To be honest, it took me a little bit to get into The Rachel Incident, but I’m glad I stuck with it! The characters are funny and the writing is engaging. It gives “Will & Grace” vibes! It’s a great coming of age/transition to adulthood (and how tough that can be) novel!

I really enjoyed this book! I love books that take place in other countries, and I really enjoyed the characters. I found myself laughing often, and occasionally cringing. I could not put this book down. Thank you to Knopf and NetGalley for this ARC!

My fave RH rep put this in my hands and I loved it. Perfect summer read. I'm not sure it'll have super lasting lovability for me - but it hit the spot!

This was such a good read. I wasn't too sure what to expect since I went in blind and I am so glad I did.

The main protagonist is Rachel who is a bit of a loser who works in a bookstore with her BFF roommate, James, whilst attending University.

Rachel has a major crush on her professor. She ropes in James, and the two hatch a plan for her to seduce him in the bookstore. And that's when things go awry. Things don't go as planned and things get messy and complicated.

The author has done a fantastic job in writing such a beautifully flawed character.

Thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book! It had me gasp and awww aloud, get a little teary but most of all, it made me LAUGH. So many giggles. I feel like this book was written for older millennials, I remember so well everything Rachel is grappling with—the highs and lows of new adulthood and university. The inappropriate crushes that don’t pan out or maybe do too well. Yikes. The feel of making instant connection best friends who fill your heart and get you in a way you hadn’t experienced up til then or since. Living in battered houses, underpaid, with no money but still going out—wild and free. Trying to love and fucking it up over and over. Just figuring things out like life, career, dreams, ambitions while all the while living off girl dinner and making so many horribly embarrassing stupid mistakes that were mostly only rumours because this was before social media really took over our lives and the internet was forever.

The Rachel Incident is about two such best friends—Rachel and James who find each other working at a bookstore and then, immediately close, move in together. It’s about how one of them starts an affair with a married prof and the short and long fall out from the impulsive choices we make and can’t back down from. It’s about love and loss and finding yourself. But above all it’s about friendship. The kind that grows with you, supports you, shores you up. The kind that last forever in whatever capacity you can give it. I loved the friendship at the core of this book, it was so familiar and loving to me. I could have read about them for all of their years. Never wanted it to end. The scandalous hook was also surprising and took some twists I didn’t expect. The Irish atmosphere of the novel was at my sweet spot and this is definitely going to be one of my favourite books of the year. *swoon*

There were parts of this that I loved and parts I couldn’t get into. I just couldn't connect or dive into this story. I think it would have been more enjoyable if I would have set aside blocks of time to be able to dive into the story longer.

"I was twenty and I needed two things: to be in love and to be taken seriously.”

The Rachel Incident is a beautiful written slice of life from the perspective of young twenty something. Their experiences and stories are viseral and the prose is entrancing. This book feel like catching up with a friend and ending with the punch of gratefulness and understanding that comes with growing up.

I really reccommend this read to those that love Sally Rooney and even those that don't. This is the book that is everything Sally Rooney isn't.

A giant thank you to our author, Netgalley and Knopf publishing for providing me with an advanced eGalley copy of the book. This book is out now!

I am actually genuinely convinced that I read a different book than everyone else.

I have seen countless positive reviews for this book and I am just sitting here, scratching my head, wondering where I went wrong. I did not enjoy the dual timelines and the way in which they were written. Most of the time it felt unclear to me which timeline we were in. I pretty much hated Rachel the whole way through. She's very selfish and is deeply uninteresting. There really isn’t a plot. The whole book moves at a snail’s pace. Maybe i’m the problem here, but I just did not enjoy this one.

I absolutely loved this book! It transported me right back to the same time in my own life. The characters felt relatable, I loved the themes it covered, and I was hooked right the way through.

This amusing novel will appeal to fans of Irish novels, gay characters, and Will & Grace. Since it got so much hype, I expected to like it more than I did.

This book took me awhile to get into. However, once I was in, it went so fast and quick. I loved Rachel and her story.

I enjoyed this book! The characters trying to find themselves in their early 20s while encountering adults who are still trying to find themselves resonated with me.

Rachel was flawed but who could blame her, she was starting to navigate her own self. I enjoyed the ending because it was true, it wasn't her story to tell.

Rachel is an English Literature student working in a Cork bookshop when she meets James Devlin. They rapidly become best friends and move in together, riding out the 2010 depression as low earning young people with bigger dreams than their cold flat and poor salaries are currently giving them. Their lives and friendship are shaped by James Carey and Dr Byrne.

Narrated by Rachel from the (near) present day, the story focuses on events in 2010. This is a slow burn character driven book. There is plot, but it’s not really so important. It comes together beautifully towards the end and is both gentle and honest. An enjoyable read.

This was such a fascinating, gripping novel! I loved following our protagonist and her exploration of the college years/experience. Highly recommend!

So firmly of its time and place, I honestly felt like I was there. The surprises at the end were the most delightful

What I loved about this book:
1. Writing style - I loved the way she created the journey for you to explore and follow.
2. Loved the friendship, the humor and the celebration of being young!
3. Ending was my kind of ending!

What I didn't like as much:
1. I did not find Rachel to be a sympathetic character and didn't like her - she was whiny and weak!
2. I wanted the 1st half of the book to be as strong as the 2nd half of the book!

Many thanks to NetGalley, Knopf, and Caroline O'Donoghue for an ARC of this book!

such a good bildungsroman read. it was well written contemporary filled with messy characters and a chaotic plot. such a nuanced and witty plot/dialogue as well. loved loved loved.

This is the perfect novel about coming of age and the transition to true adulthood and how decisions can lead you down different paths. 4/5 stars

I absolutely LOVED this book. Its hands down one of my favorite books of 2023. Rachel is such a good character and I loved the coming of age story. There are so many elements I loved - the back and forth in time and the relationships Rachel has with both of the James's. I especially love a good story that takes place on a college campus and while this one didn't necessarily revolve around college, the professor and Rachel's interactions with her professor were so captivating to me. I seriously loved this book. Five out of five stars!!!

I so tried to get into this story but it just didn't hold my attention. I have to be drawn in immediately to a novel I'm sure it's a delightful story but just not for me. It felt too dry and uninteresting. I'm sure others will enjoy it.