DNF, this was very frustrating racially and ignorant. this was just a lot of excuses to be racist and trying to romanticize it was utterly tasteless . I am unsure how this made it past so many editors and teams to actually publish this book.

This is a thought provoking story and there’s a lot I can’t comment on in this book but here are a few of my takeaways from reading. There are a lot of couples in relationships that are complete opposites in many ways and have successful relationships. The reasons those relationships are successful is the mutual respect the couples have for each other and their relationship.

I don’t think Jess respected Josh as a person at all in any point throughout this book. She constantly questioned him whether it was his actions, his inactions, or something he said or how he dressed. Do I think Josh was perfect in their relationship? Absolutely not but I do think he respected Jess as a person even though they disagreed more than they agreed on things. Regardless of what happened throughout this book, I think both Josh and Jess could use some therapy individually and as a couple to better improve their relationships with themselves and each other.


Thank you @simonbooks for this gifted ARC and @netgalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest feedback.

This book was a NO for me. It is marketed as an enemies to lovers romance but it is not. Truth be told it reads more like a horror.

The premise of the book is a Black female liberal becomes involved in a romantic relationship with a White male conservative while working together at Goldman Sachs. While reading the book I found myself questioning the decisions the main character makes. Nothing in the author’s writing made me want to cheer for her. The character comes across as someone who is totally aloof to American society but wants to hold a strong political stance. Her actions do not line up with the liberal she claims to be. There is a lot of anti-Black sentiment in this book. Surprisingly much of it comes from the Black female main character. As a Black female reader this is upsetting especially since this is a book written by a Black female.

I would never tell anyone to not read a book, but I would suggest anyone who does not want to read anti Black books to skip this one.

I don't think I'm the audience for this book. I felt like both characters were not great people, and I didn't see the chemistry that we're supposed to believe they have.

I received an advance copy. All thoughts are my own.

BOOK: Everything’s Fine
AUTHOR: Cecilia Rabess
PUB DATE: 6/6/23 by Simon and Schuster
PAGES: 335
RATING: 5 stars
GENRE: Political Fiction/Romance Literary Fiction

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

AUTHOR RECOGNITIONS: Cecilia Rabess previously worked as a Data Scientist at Google and an Associate at Goldman Sachs. Her non-fiction has been featured in McSweeneys, FiveThirtyEight, Fast Company, and FlowingData, among other places. Everything’s Fine is her debut novel.

Instead of my usual review format, I wish to use my platform to write a personal note to the Author expressing my gratitude for her brilliant storytelling in this debut novel.

PERSONAL NOTE TO CECILIA RABESS: I want to first start off by apologizing for taking so long to read this manuscript. This year I committed to reading and reviewing ARCs prior to their release, and I let you down. I will be honest and say that I was approved to read it several months ago, and it’s my loss for not reading it sooner. I’m embarrassed to admit that I was put off by some negative controversy surrounding this novel, which I’ve now discovered to be inaccurate reviews primarily from individuals that vocally decided not to read this book based on reading a brief overview of the synopsis and thinking they had an indication of the real premise of what this book truly encompasses. Non-readers shouldn’t have been allowed to leave a 1-star review, let alone a review at all. It’s a shame, because I think there is so much to learn from this story, and it’s extremely compelling! It’s been years since I’ve read a book in one sitting. I couldn’t sleep last night because I was so wound up about what I wanted to say today, how I wanted to share it, and how I could get others to be more openminded to Just. Read. This. I could not put this down. It’s an extraordinarily brave debut with such beautiful storytelling, and I can’t imagine how difficult that had to be given that topics such as politics, and racism, and misogyny are very difficult matters to discuss. I do not openly discuss my political affiliation on social media, and I’m not doing that here today. Books are subjective, and everyone (who has read the story) is of course entitled to their own opinions. I’m so compelled to use my little corner of the net let you know how much this book moved me, and how proud I am to say that I read it AND I loved it. I believe no matter your political affiliation, there is so much to learn from this novel! I appreciated seeing both of the MCs grow and develop and learn from each other. Yes, this is a sincere love story, but it’s SO much more than that. It’s laugh-out-loud funny, unsettling, and intimate! It’s thought-provoking, sexy, sharp, and it’s also a romance that begs the question, “Can opposites really attract when fundamentals are so different?” “Can people change?” “Is love and compromise enough?”

I can’t stop thinking about this one and doubt I will for a long time. This is one I plan on re-reading. Thank you for sharing it so openly and bravely with the world. Stocking up on several copies and looking forward to reading everything else you write! ~Michele

Really interesting to see two opposites discussing their believes. Josh and Jess had so much in common but at the same time so many differences. I believe that the message from this book is that we are able to live in society thinking differently from each other as long as there’s respect. The opposites attract but if no respect is played they will repel.
Everything’s fine was really well written and caught my attention to their attention to detail and reality. However, when it reached about 80% of the book it felt like the story was dragging a little bit. Not going to lie, I didn’t like the end of it. It, it really went against the proposed idea throughout the book, which it was showing the two sides of the political spectrum. The end of the book was an attempt to make people to align and agree with one side, one party.

This book is all over the place. I couldn’t decide if Jess wanted to actively look for ways people could be racist or she just wanted to be bothered. Jess sometimes just fed into the stereotypes she was so offended with.

Here are some clips that just made me cringe:


“But Albie’s not like that,” Jess protested. “Is he? He doesn’t, like, objectify you in a specifically Asian way. Does he?” Miky had been hooking up with a graduate student named Albie Shumway, a Captain America from Salt Lake City.

So it’s ok for her to call this man a Captain America??? That’s hypocritical.

On a mission, Jess starts pulling things from racks until her arms are so full that one of the shopgirls is forced to attend to her. Through the fitting room door, they ask how it’s going, if she needs any sizes, and when Jess says she doesn’t, she can imagine them on the other side, giving each other looks like I told you so. And, in fact, when Jess steps back out onto the floor—clothes, shoes, bags, accessories in a disorganized jumble—and says, “I’ll take it all,” they seem stunned. And that feeling of—gotcha!—you think you know who I am but you’re wrong is one that Jess would pay a lot for, and indeed has. So now her bonus is gone, but she feels like a million dollars, even though her bonus is gone and she still doesn’t have a million dollars.

Here we go adding to the false stereotype. Does she want us to think people are just this irresponsible or want to keep up with the white people of the world, as if there is pressure to do so? What am I reading???


In the hallway she takes a deep breath, his words echoing in her head. Girls like you, he said. A girl like her. What kind of girl was that, anyway?


Why didnt she just ask him? She is otherwise outspoken



he introduces himself as Dano, a nickname Jess guesses he picked up in some frat house.

Just making assumptions about his nickname being Dano. It could just be from childhood.

Like the fact that she had a boyfriend that she’d never mentioned, which made her feel guilty for hiding him, but not quite guilty enough to stop lying.


More hypocrisy.

There are so many instances where Jess just could have walked away but chose not to. Then she was ok letting her conservative boyfriend pay for everything while hating everything about him, to an extent where she calls him racist. Hello? You can’t connect with anyone who is like you but everyone else is racist.


And then…. It’s probably because my mom died??????? That’s the reason she is the way she is?

Done. This book needs to be written again with better structure and clarity.

I struggled reading this book. Jess is not a likable person.

I will be thinking about Everything's Fine for a long time. A very thoughtful book about messy, complicated and very real people. I'm still in the decompression period after finishing this one and desperate for someone to discuss it with me. This book was absolutely destroyed on Goodreads for some really ignorant reasons (namely people judging it off the blurb), which is so ironic since the delicate treatment of ignorance within it's pages is at the core of the entire narrative. If you have come here questioning why this book is so polarizing, have the decency and intelligence to pick it up. It is provocative, infuriating, heartbreaking, twisted, and really fucking good. Do it. And then come talk to me, because I need someone to unpack it with me!

I enjoyed Cecilia Rabies’s’ style of writing; the dialogue between Jess and Josh was sharp and funny in the first half of the book, but the story fell a little flat for me. I think it tried to tackle too many themes including race and politics with a romantic story in the background.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster and NetGalley for this ARC.

This is not your typical romance novel. It deals with hard issues, like what do you do when you see things from total opposite sides & are different races. It also deals with the importance of communication & honesty in a relationship. It was a good read.

Received advanced copy from the publisher & NetGalley and give my review freely

I liked this book about Jess and Josh who met in college and then end up working at Goldman Sachs. The bantering back and forth between them in college and then how it grows into something more later is just how it seems to work at times, the more time you spend with people the more you talk and some people actually open up and listen to the other person instead of being so ingrained in one set of ideas. Maybe it is just my take on this story maybe it is because I am older or maybe because I am in an interracial relationship for over forty years, but I found this to be a good read and I have heard the arguments or decisions about some of the topics for years that was discussed and I am glad someone wrote about them. A good book with good characters.

Mixed impressions

The question I continued to ask myself as I read this book was: What was its objective? What was the author trying to express or convince me of? Based on its style and delivery, I felt there was more to this work than the storyline since, to be fair, it didn’t match the patterns of a traditional romance. Purple prose of vignettes strung upon each other, one after the other, interspersed with racial study without the richness of a cohesive story. Vague character description and character development, the characters weren’t tangible with a strong sense of physicality, or presence. With the exception of a few attributes what did they even look like? It was as if I were reading two personages espousing their beliefs, their political and social stances — a thoughtmance — with some light romance and Jessie's friendships and father's influence thrown in. Most certainly a book more centered around the young woman protagonist, Jessie, than her interest, Josh, but they were not exactly opposites either.

Adapting to the writing style, the story took a bit to get into, feeling slow initially, especially since it was in third person, omniscient, not limited. I felt most often that I was being narrated to rather than immersed into the lives and minds of the main characters. Third person doesn't feel as modern or engaging as first person, especially if not done well, and, unfortunately, the perspectives combined with the writing style did not place me front and center in this novel. I found myself having to refocus in the earlier chapters.

So what is this story about? What's the message?
A study of racial basis and marginalization in the U.S. presented from Jess's perspective as both her distaste for it and her tolerance of it as well as her love interest’s contrasting sentiment? Up and coming stockbroker in a dynamic and competitive work environment. It's all about the money and the right people. Jess never seemed to fit in the traditional working environment where money making and affluence were pillars of success. Her lack of fitness was so obviously and easily assigned to her temperament, which was just code for non acceptance, not assimilating, not playing the game hard enough or knowing the rules of engagement into the white privileged setting. When the truth was, for people like her, there is no entry.

Josh was an unconscious contributor to that inequality, either because he agrees with the setup explained from and waived by his arrogant, superficially intellectualized spin or because he was just insensitive to it. Unenlightened, he couldn’t appreciate it since he's unaffected by it. He also believed himself right since he didn't grown up with advantages: he didn't come from a wealthy background and was a scholarship recipient who made his way. Of course, he was unaware of, or chose to disregard, the advantages he innately possessed or contacts surrounding him. Then, there was Jess's guilt over participating in her boyfriend's advantage, living in his million-dollar condo. Is she a sell out? Does she have a call to duty? And is love enough?

This book explored social issues mixed in a light romance; inequality, having to be more than best even when you’re successful empirically, the subtleties of marginalization of People of Color and the mixed views and feelings surrounding them. Do you sacrifice your beliefs for love?

Josh was initially the classic Republican conservative who came around to more inclusive ways of thinking though likely not so much due to wanting to but more because he was in love with Jess. He had always held a candle for her to the degree that he fights for her. The author did a good job of presenting his blinded point of view as if it could have been her own; she also did a great job infusing the character’s personality with limiting, unconscious, and largely unchanging stances.

Jess was portrayed as marginalized, which she couldn't control and which was almost impossible to fight. But what bothered me was this story didn't demonstrate her bucking the system. Even her father called for it. She complained but stayed in under represented, marginalized positions, people interactions, jobs. Did she have a call to duty simply because though?

Why didn’t Jessie fight, push back in line with her father's purpose? She didn’t really challenge Josh either. Jess was even placating. Why did Josh have to have the more prominent position? I understood Jess’s insecurities but why not give her she some fight, some self-esteem, boundaries. At times depressing as it was dispiriting, and the romance didn't temper the sense of fruitlessness.

And even when Jess attempted to rebel, she couldn't be as financially prosperous as Josh. Instead, answering the call, she worked for a sensationalist newspaper with sub-par pay. I guess it's OK if the pay was subpar because she couldn’t be represented maintaining her values and have a moderate income? It was also ok for her successful boyfriend to subsidize her. Something was off with portraying Jess as only successful if she held to her values but with a low income, low prosperity. She couldn't overcome, have some wins, as it was better to be true to yourself even if you struggle. Come on!

And yet ... I could feel it all and identify with it, and hated reading the reality of that in fiction where characters should have power.

I loved that Josh loved Jess, that he always loved her, waited for her, wanted her. Unfortunate for my spicy heart, it did not translate into the best sex scenes. It wasn't a clean romance, but it wasn't erotic either.

The third-act split, and for a long time. Sure, Jess had a family emergency -- which was depicted well, but still. Why be apart so long (and so typically)?

Josh voted for and reassured Jess about Trump. He remained fiscally conservative. She remained left-leaning … and conflicted. And I remain confused by this book: the reality, the fallacy, the interpersonal conflict. Love may not be enough.

Anticlimactic. Mixed feelings.

I loved seeing the main characters relationship evolve from a friendship into a relationship. I loved going through a whole range of emotions throughout the book. The only negatives I found were not being interested in the political or financial aspects of it. I had a hard time getting through the book for that reason. I also did not like how it seemed like Jess was always offensive side of an argument and Josh always seemed to be on the defense and had to apologize when some of the time it was not his fault.

Everything’s Fine is more of a cautionary tale of toxic love than a romance. Or at least, I hope that was the author’s purpose.

Josh is just awful. He’s intentionally oblivious and dismissive. He never attempts to see the world through the eyes of the woman he claims to love. He gaslights Jess throughout their relationship.

And Jess refuses to see the reality of her relationship. No matter how many ways Josh shows Jess that their relationship isn’t good for her, she stays. How much of yourself should you sacrifice in a relationship?

While this wasn’t the right book for me, I could possibly see it as a book club book. There’s certainly a lot to discuss — self-esteem, relationships, signs of toxic love, when to walk away, and whether it is possible in our polarized times for two people with different political beliefs to have a healthy relationship.

While this book was compelling and brought amazing perspective to racism, it was not for me. There were parts I enjoyed but then there were parts I could have done without. The back and forth of Jess and Josh’s relationship gave me whiplash. Overall, it is not a bad book at all- just not for me and that’s perfectly fine! Thank you for allowing me to read and review!

I fell in LOVE with the synopsis of this book. We meet Jess a black woman trying to get her foot into the world of trading, a white mans industry, and she doesnt play no GAMES. She tells it like it is, shes even working alongside Josh who went to school with her, hes a rising star, and white, and they have a past, which involved a debate in politics and racism. She doesn’t let that go and they become enemies, or better yet hes her enemy because clearly in the book has a thing for her, but they have this attraction towards each other thats so confusing, but enjoyable.

YES, this book is funny, we see a ton of humor, and I love that, but also a ton of politics, talks of racism, a ton of gaslighting, and Jess self sabotaging herself left and right. I went from loving her to hating her all in one sitting, I was getting annoyed at her reasons to always want to start something with Josh, I was sitting back thinking why Josh even bothered, since she could never make up her mind about ANYTHING.

The book ended in a way I didn’t expect but I saw growth in Jess that can be overlooked, but overall this was a rollercoaster read.

Thanks NetGalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book.

She is black. He’s white. He grew up entitled. She grew up comfortable, but motherless. They meet at Harvard. This is a disturbing story. How do you fall in love with a man who is obviously racist? A guy who watches you stumble and fall and says, well stuff happens. Are black woman supposed to have black friends? Honest question. I don’t know. The author surrounds her with white people. There is a little sass and humor and Jess could be considered kind of witty if we weren’t reading a book where her boyfriend is racist. She is portrayed as very smart, but her career choices are bewildering. Just dump him Jess.

When Jess starts at her new job in finance, she is surprised to see Josh, her antagonist from a class she had in college, is one of her new co-workers. She is even more surprised when Josh turns out to be one of the few co-workers who has her back. The two begin an unlikely and halting friendship that eventually becomes something more. But despite their obvious attraction, Jess can't escape that her and Josh's experiences and worldviews seems irreconcilable at a time when society itself is becoming more polarized, even as she struggles with how important this should be in her personal life.

This is a terrific book exploring timely themes, from a strong new voice in fiction. Well written and with unforgettable characters, it is hard to put this one down once you pick it up.

Highly recommended!

"Everything's Fine" is a great novel and my first from this author, Cecilia Rabess. lt explores romantic love between Josh and Jess, and navigating differences in beliefs, backgrounds, and even touches on the 2016 election.

This book blended humor, excitement, terror, and raw portrayals of love in a divided society. I loved how different it was from my usual romance reads. It’s a little bit more social sophisticated and realistic. You can immediately immerse yourself into the characters and feel what they are going through.

After reading, I was still pondering questions related to the book and how I would have handled some of the obstacles raised.

I recommend this book and rating it 4 stars! Thank you Simonbooks and #Simonbookbuddy for a copy of this book to read and review!

This book did not do it for me. Reading it as someone who is very much a liberal, but also white and surrounded by many white conservatives in the Midwest, it made me want to hit my head against a wall a few times. This was not just the story of two people who had different opinions; they have fundamentally different life views, and one oppresses the other. This was a book I was really looking forward to, but it ended up being really difficult to read, because no, Josh, everything is not fine