I love books like this that really dive into an imperfect narrator/main character. This book is great for fans of The Coin by Yasmin Zaher.

First half ingadge Turing the age and did the audio
I liked the dating experiment and her hits and thoughts on her spreadsheet
Funny and a bit deep in some ways then about 50% of the book lost me took a turn sad and felt disconnected to the first half
And kept lingering one a bit to slow and long

What started out irreverent and some how also pretentious, evolved into something raw and heart wrenching with a beautiful ending.
The beginning had a lot of people thrown at you, beautiful prose and a lot of references that made me feel kind of stupid. I have a pretty good vocabulary but this one was a little beyond me. Looking back I guess that was accurate to the characters as I do not have a literary degree and they do.

All in all, it was kind of a wild ride but very unique. Thank you Netgalley for the copy of the audiobook!

An "it was always you" rom-com, but also a literary, feminist Indo-Iranian-American coming-of-age saga.

An ode to rom-coms really, with a respectful nod to English and Muslim literature and academia, both as a career and a way of life.

Includes a positive mother-daughter relationship, all things considered.

A recent PhD graduate, now adjunct professor, finds herself grappling with decisions in both her personal and professional life. Striving to please her successful mother in who is also in academia, the narrator receives word that her position will no longer be funded, and she loses her graduate student housing, thus impacting her greatly.
Determined to make changes, she embarks on an effort to go on 100 dates over the course of a summer. While this is categorized in several genres, I would caution readers who are looking for solely romance. This is a complicated novel that involves how one’s culture comes into play into making them who they are and who they wish to be.
The author narrated the audio and provided inflection and intonation where needed. Many thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the advance copy. All opinions are my own.

✨ Review ✨ Liquid by Mariam Rahmani

Thanks to Algonquin Books, Hachette Audio, and #netgalley for the gifted advanced copy/ies of this book!

The Iranian-Indian American narrator of Liquid is an underemployed adjunct professor with a best-friend poet Adam trying to figure out how she’s going to survive in Los Angeles without a job. She decides golddigging is the solution -- she decides to go on 100 dates over the summer to try to find a rich spouse, but ultimately, her dating finds LA’s rich men and women are predominantly white, boring, not adequate, etc.

The story shifts after her dad has a heart attack and she ends up on a plane back to Tehran, living in his home, while he’s in the hospital. It explores her relationships with her mom and her dad, and a neighbor who she hooks up with multiple times while staying there. I really appreciated the reflection on 21st-century Tehran, and the legacies of its fraught relationship with the US (lack of access to hospital equipment, uneven gendered rights, etc.).

This is a hard book because I loved it and I hated it - it made me laugh so hard and roll my eyes at the portrayal of academia, because it's so on the nose! But it's also so highbrow and critical that sometimes it over-the-top frustrated me. I loved the idea of a golddigging underemployed academic, whose PhD is in marriage and literature. I am obsessed with the focus on the dating spreadsheet (and even more with the spreadsheet excerpt that appears between parts of the book). But I also wanted to put this down and quit repeatedly too and that makes it hard to rate. In the end, I'm glad I stuck with it, but it was not an easy journey...which is maybe some of the point. This is a book to read and struggle with, but it's not for the light of heart.

Genre: literary fiction
Setting: Los Angeles, Tehran
Pub Date: March 11, 2025

This novel follows an unnamed narrator as she tries to figure out her future in life and love. It is a reflective look at her life as a half-Iranian and half-Indian woman living in the US and what that means. I really enjoyed the introspection of the character and learning about her life. The second half of the novel was very different from the first, but I liked it and thought it showed how the difficult circumstances were helping her grow and learn. I don't think I would call this a love story in the traditional sense, but I thought this was a quick, interesting read. I got an ALC from NetGalley, and it was read by the author and I thought she was a fabulous narrator for this novel.

This will absolutely be one of the most memorable books I read all year. I finished it a few days ago and I can’t stop thinking about it. And here’s the thing- I didn’t love it. It’s one of those novels you read knowing that it’s well written, but too smart for you, so you try to push through but get bored somewhere along the way. Until of course, you’re one week post the lackluster ending and the story resides rent free in your brain. It’s perhaps the subversive and often flippant tone of dating in the first half of the book, married with the depth and complexity of grief and culture and family pressures of the latter half that really made me think. Our heroine may start out looking for someone with the liquid assets she’s picturing, but along the journey, she finds more than she planned. And yet- it’s not at all a hallmark movie ending here. It’s uncomfortable and realistic and messy. Literary fiction for the academia audience for sure. 3.75 ⭐️ I think?

Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the opportunity to listen to and review this audiobook.

hmm, this is an extraordinarily well-written novel that doesn't really strive to have a rounded out plot, it just exists in the land of vibes and reminded me quite a bit of Elif Batuman's The Idiot - that's a truly accurate comp.

our protagonist is Iranian-Indian American and she's just trying to exist in a post-academic world where being and flourishing means finding employment. much like most of us who went to school, her degree isn't doing much for her. jobs are few and far between. jobs that pay a living wage are fewer and further between.

over a dinner with her bff adam, present to dissect the latest exploits of his bad girlfriend who regularly cheats on him, adam tells her she's going to have to marry rich. and it's bleak in that way that the world is kind of bleak now - dark humor that suggest we all need to make choices we may not love in order to survive in the world. but our protagonist takes him seriously and decides that she'll go on 100 dates with the intent of finding a spouse. kudos here for the queerness. the dates that she ends up going on are bad, but they swiftly come to an end when her father has a heart attack and she has to go back to tehran to be with her family.

for me, the second half of the book was more engaging and interesting. though i liked our protagonist's plan to go on 100 dates, i feel like those dates were written about like bits she was telling and not as though i was reading a story. the second half was so much more successful in this and i felt like i learned more about who our protagonist was instead of just what she was doing. as a result, the book felt a bit disjoined.

i'm not sure what the main message was. maybe that love comes in lots of different forms? if so, the message i'm not sure was clear. that said, i do think this was extremely well-written and though it came off slightly pretentious, i really loved the style and would read from this author again.

Thank you to Netgalley for the arc audio of this story. It was short listen, but very enjoyable. I recommend listening to it. The narrators voice was very good.

I did not finish this book. I couldn't get into this book, Content was way too much for me. The narrator/tone made me super uncomforable.

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

I started this book with low expectations, especially since the title “Liquid” is so vague, but I finished pleasantly happy, albeit still not understanding the title.

It’s the story of an unnamed American narrator of Iranian-Indian descent living in LA. Finding herself adrift having been laid off from her university position, she ventures in her own thesis based on our favorite romcoms to find a rich husband. However, the story takes a turn when her father has a heart attack and she’s forced to return to Tehran. What starts as a journey to find her rich husband, becomes a journey of self-discovery across two different continents and three different cultural identities.

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Advanced listener copy courtesy of netgalley- This was a book I was really excited to read. I felt very attached to the protagonist. Her struggles to find a rich partner all while struggling through a career in academia, as a child of immigrants felt very real. I thought it was pretty funny too.
The narrator was great too! I liked her voice.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the advanced listening copy of Liquid! Narrated by the author herself, Rahmani brings a personal depth to the story that lingers long after the final words. Her delivery blurs the line between fiction and lived experience, making the protagonist’s journey feel all the more intimate.

At its core, Liquid follows an unnamed protagonist navigating the tension between her Iranian-Indian heritage and American upbringing. In a calculated effort to fulfill her family's expectations, she launches a dating experiment—100 dates by fall semester, with the ultimate goal of marriage. While the premise suggests a chaotic, romcom-style adventure, the book instead takes a more analytical approach. The protagonist remains emotionally detached, treating romance as an academic pursuit rather than a personal journey. When a family crisis pulls her back to Tehran, she is forced into introspection, but her abrupt realization and the book’s conclusion feel more like an intellectual shift than an organic emotional transformation.

While Liquid defies romcom conventions, it offers a compelling exploration of love, culture, and expectation. Readers looking for a heartfelt, character-driven romance may find it lacking in warmth, but those intrigued by the intersection of logic and tradition will appreciate its unique approach.

Some books defy easy categorization, and "Liquid: A Love Story" by Miriam Rahmani is one of them. Part edgy romantic comedy, part introspective drama, this novel takes a hard pivot halfway through—and while that transition is a bit jarring, I ultimately didn't mind it.

The first section drops the reader into the world of modern dating in Los Angeles. The book follows an unnamed half-Iranian woman navigating romance, relationships, and the expectations we collect from the media and society. Then, suddenly and seemingly out of nowhere, the novel shifts dramatically. The second half takes place in Tehran, where the narrator must focus on family, culture, and identity. It's a bold shift, and while it works in some ways, the abruptness makes the book feel like two different stories pieced together.

As much as I enjoyed the main character's perspective—an observant, sometimes wry, sometimes exasperated narrator—I didn't actually like her all that much. The book's first half meanders without a strong plot, and while I did enjoy the second half significantly more, the ending felt lacking. And not in a "quiet, contemplative" way, but in an "is that it?" kind of way.

That said, Rahmani has a sharp and witty style that often made me laugh, and there were moments that I felt on a very personal level. And the audiobook was a great option for this story. Usually, I'm wary of authors narrating their own work (it's hit-or-miss), but Rahmani gives a smart and believable performance that enhances the overall story.

While "Liquid: A Love Story" didn't entirely win me over, I enjoyed Rahmani's writing enough to want more. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for whatever she does next.

Thank you to NetGalley, Hachette Audio, and Algonquin Books for the advanced reader's copy; all opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sharp and witty novel. I found the narrator compelling and smart, and I very much appreciated the parallels the novel draws between dating and navigating the academic job market.

I don't know, I understand why some people might like this, but I found it a bit of a struggle.
I am not a spreadsheet girlie, I am not super analytic, I am not a data person, so maybe that is why? The audio production was fine, it was kind of dull to be honest?
High level prose, complicated thoughts on culture, love and death.

Oh I wanted to this to work for me so bad. I thought I understood what was trying to be done with this story but I'm not sure I actually do. I've seen in a few other reviews people say things like "what love story??" and I 100% agree. I cannot find one.

I'll start with the good, because I do have a few very important positives to this one:
-The spreadsheet of dates and traits about them was hilarious. Literally made me laugh out loud
-The insights about growing up Muslim and living in the US amidst the 9/11 crisis and even still to this day was so valuable, heartbreaking, and a perspective that I genuinely hope to read more of in the future. I could tell that the author poured a lot of their heart and soul into writing these things, and it doesn't go unnoticed/unappreciated. It also made me realize an unintentional gap in my reading, as I haven't read many books with characters of similar cultures and upbringings, and I will definitely be seeking out more.
-The audiobook narrator did an excellent job. While I had actually already purchased a physical copy of this book myself, I was provided a copy of the audiobook by the publisher. I almost entirely read this one listening to the audiobook and following along in the physical book, and my reading experience was definitely better for it.
-There were some absolutely beautiful and very thought provoking quotes in here. Many I cannot say due to spoilers, however a few that are early on/spoiler-free:

"There had been a single hiccup in the sentence between me and the handsome stranger, an em dash in a comma's place: he'd paused when I reached to unbutton his jeans. Clearly I wasn't the woman he thought I was, and this was not a woman's place."

"Know thyself. It seemed to me now that this, if anything, had been whispered in Eve's ear at Eden, this had caused humanity's fall. Each day on earth this edict drove us, self-knowledge an asymptote that only death would collapse."

"In my dissertation--in what, against increasingly bad odds, a part of me still hoped would be my first book--I had waged a critique of what scholars called "companionate marriage," aka the modern concept of liking the person you marry. Of being both friends and lovers. Before that, marriage was a contract. In both the West and the Islamic world, you traded goods, not feelings. Women offered sex and off-spring: men, food and shelter. (At least in theory. When the woman was the wealthy, the guy was just--around.)"


Now for the negatives:
-I don't understand the goal of this book or what story exactly was trying to be told. My first sit down to read this book I read the first ~120 pages, and when I stepped away my fiancé asked me what my book was about. My response? "I... am honestly not really sure." The second half had a bit more of a clear storyline, and I enjoyed it quite a bit more for that.
-The tone shift between the different sections of the story really threw off the flow and the pacing to me.
-I never did feel attached to any single character, probably as a result of the above.
-I feel like the "A Love Story" part of the title is unbelievably misleading and pretty much there to draw people in. And obviously I get wanting to draw people in... but I do feel like there also has to be some truth to it.
-The writing in this was bizarrely casual to the point of trying too hard. Multiple times things were described in a way that threw something very casual/oversharing into it, or the main character would have a thought but it would be said that she had this thought while using the bathroom. Literally. For example:

"Wiping my ass, I contemplated whether he hadn't been planning to propose to Julia tonight"

"It clung to me like the sand that stuck to my pubes for days, materializing on clean sheets and the wet shower floor."

It read like oversharing-with-your-bestie narration, except I didn't feel like we were besties. I just felt annoyed and confused about why this was necessary. 😅

I'm really intrigued to read more reviews as they come in on this one, as I'm still not fully sure what to make of it. For me for now: 2.5 stars rounded down.

Thanks so much to Hachette Audio | Algonquin Books and NetGalley for the ALC in exchange for an honest review!

I ordered a print copy and immediately requested the audio arc from NetGalley. Truly, I adore doing a dual read and I am so thankful to experience the audio portion.

This won't be a book for everyone. I enjoyed it. Thoroughly. Our MFC is unlikeable, unrelateable. I don't care.

This book is a firm two part. Part one describes our Iranian-American protaganist (She is unnamed throughout the book.) Her PhD defense conveys the disparity between Eastern and Western marriages. And, as a struggles post doc academic, she creates a pact with her best friend, Adam, that she attempt to marry rich in 100 dates or by end of summer. Our protagonist dates both men and women--hoping for a match. This plays as a romcom but is self indulgent in a way only a twenty something determined to marry in a short period can.

When a family tragedy strikes, our girl has to leave for Tehran for an indeterminate period of time. I adored seeing the break in literary styles as she moved to more serious matters. Her estranged dad. The marriage of her parents that was strained.

Reviews are mixed on this one, I loved it. I learned a lot. The writing was really pretty. And, the narration from the author was dope.

As an adjunct professor, I sympathized with the protagonist’s precarious career and search for financial security, but the first half of Liquid dragged for me. The way she intellectualized everything made it feel more like an abstract thought experiment than a novel. However, the second half was like a completely different book—sharper, more engaging, and full of momentum. Rahmani’s critique of digital capitalism is incisive, and her experimental style is bold, but the uneven pacing kept me from fully loving it. I’d rate it 3.5/4 stars—worth reading, but patience is required.