Mom Jeans & Other Mistakes
By: Alexa Martin
Published Year: 2021
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 384
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion of this novel.
Summary (Provided by Goodreads): Two best friends say I do to living together, for better or worse, in this bold women's fiction novel from Alexa Martin.
Jude Andrews is famous. Well, at least on Instagram. Her brand is clean eating, good vibes, Pilates, and casually looking like a sun-kissed goddess. In real life, however, she's a total disaster. She has a strained relationship with her fame-hungry mom and her latest bad decision emptied out her entire savings account.
Lauren Turner had a plan: graduate medical school and become the top surgeon in the country. But when she became unexpectedly pregnant, those plans changed. And when her fiancé left her, they changed again. Now navigating the new world of coparenting, mom groups, and dating, she decides to launch a mommy podcast with all the advice she wishes someone had given her.
Jude and Lauren don't have much in common, but maybe that's why they've been best friends since the third grade. Through ups and downs, they've been by each other's sides. But now? They're broke, single, and do the only thing that makes sense--move in together, just like they talked about when they were teenagers. Except when they were younger, the plan didn't include a five-year-old daughter and more baggage than their new townhouse can hold.
First Impressions
This cover is very cute and the title is even cuter. I immediately knew I was going to accept this book for review, especially once I saw it was about two women starting a podcast. I liked the idea that one of them was a mom and the other was not but that they had been friends since third grade. I was also very curious about the dynamic of them living together.
What I thought
I feel like I simultaneously have a lot of feelings and no feelings about this book which is… odd.
Jude is a fitness influencer with an ex Soap star for a mom, Lauren is a single mother who had to drop out of med school to have her daughter and is dealing with a contentious ex. They decide to move in together so they can support each other and circumstances end up pushing them together to create a podcast about their experiences as a mother and a single woman living together.
Ok so, my biggest issue with this book is Jude. Honestly, I liked Lauren (though she had her flaws) and enjoyed seeing her come into her own and learn to fight for what she believes in. Jude on the other hand, just comes off as immature, reckless and selfish. I understand she has her issues but some of the stuff she does and says is woah. I also didn’t find anything to be very redeeming about her which made it harder.
My other issue with this book was Hudson. I get why Lauren needed a love interest (sort of) but he is such a two dimensional character that I couldn’t find any connection between him and Lauren. This made me feel like I wasn’t rooting for anything and that entire storyline could’ve been removed from the book and I wouldn’t have missed a thing.
I did enjoy the drama and I really liked the way the book moved forward and progressed. It dealt with a lot of issues such as divorce, prejudice against black women in multiple settings, mental illness, narcissism, and alcoholism. I think the way that Martin dealt with these issues was done very well and that’s what made me have a lot of feelings. I think if certain parts of Jude’s character and Hudson’s character were edited, I would’ve like this book much more overall.