It hurts my soul to give this book such a low rating but I had a lot of issues with it.

I found the writing itself to be odd and distracting. There was something about the dialog that took me so far out of the story because it was awkward. It didn't have a flow or rhythm to it. It felt more like a first or second draft then a polished finish product. The story did seem to move along, instead it jumped to the next bullet point.

I struggled to be on board with Luke as a character. He had moments where I liked him but overall I thought he was a caricature of an "white oblivious southern gentlemen." His view of the world and his position as a privileged man was spoon fed to us and his reasoning for turning Rachel down in the third act was infuriating. The story does not do a good job of creating the setting for the third act break up to happen and then does an even worse job of making me feel like his HEA was earned.

I felt like this could have been a strong story. I liked Rachel but I think she needed to be developed more. I think the bones of the story were there but It need to be worked on more. I loved the relationship between Rachel and her friends. I liked the growth that she shows. I loved the found family component and watching Rachel grown to accept that people will accept her. I just didn't think there was enough good to overcome the issues.

I really wanted to like it and I hope this author keeps writing. I think she did a good job plotting this story and building the relationship between Rachel and her friends. I think the more she does it the better the actual writing will be.

I loved this book for the journey that Rachel took. The story itself was easy to predict but the growth of Rachel made the book really satisfying. By the time she's able to see her strengths as they are, I was cheering her on. I enjoyed the read.

#arc
#netgalley
#therachelexperiment

So what is Rachel's Experiment? Rachel is autistic and she needs to learn social skills really fast! Okay, well technically she is not diagnosed and the word autism is never actually used in the book, but the plot doesn't make sense if she is not.

Rachel Bai does the mathematical modeling and risk management for an investment firm in New York and is being sent to San Francisco to head up a new team there. EXCEPT, Rachel doesn't know how to talk to people, pick up on social cues, or understand idioms and other linguistic social constructs. I've heard other people say Rachel is socially awkward, but socially awkward people know social conventions and their anxiety makes them just trip over themselves and not be able to participate in those social conventions. Rachel, on the other hand, neither knows the social conventions nor understands them.

Before I realized Rachel was autistic coded, I was so frustrated with her "I'm not like other girls mentality;" but after I realized it, I understood all of her conversations and confusion with everyone around her. If you want really great autism representation plus romance, you should check Rachel's experiment out!

I was excited for this audiobook, but unfortunately the narrator ruined it for me. I could not handle her Texas accent. I also did not think that the writing was very well done. If I had just been reading it I would have given this 3 stars, but the narrator brought it down to 2 stars for me.

I had to weed my gardens and started this audiobook. I became invested from the narrator the most but the story was such a great story to listen to. It was predictable but a fun story to watch how it unfolded. I didn't know this was book number 2 in the series so I don't think I missed much from the first book. I really enjoyed watching Rachel develop from beginning to end. I think this would be a great audiobook to do those mundane chores as you listen to this or a great beach read.

Thank you so much to Dreamscape Media and Libra FM for granting me access to Lisa Lin's latest book, The Rachel Experiment. While Rachel's story can be read as a standalone, there are nods to the previous novel and characters. So, if you don't want any spoilers, I recommend reading this in order.

I absolutely loved the narration for this audiobook, particularly the narrator for Luke Trudeau. He nailed it! I tend to listen to my audiobooks on 2x speed so I always hesitate to comment on narrators, because I know speeding them up distorts their voice. However, in this case, both narrators were great. Audiobooks can sometimes have awkward pacing at 1x speed. I find the 2x matches my reading pace more accurately.

Let's get to Rachel's story. Rachel is offered/ forced into a job transfer to prove herself to the company that she can work well with others. Rachel takes it in stride and moves to San Francisco. Through a chance encounter Luke and Rachel meet. After going their separate ways, Luke is thrilled when he runs into the intriguing Rachel again and proposes mutually beneficial deal for the duo. Rachel can learn to smooth out her social prowess from Luke and Luke can reap the benefits of Rachel's ability to create financial plans for a business he wants to start.

My only complaint in the book is that Rachel paints herself repeatedly as awkward and is constantly apologizing when she's done nothing wrong. To me, Rachel reads as an introvert and shy. She finds social situations to be uncomfortable, but she still puts herself out there and tries. I liked seeing Rachel's growth and hearing the ways she was connecting with others in a genuinely authentic and Rachel way.

Thank you Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for this audio ARC.

Kat Riley did a superb performance for this story. I enjoyed listening to her voice throughout.

The story of Rachel and Luke started out dry and I very nearly DNF early on. Part of it was that I was expecting another book with a similar title, Silly me. The writing gradually warmed as we got to know Rachel and her quirks. It really started to shine as her relationship with Luke grew.. The Rachel Experiment is the kind of story and storytelling that creeps up on you slowly and before you know it, you’re charmed.

Super cute and just slightly sexy! Rachel transfers to a new city and befriends a handsome man at a bar. Of course, she ends up seeing Luke around town, so they come up with a completely platonic work arrangement…

Rachel was a really lovable main character - she was quirky and fun. This was a super fun escape book - perfect beach read!

I really expected that I would love this romance. It had the right ingredients: a no nonsense Asian daughter, a sweet-as-pie Texas boy, a girl squad, and a bunch of relatable socially awkward moments. But I felt there were too many misunderstandings for my comfort—almost as if the main characters were losing understanding of each other throughout the story, instead of gaining understanding.

Rachel and Luke were cute, I’ll admit. But the assumptions on both sides drove me crazy. And the way Luke became so dense in the last 20% of the book…unbelievable. Idk. The overall concept was good. But the relationship between Rachel and Luke just didn’t quite hit the spot for me.

Claudia was the absolute worst. And I had some misgivings about the girl squad. But overall, it was a lighthearted story. Not a favorite for me, but I’m sure that others will relate to the characters more.

Thanks to NetGalley, Dreamscape Media, and Lisa Lin for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was an ok read. I found the premise to be interesting, but the book felt overly simplistic and trite in many places. Rachel was overly awkward and in ways that felt more awkward than needed. I say that as a fellow awkward turtle. The prose was simplistic, but the narrator was very good. I appreciated her ability to differentiate between characters.

Thank you NetGallley and Dreamscape media for an ALC in exchange for my honest review.

2 stars. The plot idea is interesting, but I have to confess that in the first 20% of the book, I honestly considered not finishing it. Rachel's lack of social skills felt cringy and unnatural. I know there are people who are "awkward turtles", as she keeps calling herself, but I just couldn't buy the dialogues. I decided to give it a go after the arrangement evolved and Luke and Rachel got closer, but still, this book did not hook me. The sentences are too simple and short, the dialogues sound theatrical and the conflict at the end seems to have been added just for the sake of adding drama. I thought the book was about to end, but then there was still about 20% left. On top of that, I'm not sure I liked the audiobook narrator's Texas accent.

Woah 14% deep and we’re all in 🙈
Amazing! No mucking around! I love the no beat around the bush attitude Rachel has.
This book had me feeling many feelings frustration at the end has suck 😅
Very well written to keep you interested and wanting more.
I enjoyed the narrator also!

This book was a sweet and fun RomCom; from the smart main character to the sweet and charismatic love interest, I loved seeing these two go from friends to lovers after a one-night stand and all the rockiness that pursued afterward. Rachel is a very smart main character as she gains a promotion at her job, highlighting her workplace strengths and difficulties in being sociable. Luke is a lawyer with a southern charismatic draw. Through the events of this story, the characters have plenty of sweet interactions while growing across cultural differences, clashing of friends, and constantly changing social scenarios.

AHHHH RACHEL!!!! I loved loved loved this story. I shipped them so fucking hard.

Both characters are lovable and it made me cry and loved them and seeing Rachel grow after meeting her in book one. I loved it, thank you so much netgalley for the audiobook arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This was a sweet romance. I love how Rachel is socially awkward and how she over analyzes all social situations. She was a very relatable character and I loved her growth and how she gained her confidence.

Rachel is a financial analyst that doesn't really have a way with people. When she gets a promotion to lead a team in San Francisco, she doesn't really have a choice to hone her people skills. When she gets there, she meets Luke, a charming southern attorney, and they have a drunken sweaty night together. While she is determined they forget about it, he simply can't. So he proposes to help her smooth her social skills and teach her charm so she can succeed in her professional endeavor. In exchange, she has to help him put up a financial plan for the practice he wants to open.
This is book 2 in the From Sunset Park, With Love series, and it is first I read. It can be read as a standalone, but will go back to read the first one because I liked it! Although I did find that the dialogue was generally clumsy, I loved Luke (the way he takes care of her when she gets the flu? ***swoon***). This is a cute romcom with spice, that addresses differences between cultures and is all about Rachel coming out of her shell and realizing she is good enough . I loved that we had a good glimpse of family dynamics for both main characters, and the heart to heart talk Rachel has with her mother after lashing out on her sister (it made me love her mother whereas I really didn't like her before). Don't ask me about the 3rd act breakup (miscommunication + overreaction = ***ugh***). I listened to the audio book. The dual POV would've been great to hear from two narrators, but the narrator did a great job conveying both Rachel and Luke's voices.
I received an advanced review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

The Rachel Experiment is the second book in a series by author Lisa Lin. That being said, I did not read the first book in the series and I never felt as though I missed anything. The Rachel Experiment can stand completely on its own.
Our story is about Rachel (obviously) who is a hardworking woman excited to take on the opportunity for advancement within her career by moving to San Francisco for a big promotion. Rachel is openly socially-awkward, and aware that her people and social skills are a detriment both personally and professionally. I enjoyed Rachel as a main character and as someone with multiple loved-ones with autism, can relate well to her struggles with the complex world of unwritten social norms. I thought Rachel was a breath of fresh air and a strong female lead.
Rachel meets Luke unexpectedly and the two realize they could each help the other out. Luke, wants to branch out to be self-employed and financier Rachel can help him develop his business plan. Rachel wants to win over her new co-workers and Luke's strength with interpersonal relationship skills can benefit Rachel. As this is a romance novel, you know Rachel and Luke's feelings grow stronger throughout the story, but can they make it work? Between challenging family members, concerns about Luke and Rachel's different cultures, and meddling friends, there are plenty of challenges along the way. 3.5 stars!


Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you @tulepublishing @dreamscape_media @netgalley for a copy of this interracial romance. This is the 2nd book in the series and I didn't read the first and it was a perfect read as a stand alone.

This story is about Rachel, who is moving to San Francisco, is a bit socially awkward and strikes a deal with Luke to help his business if he helps her be better at social settings.

The story was cute and the narration had distinct voices for the two characters. I enjoyed seeing Rachel's growth and finally standing up to her family. The love story between Luke and Rachel was okay but nothing too memorable.

I enjoyed The Rachel Experiment for a good while, even though I felt like it was a lukewarm enjoyment. The plot felt reminiscent of The Kiss Quotient to me in some regard as a story about a woman who asks a potential romantic interest to help her get better at something (though the “something” is quite different in the two books).

As the story neared it’s conclusion, though, I started to become irritated. This book of course follows the typical romance beats, but the third act misunderstanding really annoyed me. It was barely a conflict with unnecessarily big impact, which is hard to do considering that’s kind of the point of this plot structure. Further, there was a weird amount of shaming the male protagonist for all things related to his white maleness. I really liked the direct acknowledgment of cultural differences between these characters, but it felt very weird to me that just because he was dumb and messed up some communication, we needed to be like “this is all because you have white make privilege!!!” when that just really makes no sense.

And finally, can we please get more audiobook narrators to get better at southern accents? This book is so not alone in this issue, but wow am I sick of listening to them be so terrible.

Cute and entertaining romance novel between Rachel, a social awkward Asian woman, and Luke, a very charismatic and charming Texan. Cue all the embarrassing social gaffes because of not being about to read the room. Add in the bridezilla sister and her squad of friends and you get some laugh out loud moments that also make you cringe a little. Rachel really grows throughout the book, and you slowly see her stand up for herself. My favorite part is the epilogue and the highlighted differences between Asian and American social gatherings. Light enough for a vacation read but not too light that there is no substance to the story.