Review | The Rosie Project

The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
June 2014 by Simon and Schuster
295 pages
Amazon + Good Reads

"An international sensation, this hilarious, feel-good novel is narrated by an oddly charming and socially challenged genetics professor on an unusual quest: to find out if he is capable of true love.Don Tillman, professor of genetics, has never been on a second date. He is a man who can count all his friends on the fingers of one hand, whose lifelong difficulty with social rituals has convinced him that he is simply not wired for romance. So when an acquaintance informs him that he would make a "wonderful" husband, his first reaction is shock. Yet he must concede to the statistical probability that there is someone for everyone, and he embarks upon The Wife Project. In the orderly, evidence-based manner with which he approaches all things, Don sets out to find the perfect partner. She will be punctual and logical--most definitely not a barmaid, a smoker, a drinker, or a late-arriver.

Yet Rosie Jarman is all these things. She is also beguiling, fiery, intelligent--and on a quest of her own. She is looking for her biological father, a search that a certain DNA expert might be able to help her with. Don's Wife Project takes a back burner to the Father Project and an unlikely relationship blooms, forcing the scientifically minded geneticist to confront the spontaneous whirlwind that is Rosie--and the realization that love is not always what looks good on paper.

"The Rosie Project" is a moving and hilarious novel for anyone who has ever tenaciously gone after life or love in the face of overwhelming challenges."

-Good Reads

I didn't hate it, but I definitely didn't love it.



I suppose I can understand why others found the story so charming but unfortunately, it did not wow or captivate me like it apparently did for everyone else. I enjoyed Don's voice and inner monologue... but I wasn't terribly invested in his story or even his relationships. I thought that the plot was predictable and wasn't surprised by any of the twists - if they were supposed to be twists at all.



Overall, The Rosie Project was simply okay. I enjoyed it as much as I would enjoy a mediocre rom-com which is to say that it only held my interest for a few chapters at a time. I thought Don Tillman was unique in a genre that blends male characters together, but his quirk was not enough to make the story a favorite. I was entertained but I've seen all of these tropes before.