From the publisher:
The New York Times bestselling author of The Unhoneymooners returns with a witty and effervescent novel about what happens when two people with everything on the line are thrown together by science—or is it fate? Perfect for fans of The Rosie Project and One Plus One.
Single mom Jessica 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 was never 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 percent compatibility with another subject in the database: one of GeneticAlly’s founders, Dr. River Peña. This is one number she can’t wrap her head around, because she already knows Dr. Peña. 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 Match” that could launch GeneticAlly’s valuation sky-high, 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.
First of all, yay that the main protagonist is a woman with a penchant for numbers, and a job as a statistician. That is not something you see every day and I loved it. This book is super nerdy, and I mean that in the best possible way. I didn’t always get all the statistical references and that’s okay because it lent some authenticity to these characters and who cares if I got it or not. I got the point, and I loved it.
The characters are believable and interesting. The idea of a dating app based on DNA? Why not. And the execution of the story was at times sweet, funny, sexy, but always compelling. Christina Lauren scores another hit – they are a couple of my favorite writers. Put this one in the “must read” pile.
5/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch
THE SOULMATE EQUATION by Christina Lauren. Gallery Books (May 18, 2021). ISBN: 978-1982123963. 368 pages.
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