This is the kind of Christina Lauren book I LOVE. It had a whole lot of heart and I loved the single mom aspect of it, which I'm not usually a fan of, but Juno had my heart from the first time she appears.

River was such an interesting character. He was definitely awkward, but I liked how he threw himself into this experiment with reckless abandon. He comes off as a bit of a jerk because of his awkwardness, but you soon realize that he is a big softy under all of that rough exterior. His friendship with Juno was one of the best parts of this book.

Jess was exactly what you would expect from a single mom who has been burned in the past. She's very wary of the service and of River himself. She was pretty cautious with allowing River into her world and home life and I really respected that.

The story itself was fun and dynamic and tugged on your heart strings a little bit. I liked the angst towards the end and that I shockingly didn't see it coming at first.

Overall, this is a great book and I highly recommend it!

I had access to this book through Netgalley. I really liked the characters. I liked that the female lead was so strong, while also showing vulnerability. I also liked that River admitted his mistakes and made efforts to fix them. The humor of the story was not overdone. Fizzy was a great character and I would love another book focusing on her and her love story.

I absolutely loved this book, I think it may be my favorite Christina Lauren so far.
The Soulmate Equation follows Jess a single mom who finds that her genetic soulmate might just be a surly coffee shop regular River Pena . I felt like the chemistry and banter between our main character and the love interest was so realistic. The concept of a genetic matchmaking service was such a fun take. The one drawback I have for this is that I don’t feel like the relationship between Jess and her mom was handled very well, I feel like this aspect of the story could have been given more impact to the conflict between characters to the story instead of a few lines in the last chapter.

Single mom Jess Davis is a statistician who hears about GeneticAlly, a new DNA-based matchmaking company that’s predicted to change dating forever. She gets matched with the company's founder and is subsequently dragged into the spotlight of the company's launch.
Another feel-good Christina Lauren book! Lovers of rom-coms will enjoy.

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren follows Single mom Jess Davis who signs up for GeneticAlly, a buzzy new DNA-based matchmaking company that’s predicted to change dating forever. Then, 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.

This book was so adorable! I just finished it in one sitting and can't stop smiling. While the premise of this story is reminiscent of The One by John Marrs, this is a way more romantic take on the story. I absolutely loved all the characters in this book from Jess to River and Jess's best friend Fizzy and Jess's daughter, Juno, who is just adorable. I especially loved the relationship between Jess and her grandparents who were her caretakers growing up and are still so involved in her and Juno's life. While Christina Lauren is a very hit or miss author for me this book was definitely a hit that I highly recommend!

I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Oh man, I was so relieved that C&L played out the twist the way they did-- creating just enough conflict without implicating River in something that he never would have done. What a delightful, romantic novel. This was one of those books that made me excited to get up early on a weekday because it meant I could stay in bed and read just a little bit longer.

When my full review is posted it will be on my instagram @slowburnbookclub!

"The Soulmate Equation" by Christina Lauren was just the book I needed to read. Following thriller after thriller, this story was a welcome escape. The premise of the story was interesting--imagine that you no longer had to go blindly into the dating world, but rather your DNA determined who your perfect match was. In some ways, wouldn't that be easier for everyone?

Enter Jess-- the protagonist of the story. She is nerdy in an endearing way, mother to a 7 year old, fantastic with numbers, and loyal to her grandparents. She definitely doesn't believe she has the time or effort in her for love. Then there is Dr. River Pena. Jess knows him as "Americano" the name her and her best friend nicknamed him because based on the drink he always orders at the local coffee shop.

Jess doesn't know what to make about GeneticAlly (the DNA Matchmaking Company) and certainly doesn't expect to match so highly with anyone, particularly with Dr. River Pena. Once they receive their results, they agree to hang out together. I appreciate the fact that the author didn't immediately make them fall head over heels in love with each other. Their love blossomed in an organic, interesting way. I also appreciated the parts of River bonding with Jess's daughter Juno.

I won't ruin the surprise for you, but leave you with this: maybe their results weren't exactly what they appeared, or then again, were they?

All in all, a great easy read! Sure to not disappoint!

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What if you could find your soulmate using spit to determine whose DNA matches yours? Dr. River Pena created an app and has spent his whole adult life matching people. Those with extremely high matches have stayed together blissfully happy. He never expected to see someone matched to him. Jess is a consultant who crunches numbers for clients. She is barely getting by, supporting her 7-year-old daughter, and taking care of grandparents who raised her. Jess has a close friend, Fizzy, who writes romance novels and encourages both to enter the dating pool. After all, as a romance writer it offers more material. This book is a delight! Great writing with humor and warmth. Wonderful characters; a darling daughter, Juno, grandparents that are supportive, a best friend we all would love to have, and a boyfriend who is willing to break out of his work mode of 100 hours a week. I loved this book.

This book was funny, heartwarming, unique, sassy and nerdy - and what a combo it was!!

This novel takes a look at the concept of soulmates and what it even means to be and have one. Jess really wants to fall in love with the one, but with her sad family history, abandonment issues and general down-to-earthness, she doesn't know if it's possible. Because she's been down that road before, and as a single mom and a hardcore statistics prodigy, Jess can't afford to leave her life to chance.

So when she decides to give a DNA-based matchmaking company a chance, things go wrong when she is matched with the company's very founder - a stuck-up man Jess already knows and who is DEFINITELY not her soulmate....

Ah, this was a fantastic hate to love romance with steam, nerdiness, math and humor! I loved how different it was from anything I've read before. This much needed breath of fresh, nerdy air gets a 5-star rating from this girl for sure.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of the best books I've ever read. I am really sad there's not more. It's by FAR the best CLo book there is! I love how it's not just a regular love story. CLo never fails to throw in twists and make me stay up until 6am to finish their books. The genetic twist on a love story really got me into this story and CLo's wording really kept me drawn in the whole time. This deserves more than 5 stars.

I received an ARC of this novel from Gallery publishers through Netgalley in exchange for my review. I am a HUGE Christian Lauren fan and have read all of their books, so I am always excited to get an ARC of one of their latest books. This one was TERRIFIC! So original, timely and creative!
This is the story of Jess Davis, a statistics whiz and single mom from a pretty dysfunctional family, who meets her local coffee shop dream man. He is Dr. River Pena, the a creative partner/scientist for GeneticAlly, a genetic based dating service. He invites her to leave a genetic sample and when it comes back, they find out that they are 98% soulmates-an unheard of match! The rest of the story is spent trying to figure out which is more accurate: science or your heart? Great story! I highly recommend!

I LOVED this book! Christina Lauren continues to be a dynamic romance writing duo. There is always a significant plot, great primary and secondary character development and plenty of steamy couple chemisty.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced readers copy. I was so excited to read another Christina Lauren book, and was not disappointed! Yet another adorable, endearing chick lit which pulled me in from the beginning. I will continue to read this author and am so happy that Christina Lauren have put out several books lately!

Christina Lauren does (d0?) it again. The Soulmate Equation may be one of my favorites of their books (I only have 2 left to read of their standalones!) and this book was equal parts existential and adorable. I appreciated the single mom rep in the book, and River was a worthy romantic lead. Very impressed and highly recommend!

I always love getting a Christina Lauren book and The Soulmate Equation doesn't disappoint! Loved the fighting attraction play out and the intimate small moments. The Soulmate Equation made me want to look up if there is such a thing as a dating app using DNA - In case you're wondering too....there is!

The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren was such a great romance! The characters were well developed and realistic. The plot was interesting, with a twist that was written with care. This book was laugh out loud funny. I am so happy I did not have to wait for the actual release to read this book.

***** I received an ARC from NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my honest review. *****

Single mom Jess meets her DNA match with Dr. River Pena in this disappointing contemporary romance.

The Soulmate Equation, sadly, did not touch my soul. With a plucky premise and a solid beginning, I expected to love it. Instead, I found myself barely able to tolerate the tepid romance between Jess and River. Their chemistry completely crumbled once the two discovered they were a match made in DNA (or is it RNA?) heaven. Insta-love between the two swept away all of their previous problematic interactions. Insta-love isn’t bad, per se, but I expect a bit more emotional depth and character development in my contemporary romances. My other issue is the relationship between Jess and her mother. I didn’t love how their codependent relationship was handled in the book. Since it was an important part of the story, the resolution between the two should have been more impactful and fully realized than it appeared to be.

tl;dr The romance between Jess and River was too insta-love for my taste.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I absolutely adored this book. I strong minded, female protagonist with a best friend equally as strong (with a fun quirky name) was a very necessary change of pace to make things real and relatable. The perfect bit of nerdy, single mom spotlight, and enemy to lover romance.
CLo did a perfect job incorporating all of Jess’s family without making them just irrelevant mentions, especially Juno, in order to explain her past.
I do wish we got a bit more in the ending but overall I loved it.

I was very excited about this book when i received my ARC. I have really enjoyed the recent Christina Lauren books I've read and this one was about genetics! I couldn't wait to dive in. While I enjoyed it, it just didn't have me as "hooked" as their previous works. I loved the relationship between River and Jess but i really fell in love with the relationship between Juno and River and the relationship between Fizzy and Jess. I am not sure if it was because the relationship was so predictable or it felt rushed, but it just felt secondary to the secondary relationships. Still, all in all between the laugh out loud science puns and the beautifully developed characters, fans are going to fall in love with this book just like they did in all of Christina Lauren's previous books.

Christina Lauren reads are always such a delight, but the pair's last few books haven't quite left this full effect on me. I prefer their more serious / "rom-dram" storylines over the ones that are strictly rom-coms because their more lighthearted stories always feel a little less organized and fulfilling to me. So after a couple of releases that weren't home runs for me, I was pleased that "The Soulmate Equation" fit the bill perfectly. The love interest is delicious, and the heroine's backstory and internal conflicts complimented each other well. There were even some laugh-out-loud moments that are classic CLo quality. Definitely a recommended read!