4.5 stars.
Loved this one as much as I've loved all other Christina Lauren books I read. The premise of having a romance author be on a dating show that included all the best tropes of men? Love it. A British producer bantering with her throughout the book? Love it. The audience clearly seeing that chemistry and rooting for them. LOVE IT.
Fizzy and Connor had GREAT chemistry and there was a lovely balance of sexy, angsty, and comedy. Their flirting was top notch! I loved the different tropes Fizzy asked for with the men, including the one who got away and the 'cinnamon roll'. I typically don't watch reality dating shows but I would absolutely watch this one. Fizzy was a feisty character who knew what she wanted, including Connor. The progression from lust to love was so seamless and the scene on the beach was so intimate and sexy. Connor held his own and his relationship with his daughter was so lovely. He truly was a well-rounded character and a perfect match for Fizzy. Highly recommend this book for romcom fans as well as reality dating fans. Very entertaining and enjoyable.

I think I loved The True Love Experiment even more than I loved it's predecessor, The Soulmate Equation. Fizzy is a fun and spunky lead that you can't help but fall in love with as soon as we met her in book 1. Connor is the perfect curmudgeon DILF, plus he's British, he's like the perfect combination of romantic heroes in one. Christina Lauren has done it again and I cannot wait for their next book!

Another Christina Lauren for the books! I really enjoy everything that they write. It is always refreshing and so fun to read! I cannot wait to see what they come out with next!

I really enjoyed this romance. In the past Christina Lauren books have left me wanting a little something but this one delivered. I loved the chemistry between Fizzy and Connor; loved the female friendship focus and auntie relationships, and I loved the undercurrent of feminism that ran throughout. I also loved the spice level (whereas in the past, I was a little disappointed, not going to lie). This book will definitely make me reach for Christina Lauren picks in the future!

Thanks to Gallery Books and NetGalley for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

While I think this could have been better as a slow burn, I still loved it so much. I am thrilled when the main characters are romance enthusiasts or romance authors because there's so much leaning into the genre that it's always a blast. Fizzy does not disappoint. She wants her reality show to be stunningly full of romance tropes and I ate it up. Give me all the tropes, all the archetypes, everything.

4.999999 stars

FIZZY'S BOOK!!!

Fizzy is such a glorious character - so full of life! But, at the beginning of this book, her fizz has flattened. She's realized that despite being an acclaimed romance novelist, she's never actually been in love.

Connor Prince is a documentary filmmaker whose boss has tasked him with producing a reality TV show. Not, really his jam. But, then he creates a concept that has Fizzy looking for love, with all the traditional romance novel heroes - the Hot Nerd, the Cinnamon Roll, The One That Got Away, plus there's a tie into GeneticAlly the DNA matchmaking technology first introduced in the Soulmate Equation. Perfect!

Not only do we get a steamy tale of Fizzy and Connor's romance, we also get to revisit Jess, River, and Juno from The Soulmate Equation. It felt like being reunited with old friends.

The only reason this isn't a 5-star review is that my rule-following tendencies (legacy of Catholic school) were a bit stressed by Fizzy and Connor's clandestine romance, in direct violation of her contract. Gave me a bit of agita! lol

But, like in all good romances, all's well that ends well.

I can't believe I forgot to post this sooner. I am soooooo thankful to Gallery Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this digital ARC in return for an honest review.

These ladies really know how to pace a romance novel, and The True Love Experiment is no exception. A slow-but-not-too-slow burning Forbidden Romance between showrunner (Connor) and contestant center this book, with the added catch that the contestant (Fizzy) is a romance novelist. Very meta of them! I was charmed by all of the characters and found the relationships to be perfectly nuanced. I devoured this book in two days and I’m already looking forward to their next.

Another win for Christina Lauren! Thank you to NetGalley for this arc. I adored The Soulmate Equation and loved the chance to continue reading in this world through the effervescent character of Fizzy. It was adorable, fun, romantic and a great escape. The banter dialogue is absolutely my favorite and brings the characters to life. Would definitely recommend reading The Soulmate Equation first and then dive into this one for Fizzy’s story!

Add another hit to Christina Lauren's list, because this book is wonderful! A reality tv show on dating, sold! Fizzy Chen is a popular novelist that can't seem to write her next bestseller, so what can she do to kickstart herself into writing again? Be the star of a reality tv show about dating that her new friend and love interest, Connor, is producing. They can only be friends, it would be terrible for both of them professionally if they should become something else and who else is Frizzy going to rely on to help her select her perfect match? She has some amazing choices, but who will she pick in the end? This contemporary romance will keep you laughing, cheering, and guessing to the end!

MEET MY NEW FAVORITE CHRISTINA LAUREN NOVEL!!

Fizzy Chen is EVERYTHING and she absolutely deserved her own book and HEA. You’ve never met or fallen in love with a better cinnamon roll than the very British Connor Prince III.

I love a good Christina Lauren novel, and The True Love Experiment is one of the best they’ve put out in a long time (in my humble opinion!) I didn’t realize until I started it that it’s a companion novel to another CLo book I thoroughly enjoyed (The Soulmate Equation) but there’s something so special about The True Love Experiment that had me falling in love with Connor right alongside Fizzy.

I’m admittedly a reality tv junkie (yes, I’m still watching the dumpster fire that is the Bachelor franchise at this point along with many, many other shows) so the premise for this story was rightttt up my alley! I also love that it followed Fizzy, Jess’ best friend and romance author from The Soulmate Equation. The story borrows more than just characters from its companion novel- the main premise is that Fizzy stars in a reality show that determines prospective matches based on their DNA compatibility scores (using the app that River developed in the original book!) I loved that this story continued on to show how River’s app was still working and impacting the world, but I absolutely adored Fizzy’s spin on the show and having the leads all be cast to fit a stereotypical romance archetype- I need a show like this in real life ASAP.

As much as reads who are familiar with and love Fizzy from the previous book, I find love interest Connor to be a charming co-lead. A single Dad who manages to co-parent peacefully (and is even still friends with) his ex-wife, he’s Fizzy’s producer and definitely off limits (getting too cozy with a producer has caused many a reality tv scandal IRL). I liked his depiction as a warm and perhaps somewhat nerdy but really earnest character who is so supremely in over his head with Fizzy but still somehow manages to hold his own. I was also intrigued by how flawed he is, and how his past indiscretions impacted his relationship with Fizzy. Yet at the same time their chemistry was off the charts, especially toward the end (View Spoiler » and while it took longer than I anticipated for them to get together, I though the story did a great job building the tension between them, and I love how Fizzy roped him into being an interviewer on the reality show too.

What really cinched this story as being a 5 star read for me was the ending. THE ENDING. I can’t say too much without spoiling it, but it was fantastic and heart wrenching and swoony all at the same time. I know romance novels are generally known for having a HEA but there was something so special about this one and how much of a grand gesture it was. I truly felt like I was watching it live on tv.

Overall: One of the best CLo books in recent memory, chemistry was off the charts and the plot was super original while still building nicely on one of their previous novels.

This upbeat story about love and friendship and romantic relationships will lighten your heart and bring a smile to your face. Hallmark needs to snap this one up! Snappy, flirty dialogue to fun, relatable characters - it’s sure to have you leave you in a good mood!

The author duo Christina Lauren are my FAVORITE authors on the planet! I cannot recommend their books enough. We’ve all been waiting for Fizzy’s story and it was worth the wait!! You will not be disappointed

I absolutely LOVED this book! I adore every book Christina Lauren writes and this is one of my absolute favorites! Fizzy is absolutely fantastic and the chemistry between her and Connor was sizzling! The True Love Experiment delivered everything I love about a Christina Lauren book: the banter, the steam, the deeply romantic plot line, and more. I already wish I could read it again!

I loved it! It was cute and funny and delightful. It was super fun to read. Loved the characters, laughed out loud, and cried too. It should be a movie!

I absolutely adored The Soulmate Equation and when I found out that Fizzy was getting her own story I may have squealed! This story did not let me down and had all the shenanigans and banter that I was craving.

I cannot get enough of this duo's writing! I will forever be a fan and always looking forward to what they release next.

CLO never disappoints -- I'll admit, I didn't read THE SOULMATE EQUATION, so I was a bit nervous to jump into Fizzy's story, but I never should have worried. THE TRUE LOVE EXPERIMENT can absolutely be read as a stand-alone (and made me bump TSE up on my tbr list!). Fizzy and Connor's chemistry is undeniable, and Fizzy is a heroine you cannot help but to love. She's funny, charming, self-deprecating, smart as hell, and confident in her own greatness, and the book will make any reader regret that they can't also watch her star in a reality dating show! The insider baseball is catnip for romance aficionados, and Christina Lauren deserves SO MUCH praise for the innovations they're making in the genre. THE TRUE LOVE EXPERIMENT is somehow a book that incorporates a dozen standard-fare romance tropes and completely upends typical genre conventions at the same time! The plot structure is one for aspiring writers to study, frankly. CLO proves yet again that they are leading the pack when it comes to smart, funny, spicy contemporary romance!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

𝙎𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙨 𝙛𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙖 𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖 𝙙𝙤𝙘𝙪𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙛𝙞𝙡𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙧 𝙟𝙤𝙞𝙣 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙛𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙛𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙃𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙮𝙬𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙗𝙤𝙩𝙝 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡—𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙞𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙢𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙮 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙛𝙛 𝙨𝙘𝙧𝙞𝙥𝙩.

📍 Read if you like:
• Friends To Lovers
• Found Family
• Forced Proximity
• Reality TV

I was obsessed with this story and these characters. I have read a few Christina Lauren books and not a single one was a five-star read until I read this one. I loved this book so much and it blew my expectations out of the park - this is the romcom of the year!

Normally I don’t reread books, but I’m already anticipating picking this book up in the future.

I read The Soulmate Equation back in January this year so I was very excited to get Fizzy’s story. I just wasn’t expecting to absolutely love her love story.

Fizzy and Connor were both adorable and I loved the forced proximity on this reality tv/dating show. It was so beautiful seeing their love story unfold through the book.

There were also so many side characters I adored. I really hope some of them get their own happily ever after - please!!

I can’t explain how much I loved the reality tv aspect of the book. I think it was so interesting with Fizzy being a romance writer and Connor being a producer of the show, while also caring for his daughter Stevie.

Fizzy was such a funny and lovable character, and Connor was the perfect love interest for her. You could tell they have a very strong chemistry with each other from early on. The friends-to-lovers trope grew so much throughout the book.

The banter was also so good in this book, and I wasn’t expecting this to be as steamy as it was… Christina Lauren, I see y’all!

While this could technically be read as a stand-alone, this is one of those series I highly recommend to read in order… it does spoil some things from the first book. It’s so worth reading both books!

Thank you so much NetGalley and Gallery Books for the review copy in exchange for my honest review!

•𝗧𝗪/𝗖𝗪: Sexual content, cursing, infidelity, pregnancy, alcohol, miscarriage

4 - adorable and steamy book that took me too long to read. Fizzy and Connor’s chemistry was off the charts from the very beginning, and I loved how they understood each other. I’m glad that they gave Fizzy her own book - she deserved one! I also think the concept of a reality dating show where the audience decides is pretty great. Even though I knew they’re be a HEA, I was still dreading the part where they would undoubtably not be able to be together for a bit. Another good one by CL!

I was so excited when I received a copy from Gallery Books for this new Christina Lauren’s book. More specifically that it was a story for the romance novelist character Felicity Chen back in the Love Equation and I can’t get to it fast enough! I truly adored these characters, the unique storyline and the undeniable chemistry between the characters. If Love Equation was a great take on genetic dating, this surely was a different style of reality TV and I could not agree any better. I am usually not a fan but if the reality TV is done this way, I would not mind binge watching it.

Fizzy and Connor are so adorable! I can’t even find the words to describe how they just hit it off right from the start! I am falling in love right alongside with them. RomComs are usually hit or miss with me but this sure definitely was a big hit. I was sad it has to end and the curtains to the show closed because I was wanting more.

Fast read and perfect for the summer! In true. Christina Lauren fashion, it has the right amount of entertainment, the most perfect character development and the hottest leading man I would not mind snagging for myself !

Thank you Gallery Books via Netgalley for the e-ARC in exchange of my honest review.