How did I get so lucky to be approved for an ARC of a Christina Lauren book?
Title: The Soulmate Equation
Author: Christina Lauren
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Publication Date: May 18th, 2021
Ratings: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Goodreads Summary:
Single mom Jess Davis is a data and statistics wizard, but no amount of number crunching can convince her to step back into the dating world. Raised by her grandparents–who now help raise her seven-year-old daughter, Juno–Jess has been left behind too often to feel comfortable letting anyone in. After all, her father’s never been around, her hard-partying mother disappeared when she was six, and her ex decided he wasn’t “father material” before Juno was even born. Jess holds her loved ones close, but working constantly to stay afloat is hard…and lonely.
But then Jess hears about GeneticAlly, a buzzy new DNA-based matchmaking company that’s predicted to change dating forever. Finding a soulmate through DNA? The reliability of numbers: This Jess understands. At least she thought she did, until her test shows an unheard-of 98% compatibility with another subject in the database: GeneticAlly’s founder, Dr. River Pena. This is one number she can’t wrap her head around, because she already knows Dr. Pena. The stuck-up, stubborn man is without a doubt not her soulmate. But GeneticAlly has a proposition: Get to know him and we’ll pay you. Jess–who is barely making ends meet–is in no position to turn it down, despite her skepticism about the project and her dislike for River. As the pair are dragged from one event to the next as the “Diamond” pairing that could make GeneticAlly a mint in stock prices, Jess begins to realize that there might be more to the scientist–and the science behind a soulmate–than she thought.
Funny, warm, and full of heart, The Soulmate Equation proves that the delicate balance between fate and choice can never be calculated.
A single mother, a geneticist, and a new dating app. What could go wrong?
Especially in today’s climate, writing about a dating app isn’t that remarkable—it’s kind of the new thing to do, especially in contemporary romance. Except the app in The Soulmate Equation, GeneticAlly, is extremely unique and something I never really thought could be possible. Like looking into a person’s ancestry, people are fascinated enough with finding love, that they would go as far as to test genetically. Who wouldn’t be interested to find their soulmate?
This was somewhat of a departure from the usual rom-com you expect from a Christina Lauren book, but I still loved it. This definitely won’t be for everyone—people are very unyeilding when it comes to stories with a kid. However, Christina Lauren did an excellent job of using the character of Juno sparingly and only when driving the story forward. All the characters were really excellent. River and Jess had incredible chemistry a relationship that developed really well as the story moved forward. The dynamic between Jess and her best friend Fizzy was so much fun, however I do wish we got a little more of a backstory as to how they met and became friends.
I don’t read romance for plot twists, so I definitely don’t see this one coming. It added an extra layer that elevated an already great book. I will always pick up a new Christina Lauren book, no matter what, but I’m really interested to see if they continue in this direction of rom-com with a little twist.
ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Lindsay Glenne 