Told from the perspective of protagonist Rachel Murray, "The Rachel Incident" takes place predominantly in the past, as Rachel looks back on her late college years and the events that led her to the present. As a twenty one year-old in the small town of Cork, Scotland, Rachel finds that most of her present life revolves around roommate James Devlin, a closeted gay man who works at the same bookstore she does, and her literature professor Dr. Bryne, who Rachel develops a fascination over despite knowing that he's married. As many college students are, Rachel has a difficult time keeping her life in order, and watches as the lives as those around her become more and more intertwined - resulting in devastating consequences.

It's difficult to describe this novel as there isn't one clearcut plot; if anything, it's very much a modern coming-of-age in all of the messiness and complexity of today's society. I struggled to get through the beginning half of the novel given the slow pacing and the fact that Rachel's character is difficult to empathize with; a number of her decisions are questionable and morally ambiguous and it wasn't until much later in the novel when she's forced to make a difficult sacrifice did I get invested in her as a person. I would have loved for more focus to be put on her time in London once she gets older and develops her professional and personal life further, as I feel like this period is glossed over.

O'Donoghue's writing style is thoroughly enjoyable and held me throughout the novel, despite my initial doubts about the protagonist as a whole. It's a slow build, but I think many readers will see aspects of themselves in Rachel and the obstacles she faces.

This is one of those books that you get quickly sucked into and next thing you know, it's been two hours and you're unable to put it down. I absolutely loved Rachel from page one. An interesting and complicated MC who is able to honestly reflect on her past? Banger. I thought the past/present changes worked very well and I enjoyed seeing the difference in narrative tone between 20 year old & present Rachel. An interesting novel that really gets the mess your early twenties and an insightful look into "small"-town Ireland.

This is not a 'feel good' book; it is a feel everything book. Reading The Rachel Incident is like looking in a rearview mirror, seeing things with both a hint of nostalgia and the clarity of new information. The past is ever-evolving, seen through the lens of this present and this present and this newest present moment. O'Donoghue's writing is raw and honest and feels more like a memoir than novel.
There is no shortage of slice of life books about messy women coming of age in a time that seems nearly hopeless, with depressingly few job prospects and even fewer dating prospects-- and that's to say nothing about the quality of the limited quantity in either field. But in O'Donoghue's hands, this book excels where other contemporaries languish in their own attempts at importance. Her writing is artful, but without artifice or the frustrating cycle of self sabotage that so often plague the females of these sorts of books. Rachel is not without flaws, but she is not nearly as unbearable as many of the characters who wear their multiple diagnoses and existential ennui on their shirt sleeves.
Perhaps what I loved most about this book, besides Caroline O'Donoghue's writing prowess, is that there is a satisfactory ending. So often, books like this wind up trailing off, without any closure, either as a way of mirroring life or because there was no actual plot, so the author couldn't seem to come to a proper ending. But here, we're given a sense of closure so that the book as a whole feels like it had a purpose and it possessed a north star the entire time.

This has a great sense of time and place, but I couldn't get a grip on the characters. Rachel's slacker university senior year, no-budget partying, and clumsy, selfish relationships kept me at a distance. She is sort of the polar opposite of a manic pixie dream girl—tall, uncertain, and reactive. But we never know enough about the other characters to round out her relationships. Her spiraling and floundering doesn't generate tension, because in the first chapter we learn everything turns out OK. Rachel is happily married and healthily pregnant. James is a successful screenwriter in New York.

Maybe if I was Irish or English, this period piece from the 2010 recession would connect. But it didn't.

A VERY EXCITING JUNE RELEASE that I think should be THE book of the summer. I want to see it at the pool and on planes for beach trips. It has friendship, coming of age, university scandal but also a ton of heart and poignant writing. It is Normal People but with plot. I loved it and need to see the characters on screen. Releases June 27th, thank you @netgalley @czaronline and @aaknopf for the advanced copy!

Nostalgic and bittersweet, this book takes us through the ups and downs of youth, friendship and just figuring your life out. Who can you trust and will the friendships you make stay with you.

Author O’Donoghue writes with such a steady hand, with finely-drawn characters and a real sense of place. It’s a stretch to call this book funny, but I found myself laughing at the perfection of some of her characterizations in a smart, smart book about people making some dumb choices - which is par for the course with lead characters in their very early twenties.

Where the book is incredibly incisive is the fact that the choices its characters make, and the availability of those choices, is always a function of their economic stations and the political environment of Ireland. It’s not a polemic, but it has a sharp perspective on the landscape in which its characters residence.

My only reservation with the book is that it’s a little flabby, development-wise, in its midsection, with not much happening to get the couple of key on-again/off-again relationships out of their rut. But ultimately the book moves forward with confidence and really brings it home in a lovely ending.

Many thanks to Knopf and NetGalley for the advance reader’s copy.

I found The Rachel Incident to be interesting, engaging, and highly readable. I think it would make an awesome audiobook, as well. I finished college around the same time as Rachel with a degree that wasn't very marketable during the 2008 crash. I haven't read clever, heartwarming, and realistic books that focused on what it was like being a college student, on the cusp of graduation, knowing there were minimal job prospects. I love Rachel's relatability. She is smart, funny, kind of a mess, but working towards some sort of future. The topic of sexuality is also accurate. James coming out, but not really coming out, was pretty spot on for the time period. I enjoyed how each character was a little lost. No one was cookie cutter and that reflected the struggles of the '08 crash much more accurately than the cookie cutter ideals of a degree in finance, internship, and six figure job immediately out of college. I loved this book and will recommend to all. 4.5/5

The Rachel Incident, by Caroline O'Donoghue, was basically a one-sitting read for me. The plot's twisty and emotional, full of realistic early-twenties intensity, with a much-older professor, who's really chasing that early-twenties vibe.

For me, characters are the driving force of most fiction. When I enjoy a novel, I'm invested in their choices and in what happens next. I don't need to like all the characters, though, and The Rachel Incident is full of characters veering into unlikeable territory, all these people doing unpleasant or unlikable things for terribly realistic reasons. I loved the intensity, even as part of my brain screamed geez, no, what are you doing? How could this possibly end up well? at Rachel, at James and, actually, all of the characters.

Rachel and her bookstore coworker James fall into an intense college-age friendship, almost immediately becoming roommates and besties, spending every minute together.  Rachel has a crush on her married professor, and sets up a reading at the bookstore for his obscure new book. No, actually, I didn't buy that she wanted to have sex with him, more that she wanted to be him -- literary, successful, adored. Their romance doesn't take off, but the night of the reading takes an unexpected turn for Rachel, setting the rest of the story in motion and leading to a series of secrets, compromises, and revelations over years in her life.  It's wild, but the intensity is also realistic, in the way that attending or skipping one party in our twenties can change a life's course for years to come.

The Rachel Incident is mostly character-driven, with complicated, believable relationships, but it also contains clever, realistic observations on class and on literary culture.  There is an entire load of angst, secrets, and manipulation to get there, but at one point Rachel has a lit internship and she wants both to get the creative success she sees around her, and also, if she's so on track for that, to finally earn some freaking money.

Look, the angst and the drama is all real, and I loved it, but there's a scene at the end in which Rachel describes her writing career as an underpaid good time, where occasionally a company will send her a promo scarf. I have never heard low-level creative life summed up so well. Writing, in fiction, is almost always about a character telling their deepest darkest truths and turning that into money and acclaim. Or it goes the absolute other way, and the artist refuses all money to stay true to their artistic vision. It was amazing to read about a character who was using her lit background, thinking about books and pop culture, enjoying the fringe benefits, and getting small checks from it.

It was also a solid resolution to the story, bringing out characters through to a stage of low drama and low(er) intensity, long after the Rachel incident.

I just reviewed The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue. #TheRachelIncident #NetGalley

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for my ARC in exchange for my honest review. This book will be published June 27, 2023.

21 year old Rachel has a crush on her professor and her platonic male roommate. She’s set to graduate this year and is looking for a job in publishing.

There are many relationships in this novel and lines get VERY blurred. No spoilers here but something unexpected happens in the middle and Rachel has to choose the money she desperately needs or to protect a secret.

There are some really REALLY funny parts, like the iPod getting stuck on a Paul Simon song and a funny game the roommates play.

Very clever story-telling. I really enjoyed the way the story unfolded.

This book seemed to go nowhere and I just couldn't connect with the characters.

Rachel and Jim, the two main protagonists are best friends, both in their 20's. They struggle to make a living in Cork, Ireland but a recession is taking place and they are earning next to minimum wage.

Jim is gay and is only partly out. He tries to fix Rachel up with her English professor but he ends up seducing him instead.

The writing is okay but not spectacular. The first half of the book meanders on as Jim and Rachel go to clubs, have sex, and dream of moving to London.

I wish I had liked this book more as I was drawn to the description. I felt, however, that I was just along for the ride without the novel grabbing me.

Wow I loved this book. This is the story of Rachel and the people close to her, all stemming from a formative period in her life. Every character is flawed yet wonderful and fascinating. The situations are often infuriating and intriguing at the same time. I longed to keep reading at all times. It was full of profound sentiments and funny anecdotes. It was witty and emotional. It is a story about a coming of age, a vital friendship, a life-altering romance, a pursuit for a career and the situations that threaten all of it. Want to start reading it all over again from the start.

My favorite quote:
“And so now, everyone I love is called James.”

"... and I believed this to be appropriate punishment for the way I acted as a twenty-one year old girl..."

Oh the number of times I have thought this about various decisions I made at various times in my life. The Rachel Incident is truly relatable and filled with laughs, sadness, grief, frustration... and fewer mugs than it began with. I would have been friends with someone like Rachel, heck I could have been Rachel myself. Do yourself a favor and take some time to read about Rachel and her James' both as a 21 year old college student and as a 30-something mother. They are both her, she is so many of us.

#netgalley #arc #therachelincident

The Rachel Incident follows best friends Rachel and James, who careen into each other's lives and stay there throughout all kinds of trials and tribulations. This book captures the feeling of being in your early twenties well, but doesn't shy away from the selfishness, messiness, miscommunications and general angst that comes with it. I cringed as I read, and I don't necessarily mean that as a bad thing.

However, I overall didn't care for this book. I found the relationship between James and Rachel to be toxic and had a hard time rooting for either of them. It was also more character-driven than I anticipated, and I found it to be a little slow. It's hard to get through a character study when you don't particularly care for the characters. From reading the reviews I'm clearly in the minority, and I think many people will find a lot to love in this book. Readers still fumbling their way through their twenties, as well as older readers who like to fondly look back to that time and think "thank god that's over" will probably enjoy the ride.

Such a great and fun book - perfect for a weekend read. I loved how Rachel and James build their relationship -- from coworkers to roommates. It was funny, easy to read, and I'll definitely be recommending to friends and family!

A true coming of age story that transported me back in time to living in the early 2010's and all of the uncertainty that came with it. Being relatively similar in age to Rachel, I also was able to identify with a lot of her struggles of that time in your life - work, friendship, and love (although I was a little more straight laced than she was!) - regardless of your experience, you can easily put yourself in her shoes and experience her version of that time like you were living it firsthand. While it was a quick and easy read, it did not come without some uncomfortable scenes and you wishing the characters made different choices, but those feelings made me realize how involved I was in the story. Thank you to NetGalley and Knopf for the ARC for my honest review of the book!

Thank you NetGalley…a million times for giving me the pleasure of reading and reviewing The Rachel Incident.
This character, Rachel Murray, to me, is this generations Bridget Jones, in that she is smart, funny, self deprecating and ripe for love. From page one, I knew I was in it for the long haul. Rachel’s story was so engrossing. I was rooting for her through all her wins and losses.
Rachel meets her best friend James while working together in a book store, putting herself through university. The chemistry between her and James is immediate and captivating to the reader. Throughout the ten years in which this book takes place, they support each other through true loves and family life.
All the characters have heart and are all amiable in their own way.
Once I finished this lovely book late into last night, I immediately went online and checked for other books by Caroline O’Donoghue, which I will be buying pronto!

The Rachel Incident was an interesting story of young group of Irish people and their families growing up, discovering themselves and the world around them, working long hour, for small wages. The young adults realizing that their choices have real life consequences and repercussions.
This was not a book that I would buy for someone else, or even wish to read again.
There was too much moaning and groaning about their lives.

What a book. It was such a beautifully written book about the trials and tribulations of millennials in the mid 00s.

When Rachel falls in lust with her college professor everything goes awry and not in the ways you'd expect.

I genuinely felt like I was walking the streets of Cork with Rachel and James & they will be a hard duo to forget. A story line that runs parallel to the Celtic Tiger boom & bust and two very important referendum in Ireland, it's a tale of love, lust & growing up that will grab every millennial and pull them into it.

I finished this book two weeks ago and I'm still thinking of it & very much have a book hangover.

Rachel is a relatively uninteresting 21-year-old Irish college student who basks in the glow of her best friend, James, and continuously makes poor decisions about the direction of her life and relationships. This is exactly why I adore her.

The Rachel Incident begins in the present day and rewinds to her fateful meeting of James, following through that storyline until it catches back up to, and moves past, where we started. Frankly, this story is much more about James than it is about Rachel. Two idiotic, desperate, and directionless, young adults entangle themselves in throes of lust and passion all while unsuccessfully avoiding personal development and their creeping futures. It’s funny, honest, and a frustratingly accurate representation of addictive qualities found in obsessive friendships and encounters in your early twenties. I had some gripes about the story of a gay man’s experiences being told through the eyes of a cishet woman, but it grew on me. I read O’Donoghue’s work in a record time of six hours and have only docked it a star for my struggle to invest in the story at first, as well as the occasional rambling monologues the protagonist would go on. I don’t think this is something I would re-read but I’m glad to have read it. Despite these things, it was captivating when it got there and read like a drama I would’ve frantically tweeted about if showing on Fox in 2015.