This book surprised me in the best possible way as I went into it knowing as little as possible. I commend the author for writing a beautiful story full of heart and laughter. Eve was endearing and very relatable and I loved the full cast of characters. They all served a purpose by adding to the story. I laughed out loud several times and thoroughly enjoyed the progression of the book. I would bundle this with the most memorable books I've read this year.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5788324560?book_show_action=false

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for an early copy of the book! This is my completely honest review of "Ready or Not".

I knew from the hilarious section titles that this book was a winner *see "2nd Trimester: Tips on How to Satisfy Your Man (-Sized Cravings for French Toast)"*. I couldn't put this book down and ended up reading it in one sitting due to so many great factors. The slow burn and sort-of love triangle make for such an intriguing storyline that is really difficult to put down.

Refreshingly honest and relatable, Eve is everything you would want in a main character. She is likable, witty, and realistic in a way that makes readers root for her and whomever she picks in this romance. I don't want to say too much in case I spoil anything, but I would highly, highly recommend picking up a copy on release day!