Wow!!! I can't believe that I left this book on my TBR as long as I did. This thrilling novel just pulled me in and Lovering did a great job with this multi-POV story. Billie and Cassie's friend was great but also toxic. You know from the first chapter what is going to happen, but in the end, I kept hoping that it would not happen that way. There are lots of twists, discoveries in female friendship, and highlights of the rich lifestyle. The second half of the story is very juicy in things happening after we get to know the two FMC's. The audio of this was amazing and I enjoyed it!

I went into this expecting a thriller, and I was excited after reading the prologue, but it wasn’t what I would consider a thriller. The story was decent and I liked the jump between timelines. Cassie’s character, in my opinion, was unlikeable.. so I found myself routing for Billie even though she didn’t make the best choices. I would recommend this, but not as a thriller.

Definitely addictive storyline. I enjoyed the past and present and format of the audio and kindle version. I wanted to see what would happen and how it would all came together. Great story to start 2024!!

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan audio for my advanced audio in exchange for my honest review

Publish date: March 5, 2024

I hated Cassie so much in the beginning. She grows on you a little during the story but she's pretty insufferable in the beginning.
Billy is her own disaster but she is at least likable and realistic. I love her complicated relationship with Alex.
I love the narration so much!

I thought Carola Lovering did such a great job on this book. I went in with expectations of a more formulaic kind of book with this topic (missing baby, fractured friendship, etc.) and was surprised at the turn that things took. This will definitely be a book I recommend to others.

Love this book! The story is amazing and keeps you coming back for more! Highly recommend it. Love the narrators as well.

3.5 stars. Billie and Cassie have been best friends forever, but recently Cassie has been pulling away. Billie is dying to win her back, but her desperation just seems to push Cassie even further into her new sphere of superficial wealthy friends. When tragedy strikes, Cassie clings to Billie, who's hiding a secret that could destroy their friendship forever.

This is a very "Carola Lovering" book. If you've read any of her other novels, you'll know exactly what I mean — toxic female friendships, unlikable characters, gray morality all around, slow-burning suspense. Check. Billie and Cassie are both pretty terrible? Which is fine, because the plot sort of hinges on their demented co-dependent relationship.

I was drawn into the story quickly, but started to tire of the same points being re-hashed without a lot of plot development. I think this one is perfect for readers who enjoy a sustained suspense vibe, but for me it didn't quite hit the spot — I prefer twistier thrillers overall.

Thank you to Carola Lovering, St. Martin's Press, Macmillan Audio, and NetGalley for my advance audio copy.

Absolutely loved this. I raced through it. I wanted to know what was going to happen and these two were toxic. Like they both had issues but i still really rooted for the main character. Her friend tho. Hella unlikable but it was purposeful so it didn’t change my liking of the book. And while she was an unlikable character, she had redeemable qualities. I understood her at many points. Being a mom and her husband and wanting certain things and being blinded by others. The ending wrapped up really well and in a way that i was happy with.

The narration was greatly done and i think both were fantastic to listen to.

When I read there was another “influencer” trope, I was worried. It’s so terribly overdone. The only way to get less original is to throw in a podcaster or a locked room mystery with rich people behaving badly on a private island. Okay, with all of that said, I wanted to give it a chance due to the rave reviews. I’m so glad I did. The story was well done and it didn’t feel like I’d read it before.

Cassie and Billie were childhood best friends, but they’ve taken different career paths and have grown apart. Cassie has a new baby and is an influencer. Billie is successful, but she’s single and feels like she’s achieving less than Cassie. Now the baby is missing and Billie is responsible. The story is told from the POV’s of both women going back in time from now and 23 years ago when they met.

I really enjoyed this novel and the narration by Helen Laser and Karissa Vacker is excellent. The complicated relationships here were so well written and the twists in the story were so good. Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and the author for an advance listening copy.

4.5 stars

A toxic female friendship between two morally grey characters-- sounds right up my alley! I always enjoy reading Lovering's books because they female relationships are equal parts relatable and totally twisted, and Bye, Baby was no exception. I particularly enjoyed the shifting between past and present timelines, as it added richness to both Billie's and Cassie's characters. Sometimes I don’t care for the influencer storyline, but Lovering did a good job with it where it didn't feel too over the top. If you've enjoyed Lovering's previous books, you'll surely enjoy this one too!

Twisty twisty. There are moments of predictability, but also of surprise at character decisions and the build-up, or let-down, of a particular reveal. The book centers on Billie and Cassie, who were friends throughout high school and part of college but have drifted apart despite Billie's efforts to remain close to Cassie. Cassie's fixation on social media, and Billie's fascination with Cassie's Instagram presence was both realistic and creepy. I would recommend this book to people who enjoy books about complex friendships and the impact of trauma on decision making.

Felt like the book could have been shorter, a bit drawn out at times. Liked it but didn’t love it. Audio book was well narrated.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Publishing for the free book in exchange for my honest review.

I was very surprised by how much I loved this story! This is my first novel by this author and it will not be my last. I absolutely devoured this and highly recommend it!!!

Billy and Cassie are best friends since the summer before 7th grade. They have grown up together in dysfunctional homes and ventured out into the world post college as roommates in NYC. Billy finds a passion for travel and has issues in relationships. Cassie is a gold digger looking for a man that can support her in the style she wants to be accustomed to. Despite each woman desiring different paths, they maintain their friendship, that is until Cassie marries her super wealthy catch and starts becoming one of the 'family'. Feeling discarded, Billy makes an irrational decision one night that ends up terminating their relationship for good.

Told in alternating perspectives and also alternating timelines, this is a fantastic, suspenseful story that delves into women's choices, their relationships, and how childhood trauma is not easily shaken.

Highly recommend!!

🌟🌟🌟🌟✨ (4.5/5)

“You can’t f@&k up what’s meant for you.”

This is my first book by this author, I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading more of her work. The audio narration was excellent.

The whole premise is actually pretty silly. A baby is stolen and returned pretty quickly. One stupid decision spirals into way more than it ever needed to be.

Billie & Cassie were besties growing up. They have a secret that binds them together, which you find out around the midway point of the book. Billie is a bit obsessed with Cassie and longs for the friendship they used to have. Cassie is a social media influencer who is rolling in the cash thanks to her wealthy husband bankrolling her every whim.

Billie is a bit “off” but Cassie is so annoyingly pretentious and self-serving. She doesn’t seem to live in the real world. Their relationship is toxic, so unhealthy.

As much as the characters were unlikable at times, they are people I could totally hang out with. It’s a bit complex. So you’ll have to read it for yourself.

This is a story about the love between 2 best friends, a love that dies, but doesn’t disappear.

What an incredible example of how the oldest friendships aren’t necessarily the best or most healthy! I wanted to shake some sense into Billie so many times throughout this book and that’s what I enjoyed most about it, how invested I got in the characters and their lives. I was so tense reading this, but that just made me want to keep reading to see how it ended! I listened to the audiobook version which used two awesome narrators to voice Cassie and Billie’s POV, including one of my faves Karissa Vacker 🎧

Cassie & Billie were inseparable as kids- the best of friends through good times and trauma. Then, as they navigate their twenties, Cassie finds a new group of high society friends through her old money rich fiancée and leaves Billie in the dust. Growing simultaneously frustrated with and jealous of her old friend, Billie follows Cassie's new life on Instagram until a frightening incident forces Cassie to call Billie for help. Beginning with a missing infant and told through the girl's alternating perspectives, this one was a pretty quick read for fans of friend drama, growing pains and dark secrets.

I love this author but truly struggled with this one. For a story that starts with a missing infant, it drags so much after that. Neither of these main characters are even vaguely likable or sympathetic, which I guess is intentional to a certain extent, but Cassie is such a phony gold digger it's irritating to be inside her head and Billie is creepy in her obsession with Cassie. They're both downright cringey. You can't help but be embarrassed for both of them constantly. I wanted to shake them both and tell them to get a grip. Truly the only characters I liked in this book were Alex and Jane.

As I said, I love this author. 'Can't Look Away' is one of my go-to recommendations. This particular one didn't do it for me, but I'll still be super excited to see more from this author.

The narration for this book is fantastic, as it always is with Karissa Vacker. I love her reading style and her voices so much. I would listen to pretty much anything she narrates.

This story is centered around two friends, Cassie Barnwell and Billie West. Although they have been best friends since childhood, they continue to grow more distant as the years pass. Cassie married into a wealthy family, recently gave birth to a baby girl, and is a social media influencer on the rise. Billie, on the other hand, is focused on her career, is playing the dating field and is determined to salvage her friendship with Cassie.

This book is not so much about the abduction of a child, as it is about the years-long rather toxic relationship between two women. And it's not quite the thriller I was expecting, but rather a slow-burn domestic drama. The dual POVs and the shifting timelines really helped to build the story and offer clarity. And the audiobook narration was excellent. Thank you to NetGalley, the author and Macmillan Audio for the gifted ALC in exchange for an honest review.

Chilling page-turner about the power of female friendships, both the good and the bad. This book is highly readable and boasts a very satisfying ending that manages to be surprising as it is inevitable.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to read this book. Holy smokes! This book had me hooked from the very start and was a fantastic audiobook. I loved how to the two timelines and stories wove into one and kept me wondering what was going to happen next. But my goodness- what a toxic friendship!

Don't be deceived by the publisher's blurb.

"Bye Baby" is NOT a thriller about the abduction of a baby girl from a NYC apartment.

Instead, it's a thought-provoking domestic drama about the "bye-bye" roller coaster friendship between the book's two female protagonists.

It would have been too good to be true had this book earned the same 5 stars I gave Carola Lovering's "Too Good To Be True" in 2021.

WHY NOT 5 STARS????
1) I listened to the 13-hour audiobook that easily could have been an 11-hour book.

2) The last half of the book was much stronger than the first half.

3) TWs: Pedophilia, sexual assault, childhood trauma, and the sexual exploitation of women.

Quite frankly, had I known that this book contained explicit details of the aforementioned triggers, I never would have requested the book.

----------------

I always enjoy full-cast audiobooks and narrators Helen Laser and Karissa Vacker did a superb job with the narration.

The book unfolded from two POVs and the full-cast audiobook really made a difference.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 stars rounded up.