The Bump
Sidney Karger
345 pages
Berkley Romance
published May 21, 2024
Thanks @berkleyromance and @PRHaudio for my advanced reader and listening copies. #BerkleyPartner #Berkley #PRHAudio #PRHAudioinfluencer
You know genres are a funny thing. I’m not sure where to classify this one. It’s not a romance because the couple is already together and driving cross country to pick up their newborn from their surrogate. I might classify it as women’s fiction but it is a male couple.
Whatever it is, it is the perfect read for Pride month. It is this couple living the ups and downs of life. A little bit of issues in the relationship and definitely their own issues not caused by the relationship. Just an ordinary couple navigating life.
Don’t let the fun cover fool you. I did smile from time to time as I read, but this is really about life. And I don’t know about you, but I am not laughing all day long every day. Their journey is honest, tender and heartwarming as they prepare for their first child while navigating all the other little things life throws their way.
It’s told in alternating POVs so I was able to know their internal struggles that they didn’t always make known to each other. There are charming moments like calling their cross country trip to pick up their bundle of joy their babymoon. And Matilda their dog coming along for the ride. I liked and related to Wyatt and Biz even though I didn’t always agree with their choices. I was entertained by their slice of life.
Ryan Spahn and Michael Urie narrate Wyatt and Biz and do an excellent job of bringing their excitement and worry over their impending fatherhood to life. Having two narrators made it easy to follow the dual POVs.
About the book
Two men expecting a baby via surrogate go on the road trip of a lifetime in this hilarious and poignant novel by Sidney Karger, author of Best Men.
Wyatt Wallace is a practical, super organized director of TV commercials. Biz Petterelli is a child-actor-turned-magazine-writer who thrives on spontaneity. Though polar opposites, they are fully committed to their relationship and their life in Brooklyn with their dog, Matilda. They’re also about to have a baby together.
And they’re freaking out.
They’ve both dreamed of becoming parents, but now that it’s happening, they’re doubting everything. Their baby is due in a few weeks and instead of flying to California just before the birth as planned, Biz has a better idea. They could use one last hurrah, along with some serious “us-time” to mend the issues they’ve been having lately—before they get tied down by fatherhood and its impending responsibilities. So the daddies-to-be load up their 1992 Volkswagen Cabriolet and embark on an epic cross-country babymoon. They attempt to recharge at the beach in Provincetown, stumble through their impromptu baby shower in Chicago, and endure a Star Wars -themed wedding in Colorado before heading west for the baby.
But when they take several unexpected detours, old wounds are reopened and secrets spill out that could change their relationship for better or for worse, forcing the couple to reexamine the meaning of family while building their own. After all, what’s a road trip without a few bumps along the way?
Leave a Reply