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Better Luck Next Time
Two frenemies find a surprising second chance in this timeslip rom-com, starring Mae Whitman (
Parenthood
), Colin Woodell (
The Flight Attendant
), and a full cast.
Mona and Duncan used to be best friends. Now they can’t stand each other. Too bad that’s not a good enough excuse to miss their two families’ annual trip to the cabin. But things get really complicated when they accidentally drive through a wormhole together on the way. Look what playing nice and carpooling gets you.
Now they’re stranded indoors by an epic storm and stuck in an alternate timeline where things are just slightly ... off. Duncan and his dad aren’t speaking for reasons no one knows, Mona’s mom doesn’t like her hair or her career choices, and their siblings are meddlesome as ever.
Oh, yeah, and apparently they're going through a divorce. Which means that in this universe they are married. To each other.
All they can really do is play along until they figure out how to get back to the real timeline. How hard can it be—they already hate each other, don’t they? But figuring out how exactly Mona and Duncan managed to fall epically in love with one another—and then break each other’s hearts—is easier said than done. Navigating all these big feelings is leading to new ones, but are they destined to hurt each other in any universe? And what happens to this new relationship when they’re back to their old lives?
Available in Dolby Atmos on Audible.
Mona and Duncan used to be best friends. Now they can’t stand each other. Too bad that’s not a good enough excuse to miss their two families’ annual trip to the cabin. But things get really complicated when they accidentally drive through a wormhole together on the way. Look what playing nice and carpooling gets you.
Now they’re stranded indoors by an epic storm and stuck in an alternate timeline where things are just slightly ... off. Duncan and his dad aren’t speaking for reasons no one knows, Mona’s mom doesn’t like her hair or her career choices, and their siblings are meddlesome as ever.
Oh, yeah, and apparently they're going through a divorce. Which means that in this universe they are married. To each other.
All they can really do is play along until they figure out how to get back to the real timeline. How hard can it be—they already hate each other, don’t they? But figuring out how exactly Mona and Duncan managed to fall epically in love with one another—and then break each other’s hearts—is easier said than done. Navigating all these big feelings is leading to new ones, but are they destined to hurt each other in any universe? And what happens to this new relationship when they’re back to their old lives?
Available in Dolby Atmos on Audible.
5 pages, Audible Audio
First published May 15, 2025
208 people are currently reading
981 people want to read
About the author
Cara Bastone
13 books4,642 followersHi, I’m Cara!
I’m a full time writer living and writing in Brooklyn with my husband, son, and an almost-goldendoodle. My goal with my work is to find the swoon in ordinary love stories.
I’ve been a fan of the romance genre since I found a grocery bag filled with my grandmother’s old Harlequin Romances when I was in high school. I’m a fangirl for pretzel sticks, long walks through Prospect Park, and love stories featuring men who aren’t crippled by their own masculinity.
I’m a full time writer living and writing in Brooklyn with my husband, son, and an almost-goldendoodle. My goal with my work is to find the swoon in ordinary love stories.
I’ve been a fan of the romance genre since I found a grocery bag filled with my grandmother’s old Harlequin Romances when I was in high school. I’m a fangirl for pretzel sticks, long walks through Prospect Park, and love stories featuring men who aren’t crippled by their own masculinity.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 702 reviews
May 23, 2025
Omg this was ABSOLUTELY PERFECT for me today! I needed something cute that didn’t require much brain power and this delivered the cutest story with great banter!
Utkarsh you need to read this one.
If you enjoy friends to lovers who so obviously love each other but are too blind to see it, with a cute family dynamic, a doggy from another dimension, tension and a bit of a time slip? Check this one out.
The audio is 5 hours and 2.5 hours at 2x speed. ❤️❤️
💛Frenemies
💛Alternate Timeline
💛Time-Slip
💛Rom-Com
💛Second Chance Romance
💛Audible Original (Included)
Connect with me on Instagram
Utkarsh you need to read this one.
If you enjoy friends to lovers who so obviously love each other but are too blind to see it, with a cute family dynamic, a doggy from another dimension, tension and a bit of a time slip? Check this one out.
The audio is 5 hours and 2.5 hours at 2x speed. ❤️❤️
💛Frenemies
💛Alternate Timeline
💛Time-Slip
💛Rom-Com
💛Second Chance Romance
💛Audible Original (Included)
Connect with me on Instagram
May 16, 2025
sorrows sorrows and prayers. my least favorite cara book💔 it could be better if it didn’t involve singing🌝
May 23, 2025
✩ 2.45 stars ✩
What to Expect:
➼ Frenemies-to-Lovers
➼ Estranged Childhood Friends
➼ Second Chance
➼ Banter
➼ Cute Stray Dog
➼ Obnoxious Singing
➼ Timeslip
➼ Rom-com
➼ Graphic Audio (Full Cast Narration)
➼ Third Person POV
I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I HATE graphic audio, and this one was particularly grating. The FMC is a singer in a band and would randomly start singing some of the most obnoxious songs I have ever heard. The whole idea of a timeslip rom-com sounded so promising, but I really struggled with the characters and felt that their personalities and interactions were very childish. The FMC can’t make up her mind to save her life and the MMC was too passive about their relationship for me to find him attractive. Call me old fashioned, but I want a man to show some initiative and not just make a move when I completely spell it out for him. The way it was written, it seemed like he had barely considered the idea of them together and would have been happy to just live next door forever and never make a move. They were both cowards. 🙃
Despite many issues, Cara Bastone’s writing is so genuinely funny that there were a lot of moments I did really enjoyed. Listening to this however, was a completely jarring and overstimulating experience. I honestly believe I would have rated this more favorably if I had physically read it, but sadly readers won’t have that option for this book. Frankly, I think Audible did her dirty on this one.
I LOVED Promise Me Sunshine and Ready or Not, so it pains me to say this, but this one was a dud. I’ve been looking forward to listening to her other books on Audible, so I’m really hoping this is just one bad apple in the bunch and not a bad omen for the rest of her catalogue. 🤞🏻
✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼
Pre-read: The reviews for this one are ominous… I’m not ready to accept that Cara Bastone could produce anything but bangers, so I hope you guys are wrong. 😆
✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼
Um… excuse me?! A Cara Bastone timeslip rom-com publishing in a month?!! Losing it!!
≪ ◦ ❖ ◦ ≫
Connect with me on Instagram
What to Expect:
➼ Frenemies-to-Lovers
➼ Estranged Childhood Friends
➼ Second Chance
➼ Banter
➼ Cute Stray Dog
➼ Obnoxious Singing
➼ Timeslip
➼ Rom-com
➼ Graphic Audio (Full Cast Narration)
➼ Third Person POV
I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I HATE graphic audio, and this one was particularly grating. The FMC is a singer in a band and would randomly start singing some of the most obnoxious songs I have ever heard. The whole idea of a timeslip rom-com sounded so promising, but I really struggled with the characters and felt that their personalities and interactions were very childish. The FMC can’t make up her mind to save her life and the MMC was too passive about their relationship for me to find him attractive. Call me old fashioned, but I want a man to show some initiative and not just make a move when I completely spell it out for him. The way it was written, it seemed like he had barely considered the idea of them together and would have been happy to just live next door forever and never make a move. They were both cowards. 🙃
Despite many issues, Cara Bastone’s writing is so genuinely funny that there were a lot of moments I did really enjoyed. Listening to this however, was a completely jarring and overstimulating experience. I honestly believe I would have rated this more favorably if I had physically read it, but sadly readers won’t have that option for this book. Frankly, I think Audible did her dirty on this one.
I LOVED Promise Me Sunshine and Ready or Not, so it pains me to say this, but this one was a dud. I’ve been looking forward to listening to her other books on Audible, so I’m really hoping this is just one bad apple in the bunch and not a bad omen for the rest of her catalogue. 🤞🏻
✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼
Pre-read: The reviews for this one are ominous… I’m not ready to accept that Cara Bastone could produce anything but bangers, so I hope you guys are wrong. 😆
✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼ ҉ ✼
Um… excuse me?! A Cara Bastone timeslip rom-com publishing in a month?!! Losing it!!
≪ ◦ ❖ ◦ ≫
Connect with me on Instagram
June 10, 2025
3 stars
I love Cara Bastone’s writing but I don’t think her sci-fi/time travel books are for me. The narration on this one was top notch, but the story was meh.
I love Cara Bastone’s writing but I don’t think her sci-fi/time travel books are for me. The narration on this one was top notch, but the story was meh.
Audio book source: Audible
Story Rating: 3 stars
Narrators: Full Cast
Narration Rating: 5 stars
Genre: Sci-Fi (time travel) Romance
Length: 4h 50m
May 16, 2025
"We have a possible beginning, so you can't leave at the beginning. We haven't even tried yet."
(it might be better to read 'maybe this time' first)
--------------------
FREAKING OUT
THROWING UP
ON THE FLOOR
(it might be better to read 'maybe this time' first)
--------------------
FREAKING OUT
THROWING UP
ON THE FLOOR
July 29, 2025
A fun read with some great dialogues here and there. Also liked the sci-fi element. But I felt no great romance despite the heartfelt declarations in the end, the fights they had didn’t make me feel their chemistry and deep love.
August 28, 2025
5 stars!! 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
(Spoiler-free🩷🩷🐵)
Idc about that cliche ending,
THE LAST CHAPTER WAS PERFECTIONNNN?!!
😭👏🏼🎸🎵🎧
The whole cast, production and plot line was sooo good and differentt I loved it sm! 😍
I loved how we got TENSIONNN and on top of that, so many parts that had me laughing so hard lol 😭
I will literally listen to every audiobook Cara Baston writes if she continues this series, I NEED MOREEE🙏 💥
⭐️Rating: 5/5
🔥spice: 0/5 (minor-references, 🙉)
📚age rating: 15+
🎧💘songs:
~Birds of a feather~Billie Eilish
~Must be love~Niall Horan
~From The Start~Laufey
~Oh, what a world~ Kacey Musgraves
~Are you bored yet?~Wallows, Clairo
~Sofia~Clairo
~Late night talking~Harry Styles
~Superstar~Taylor Swift
~Delicate~Taylor Swift
~Hey Stephen~Taylor Swift
~Risk~Gracie Abrams
🎧📱Pre-listen:
I LOOVED maybe this time, so I really hope I like this one as well 😩😭🙏
This audio is only 4 hours so i hope I get this finished today! 🤭
(Spoiler-free🩷🩷🐵)
Idc about that cliche ending,
THE LAST CHAPTER WAS PERFECTIONNNN?!!
😭👏🏼🎸🎵🎧
The whole cast, production and plot line was sooo good and differentt I loved it sm! 😍
I loved how we got TENSIONNN and on top of that, so many parts that had me laughing so hard lol 😭
I will literally listen to every audiobook Cara Baston writes if she continues this series, I NEED MOREEE🙏 💥
⭐️Rating: 5/5
🔥spice: 0/5 (minor-references, 🙉)
📚age rating: 15+
🎧💘songs:
~Birds of a feather~Billie Eilish
~Must be love~Niall Horan
~From The Start~Laufey
~Oh, what a world~ Kacey Musgraves
~Are you bored yet?~Wallows, Clairo
~Sofia~Clairo
~Late night talking~Harry Styles
~Superstar~Taylor Swift
~Delicate~Taylor Swift
~Hey Stephen~Taylor Swift
~Risk~Gracie Abrams
🎧📱Pre-listen:
I LOOVED maybe this time, so I really hope I like this one as well 😩😭🙏
This audio is only 4 hours so i hope I get this finished today! 🤭
May 26, 2025
3.5 stars
This was so messy, chaotic, and hilarious in both funny and annoying ways. I really liked the storyline, but sometimes too much was happening and I had a hard time keeping track of everything. The concept of alternate timelines and a time-slip rom-com was executed well, and I am kind of excited to see if Cara is cooking up more stories like these. I would definitely eat them up 😋
I was in it for the romance and chemistry and some drama, but the whole family drama was maniacal. I enjoyed some scenes, like how they meddled between Duncan and Mona, but it was too much. Mona was annoying and, like Buket said, she is ‘self-sabotage final boss’. Duncan was cute in a nerdy way, the supportive type of guy who would do anything to keep his girl happy but would never find the courage to actually date her.
The romance was fine, but the unnecessary drama and miscommunication gave me a headache. I wish we’d gotten more story about the married Duncan and Mona from the parallel universe. I was so invested in their divorce drama 😭
The audiobook was good, but Mona singing every ten minutes tortured my eardrums 😭 I did not sign up for that!? Anyway, Buket and I at least had a good time listening to it, hating on how annoying Mona is and making up weird theories 🥹💕
This was so messy, chaotic, and hilarious in both funny and annoying ways. I really liked the storyline, but sometimes too much was happening and I had a hard time keeping track of everything. The concept of alternate timelines and a time-slip rom-com was executed well, and I am kind of excited to see if Cara is cooking up more stories like these. I would definitely eat them up 😋
I was in it for the romance and chemistry and some drama, but the whole family drama was maniacal. I enjoyed some scenes, like how they meddled between Duncan and Mona, but it was too much. Mona was annoying and, like Buket said, she is ‘self-sabotage final boss’. Duncan was cute in a nerdy way, the supportive type of guy who would do anything to keep his girl happy but would never find the courage to actually date her.
The romance was fine, but the unnecessary drama and miscommunication gave me a headache. I wish we’d gotten more story about the married Duncan and Mona from the parallel universe. I was so invested in their divorce drama 😭
The audiobook was good, but Mona singing every ten minutes tortured my eardrums 😭 I did not sign up for that!? Anyway, Buket and I at least had a good time listening to it, hating on how annoying Mona is and making up weird theories 🥹💕
May 19, 2025
2.5 stars (half star for the audio production)
Cara, I love you but I didn’t love this book 😭 it made me cringe every five seconds, I hated the characters and the story made me think of the plot of a really bad Disney channel movie. And don’t get me started on the singing. Why? Just why? 😭 the only thing I enjoyed were some of the conversations at the end. But the miscommunication between the characters annoyed me so much, it’s the main reason why I didn’t like this.
Cara, I love you but I didn’t love this book 😭 it made me cringe every five seconds, I hated the characters and the story made me think of the plot of a really bad Disney channel movie. And don’t get me started on the singing. Why? Just why? 😭 the only thing I enjoyed were some of the conversations at the end. But the miscommunication between the characters annoyed me so much, it’s the main reason why I didn’t like this.
May 25, 2025
Story 3 stars Narration 5 stars
Cute story about a couple that aren’t really a couple, but should be. When they go for New Year’s weekend to a cabin where all their family are celebrating, something weird happens and they end up in another version of their life. It’s done with a full cast narrative complete with sound effects which I liked until some really bad singing occurs! This was definitely a comedy as evidenced by the weird scientist that comes along with the story. That part was a bit cringe worthy and the reason I couldn’t give it a higher rating. This is a quick listen for those times you want something light to read.
Cute story about a couple that aren’t really a couple, but should be. When they go for New Year’s weekend to a cabin where all their family are celebrating, something weird happens and they end up in another version of their life. It’s done with a full cast narrative complete with sound effects which I liked until some really bad singing occurs! This was definitely a comedy as evidenced by the weird scientist that comes along with the story. That part was a bit cringe worthy and the reason I couldn’t give it a higher rating. This is a quick listen for those times you want something light to read.
May 16, 2025
I love that this is a contiuation of the "different universes / time travel" universe, but even with the connection to the former story she released last year, the entire universe is still lacking? I really would have loved for this to expand the lore and explain the universe and the wormholes a lot more, but maybe I'm just asking too much from a romantasy (?) audiobook.
PS:
PS:
May 19, 2025
This book was absolute torture. I listened to this as an audio book on a road trip. I hate to DNF a book so my mom and I listened to the whole thing. This entire book should have been 3 chapters. And the music, she was supposed to be a famous rock star? I don’t think that this author is my type of author- glad I gave it a chance but wasn’t my speed.
June 8, 2025
Really loved this one. Cara Bastone is one of my favorite authors.
June 1, 2025
Like… I get it, but also I don’t. Childhood best friends. Worm holes. A random puppy. Twins from a different dimension. A deranged scientist. Fated love, but not.
Meh, 🤷🏻♀️.
Meh, 🤷🏻♀️.
May 15, 2025
I love Bastone - but this wormhole romance was all over the place for me. I keep waiting for an explanation for everything going on with the MCs but it felt short and confusing 🫤
May 25, 2025
It was just ok… 🙈😂
Want to read
April 14, 2025okay i’m not the biggest fan of the cover but nonetheless still excited for this!!
————————————-
did I only read one book by this author?? yes!! but am I going to be excited for her every new release?? also yes!!
————————————-
did I only read one book by this author?? yes!! but am I going to be excited for her every new release?? also yes!!
May 15, 2025
I always adore the sound effects in these things but the music…THE MUSIC!
June 3, 2025
Not my fave by Cara Bastone :/
May 16, 2025
mr. haberdashery on spotify WHENNNN?
i love these audiobooks so so much and i’m so glad cara bastone keeps writing them. i could have 100 more! this wasn’t one of my favorites by her but i still had such a nice time. and the end did get me emotional, like always.
stories where the main characters have known each other since childhood and have been pining for ages even subconsciously will always HIT
i love these audiobooks so so much and i’m so glad cara bastone keeps writing them. i could have 100 more! this wasn’t one of my favorites by her but i still had such a nice time. and the end did get me emotional, like always.
stories where the main characters have known each other since childhood and have been pining for ages even subconsciously will always HIT
May 29, 2025
It wasn’t great, and I’m partial to a short story but this just wasn’t great at all
I don’t really want to add to much to this review because I hate giving 1 star and it breaks my little reader hear to do this
I’m so so sorry
I don’t really want to add to much to this review because I hate giving 1 star and it breaks my little reader hear to do this
I’m so so sorry
June 17, 2025
The absolute lack of maturity of these thirty-year-olds and the TERRIBLE music that this "musical genius" put on this album that made my ears bleed were enough for this not to get a higher rating. This was ridiculous and I wasn't entertained.
May 23, 2025
my least favorite audio book of hers. I didn't believe the romance, especially from the fmc. the multi-verse aspect with clunky and corny. but I didn't despise it.
May 19, 2025
Devastated to only be able to give this two stars because Cara Bastone is one of my favs, but this just….. didn’t do it for me.
June 11, 2025
7 books by this author:
1 - 5 stars
1 - 4 stars
4 - 3 stars
1 - 2 stars
1 - 5 stars
1 - 4 stars
4 - 3 stars
1 - 2 stars
July 3, 2025
immediately clicked bc i love mae whitman.
BUT
this isn’t even a book since it’s only dialogue. the original songs sucked and made me cringe. they should be cut out entirely.
they had good chemistry, but def heavy on friends and not really lovers. the actors’ bickering reminded more of siblings than pining childhood friends.
the multidimensional travel noises were a lot, and every other character felt like a caricature. i know GA’s usually have noises, but these were excessive. some of the details didn’t make sense either. if you can get sick from time germs (forgot what they’re called) by touching your doppelgänger, wouldn’t you get sick from touching anything else in that other universe?? ik it’s not that deep, but it just felt like a random thing to throw in in the last chapter.
i can tell the author is a decent writer though, so i would be open to reading another novel. A REAL NOVEL.
BUT
this isn’t even a book since it’s only dialogue. the original songs sucked and made me cringe. they should be cut out entirely.
they had good chemistry, but def heavy on friends and not really lovers. the actors’ bickering reminded more of siblings than pining childhood friends.
the multidimensional travel noises were a lot, and every other character felt like a caricature. i know GA’s usually have noises, but these were excessive. some of the details didn’t make sense either. if you can get sick from time germs (forgot what they’re called) by touching your doppelgänger, wouldn’t you get sick from touching anything else in that other universe?? ik it’s not that deep, but it just felt like a random thing to throw in in the last chapter.
i can tell the author is a decent writer though, so i would be open to reading another novel. A REAL NOVEL.
May 22, 2025
Cute audio
June 4, 2025
kızlar maalesef yeryüzünde hiçbir erkek duygusal açıdan bu kadar olgun ve aynı zamanda aklı başında değil baş karakter bir unicorn bunu bilerek okuyalım gerçekte beklentilere girmeyelim
July 10, 2025
★★½
The plot was fun and so were most of the characters. But the FMC sounded 12. She was ridiculously frustrating, and not in an endearing way. Just book a psychologist appointment and grow up.
The plot was fun and so were most of the characters. But the FMC sounded 12. She was ridiculously frustrating, and not in an endearing way. Just book a psychologist appointment and grow up.
August 13, 2025
I love Cara Bastone and her audible books!! This one was amazing!!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 702 reviews