Wow. This was a great story of four college kids growing into young adulthood with all of the excitement, growth and heartbreak that goes along with coming of age. I enjoyed the style in which it was written, shifting between each of the four characters. I really liked the book. Thanks #NetGalley

Title: Who We Are Now
Author: Lauryn Chamberlain
Publisher: PENGUIN GROUP Dutton, Dutton
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: Five
Review:
"Who We Are Now" by Lauryn Chamberlain" by Lauryn Chamberlain

My Sentiments:

'Who We Are Now' was an excellent novel about four college friends from Chicago and New York who were graduating from college and going into the world over around 15 years up through their 30s. It will be a twisted road as the reader will see how they drift apart at times but can become closer toward the end of the story. After all, is said and done, this author gives the reader quite a realistic dramatic, love, resilience, addiction, death, sickness, career choices, and heartbreaking friendship story. The main characters [Rachel, Dev, Nate, and Clarissa] were well-developed, with some more complex than the others with their different POVs that we receive from the alternating chapters. In the end, the reader will get an excellent story of friendship through the years with plenty of up-and-down times on this roller-coaster ride as we see the characters grow up and change as life continues.

Thank you to Net Galley and the Publisher for the beautiful story of the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

Poorly written with a weak storyline and two-dimensional characters, give this book a hard pass and save yourself some money.

This starts with a funeral but who has died? And how? Nate, Rachel, Cassie, and Dev are college BFFs whose journey through their 20s sees changes in all of their lives. Know that each of them is somewhat of a trope for this genre but Chamberlain has put good flesh on the bones. Nate's the middle class boy who goes into finance to make money- and then 2008 hits. Rachel is the rich girl who can afford to work in publishing, wants to write her own novel, and has a, well no spoilers, moment with one of Nate's friends (but its not the focus of her life or even, it seemed, well examined). Cassie is out of the closet to her friends but not her family and she's making her way in the comedy business. Dev is the surprise to everyone, including his family, when he writes a best selling novel about a South Asian who works in finance, thus blending his own and Nate's experience. There is love, among these four, and with at least one partner (and ambivalence albeit commitment for others). A lot happens and nothing happens all at once because this is as much about the friendship as it is about events. And the death - it will come as a surprise. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. Good storytelling makes this a good read.

Absolutely fantastic plot! Could not put the book down once I began reading it. Cannot wait for it to be released. I will recommend it to everyone I know!

I did not feel this novel to be an enjoyable read, in part, because of the distancing third person, but also, because it was an overly long exposition of every detail that happened to all four main characters through the years. The character that seemed most central to the plot had faults that were not presented as such, and much of the dialog rang untrue, or awkward. Some of the phrases in the beginning sounded British or just off, surprising for an American author. These lessened as the story carried on, thankfully. As for "pouting" and "batting eyelashes", these are not endearing marks of a character's personality. Let's hope this was changed before publication.

As Chamberlain attended Northwestern University, I expect she was pulling from her first hand experience, but that does not necessarily make engaging reading for the rest of us, unless something propels us into the depth of the story. The climax felt manipulated, especially when underscored by the ultimate meaning of “stories” as presented by the author through Dev’s words. Although the characters explain what they are feeling or doing, the prose is overwrought while at the same time not showing us “the why” of it all.

I’m sorry not to have given this a better rating, but I do thank Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

5 stars-Dev, Rachel, Nate, and Clarissa are roommates at Northwestern University in 2006. This story takes us on the journey of their lives and how their friendship evolves over the next 11 years. And how a death effects their friendship all those years later.

I love this quote from the book “But the dreams you go in with aren’t always the only ones you end up with, it turns out. Something like that.” It reminds you of where you were and maybe how different life was from what you had hoped, planned, or expected…Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc! It was a pleasure to read and review!

This was a heartfelt (and heartbreaking at times) coming of age story that follows four college friends from graduation to adulthood as they help support one another through life's ups and downs.

From career highs and lows to new loves, addiction problems, coming out and unexpected deaths. This one will tug on your heartstrings and be completely relatable to the millennials out there.

I graduated at the same times as these characters (2006) and so much of this book struck true for me! Highly recommended for fans of books like Emily Henry's Happy Place or the movie Reality bites. AMAZING on audio too narrated by my very favorite, Brittany Pressley!

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!

CW: alcoholism, drug addiction, parents with cancer, death of a friend

Such a good story about friendship during college, meeting your people and navigating life after graduation. It took me back to the 2000's and those semi-carefree days with friends and new jobs. I loved Chamberlain's storytelling abilities! Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Five stars.

3.5 stars
Once I started Who We Are Now, I was quickly drawn into the story of four college friends and their lives over the course of 15 years. I liked that you got to read each character’s perspective and that each perspective was another year. This helped move the story along as you hear about the events in the other characters lives in each chapter. I liked that their differences became more magnified as they progressed through adult life. This helped add to the realness of the book. While i thought a lot of the plot points were predictable and the characters unrelatable at times, the general theme of being unsure of the choices you make and seeing how they affect others was well done.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group Dutton for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

It's a beautiful story about four friends - Clarissa, Rachel, Dev, and Nate. The story takes us back to their college days at Northwestern in 2006. As I read through the story, I was transported back in time, reminiscing about the significant events that happened during that time, such as 9/11, the legalization of gay marriage, and Trump's presidency. The characters in the story voice their life and feelings, making it a powerful storytelling experience that resonates with me. The story is a beautiful portrayal of friendship with its ups and downs. It showcases the solid human nature and companionship that exists between friends. Each chapter in the book is from a different character's point of view, which allows for a strong connection to their individual storylines. It's a fantastic story to read, and it takes me down memory lane, reminding me of my own experiences with friends.

Thank you to PENGUIN GROUP Dutton and NetGalley for letting me read this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This novel was okay. I think if I had more time to devote to reading it, I might get into it more, but I just didn't connect with the characters and the plot progression was really slow, so I kept losing interest. I plan on coming back to it at some point, because I think the plot is something I can relate to, but I just couldn't completely get into this one enough to really connect with it.

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an e-ARC of this novel.

Get ready for a trip down memory lane ✨
Thank you, Dutton Books, for the gifted copy of Who We Are Now {partner}

Genre: Fiction
Format: 🎧📖
Audiobook Narration:☆☆☆☆
Pub Date: 8.8.2023
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆

"She felt like a punch in her gut that someday, they would be too old for this. They would have to grow up, get married, stop having sleepovers, and sharing a bed with their friends. Maybe they would enjoy it, maybe there would be some appeal to that phase of her life that remained unseen… but it certainly wouldn't be this - this kind of cramped, close love that you could physically curl into."

Lauryn Chamberlain is so talented at capturing the junctures of life and then writing about them in a precise and nostalgic-filled way. While my post-graduate life didn't pan out exactly as it did with Rachel, Nate, Dev, and Clarissa, I still found the book relatable.

Who We Are Now opens during the character's last night of college and flawlessly captured what that moment was for me - the excitement of achieving so momentous and the sense that life would never quite be this way again. It was a trip down memory lane for me.

The rest of Who We Are now follows each character through their post-graduate years - their triumphs, heartbreaks, and missteps and the story ends when the characters are my age, which brought the whole story full circle.

👩🏽‍🎓 Post-graduate nostalgia
🗽 Set in NYC
🗣️ 4 perspectives over 15 years
⏳ Slower paced

Who We Are Now is perfect for those of us looking for a little reminder that life is a journey and that sometimes, your found family is all you need.

There's something vaguely melancholy about this book, in a way that felt both authentic and a little self-indulgent. What I liked: with the exception of Nate, I felt very clearly who all these characters were from page one. Even if I didn't like their choices or behaviors, I understand clearly who Rachel, Dev, and Clarissa were. I liked that we stretched over decades; I can stomach a somewhat naval-gazing coming-of-age story as long as it extends beyond those first halcyon days post-graduation.

What I didn't like: Dev could be quite annoying. I felt like the author was trying to do something here, something to break the book out of it's very white formula, but she made him deeply unlikeable in many ways. There was an arrogance to him that, when combined with his "outsider" status, made me fail to connect to him over and over again.

I also felt like the "twist" was thrown in for the sake of it - we could have easily known where things were going from the jump and still been equally satisfied. It was a little manipulative, and I think ultimately didn't serve the story overall.

Anyhow, this was a solid 3 star read for me. I think Clarissa and Rachel's stories and arcs were ultimately what redeemed it for me. Thanks to NetGalley and Dutton for the ARC.

Thanks so much Penguin Group Dutton and NetGalley.

This story follows four best friends and roommates after their senior year of college over a span of 15 years. It's so interesting how friendships evolve in your 20s and 30s. I appreciated how the author wrote about each character's highs and lows throughout this stage of life, as well as how they all drifted apart and/or became closer at various parts. She does such a wonderful job of making each character interesting, and I didn't find myself wishing for the next character's chapter.

I grabbed this book for the Sliding Doors promotion. It is much more a story about four friends - beginning at the end of college in 2016 through more then a decade. I enjoyed it but thought it was a bit more telling than showing for the characters which ultimately caused distance. The quarter life crisis that they experienced is all too real though and I would recommend this story to anyone in their 20's/30's who has more of a found family in their lives. #Dutton #WhoWeAreNow

3.5 rounded up. This felt a little fantastical at times and I found the Nate chapters particularly clunky, but it was overall well written and I think it really captures the post-college, quarter life crisis, sentiment. While they all seemed to almost do “too well,” it did also feel real. I’d be interested to read more from this author.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

From the beginning we know tragedy has struck, but we don't know who or what has happened. From there, we are taken back to the last days of college and the four friends whose lives we will follow as they grow and change into adults in the real world in the years after graduation. I love a family drama and these four friends fit the description of a found family with all kinds of drama. I LOVE this book. The last chapters had me in tears. An excellent depiction of friendships over time and life experiences.

I loved this one! This book follows four friends after college and is told through their different perspectives. I enjoyed the time jumps, and stories with different points of view really keep me engaged. I felt like I could really see myself in some of the characters, especially Rachel. If you like books about friendship and all that hits you during your thirties, this is a great one to pick up!!

Maybe it's timing, but this book just was not doing it for me. I found it hard to get invested in the characters. Again, it could be a case of timing but I just couldn't get there.