This book has a really strong premise. These difficult topics need to be discussed.. however, it's hard to read a book with a good premise when you hate the characters. I know that Ben is young, but, come on. He was the worst. Mo was awful. The love story was just unnecessary. Gio ended up being annoying. Poor Maxie didn't get enough pages, and Ben didn't even realize how awful he was at the end..? Also, it was so predictable that I just wasn't interested in finishing it.

I think that Jen Bailey is a good writer. I didn't have any complaints about the style!

4/5 ⭐️
I’m struggling to figure out what to say about this book because my emotions were extreme while reading it. But I really enjoyed this book. First off, it made me feel nostalgic, bringing me back to like early high school when teen pregnancies were strangely the big thing to make movies and tv shows and reality shows about. But I liked that this had a more modern twist of it being told in the baby daddy’s pov and not only that, but he’s gay. It also took a different angle I think than any of those other movies & shows did. It showed what you might be giving up if you choose to become a parent, and how tough this decision is. It showed how as high schoolers, you are sitting at a fork in the road that lead to wildly different paths. Neither one is the wrong choice, but it’s not an easy one to make.
I understand how some other reviewers weren’t a fan of the main character, because of how stubbornly he wanted to keep the baby and raise it himself. But I understood what was motivating him and liked seeing how he was blind to the reality of this choice. In part, I think it is because as the dude, he doesn’t really experience this change as the girl does. It’s still abstract to him. But thankfully we saw some pretty great people in his life who helped him navigate his final decision. I personally loved Gio and Roger the most. Like the emotional intelligence Gio had was impressive and appreciated.
Overall, this story was great. I definitely would recommend this to anyone, but especially teens. And as I was reading it, I just kept imagining it would make a great teen movie on Netflix. So yeah, I definitely recommend checking this book out.
Thank you to Wednesday Publishing & NetGalley for providing an advance reader copy of this book for my honest review.

I really enjoyed this! It deftly tackles complicated family history and dynamics, friendship struggles, sexuality, and the big issue - what to do when you accidentally get your best friend pregnant. Ben is an earnest character and he's determined to do the right thing and raise the baby he's created, but he doesn't fully understand what that will mean for him and his plans. Honestly, this book stressed me out! It portrayed Ben's anxiety really well, and at times I felt just as trapped in his spirals of stress and worry. Thankfully, Ben has so much love and support from his family, and his new ally, Gio. I loved watching Ben and Gio get closer and how they were both able to open up about their struggles. Likewise, I liked seeing how Ben grapples with his issues of abandonment and loneliness, and finally starts to reach out and bond with his stepdad. I wish more time had been spent with Maxie but it made sense in the narrative why they couldn't spend more time together. All in all, an emotional and thought provoking read.

*I received an eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

4.5 stars overall!

I really liked this book. Ben was a fun character to read, and he feels different from a lot of the protagonists I usually read about.

This book is easy to read and will keep you turning the pages for sure. It was easy enough for me to guess halfway through what was going to happen, but I'm glad it got the ending it did.

For me, I just think the second half of the book felt a bit rushed. I wish there was more time spent getting to know Ben and Gio's relationship (though it's understandable why that didn't happen, as Ben gives his reasons in the books.) I wasn't sure how I'd feel about those two because

Spoiler

ex-step siblings trope is one of my least faves

but this book does it so tactfully.

There were quite a few times where I found myself tearing up and ready to cry, especially towards the end. Anyone who reads this is in for one heck of a ride.

ARC thanks to Wednesday Books and Netgalley.

I enjoyed this book a lot! I’ve never read anything by this author and I thought the writing was so good, I would definitely pick up another book by her in the future!

I was nervous about this one because I thought the main character, Ben, was pretty unlikeable. But the more I read, I realized that his behaviors were so spot on for a 16 year old in his predicament, so it felt incredibly realistic which I appreciated.

I also really loved the perspectives of all the other people in Ben’s life that helped the story unfold. Supporting characters in books are important to me while reading and these ones didn’t disappoint.

Definitely recommend this one (especially if you enjoyed the movie Juno) you’ll fly right through it!

Rating: 3; serious, heavy, coming of age: Unexpecting was an easy, yet heavy read that I still have mixed feelings about.

Ben is a junior in high school and soon to be a father. The novel follows Ben through his experiences preparing for fatherhood, and what sacrifices he must make to be a single father. He must get a job, fight for custody of the child, show up for his robotics club, keep his grades up, and navigate the social challenges of being a teen father…all before the baby is ever born.

I think this book would be great for someone who is really into serious, real life teen drama; I’m just not that person. I was so sad reading the entire book (which might be the purpose?), but I just can’t say I fully enjoyed it. I would recommend this to anyone who likes a teen pregnancy plot line (can’t say I do personally) or likes reading teenage coming of age novels. I will say the characters were all done really well, the plot just wasn’t as engaging to me personally, hence the 3 star rating.

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for an advanced copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Ahh that was such a cute book! I binge read it in several hours when I definitely should have been sleeping because I just couldn't put it down.

I guessed what was going to happen about halfway through the book and the anticipation and excitement to see the end made it all the more compelling.

Ben is such a little cutie but homeboy really needs some help with the social cues. And while everyone knows that, it seemed like Gio was the only one who was willing to be patient about it when it came to the pregnancy.

I appreciated seeing how many things Ben had to juggle and struggle through to make the right decisions. This book made me cry several times but the ending was absolutely worth it.

I tend to avoid the topics of pregnancy, childbirth, or parenting in my pleasure reading, but Wednesday Books sent me a copy of Unexpecting to review and I usually like anything Wednesday Books publishes, so I figured I'd give it a go. This book covers some tough topics, obviously- teen pregnancy, adoption, sexual identity, coming-of-age, friendship- and just like most YA, it comes at these topics through a very straight-forward lends. Sometimes I think YA is too "in your face," but I feel like this subject matter needed to be. Unexpecting didn't glorify teen pregnancy or all the tough decisions that come with it, and even though Ben seemed somewhat flippant about his decisions initially, his motives were eventually revealed to stem from sincere depth and thought. For a book heavily centering on topics I don't tend to enjoy, this book was really well done and I definitely enjoyed it. I'd recommend it for YA readers and parents of teens, for sure. Some of the robotics sections kind of bored me, but overall, it's a really great book.