rachel weiss’s group chat

Opposites attract in this romantic comedy, ＂as hilarious as it is heartwarming,＂ about feeling stuck, the importance of friendship, and learning to open your heart. (Falon Ballard, author of Right on Cue)

The year is already off to a bad start. It’s not enough that Rachel Weiss is stuck in a job she despises and has an unfortunate attraction to men who disappoint her. It’s the Year of Turning Thirty . . . and now her mother won’t stop trying to set up Rachel with the millionaire buying the house next door.

Luckily Rachel has amazing friends and their juicy group chat to keep her going. But amid work-mandated therapy, her thirteen gray hairs, and biking in the buff, she can’t help wondering why she isn’t moving forward like everyone else.

As Rachel’s life--and circle of friends--begins to fall apart, she confides in the last person she expects. The uptight, irritating--yet surprisingly funny and thoughtful--tech bro next door may be the one person who sees Rachel for the woman she wants to be. After random DMs turn into confessing letters, she begins to realize perhaps it was she who had him wrong all along.

Lauren Appelbaum is a technical editor in Seattle and has had years in which to wallow in Seattle’s tech and dating scenes. She also has a Jewish mother of her own who only bears a slight resemblance to Mrs. Bennett...so you could say she’s writing what she knows. Luckily, she’s on the other side of it with a husband, toddler and passion for writing joyful, nostalgic romps.