I received an ARC of this book from Penguin Group via NetGalley in exchange for my honest feedback. I was initially not super excited to start it, as I normally read thrillers. However, I found the book excellent and ended up tearing through it in 2 days.

I think I am the perfect demographic for a story about friends who graduated college in 2006 (my era). I could relate to everything, from the descriptions of their college adventures, ro job-hunting in a recession, through growing apart from people who were once your closest confidantes.

Each character was complete, clearly identifiable, and very well-developed. In addition, Ms. Chamberlain has gorgeous prose evoking all the emotions of the reader.

This is a book that will stay with me for a while, and now I am eager to read the author's other novel as well.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Lauryn Chamberlain, and Penguin Group Dutton for providing me with a free ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

I was so drawn to this book by the lovely cover but also because it sounded like my exact favorite type of book, which it was! There is something about friendship, coming-of-age throughout the years books that I just adore, and Who We Are Now was a lovely addition to this genre. I really enjoyed how the friend group was made of two women and two men and that the book alternated their perspectives. I felt like this was unique versus the primarily solely female generational stories I have read and really helped to enhance the store. I was able to see so much of myself within Rachel and Clarissa, as well as some of Dev. I wasn't able to relate to Nate as much, but I do think his storyline provided a much-needed contrast to the other characters in the story. Chamberlain wrote really compelling and realistic characters that felt very timeless; so much of me as a current 25-year-old was echoed in the group, even though the setting ranged from 2006-2019. I do feel like the biggest downfall is because there are a lot of different perspectives, the book doesn't always take the time I would have liked to see on certain characters and stories. I felt like Clarissa was missing from the beginning half, whereas Nate was missing from the second half. Certain storylines, several to do with Rachel and Dev, also felt a bit rushed or not fully fleshed out. I understand there will be limitations since there are so many characters, but I think the story could have been truly GREAT with a bit more fleshing out and depth. Even without, it didn't take away my enjoyment from the story at all, and I can definitely see many readers from early 20s to early 40s really resonating with these characters. Rachel's last chapter will very much stick with me for a long time to come, and I look forward to Chamberlain's other works.

Who We Are Now follows four friends from college over a matter of 12 years, from the night before college graduation, through their journeys to adulthood. We get a small glimpse of each of their perspectives over the years and get a glimpse of what are often small moments in their lives, some of which alter their life paths and change their friendships in the process.

This book is so raw and real - it is messy and complicated, heart-warming and at times heartbreaking. You see the honesty of how friendships change as these four characters grow into adulthood. Each character is flawed yet loveable, and I found myself rooting for each of them in different ways. This is a great story about friendship and growing up.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton Books for the advance copy.

I really enjoyed this novel about four friends who meet at Northwestern. The book spans fifteen years, starting in 2006. It’s about the choices we make in life—the risks, the seemingly safe routes that may not be, the things we say and don’t say. It’s also about how friendships change over time in part because of these choices.
I liked and identified which each of these characters, even though technically I’m not that much like any of them.
It was fun to relive these years with these characters. When you’re talking about race and class and gender, there are obviously going to be political points, but I never felt like the author was bashing me over the head with political insights, which I appreciated.
NetGalley provided an advance copy of this novel.

Dev, Rachel, Clarissa, and Nate are college roommates and best friends. The story begins the night before their college graduation and spans fifteen years, through their early post-grad stumbles, job struggles, coming out, family dynamics, addiction, and finding love.

This was such a raw and real book. I do think the cover is a bit misleading and makes it seem like it will be a light book about a group of friends, but there is a deeper story here, and some of the topics are on the heavier side. I thought this was such an interesting portrayal of the ways we hold onto friendship, or let it drift away, as we age. It will make you examine your own place in the world and your friendships. Each of these characters was flawed but relatable and I enjoyed watching them each grow up and into their own person and choices.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dutton for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

TW: Sexual assault/rape, addiction, alcoholism, mention of cancer, death, grief

This book follows for friends as they graduate college and take on the real world. It captures the nuances of adulthood and friendship and left me hooked, eager to read the next page.

Based on the cover and description I was expecting this to be a lighter coming of age story but it definitely focused on more tougher subjects and realities than I was expecting. Overall I think this book was very well done and I am eager to read more from the is author!

I loved this book. It followed a group of four friends over the course of 15 years. This felt like such a genuine and heartfelt story of friendship and how it changes over time throughout different life stages. Through career changes, location changes, relationship changes and how we allow those around us to impact us, in good or bad ways. I loved watching how their lives intertwined and then would also drift. But ultimately, coming back to each other in some capacity.

“their closeness felt like a glass she had set down for only a second, then looked back to find it had been cleared without her knowledge.”

thank you NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for the digital ARC in an exchange for an honest review.

WHO WE ARE NOW by Lauryn Chamberlain is the story of four college friends, housemates who know one another inside and out from their years at Northwestern University. In the years following graduation, the four break apart, come together, flourish and flounder in the roller coaster ride that was the early part of the twenty-first century. While I was intrigued by the premise, I did not connect with any of the four characters, finding them more caricatures and stereotypes than living and breathing people I could relate to. The settings were vague for me as well. So, the premise is intriguing, the execution does not deliver what I'd hoped to read. I received a copy of this book and these opinions are my own, unbiased thoughts.

Hm. This was a little depressing to read at times - like when each one of the "best friends" had thoughts of jealousy of the others' successes. But we're all like that when we're young, maybe?

And the event that happened at the end seemed almost...contrived. Too contrived and, for a lack of a better word, "neat." Like something big had to happen to get the "friends" to somehow come together, and so big event it was.

But, I did read this in a day or two, so yes, I liked it well enough!

*3.5 stars*

This was a really interesting novel about a group of 4 college friends who graduate in 2006. Each chapter is told from a different character's POV, each year spanning from 2007 - 2018. The 4 friends experience love & heartbreak, friendships that change and drift and fracture, family tragedy, career success and struggle, and everything in between. I related a lot to this book because I am a few years younger than the characters, but still related to graduating college in the early 2000s and struggling to make ends meet.

The only thing keeping this from being a higher rating was the ending. I understand it, but I still don't like it, LOL! Overall, great writing and a really nostalgic book that brought back lots of college memories.

I would like to thank Penguin Group and Net Galley for the opportunity to read this book as an ARC. It is the story of 4 people, Rachel, Clarissa, Nate and Dev, friends for 4 years at Northwest, who are now graduating and moving uncertainly into the future. There is a prologue set in 2018, which reveals a funeral, however the main action , as it were, starts in 2006.We first meet them as graduates, friends for the past four years. The book os told in third person, moving through the years between the four friends and how they cope, or not, with adulthood. The story premise is interesting, and the individual arcs are thought provoking. None of them are extremely likeable, although none are downright hateful. They and the book, are just good enough.

Stories following a group of friends over time is my weakness, and I loved the kind of take this story had. If anything, I wish parts of each character's personality and storyline were fleshed out a bit more, and the big twist at the end is a little sudden and unnecessary, but still a very immersive read!

This book was a captivating read that kept me eagerly waiting to see what would unfold. I thoroughly enjoyed the story, and it introduced me to a talented new author. It was truly entertaining and left me wanting more.

The story was a delightful and heartwarming experience, akin to a sweet hug from a long-lost friend. The relatable and endearing characters, along with a well-developed plot, made it a quick and enjoyable summer read.

The book skillfully delves into the complexities of friendship and the challenges of navigating adulthood’s various phases. The author seamlessly weaves timely issues with emotions that resonate beyond the individuals directly involved, making it a truly special read.

The character development was commendable, and the writing flowed smoothly, holding my interest throughout. Lauryn Chamberlain’s warm and genuine writing style beautifully captured the essence of the characters’ experiences.

I feel that this book suffers from being marketed wrong. I picked it up because of the sliding doors trope, however it's really more of a found family book. The story itself is quite beautiful and so so realistic. Each section of the book is set in a different timeline, and within each section we alternate POVs from each one of the friends. I found this to be very interesting. I'm not a writer, but it seems so difficult to write the same scene from a different point of view, without the book becoming repetitive. This is something the author did so well. I'm giving it a four star because i did find the middle to be a little slow, but it definitely drew me back in at the end.

This was just okay for me . . . it was definitely a little slow, a little meandering and I hated the ending. Even though we knew it was coming (the ending), it still made no sense and seemed like it was just drama for drama's sake. It didn't seem to fit with the rest of the book and was just convenient to end the book. Hope you have better luck!

Who We Are Now comes out next week on August 8, 2023 and you can purchase HERE.

She and Dev had a certain lifestyle in common now, the creative work, certainly, but also the publicity, the interviews, the obligation. People always talked about timing in romantic relationships, but how much of friendship was down to timing, too? Clarissa had always believed in forming closeness through ideals and personality, but maybe adult friendship was more about circumstance.

good read that had me waiting to see what would happen. Enjoyed this story. Found me a new author to read. entertaining book.

This was really sweet, enjoyable and felt like a sweet hug from a friend you haven't seen in a while.
The characters were relatable and endearing, the story was well developed. This was a quick and summery read.

Four best friends graduate college, ready to take on the world and sure they will remain close forever. The book follows the four characters over the next two decades as they navigate their careers, romance, and family relationships, all while seeking to maintain their friendships in the face of various pressures.

This is a well written and engaging story about friendship and the pressures of navigating the different phases of adulthood.

Highly recommended!

Who We Are Now is one of those books that you can just fall into. You can let it lull you into the story, just enjoying the flow. I loved the format of Lauryn Chamberlain's latest, with each chapter being told by a different character, alternating between the four main characters. It's impossible not to get attached to Rachel, Clarissa, Dev, and Nate. This one will make you want to call your friends and then share this book with them. It gave me all the feels.

A book that details the familiar feeling of how people change throughout time and go through vastly different journeys. I didn’t particularly enjoy the slowly-moving plot with no mind-altering events, but really loved the book flowing through multiple perspectives over the course of many years. Many of the way things ended was very realistic and not in any heavy cliche, but it was just a little slow and unmoving for me overall.