abbeyroad1410's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
This book is a fun, light read. If you want something easy to get through that has a happy ending, this is the book for you.
The highlight of this book is Jess. Her characterization makes sense with everything going on in her life. Not only is she a single mother, but her own mother is an alcoholic and a drug addict involved in an MLM. (My favorite part of the entire novel may have been Jess pointing out that an MLM is just a fancy word for a pyramid scheme). Her grandparents are cute and supportive which is also a nice edition.
Someone who doesn't like incomplete plots will not enjoy this book as much. It is driving me crazy that the main conflict was solved in two people. Additionally River and Jess agree they need to have a conversation which never happens within the text of the book. It would be a fairly important conversation as well. Instead, the plot kind of just skips to the happy, happy epilogue.
As I said, this is an easy read book. It was perfect for the first week of school.
The highlight of this book is Jess. Her characterization makes sense with everything going on in her life. Not only is she a single mother, but her own mother is an alcoholic and a drug addict involved in an MLM. (My favorite part of the entire novel may have been Jess pointing out that an MLM is just a fancy word for a pyramid scheme). Her grandparents are cute and supportive which is also a nice edition.
Someone who doesn't like incomplete plots will not enjoy this book as much. It is driving me crazy that the main conflict was solved in two people. Additionally River and Jess agree they need to have a conversation which never happens within the text of the book. It would be a fairly important conversation as well. Instead, the plot kind of just skips to the happy, happy epilogue.
As I said, this is an easy read book. It was perfect for the first week of school.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse and Alcoholism
avidreaderandgeekgirl's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I laughed and cried rom-com about a single mom and a DNA dating app founder.
With fake dating, plenty of laughs, soulmates trope, grumpy/sunshine pairing, some tearful moments, and enemies-to-friends-to-lovers. This book was a fabulous romantic comedy. My only complaint is not enough on the page spice!
I enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek things that Fizzi said about romance writing. I also loved that there weren't characters who really mattered to the story and who weren't given enough depth.
Overall, I loved it!
With fake dating, plenty of laughs, soulmates trope, grumpy/sunshine pairing, some tearful moments, and enemies-to-friends-to-lovers. This book was a fabulous romantic comedy. My only complaint is not enough on the page spice!
I enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek things that Fizzi said about romance writing. I also loved that there weren't characters who really mattered to the story and who weren't given enough depth.
Overall, I loved it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Medical content, and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment and Alcoholism
Minor: Drug abuse
Emotional abuse and toxic relationships are between the MC and her mother.syazahaniss's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Came here from The Unhoneymooners and I’m sad to say this one didn’t live up to my expectations.
The buildup was very slow and I was this close to abandoning it altogether.
I suppose the initial portrayal of River was supposed to be that of the strong but silent brooding types (my favourites) but instead he gave off emotionless robot vibes. First impressions are so important to me so the fact that I already deemed him this way meant it was nearly impossible for me to accept that the more open and romantic River later on was the same person.
I know the whole premise of the book was surrounding Jess and River’s 98% compatibility match but it really did make it seem like they liked it each other only for the numbers. Like they knew they were soulmates and so they decided to try it out versus the relationship development happening organically. This difference is especially stark on River’s end, given his initial lack of reaction towards Jess at all. I thought it would be cuter if he had noticed and silently liked Jess throughout their 2-year long daily encounters at Twiggs, but instead it really seemed as though he only liked her for his career.
Don’t get me wrong, the relationship development gave me pangs here and there, but overall, I think there wasn’t enough chemistry. They were just characters in a book who get together in the end just because the authors said so.
Juno was also a disappointment in terms of character. I’m fond of kid fics and I had high expectations because they always turn out super cute, but Juno’s personality gave off the vibes of a person older than seven, so I couldn’t really see her as a kid. It overall made it difficult to be endeared by her.
Content Warnings
Minor: Drug abuse and Alcoholism
macykey's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
This book was very cute and an easy read once you got past the first couple of chapters. There were a couple of inconsistencies that I noticed, but other than that, very cute! And I was living for Juno and River’s relationship!!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Medical content, Alcoholism, and Sexual content
Minor: Drug abuse
alclvdl's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, and Addiction
courtnoodles's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Abandonment, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Medical content, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse
bookishval's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
When started The Soulmate Equation, I knew what I was getting myself into and it sort of gave me exactly what I wanted. An hilarious fake dating, single mother rom-com! You have no idea how much I was craving for a rom-com!!
I'm a mood reader, and I believe one of the reasons I gave this book such a high rating was because I read it exactly when I needed to read it. Now let's crack its pros and cons real quick:
PROS:
I'm a mood reader, and I believe one of the reasons I gave this book such a high rating was because I read it exactly when I needed to read it. Now let's crack its pros and cons real quick:
PROS:
- Every character was so well-written: I have to give it to Christina Lauren, cause they did such an amazing job at writing especially the side characters so well, they didn't feel flat or without any personality, from Juno, to Fizzy and Jess' grandparents, everyone added so much to the story!! I think it also has to do with the fact that Fizzy has her own book after this one, so they had to build her character well from her first appearence in TSE, so yeah, I hope she stays the same for her book.
- Single mother trope done just how I like it: I was dreading the moment they would go for the easiest and in my opinion most annoying way of handling this trope, but to my surprise they didn't! I hate the most when in single-mother books the plot revolves around the toxic and abusive ex / father of the baby, but fortunately he never made an apperance and Christina Lauren opted to go in a different direction with this trope, which I appreciate plenty.
- River and Juno's relationship: when I tell you my jaw dropped with their first interaction!! I was dying of cuteness omg! And throughout the whole book, the way River treated and cared for Juno made my heart melt, truly. This is what I love to see in single parent tropes, the love interest and the kid having an actual relationship and cute interactions!
- The humor had me laughing my ass off: if you take a look at my paperback, you'll see the green tabs are almost as many as the pink ones, because this book was fucking hilarious!! The banter, Fezzy's sense of humor and just so many scenes made this book such a joy to read. This book is indeed the perfect balance of romance and comedy.
- The writing of the spice: I've read a book of Christina Lauren's super spicy saga, so I know they're more than capable of writing good, mind-blowing sex scenes, but I loved the direction they decided to go with this book. What I mean by this is that although this book doesn't have such explicit sex scenes, the writing portrayed their overwhelming feelings towards each other in such a fantastic way that I was sold! They totally convinced me this two were two parts of the same soul whenever they had sex.
Now CONS
- Lack of the whole app thing: Putting aside how good the characters were and thinking plot-wise, I feel like this book had so much potential and more to give in that side and I do hope the whole DNA app thing appears in Fezzy's book and they don't just forget it exists, crossing my fingers.
- The way the conflict was handled: having had my share of Christina Lauren's books, I have to say I hate how they handle their third act conflicts tbh. I haven't read the Unhoneymooners, but the things I heard about that love interest omg. I kind of understood the reasons behind this conflict and everything, but like almost every romance book I've read, River didn't grovel enough!! He said all the right things, yes, he justified himself without making excuses, yes, but Jess should've waited more to forgive him! Ghosting her and her kid for 8 days? Are you kidding me? Na-ah.
- Their real compatibility %: it may be just me idk, but I was so frustrated when she decided to not know their real % and he did, HE KNOWS AND SHE DOESN'T! FUCK THAT BOTHERED ME SO MUCH!!! I can understand why she didn't want to know, I do, but I don't like how he knows and she doesn't, they should've conducted the process together.
Special Mention
So, it came to my attention that the epilogue I read is not in every copy of the book, it is bonus paperback-exclusive epilogue, so I can understand how people who didn't read this extra content may feel dissatisfied with the ending. To be completely honest, without this epilogue I would've ended this book with a bittersweet feeling, and give it 4 or 4.25 stars instead of 4.5 so I thought it was worth mentioning.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Alcoholism and Abandonment
v1l25's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Medical content, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Drug use, and Abandonment
mjwhitlock18's review against another edition
4.0
A sweet rom-com with a single mother statistician and a geneticist who starts a DNA-based dating app have a romance that starts with antagonism and sorta fake dating. The humor hit for me. I love the side characters that surround the FMC, and now I need to read Fizzy’s book. The third act conflict/resolution happened so fast, but I forgive it because the epilogue was so cute.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Addiction, and Alcoholism
vj_thompson's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
fast-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Gaslighting, and Medical content
Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, and Alcoholism
Minor: Cursing and Drug abuse