I won this book through a Goodreads giveaway and so glad I did! Really enjoyed this book. The story of how three women's lives intersect around one man that two of them don't even know...it's crazy but so real. I think every wo/man can find a situation in this book to connect with. The stories of relationships, children, and dreams never get old. Carol made me laugh and sigh and wonder what will become of these people. Carol...please write part 2 so we can follow these wonderful characters.
I highly recommend "What Came First".
Thanks for a great read Carol. ( )

The novel was captivating. I wanted to know what would happen next. The ending-I wish it was tied up more. I know the reader can assume, but I personally want it validated, I need to know for sure. Q5P5 AHS/Kathleen R

Carol Snow’s What Came First follows Laura, Vanessa and Wendy as they grapple with issues both familiar and foreign to many mothers. Laura and her bright, kind-hearted son, Ian, love their lives in suburban California. Born after Laura’s visit to a sperm bank nearly a decade before, the two-unit family would like nothing more than to welcome a third . . . but Laura, perpetually single, isn’t sure how to make that happen. Posting on a website designed to link families who may have conceived children from the same sperm donor, she eventually “meets” Wendy — a harried mother of twins.

Wendy’s son and daughter have major behavioral issues, a problem that drives her to seek out potential biological siblings to compare notes on her kids’ temper tantrums. After Wendy and Carol exchange notes and start their own research into their children’s DNA, they eventually find an answer to some of their questions — which leads them to Vanessa, a twenty-something trying to get a diamond from her live-in boyfriend. Ready to start a family of her own, Vanessa waits desperately for an engagement ring . . . but Eric seems no closer to committing than he did when they met.

All three women have trials, difficulties; no one’s life is perfect. And that’s what I loved about Snow’s novel dealing with fertility, motherhood, what it means to be a family — and what I always appreciate about her warm, rich and true-to-life characters. I probably related best to Laura, a type-A go-getter who can’t accept her family won’t grow. Her desire to have another baby seemed enviable rather than desperate, and I definitely felt her frustration and pain.

Where the story began and where it ended were completely different than I expected, and I love that What Came First surprised me from beginning to end. Though often light-hearted and very witty, Snow’s novel also raised questions about how families are formed and how love develops. In Wendy’s case, especially, I could see how difficult conceiving children who were not biologically “his” was for her husband, and these troubles were something I’d never considered before. I love a good slice of women’s fiction that also makes me think!

Fans of Snow will appreciate her take on love, relationships and moving forward. If you’ve never devoured a Carol Snow novel, you’re missing out — and What Came First is a great, feel-good place to start. ( )

This is a great page turner. The author knows how to draw you into this story and not let you go. I found myself reading it during commericals of my favorite TV shows and skipping others so I could read this book.

Carol Snow, author of 'What Came first' keeps three storylines going with alternating chapters that sometimes intertwine. She knows how to make the characters seem real and how to make you care about them.

There are three main women characters, Laura, Vanessa and Wendy.

Laura is a sucessful laywer who lives with her son, Ian, some chickens and Maine Coone in Fullerton, California. She has given up on dating, not having that much success with it. So she had Ian via a donor. She is so pleased with Ian who she adores that she wants to have another and for that she needs to find the original donor.

Vanessa, a dental receptionist lives with Eric, who currently works at a chain store at the checkout. Vanessa has been waiting and waiting for Eric to propose. She wants to start a family. She lives in Redondo Beach and enjoys getting together with the other women workers at the office.

Wendy lives with her husband,Darren, and twins, Harrison and Sydney in North Scottsdale, Arizona in a cookie cutter neighborhood. Her children have been in the "terrible twos" since the day that they were born. She is hiding a secret from her husband is eats to calm herself down.

What ties these three women together? Why is there a baby chick in the stocking on the cover? Why do women want children?

I really enoyed this book and want to read more of Carol Snow.

I recommend this book to all women, with or without children. It is a great read.

Although I received this book as a giveaway from GoodReads, that in no way influenced the content of my review.



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Fun book about (wait for it) sperm donation and how it brings people together. Light, comic and totally enjoyable. ( )