Rachel Murray is attempting to navigate the messy transition into adulthood and the perils of life in one's early twenties — life, friendships, jobs and love. She and her bookstore co-worker, James Devlin, immediately gravitate toward each other and soon find themselves attached at the hip. Together, they deal with heartbreak, ambition, life in a small town and wanting something more. Yet the pair soon find themselves facing something much more complicated than they bargained for.
Author Caroline O'Donoghue is an absolutely beautiful storyteller and I so look forward to reading more of her work. However, I feel as though the plot was a bit lacking and didn't necessarily merit an entire book. I also never grew to like any of the characters and I found myself incredibly disappointed with the lack of development, especially on Rachel's part.
Thank you to the author, NetGalley and Knopf for sharing this advance copy with me in exchange for my honest review.

I cannot understand the hype for this meandering story about the messy lives of Rachel and her gay best friend James, two young adults living in Cork, Ireland. When Rachel develops a crush on her married professor (already getting problematic here), James decides to help her seduce him. Their plan takes some
unexpected turns, and they both become involved in a complex web of lies and romantic entanglements that ends badly.

I struggled to get through this book; I nearly quit more than once. I couldn’t stand any of the characters, but Rachel, the main character, was the worst. I thought she was both a boring protagonist and an incredibly selfish and shallow person. She did show some growth throughout the story, but not enough for me to actually want to root for her.

The plot was also very slow, and the writing was nothing special. This novel is described on Goodreads as “brilliantly funny,” but I didn’t find that to be the case at all. I was bored through the first half of the book.

Overall I didn’t really enjoy this one. But still, thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for the DRC.

Such a good coming of age story. Rachel is one of the main characters- her story is told in two different timelines. One in Cork, Ireland where she is in her early twenties last semester of university. She has a job at a bookstore, starts an internship she really doesn’t like and has many secrets that keep piling on. Her best friend is James. He also has some coming of age adventures. He has not quite come out yet and is exploring life as he goes along. Rachel pines for her professor and her and James devise a plan for him to do a book reading at the bookstore. It’s James who ends up with an affair with the professor not Rachel and thus this turns into one of the many secrets in her life that seem to pull her down. We do get glimpses of her future life with the switching of timelines and do know she does make it out and has a successful career. I really loved the way the story is told and the way very hard topics such as abortion, miscarriage are handled. The friendship between Rachel and James is strong empowering what that do for one another. This is a story of friendship, loyalty, love, and self discovery. Many thanks to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor, Knopf and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this novel. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue was a deep dive into the chaotic lives of Rachel and James, instant best friends after meeting at a bookstore.

To save money the two move in together and live their early twenties hard, with dancing and partying at clubs till the wee hours of the night. They know this behavior is wrong as they should be saving money, but remember, they are young and immature.

Rachel aspires for more than she has, while James is stuck where he is. They both fall in love with the same person, of which I will not reveal if it’s a he or a she. This puts them at a crossroads. Rachel ends up working for the “mystery person’s spouse” and their lives basically become a cluster of lies and secrets.

The book also shines a light on the financial crisis in 2010 Ireland as well as the extreme difficulty women have in getting an abortion. Overall, this was a satisfying read with a strong and smart conclusion.

I was a bit nervous going into The Rachel Incident because, to be honest, I'm a bit tired of the glorification or romanticizing of toxic relationships. I'm glad to say that that wasn't at all what this book was about. Yes. Rachel is a bit dysfunctional. Yes, she has an unhealthy relationship with a professor....but it isn't at all what one might imagine reading that.

This book ended up being about so much more than I was expecting. Rachel was relatable in many ways and I felt for her with all that transpired.

If you like a book that is at turns frustrating, humorous, and reflective with a main character who will make you want to give her a hug, you will likely enjoy this book.

*Thank you to Netgalley, Caroline O'Donaghue, and Knopf for the E-ARC of this book. This in no way affects the objectivity of my review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf for an e-ARC of The Rachel Incident.

Rachel and James are not Will & Grace, but yet they kind of are. Deeply dependent on one another and living in Ireland in their early 20s, we see them fumble their way into early adulthood and entangle themselves in the life of Rachel’s professor, Fred Byrne, which will forever change the course of all their lives.

Caroline O’Donoghue’s writing feels fresh, and despite her incredibly flawed characters with arguable terrible morals, I couldn’t help find some charm in them. I didn’t agree with a single decision they made, but I was happy to see where they all ended up. I would certainly pick up another book by this author.

Also important to note, as the setting is written during Ireland’s country wide abortion ban, abortion is a prominent theme in this novel.

Thank you for an advance copy of The Rachel Incident. This tells the story of best friends Rachel and James, living in Ireland and living a fun life of being single, fun and in carefree. Things change when Rachel falls in love with her professor, Mr Byrnne, and James helps her make a plan to seduce him, even though he's married. This is when the story turns as these characters have other plans, and the reader is launched into a complicated plot with Rachel, James, Mr Byrnne and his wife. This book is not what I expected but I loved the well developed characters and the twists of the story. The book also had an unexpected but still satisfying ending. Overall, I enjoyed this story of friendship, love, growth and dishonesty.

The Rachel Incident is all about keeping secrets and their ability to destroy. The story is set in Cork, Ireland and centers around college student Rachel; her new-found friend, James; and Rachel's potential love interest, married professor Fred Byrne. While Rachel and James plot how to entice Dr. Byrne into a relationship with Rachel, things begin to shift, and the secrets start to mount.

I can't say that I particularly liked any of the characters -- they were all too self-absorbed -- but the storyline as well as the question as to how this will all end, kept me reading. The language could be off-putting to many readers, but if you can get past that, it's a quick and interesting read.

Thank you to #NetGalley and Knopf for providing this electronic ARC of #TheRachelIncident.

<i>The Rachel Incident </i> gives a very <i>Normal People</i> feeling and it's perfect for the genre.

Rachel Murray is in her early twenties, navigating life, friendships, jobs, and love. She immediately bonds with her bookstore co-worker James Devlin, who is colorful, full of life, and covertly gay, and the two quickly move in together, having the time of their lives in a small Irish town. Together, they deal with heartbreak, love, ambition, finding your dreams and passion, and seem like an unbreakable duo.

As mentioned, this book has a very <i>Normal People</i> vibe and humor, and well... I didn't love <i>Normal People</i>. I wasn't enamored with any of the characters, although they did feel very real, flawed, and fleshed out. But I kept waiting for the book to find its pace and go somewhere and... it never did.

It just felt like I was reading someone's journal, and that person wasn't very interesting to begin with. Probably it would've been way more interesting to read it from James' POV than Rachel's. But it would've been a completely different story then.

However, the ending did show quite a lot of character growth for Rachel (and wow, Carey), so I do appreciate that.

Special thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

This was an enjoyable piece of commercial fiction: a rom-com set in Cork during the Irish economic crash of 2010. Rachel is a university student who is working her way to her degree by working in a bookstore, and becomes best friends and roommates with James, her closeted gay co-worker. She cute-meets Carey, a slightly older guy from Derry, in a pub, and complications ensue. O'Donoghue is a proficient storyteller, delivering laughs and tears, and I could see this being developed into a limited TV series or a film. On a more serious note, this novel addresses issues of reproductive injustice in Ireland before the 2018 referedum that legalized abortion.

Thanks to Netgalley and Knopf for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

I like how this is more like a come of age book, telling the story of Rachel and her roommate and their adventures as they navigate their lives in the beginning of their adulthoods. There's intrigue, there's all sorts of ups and downs, but it is nice to see how things turn out in the end.

Wow! This book was NOT what I expected but it was good. The friendship dynamics and character roles were interesting and you could visualize all of this happening. I pick Scarlett Johanson to play Rachel. I only gave this book 3 stars as it did fall a little flat for me, its pretty slow paced.

The vibes of this book are immaculate!! Put my 2000-2010s indie music Spotify playlist on and felt all the feels. Irish literature will never not do it for me!!! I hope people start talking about this book so much more. And I can’t wait to read more by the author in the future !!

What a tough book to get through. It’s told from Rachel’s point of view in two different periods of her life – present day where she’s presumably more mature and has her life figured out, and in her 20s, when she was a student. While trying to just get through college, she makes a series of terrible decisions that make her seem like the most selfish character. This was not my favorite read and I struggled to get through it. I never warmed to Rachel and found her so unlikeable.

I completely enjoyed The Rachel Incident by Caroline O'Donoghue, with its loveable characters, tangle of events, emotions and amazing conclusion! Thank you NetGalley, the author and publisher for the review copy. All opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this book. It involves, as you may guess, Rachel who is a 21 year old Irish woman and what becomes known as "The Rachel Incident." I have seen a lot of references to Sally Rooney and I don't know my judgement is clouded because they are both Irish authors, but I will say if you enjoy Rooney's novels, you will enjoy this one too. Both authors write in a particular style that is almost minimalist and also witty. I don't often use the Highlight function on my Kindle, but I did several times while reading The Rachel Incident because I just wanted to collect a few sentences that were hilarious and/or poignant or just hits the nail on the head. Somethings that kept me from 5 stars: The novel jumps timelines and sometimes I would be confused because I didn't know the narrator was back to the present. Overall really enjoyed this one!

If Sally Rooney met Fleabag, The Rachel Incident is a breakthrough and seemingly momentous accomplishment from Caroline O’Donoghue. As funny as it is cringy as it is nostalgic for the early 2000s, this book delivers what it means to be young, broke, and confused while still reminding readers how special friendship can be.

Rachel is an English literature student, working in a bookstore, and just trying to discover herself. At the job she meets James a fellow employee, who ends up turning her life upside down. They move in together and it is instant platonic love at first sight. Rachel begins to develop a crush on a married professor of hers, and James encourages her to pursue him. They devise a plan for him to launch his next book at the bookstore they both work at. Their plan does not go exactly to plan but her professor does become involved in their lives and so begins a complex relationship between James, Rachel, Professor Bryne and his beautiful wife.

This book really hit me in a special place because in uni I met a boy who I also had a very intense friendship with and although we did not stay friends past uni, I do look back on my time with him fondly. This book is a very good character exploration and what growing up and finding yourself means. Being in toxic romantic relationships and situations, can really shape you as a person. I just really really loved this one.

This book was so fun ! I loved Rachel’s character . She was beyond relatable and made me nostalgic for my early 20s. I also really enjoyed the friendship she had with James . This was such a great coming of age story . I literally read this in maybe a day so good !

LOVED this! Spent most of the first half chuckling away to myself and reading it in my head in an Irish accent. I love Irish Fiction so much. There’s something about the humour that just snaps for me. Very funny.

This is another of those 20-somethings finding themselves types of books about messy relationships, cheap rentals, part time jobs, Uni and drinking. James and Rachel are the platonic loves of each other’s lives and look out anyone who gets in the way. Told in a flash back style, they’re now both adults and Rachel is confessing in a tell-all tale about an ‘incident’ that occurred during their time as housemates.

I just really enjoyed it and don’t have too much more to add to the rave reviews that are already out there. If you’ve read it, and read her other book Promising Young Women – is it as good? I’d really love to read more from this author. Highly recommend!