Caroline O’Donoghue has entered the chat! Chat of stories of Irish millennials trying to find their way around the world. Sally Rooney started this chat and it is ever growing! Finally us thirty somethings are getting enough attention to our bit boring, bit troubling, bit mundane lives.

Rachel wanted to write. She wanted to work in publishing. But she wouldn’t be able to do it in Cork. She had a good professor at the university who could opened the doors for her. She fell for him a bit, but she was in for a surprise. Her beloved friend, James, had something for her. Something that was going to make her somewhat miserable life a good deal miserable.

While it has somewhat “and they lived happily ever after” ending, I liked how this could be the lives of two random people. It was relatable and realistic. And in this story, life for women who need basic medical care in form of abortion was also hard. Surprised? No!

Thanks #netgalley for this book in exchange for an honest review. I got bogged down in the middle of this and almost didn't finish but it gets such good reviews that I finished. I have to say that this was mediocre for me. I enjoyed the start of the book but the middle was just boring for me and the ending felt too easy. 2.5 stars that I'll round up to 3.

This book transitioned easily through past and present time lines. It was easy to follow and at the end everything was buttoned up nicely. I was not expecting the ending and reveal of Rachel’s husband.

People are loving this and for good reason! What a fabulous read. I'm so grateful to get this ARC. Thanks netgalley & the publisher for sending, in exchange for my honest review.

It’s always easier to write reviews for books that weren’t for me because then I can critique them. Or books I think were amazing ‘cause then I can shout them praise.

I always have trouble with books I like, but don’t lean one way or the other. This novel was very well written, the characters were messy, and the story was messy, but that makes everything very real.

It’s about growing up and then growing apart. The characters struggle to figure out who they are and what they should be doing. Rachel and James are best friends, but co-dependent on each other until they reach a point in their lives where it’s time to separate and move on. They were there for each other until they outgrew each other, like friendships sometimes do.

In addition to their friendship there’s also their relationships. James’ secret affair with Rachel’s teacher, and Rachel’s messy relationship with Carey.

Rachel goes through a LOT in this book, and it was nice to see everything work out for her in the end.

Overall, I thought this was a good read. The author does a good job at making some big dramatic moments sort of quiet? If that makes sense? This book has a quiet powerfulness to it.

Some content warnings to be aware of: miscarriage, abortion, infertility

Thank you @netgalley and @aaknopf for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Unexpected gem. Loved it. People draw comparisons to Sally Rooney and, fair enough, but to me much funnier, sharper, and with a bit of Phoebe Waller-Bridge mixed in.

Thank you to Net Galley, the author, and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Caroline O'Donoghue once said, "I wrote this book, and it's a banger." And let me tell you -- she wasn't lying.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from The Rachel Incident. The cover and title, alone, were compelling enough for me. And yet, what I got instead was an incredibly nuanced story about friendship, sexuality, and coming-of-age.

Rachel is a young woman in college who develops a very minor crush on her professor, Dr. Byrne. However, it's not her that Dr. Byrne takes an interest in; it's her gay best friend and housemate, James. The amount of overlap that occurs between these three characters, alongside Rachel's actual love interest, Carey, and Dr. Byrne's wife, Deenie, makes for a compulsively readable tale.

While this feels adjacent to the currently popular sub-genre of sad girl lit fic, it's also unlike anything else I've ever read. As I was explaining the plot of this to my husband, he said something along the lines of, "Wow, so you really can't feel bad for any of the characters, can you?" But the truth of it is... I actually sympathized with every single one of them. Every character - Rachel included - says or does something that might feel potentially irredeemable. And yet, I credit the author for contextualizing this story well enough that I felt an investment in each of these characters. They were thoroughly humanized, making it very easy to forgive each of them for the wrongs they committed.

I don't want to be that person that says "if you like Sally Rooney, you'll like this one too," just because both Rooney and this author happen to be Irish women. But, I really did feel like the intricate web woven between these characters was reminiscent of Conversations with Friends, while still coming through as something uniquely its own.

All in all? This one really worked for me. And I'll be happily going back and reading whatever else Caroline O'Donoghue has written (all of which are probably also bangers).

This is one of those stories, where just from the synopsis, I think I know what I'm getting into. This book was different than I thought it was going to be and it was better than I thought it was going to be too. The character dynamics were so interesting and I found myself wanting to learn more about each of them.

Set in Cork, Ireland this book is about Rachel, a young college student, trying to make it on her own. She’s barely scrapping by and her love life is often in shambles.

From that brief description it sounds a bit familiar, right? I can think of a few other books with similar main characters, Normal People, Writers & Lovers, Maame, Queenie…those books are all very different but have a central female character in a similar stage of life. I loved all of those and I enjoyed this book too. It felt light enough for me not to be bogged down by a sad story, although there’s a seriousness to it as well. It had great balance and I think it will appeal to a wide array of readers. Plus set in Ireland - high probability I’m going to like it, and maybe that’s where the Sally Rooney comparison comes from but this is a very different writing style. It’s easier to digest and flows well.

It did not move me emotionally, though, not enough to be a capital L - Loved book; it was just enjoyable enough. Nothing wrong with that, a good solid read!
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The Rachel Incident is a rather flippant take on the messiness of an Irish girl growing into her adult self during her 20’s. All of the characters have many flaws and make countless bad decisions, which is both realistic and frustrating. Fortunately for them, their lives turn out pretty well in spite of their many errors (making the book a comedy rather than a tragedy). The story is written with the voice of the older, more mature Rachel, which I found to be a bit uncomfortable for some reason. Perhaps I felt a bit embarrassed for the older Rachel having to relive the cringey moments of her younger self. I would have preferred to hear them with the voice of young Rachel herself. I enjoyed the book but at the same time wanted to finish it quickly. I would give it 3.5 stars.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an ARC.

Disclaimer that as a Rachel it is possible this review is slightly biased. :D

This was an enjoyable litfic that I didn’t expect to enjoy as much as I did. O’Donoghue is clearly a talented writer, especially with characterisation, however I did feel that our main character was perhaps left in the background a little by the strength of the supporting characters.

While this story was interesting, creative, and realistic, it also read quite slowly and I did struggle a bit to find the motivation to pick it up. I was definitely invested in the characters, but overall the book felt like a long haul.

O’Donoghue definitely has a strong, unique voice and I’d definitely recommend this book to anyone that loved literary/Irish fiction. Make sure to check TWs before reading, I gave this one 3/5 stars.

This is a book that’s going to sit with me for a while. It was so well-crafted and understated, and I absolutely loved the writing style. Rachel is such a relatable character, whether it’s her insecurities, her dreams, her mistakes - she felt so rounded and real. The narrative structure was intriguing from the beginning, you’re being told a story directly from Rachel’s mouth, but you don’t know who she’s writing to or why or where this story is going to take us. I think this is one of those stories that benefits the most from not having too much information, but I will say that it’s an excellent story about love - in all its different capacities.

I saw someone say that this book is for Sally Rooney fans and I definitely agree with that statement. This story will whisk you away to Cork, Ireland and explore the life of a woman on the brink of change. She's experiencing the economy at its worst, she's graduating college with a degree she's unsure she can use and no job. Some struggles I think a lot of people can relate to. The writing was truly captivating and this book deserves all the hype its getting. If you like character driven stories that will draw you in, pick up The Rachel Incident!

A brilliantly funny novel about friends, lovers, Ireland in chaos, and a young woman desperately trying to manage all three.

I felt like I was reading a fresher version of a Sally Rooney novel. It also held an important message around women's reproductive rights, which I enjoyed being included. I wish the main event had happened sooner in the novel, but once it did occur, I wasn't able to stop reading. I would consider this a slow burn, but the payoff is excellent.

Caroline O'Donoghue is fantastic at immersing the reader in the story. I love anything to do with Irish young women growing into their own (see Derry Girls).

After reading the book, the title couldn't have been more perfect to describe the story. It is extremely appropriate to refer back to the time in a couple's life as "the rachel incident." While this is certainly a coming of age story, it is not humorous like the book description notes. It's more depressing than charming. It shows how the decisions someone makes can have unintended consequences on the people closest to you.
I am having a hard time reviewing this book without using spoilers or descriptors, so I will say that this was a well-written book even if it is not exactly how it's described. I can see this being made into a dramatic movie with undertones of reproductive rights.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of The Rachel Incident.

I requested this because I read some good reviews and I didn't think I would get approved.

I'm not the right audience for this since I'm not interested in Irish fiction unless it has to do with the fae.

I thought this was going to be about a student having an illicit affair with a teacher, and though an affair does happen with a teacher, it's not exactly what you might think.

I think my biggest issue was Rachel; I didn't like her personality. I found her needy and immature, but then I have to remind myself how young she is, just about to graduate from college.

I both loved and disliked her friendship with James. On one hand, I understand how strongly you can be attracted to a friend, it's happened to me; how close you can be, doing everything together, confiding in only each other

But, I wondered if it was a co-dependent relationship or that Rachel didn't have close friends of her own, and needed someone to glom onto. I didn't understand why they were so close.

The writing was good, I liked the tone, but the ending was too easy, almost corny in its simplicity.

The only thing I did like was how the author shone the spotlight on abortion and how freaking hard it is to get one, wherever you live, not just the USA.

I really enjoyed this. I loved the second chance romance and how it handles heavy topics without being too hard to read. This is a surprise favorite

Thank you as alway to Netgalley and publishers for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Rachel Incident is a coming of age novel about the twists, turns, and contradictions of being in your twenties. Caroline O'Donoghue is an incredible writer with a natural talent for writing characters that come off the page and feel like real world people in all their complicated glory. This is a beautiful book, my issues come in with the pacing and the way this was marketed. I personally don't feel that a heterosexual presenting main character with a gay male best friend should be marketed as a LGBTQ+ novel. As for the pacing, I found it inconsistent and at times, strikingly slow. All and all this is a wonderful novel but just not the novel for me personally.

Rachel, her best friend/roommate James, and her professor Dr. Fred Byrne become entangled in each other’s lives, complicating all their futures in ways that none could have imagined.
I was nervous to read this book because it was compared to Sally Rooney’s books which I don’t love. This particular “millennial” narration, however, worked for me in a way that Rooney never has. I thought the story was both realistic and clever. I did not seen any of what happened coming and thoroughly enjoyed the story.
Thank you to Netgalley and the author for this ARC!

Excellent read! It fits into the vein of Sally Rooney's books. Emotional, funny, reflective. Will recommend!!