Robin’s Rave Reviews 2023
A new romcom, The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren, comes out May 16. This was my first Christina Lauren novel, but since I had heard good things, I had to give The True Love Experiment a try! Read below. Maybe it will be just the book you’ve been looking for.
Synopsis
Felicity “Fizzy” Chen is a popular romance writer who hasn’t found her true love yet. She’s also going through writer’s block. Connor Prince, a documentary filmmaker and divorced father, is told that the company is going in a different direction, and he is expected to create a new dating show. He isn’t thrilled with the idea, but he does want to keep his job and continue to live near his daughter. Connor convinces Fizzy, the queen of romance novels, to star in the show, partially because she has a built-in audience from her books. Reluctant at first, she decides to do the show if the men she dates represent typical romance hero archetypes – the Navy Seal, the vampire, the cinnamon roll (sweet and supportive),the cowboy, the one that got away, etc. The True Love Experiment TV show is right on track to air, except Fizzy may be falling in love with someone who isn’t a contestant. So much chemistry! So much flirting!
My Take
Ok, I’ll admit that my guilty pleasure is watching The Bachelor/Bachelorette shows. If that applies to you, this book is for you! I really loved the characters and plot of this story. I also loved the original slant on the dating show – a romance writer dating romance archetype love interests. However, it’s a spicier romance than I normally read. And watch out for the many F bombs. Still, I love the story so much, I had to recommend the book to those of you who aren’t bothered by the heat level and swearing. I gave it 5 stars because it was so entertaining, kept my attention, and included wonderful characters that stuck with me.
The Author(s)
Christina Lauren is actually two writers: Christina Hobbs and Lauren Billings. Together they’ve produced eighteen New York Times bestselling novels, including The Soulmate Equation, In a Holidaze and The Unhoneymooners. Fans have been waiting for The True Love Experiment ever since Fizzy debuted as a character in The Soulmate Equation. (I didn’t know that until after reading The True Love Experiment, but it read fine as a stand alone. I have heard you should read The Soulmate Equation first (if you planned to) because reading The True Love Experiment first will give spoilers.
The True Love Experiment will be out May 16, 2023, but don’t wait! Preorders really help authors. You can order now from most bookstores, but I included this link to my favorite place to order books, bookshop.org. They support independent, mom and pop bookstores. You can even pick which store you want to support!
Thank you to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC of this novel. The opinions are my own.
To get a sneak peek of my other upcoming book reviews, go to my last blog post.
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