Rachel is an English literature student, working in a bookstore, and just trying to discover herself. At the job she meets James a fellow employee, who ends up turning her life upside down. They move in together and it is instant platonic love at first sight. Rachel begins to develop a crush on a married professor of hers, and James encourages her to pursue him. They devise a plan for him to launch his next book at the bookstore they both work at. Their plan does not go exactly to plan but her professor does become involved in their lives and so begins a complex relationship between James, Rachel, Professor Bryne and his beautiful wife.

This book really hit me in a special place because in uni I met a boy who I also had a very intense friendship with and although we did not stay friends past uni, I do look back on my time with him fondly. This book is a very good character exploration and what growing up and finding yourself means. Being in toxic romantic relationships and situations, can really shape you as a person. I just really really loved this one.

This book was so fun ! I loved Rachel’s character . She was beyond relatable and made me nostalgic for my early 20s. I also really enjoyed the friendship she had with James . This was such a great coming of age story . I literally read this in maybe a day so good !

LOVED this! Spent most of the first half chuckling away to myself and reading it in my head in an Irish accent. I love Irish Fiction so much. There’s something about the humour that just snaps for me. Very funny.

This is another of those 20-somethings finding themselves types of books about messy relationships, cheap rentals, part time jobs, Uni and drinking. James and Rachel are the platonic loves of each other’s lives and look out anyone who gets in the way. Told in a flash back style, they’re now both adults and Rachel is confessing in a tell-all tale about an ‘incident’ that occurred during their time as housemates.

I just really enjoyed it and don’t have too much more to add to the rave reviews that are already out there. If you’ve read it, and read her other book Promising Young Women – is it as good? I’d really love to read more from this author. Highly recommend!

I have been putting off reviewing this novel for weeks. I love this book, but I feel like I am far from the target audience. That being said I absolutely love and adore this story. Rachel’s story is not what you expect it to be in the most delicious way. Based on the blurb, I went into this book expecting something along the lines of My Dark Vanessa. Not that I have anything against that book, but I was so pleasantly surprised when this story took a sharp left turn from that sort of territory. As a millennial (zillenial??) American southerner, I have no reason to relate to a story about woman’s coming of age amidst the aftermath of the 2009 Irish recession. Or do I have every reason to relate?? I can’t decide. This sounds cliche, but this story is so real and raw that anyone could relate to Rachel and those around her. Rachel’s story is so sad you couldn’t make it up and so crushingly too good to be true in a way only real life can be. The fact that Caroline O‘Donoghue has captured this in a book is a triumph.

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf got the eARC of this novel.

One of my favorite elements of a great book is when I feel a genuine, deep connection with characters, a true sense of knowing them as if they were figures from my own "real world" life. Here, Caroline O'Donoghue masterfully does just that and I swiftly developed an affinity for Rachel and carried a distinct empathy for her through to the very last page.

O'Donoghue expertly balances moments of levity and humor with complex topics around abortion access and intergenerational coming out (or not) stories. Start to finish, this novel felt highly readable with beautiful prose and minimal fluff. I very much enjoyed O'Donoghue's nuanced approach to the complexities and inherent difficulties of both romantic and friendship love which are layered throughout The Rachel Incident's lush plot.

Also, for my fellow booksellers and indie bookstore loyalists, you will love the bits about Rachel and James' life at the bookshop and the honest portrayal of its eventual struggles.

Rachel is a 21 year old English major at Cork City College in 2010 when she falls in love with her English lit prof- Fred Byrne. Money is tight for although her father is a dentist, Ireland was is a financial crisis and she must work to pay her own college fees. She meets and clicks with James at the bookstore where they both work parttime, and decide to be roommates. James is a safe roommate - first of all, he is her best friend, and secondly, he seems effeminate (possible gay). She also falls in love with Carey, a golden boy from Derry who is her ideal.
After Rachel expresses her love of Fred (her prof), she and James devise a plan to promote Fred's book - The Kensington Diet - by arranging for a reading and book signing at the bookstore - with the idea that Rachel will be able to seduce him after the event. However, James also finds Fred captivating, and ends up having an affair with him (unbeknownst to his wife, Deenie).
The innocence of the characters was a little overdone and for me, the relationships never gelled. It felt that there were too many coincidences, and too many holes in the stories. I did appreciate the linear timeline, especially the major part of the novel told in Rachel's point of view.
I liked the ending - which was prefect for the book. It did seem to be a young adult book though. I felt that the author explored some issues which millennials could encounter including closeted homosexuality, loyalty, affairs, male-female friendships, cheating. I also thought that the author bright into play the issues of Abortion (in Ireland) and women's right to choose in a very sensitive and thoughtful manner. I think that she might have included more about the characters feelings and emotional reactions to the events in their lives.
I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and the opinions expressed are my own.

You ever have those moments when you look back at your younger self and go "WHYYYYYY." That is what this entire book felt like and then at the end, even Rachel realizes she was ridiculous at times. Fun read!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The Rachel Incident is a complex coming-of-age novel set in Ireland. The perfect pick for fans of Sally Rooney or Colleen Hoover.

A witty and emotional story about Rachel, a young student working in a bookstore as she finishes her English degree and tries to navigate her adult life. She and James, her closeted coworker and new roommate, struggle to make a living while finding romance and dealing with the insecurites and struggles of young adults. The university setting expertly captures a time in life where money is scarce and friendships are intense.

A substantial heartfelt romance that covers serious topics such as abortion, loyality and morality. I was pleasantly surprised by the depth and the unexpected turns that lead to a heart-wrenching climax. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Well, here it is - my favorite book of the year thus far. People compare O’Donoghue to Rooney + it’s too easy. Caroline’s story + style of writing has a lighter, more hopeful quality that really highlights the humanity + darkness of Rachel’s experiences. I saw a lot of myself in this character + appreciate her loyalty to James + the selfless pride she takes in his accomplishments. I’m grateful to have come across this book + will be hand selling it until the cows come home.

🧠 My Thoughts: This book was such a pleasant surprise! I had seen a few good reviews and was in the mood for a lit fic, so I decided to pick it up and ended up loving it. I highly recommend the audiobook as well. I feel like the narrator capture the tone of the book perfectly!
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WHAT I LIKED
❤️Coming of age story- really reminds you what it feels like being in your early 20's
😄A bit of a messy MC
Several really funny moments
🎧Audiobook narrator with an Irish accent
👨‍👨‍👧‍👧Really great side characters
📚I'm realizing I generally like the tone and humor of a lot (ok the few I've read) Irish literature
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WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE
📚 Nothing!

Wow a phenomenal book. Can't recommend enough, I absolutely loved it. One of my favorites of the year.

I loved loved loved this book! I didn’t pick it up right away, because I felt as if I had my fill recently of twenty-somethings muddling through life and making mistakes, i.e. books that are compared to Normal People. (I have a theory that all ‘new adult’ literary fiction is compared to Sally Rooney in the way that every psychological thriller in the aughts was compared to Gone Girl. I digress…) But I am SO GLAD all the rave reviews had me downloading it to my Kindle.
I enjoy Rooney’s work, but O’Donoghue’s did not read similarly to me, as the drama felt juicy, there’s a romance element, and the tone is more exuberant than introspective. Most importantly, it is narrated by the main character from her vantage point in the future, where she is wizened and somewhat settled. I love this type of narrative device, because of the intense curiosity it engenders of how this messy character can possibly evolve. And it is such a satisfying redemption story.
I laughed, I cringed, swooned and held my breath, wondering what would happen next. It was such a wild ride of friendships and falling out, affairs and misunderstandings, breakups and makeups. I think @Bretts.book.stack perfectly compared it to the feeling of Fleabag which I COMPLETELY agree with, and such a comparison should pique the interest of so many readers because who doesn’t loveeee Fleabag, whereas Normal People is so polarizing. (Also I just realized Brett has Caroline O’Donoghue on his new podcast, @gaysreading so I gotta go listen to that now...) If I had to make a comparison, I’d also say it reminded me of Marian Keyes, or even JoJo Moyes’ contemporary fiction - a must read this summer!

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf for the opportunity to read the ARC of the The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue. I very much enjoyed reading the story of Rachel and the situations she found herself in. It felt very real and I did check have to check that it was fiction. It was both a cringy and hopeful tale of friendship and love. I would shelf it as a coming of age novel. Rachel is a very flawed main character but I was rooting for her all the same. I listened to parts of the book on audio in order to finish it more quickly and I absolutely loved the Irish accent the narrator had.

Caroline O'Donoghue managed to capture such a universal, often overwhelming feeling of coming into adulthood in this captivating story following a pair of university-aged best friends in Cork whose complicated connection with a married couple ultimately alters the course of their lives. From the moment I started, I couldn't put it down.

A great coming of age novel. Definitely for fans of normal people. It starts in the present and then Rachel brings you into her world as she reveals the incident. I wanted more of the ending of this book.

I had a hard time getting into this one, it just wasn't for me. I didn't connect to the characters and it felt a bit disjointed.

This was everything I wanted in this book!!!
I loved the main character Rachel!! She did anger me at times in what she was doing but it was a very realistic sense instead of faking "good" characters. I found myself making noises out loud., talking to myself, laughing having some come on moments. I was invested., I have even now thought of actors etc to play all the characters and how it would all look.

I devoured this book. I love a coming of age novel and this one did not disappoint and had a satisfying full circle moment ending. I can't wait to recommend this one to friends who love Sally Rooney or a book set in a college setting. I need to read more from this author!

A wonderful novel. Presented so many different thoughts to my mind, and I loved the story. Definitely will be recommending this to my friends and followers!

the rachel incident shocked me almost immediately, ran straight away from my expectations and sucked me in. i couldn't put this down, and felt enraptured by the characters. caroline o'donoghue delights in each character, their personality, mannerisms, and humanity shining through each one. i found myself feeling for and yearning to comfort them. the friendship between rachel and james felt so real, as though every joke occurred and was experienced by real people who grew organically into their own places in the world. rachel's profound inability to think through her decisions felt so organic, i felt myself falling into the same holes and crawling myself out alongside her, and her growth in the end was natural and earned. this book was delightful for me, i felt heartbroken in rachel's struggles and patched up at the end.

thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the e-copy!