The Baby by Lisa Drakeford

Publisher: Chicken House
Publication Date: July 2015 
Source: Own 

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Blurb: 

When Olivia opens the bathroom door, the last thing she expects to see is her best friend Nicola giving birth on the floor – and to say Nicola is surprised is an understatement. She’s not ready to be a mum, and she needs Olivia’s help. But Olivia has her own problems – specifically her bullying boyfriend, Jonty, and keeping an eye on younger sister Alice. And then there’s Nicola’s friend Ben, who’s struggling with secrets of his own …

 This is one of the oldest books on my bookshelf so I decided to read it for the Stay Home Reading Rush for the book-read-in-one-sitting challenge. 

I wanted to read this book as soon as it came out but it turned out to be one of those books that you somehow forget about and they gather dust on your shelf. So I decided that in quarantine I'm going to try to read some of my oldest TBR books. 

The book centers around the mystery of Nicola giving birth at her friends birthday party in the bathroom. No one knew she was pregnant and no one knows who the father is. The rest of the book is based around the fallout of this. 


Something I really enjoyed about this book was the all encompassing view it gave the reader.We got multiple POV's from the whole cast of characters across months. This was the perfect way to help the reader unpack the complicated situation of the novel and get to know the characters in depth. Characters I started off not liking, once I got to their chapter and learned more about them I found myself warming to them. 

Nicola was definitely my favourite character. I really loved reading from her perspective and her situation. She was the most interesting and compelling character for me. Although I would have liked more from the characters and for the book to be longer so that we could get even more from the story unfolding. 

The plot to the novel was entertaining. I liked the mystery aspect, the characters and the in depth portrayal of relationships throughout the novel. Yet, this novel just didn't pack enough of a punch for me. I'm not sure why I felt a little disconnected from the novel, possibly due to it feeling a little short for me as I would have liked more. I also didn't enjoy the ending of the novel at all. 

Overall the novel portrays teenage relationship, sex, pregnancy, friendship and struggles in a fantastic and realistic way. Yet for me the novel didn't have that x factor or gripping nature for me to give ti any higher of a rating.