readingwithhippos's review against another edition
4.0
Alisha Rai is an auto-buy author for me. I don’t care what she writes, I just know I want to read it. And The Right Swipe is really good--I won’t be surprised if this is the book that catapults her fully into romance author stardom. It’s different in tone from her previous Forbidden Hearts trilogy--while it still deals with realistic issues, in this case workplace harassment and brain injury in NFL players, there’s less of an edge. Which admittedly will likely make it more palatable for a wide audience, although I have to admit I really enjoy the thread of darkness that some of her earlier work has.
In this book, Rhiannon is CEO of a dating app company, and Samson is a former professional football player and current public face of one of Rhiannon’s competitors. When they see each other professionally, it’s a little awkward because they hooked up one night a while back and afterwards, he ghosted her. I didn’t 100% feel the chemistry between Rhiannon and Samson, unfortunately, maybe because there was so much external conflict going on for both of them? It was a little disappointing because chemistry between the leads is something I thought Rai got so perfectly right in the Forbidden Hearts series. Anyway, this one doesn’t go to the top of my personal favorites list, but I hope it leads to lots of commercial success for the author because I really want her to keep writing.
In this book, Rhiannon is CEO of a dating app company, and Samson is a former professional football player and current public face of one of Rhiannon’s competitors. When they see each other professionally, it’s a little awkward because they hooked up one night a while back and afterwards, he ghosted her. I didn’t 100% feel the chemistry between Rhiannon and Samson, unfortunately, maybe because there was so much external conflict going on for both of them? It was a little disappointing because chemistry between the leads is something I thought Rai got so perfectly right in the Forbidden Hearts series. Anyway, this one doesn’t go to the top of my personal favorites list, but I hope it leads to lots of commercial success for the author because I really want her to keep writing.
sri_savita's review against another edition
5.0
This was even better than First Comes Like in some ways, and I loved that one too! Alisha Rai is 2 for 2 with me, and I just started Girl Gone Viral . I think Rai's books have amazing mental health representation that is explicitly discussed between the characters on the page too, and an awesome strong focus on female friendships.
I thought there were so many interwoven plot-lines that made the world of this romance novel feel so fresh. I loved learning about the tech industry side of dating, and that Rhiannon was such a leader in her STEM/business field.
All of the side characters like Annabelle Costas, Lakshmi, and Rhiannon's brother and mother were well-crafted and felt realistic too, and I enjoyed all the different kinds of representation, social themes, diversity, and inclusion in this book.
The standout for me was Samson's character, I loved his close ties to his family and the CTE plot. As someone who had never taken much of an interest in sports, but knew of some of this research from the perspective of being a cognitive psychologist, this was educational, and I'm glad Rai is including this information for others in this story.
I also loved how Samson and Rhiannon talked openly about their baggage, flaws, and insecurities near the end of the novel (which made the whole dramatic misunderstanding plot point more palatable). LOVED this one so much!
I thought there were so many interwoven plot-lines that made the world of this romance novel feel so fresh. I loved learning about the tech industry side of dating, and that Rhiannon was such a leader in her STEM/business field.
All of the side characters like Annabelle Costas, Lakshmi, and Rhiannon's brother and mother were well-crafted and felt realistic too, and I enjoyed all the different kinds of representation, social themes, diversity, and inclusion in this book.
The standout for me was Samson's character, I loved his close ties to his family and the CTE plot. As someone who had never taken much of an interest in sports, but knew of some of this research from the perspective of being a cognitive psychologist, this was educational, and I'm glad Rai is including this information for others in this story.
I also loved how Samson and Rhiannon talked openly about their baggage, flaws, and insecurities near the end of the novel (which made the whole dramatic misunderstanding plot point more palatable). LOVED this one so much!
chantiecebates's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
rashmipmenon's review against another edition
2.0
I picked this up as a part of my reading challenge in an effort to push me out of my comfort zone. Unfortunately, this book didn’t work for me. I couldn’t connect with the characters. I was not a fan of the plot line. I hate not finishing a book, so I usually leave it in my “reading” queue until I can go back to it and finish it sometime later. However, with The Right Swipe I know for a fact that I will not be going back to this one. DNF at 32%.
xtinetreasure's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
beelaw's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
katekate_reads_'s review against another edition
4.0
The Right Swipe has a lot going on in one book. Rhi is the successful CEO of a dating app (think Bumble) that she founded. She’s been pursuing the reclusive owner of a more traditional dating site, Matchmaker (think eHarmony/Match) in the interest of purchasing it and expanding her brand.
When she goes to a Matchmaker party in hopes of connecting with the CEO - she is shocked to see the new spokesperson for the site is Samson - the man she had one great date with months ago - and then he ghosted her.
This book covers a lot of topics - the business dealings between the various dating companies, professional football and CTE, sexual harassment, speaking up and believing women when they do. All of these topics were handled well - but I did feel it pushed the romance to a smaller role side plot rather than the key focus. This isn’t necessarily bad - but good to know if you are going into it expecting a more traditional romance where their relationship is really the bulk of the story.
Thank you very much to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
When she goes to a Matchmaker party in hopes of connecting with the CEO - she is shocked to see the new spokesperson for the site is Samson - the man she had one great date with months ago - and then he ghosted her.
This book covers a lot of topics - the business dealings between the various dating companies, professional football and CTE, sexual harassment, speaking up and believing women when they do. All of these topics were handled well - but I did feel it pushed the romance to a smaller role side plot rather than the key focus. This isn’t necessarily bad - but good to know if you are going into it expecting a more traditional romance where their relationship is really the bulk of the story.
Thank you very much to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.
libraryghost's review against another edition
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
tlkern's review against another edition
2.0
A quick “beach read” type of novel - the characters were likeable though the story ran into some pacing issues and got a bit off track at times.
nathiyafaith's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0