Book Review: The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion

Synopsis

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.

Review

Have you ever come across a book that you found interesting, but you weren't sure if you should buy it or not? My rules are, if you think twice about something, leave it.
Well this book was exactly like that. I saw this book at the stores so many times, but every time I thought twice about purchasing it. But literally as soon as I got home I kicked myself for being stupid....again.
So finally I sucked it up and bought it, and lets just say, I'm so happy that I bit the bullet and did. My only annoyance was I wished I bought it sooner.
I love this book so much, that this is the second time I've read it. The first time was in September 2013, so just over a year ago.

Where do I begin with this....it's based in Australia (New Zealand born Australian author), told in the point of view of Don, who is a genius, socially awkward professor, looking for that "perfect" wife. To do this he creates a questionnaire called the Wife Project. Seeing all the requirements he wants in his match, I'm guessing it would take a very long time before he finds the one.

There were so many awkward scenes that I couldn't stop laughing the whole time. Picture a man who is very smart, takes everything very literal, and who goes on blind, group, and speed dates. The writing is comic genius.
Through this obsession with finding his future wife he meets Rosie, who isn't his ideal match (according to the questionnaire) but he finds he likes being with her anyway.
These two characters were great together. I loved their daily interactions and banter with each other, they just complimented one another.
You're probably guessing how this would end, considering it's a romantic novel, but it's not the ending that's important, it's how they got there. And let me tell you, the journey was funny, sad and incredible the whole way.

What I also loved about Don was his frequent obsession with naming an incident that has happened to him. For example when he goes on a date, everything was going smoothly until dessert, and his dates obsession with only having apricot flavour ice-cream. He names this "The Apricot Ice-Cream Disaster."
Or his first "date" with Rosie, the restaurant she picked had a strict dress code, which of course didn't go down too well. He called this as "The Jacket Incident."

I don't want to give too much away, because I recommend everyone who just wants a light hearted romance novel should pick this up. Beautifully written, I'm now officially obsessed with Graeme Simsion, that I can't wait to read more of his work.

If this happens to turn into a movie (which I'm guessing it probably will), and they get good actors and director, I will be first in line to buy the ticket. I'll even go as far as being an equivalent version of a Twihard. Now that's dedication.

My star rating for The Rose Project is:

Sequel

I started reading Graeme Simsion's sequel The Rosie Effect, I'm on page 100 and I think I might stop.
I'm not enjoying this as much as the first book. It's boring and there doesn't really seem to be a plot happening. Maybe it's just the mood I'm in, but whatever it is, I'm going to stop reading this and pick this up at a later date.
I really wanted to enjoy this one as much as The Rosie Project, but you know what they say about sequels, they aren't always as good.



If you have read either The Rosie Project or even The Rosie Effect, let me know in the comments below. I would love to hear your thoughts.