Ready or Not is an unexpected romance in the best way

There are some authors whose books you read and immediately it feels like a hug. That’s exactly how I felt when I started Ready or Not by Cara Bastone.

While I’ve heard of this author before, I had yet to pick up one of her books and I knew that her audiobooks were amazing. That’s why I have to thank Random House Audio for allowing me to listen to the audiobook for this one.

With a title like Ready or Not, there are a few ideas that come to mind but there is one thing I have to make clear before I get into my review. This book does feature unplanned pregnancy as the major storyline and the book also follows the main character throughout her pregnancy.

I wanted to make sure that was clear if anyone is sensitive to those topics but if you’re not and want to know my thoughts about Ready or Not, get ready.

Ready or Not made me a fan of Cara Bastone and I couldn’t be happier.

Let me start by saying that unplanned/surprise pregnancy has never been one of my favorite tropes. If there’s one way you can make me like it, it’s to be up-front about it and that’s exactly what Cara Bastone did.

This book follows Eve Hatch who gets pregnant via a one-night-stand. While we don’t learn about when or why it happened until later, the story is mostly about Eve dealing with her pregnancy, hanging out with her found family, and even, having a romance. As with pregnancy, Ready or Not is a lot.

However, Cara Bastone handles everything with care as she does an amazing job of fleshing out the characters, giving us a slow-burn romance, and not shying away from the ugliness of pregnancy. Eve is definitely looking forward to being a mom but she’s also not afraid to talk about how hard it is and just how exhausted she’s feeling all the time.

In addition, Eve is dealing with the struggles of wanting to be around her baby’s father, Ethan who is hot and cold in the entire situation. She’s also trying to figure out her feelings for her best friend’s brother, Shep who is there for her from the start, and understand why her best friend is reacting as oddly as she is. All is revealed by the end and I think Cara Bastone just knocked it out of the park with this book.

She took a topic that other authors might shy away from and made it her own. Coupled with her humor and commentary on things, Cara Bastone charmed me. If anything, this proved that I needed to go back and read her backlist. My only complaint is that I wish the romance had happened sooner but given the circumstances, I think it made sense.

Ready or Not by Cara Bastone is out now where books are sold.