Animal instinct A novel

Could the perfect person be a bot? Mom-of-three Rachel, who works in tech, is newly dating after getting divorced just before the pandemic hit. In the strange days of masking and outdoor dining, Rachel's friend sets her up on dating apps looking for both men and women, and she meets people they nickname the Rocker, Kinky Playwright, and Too-Many-Cats Guy. While Rachel enjoys having a whole crew just a text away to meet her needs--a crew so large she eventually needs a spreadsheet to keep track--she wonders if she could program a chatbot to connect with romantically, thus creating one perfect person. Although her experiment takes a few wrong turns as she feeds the bot the best parts of everyone in her life, it gets better and better, until it feels like the bot may be all she needs. Shearn's (The Mermaid of Brooklyn, 2013) inventive novel offers snappy dialogue that feels like eavesdropping on close friends, captures the scary early-pandemic days of isolation and digital connection, and ultimately celebrates the unpredictability of love.

In Shearn's delightful and hilarious latest (after Dear Edna Sloane), a recently divorced app developer and mother of three navigates online dating during the early months of Covid-19. Unwilling to remain stuck inside her spare Brooklyn apartment, Rachel meets men and women for take-out drinks in parks and breaks pandemic protocols by going home with them, awakening her dormant sexual desire in the process. She dubs her small group of regular dalliances "the team," and relates to the reader a series of wry and cutting observations about traditional marriage ("I've gone from being his best friend to becoming a butler / sex worker / armchair!"). Shearn transcends typical divorce novel tropes as Rachel begins work on a chatbot called Frankie that will ultimately become an amalgam of "the team," possessing all the desirable qualities of the people she dates with none of the downside or hassle of human relationships. Eventually, the bot teaches Rachel unexpected lessons about self-forgiveness and the rewards of embracing one's imperfections, leading her to connect with someone IRL. This scintillating story of reinvention will excite Shearn's fans and win new ones. Agent: Julie Stevenson, Massie & McQuilkin Literary. (Mar.)