4.5 stars
Synopsis:
Happily Ever Before is what would happen if the hit comedies Bridesmaids and Baby Mama had a love child. It tells the story of two sisters and the biggest, most important question anyone has ever been asked: would you, if I for some reason couldn’t, loan me your womb and have my baby?
Years ago, Grace and Clair Higgins made a drunken pact while watching a Lifetime Movie Marathon (is there a better time for drunken pact-making between sisters?). In a nutshell, the free spirit older sister, Grace, promised her control freak younger sister, Clair, that she’d have her baby, should the need arise. But she certainly never thought she’d have to deliver on it. Now everyone is dealing with situations they never dreamed of. Will Clair’s WASP-y in-laws accept that Grace, the black sheep of the family, is carrying their grandchild? Will Diane, Grace and Clair’s mom, be able to stay out of it and focus on moving forward with her own life, which has been on hold for so long? Will Clair’s husband Henry stop giving Grace bizarre and overly personal pregnancy gifts? Will Grace be able to navigate true love while being “scientifically knocked up” by her sister’s husband? Will Grace’s best friend George find someone else to drink with if Grace is busy with gestation? And the more importantly will the sisters be able to navigate the slippery slope of sibling surrogacy with their relationship intact?
My Review:
Happily Ever Before knocked my socks off. Despite serious subject matter, the real people (with real problems) walked a fine line between uncomfortable funny and spit-out-your-drink funny. I think it succeeded!
Grace is the older sister, a self-proclaimed "free spirit," who has had twelve jobs (maybe more) in the last two years, since she cracked after waking up a 33-year-old librarian and realizing that Jesus had walked on water by this age and she was just a pro at the Dewey Decimal System. Clair, her younger sister, is as OCD as they come and is crushed to learn that she and husband Henry can't have kids--she has an "inhospitable womb."
Enter "The Pact," which Clair unearths in it's color-coded, hermetically-sealed baggie. "The Pact," a wine-splattered sheet of notebook paper, was made in a drunken stupor following a Lifetime Movie Marathon and makes promises in the spirit of the Lifetime Trinity (McKeon, Bertinelli, and Gilbert)--Nancy McKeon would let Valerie Bertinelli rent her womb, after all, so why shouldn't the Higgins sisters follow that example?
So Grace is having her sister's baby. Commence the fun and hilarity of pregnancy. Sexy new boyfriend Fireman Jack promises to stand by her, BFF George (be still my Nancy Drew-loving heart) pledges to quit drinking, Henry appears with inappropriate gifts, and Clair, well, she's Clair. Add in cookie baking, a mom who's back on the dating scene, Popsicle (their dearly departed father), AA meetings, a mayonnaise empire, and a Nubian Goddess psychologist, and you've got a book. A realistically hilarious book with a cast of characters that doesn't disappoint.
My absolute favorite quote (and one I stand by), refers to the evil that is What to Expect When You're Expecting: "This is not a pregnancy guide. It's a how to give a pregnant woman a heart attack guide. No one should expect that much." Darn right.
The writing style was a little different, particularly the narrator reminding me that this is "a story of two sisters." I liked it, especially the allusions to characters getting busy, but it definitely took some getting used to. The editing did seem to deteriorate as the book went on, which was frustrating. All in all, though, a great book. I'll probably even read it again.
For anyone who's had a baby or has a sister (including a sister from another mister), this is a thought-provoking and funny perspective on surrogacy. I laughed, I cried, and I sat in silence for a while after I read it. I think that, Nancy McKeon or not, I'd have my sisters' babies in a heartbeat if either of them needed me to. Knock on wood.
Get it, buy it, love it. I can't wait until it's a movie!!
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Years ago, Grace and Clair Higgins made a drunken pact while watching a Lifetime Movie Marathon (is there a better time for drunken pact-making between sisters?). In a nutshell, the free spirit older sister, Grace, promised her control freak younger sister, Clair, that she’d have her baby, should the need arise. But she certainly never thought she’d have to deliver on it. Now everyone is dealing with situations they never dreamed of. Will Clair’s WASP-y in-laws accept that Grace, the black sheep of the family, is carrying their grandchild? Will Diane, Grace and Clair’s mom, be able to stay out of it and focus on moving forward with her own life, which has been on hold for so long? Will Clair’s husband Henry stop giving Grace bizarre and overly personal pregnancy gifts? Will Grace be able to navigate true love while being “scientifically knocked up” by her sister’s husband? Will Grace’s best friend George find someone else to drink with if Grace is busy with gestation? And the more importantly will the sisters be able to navigate the slippery slope of sibling surrogacy with their relationship intact?
My Review:
Happily Ever Before knocked my socks off. Despite serious subject matter, the real people (with real problems) walked a fine line between uncomfortable funny and spit-out-your-drink funny. I think it succeeded!
Grace is the older sister, a self-proclaimed "free spirit," who has had twelve jobs (maybe more) in the last two years, since she cracked after waking up a 33-year-old librarian and realizing that Jesus had walked on water by this age and she was just a pro at the Dewey Decimal System. Clair, her younger sister, is as OCD as they come and is crushed to learn that she and husband Henry can't have kids--she has an "inhospitable womb."
Enter "The Pact," which Clair unearths in it's color-coded, hermetically-sealed baggie. "The Pact," a wine-splattered sheet of notebook paper, was made in a drunken stupor following a Lifetime Movie Marathon and makes promises in the spirit of the Lifetime Trinity (McKeon, Bertinelli, and Gilbert)--Nancy McKeon would let Valerie Bertinelli rent her womb, after all, so why shouldn't the Higgins sisters follow that example?
So Grace is having her sister's baby. Commence the fun and hilarity of pregnancy. Sexy new boyfriend Fireman Jack promises to stand by her, BFF George (be still my Nancy Drew-loving heart) pledges to quit drinking, Henry appears with inappropriate gifts, and Clair, well, she's Clair. Add in cookie baking, a mom who's back on the dating scene, Popsicle (their dearly departed father), AA meetings, a mayonnaise empire, and a Nubian Goddess psychologist, and you've got a book. A realistically hilarious book with a cast of characters that doesn't disappoint.
My absolute favorite quote (and one I stand by), refers to the evil that is What to Expect When You're Expecting: "This is not a pregnancy guide. It's a how to give a pregnant woman a heart attack guide. No one should expect that much." Darn right.
The writing style was a little different, particularly the narrator reminding me that this is "a story of two sisters." I liked it, especially the allusions to characters getting busy, but it definitely took some getting used to. The editing did seem to deteriorate as the book went on, which was frustrating. All in all, though, a great book. I'll probably even read it again.
For anyone who's had a baby or has a sister (including a sister from another mister), this is a thought-provoking and funny perspective on surrogacy. I laughed, I cried, and I sat in silence for a while after I read it. I think that, Nancy McKeon or not, I'd have my sisters' babies in a heartbeat if either of them needed me to. Knock on wood.
Get it, buy it, love it. I can't wait until it's a movie!!
Excited about this giveaway and book! Thanks for letting us know about it.
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