Women's Fiction
![Rosie Danan - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_B085T9QGGP.jpg)
The Intimacy Experiment (The Shameless Series)
"Danan is becoming a go-to author."-New York Times Book Review
Naomi and Ethan will test the boundaries of love in this provocative romance from the author of the ground-breaking debut, The Roommate.
Naomi Grant has built her life around going against the grain. After the sex-positive start-up she cofounded becomes an international sensation, she wants to extend her educational platform to live lecturing. Unfortunately, despite her long list of qualifications, higher ed won't hire her.
Ethan Cohen has recently received two honors: LA Mag nominated him as one of the city's hottest bachelors and he became rabbi of his own synagogue. Low on both funds and congregants, the executive board of Ethan's new shul hired him with the hopes that his nontraditional background will attract more millennials to the faith. They've given him three months to turn things around or else they'll close the doors of his synagogue for good.
Naomi and Ethan join forces to host a buzzy seminar series on Modern Intimacy, the perfect solution to their problems--until they discover a new one--their growing attraction to each other. They've built the syllabus for love's latest experiment, but neither of them expected they'd be the ones putting it to the test.
Naomi and Ethan will test the boundaries of love in this provocative romance from the author of the ground-breaking debut, The Roommate.
Naomi Grant has built her life around going against the grain. After the sex-positive start-up she cofounded becomes an international sensation, she wants to extend her educational platform to live lecturing. Unfortunately, despite her long list of qualifications, higher ed won't hire her.
Ethan Cohen has recently received two honors: LA Mag nominated him as one of the city's hottest bachelors and he became rabbi of his own synagogue. Low on both funds and congregants, the executive board of Ethan's new shul hired him with the hopes that his nontraditional background will attract more millennials to the faith. They've given him three months to turn things around or else they'll close the doors of his synagogue for good.
Naomi and Ethan join forces to host a buzzy seminar series on Modern Intimacy, the perfect solution to their problems--until they discover a new one--their growing attraction to each other. They've built the syllabus for love's latest experiment, but neither of them expected they'd be the ones putting it to the test.
Editorial Reviews
Alma's Best Jewish Romance of the Year
"Danan's book is at its very best when it's connecting faith, trust, strength and desire in complex ways...an ambitious and rewarding story."-New York Times Book Review
"This follow-up to Danan's steamy 2020 debut The Roommate is filled with humor, healing, and heady good times (and, yes, that is a naughty pun)."-Vulture
"Rosie Danan has a staggering gift for subverting expectations . . . The Intimacy Experiment on the whole, is a blessing of a book -tender, bruising, sexy, and transcendent."-Entertainment Weekly
"I could cry about how much I love Naomi and Ethan. Rosie Danan's writing brims with compassion and wit, and there's a tenderness that runs underneath everything-even when her characters are positive they're not falling for each other. A stunning, subversive romance that made me proud to be Jewish."-Rachel Lynn Solomon, author of The Ex Talk
"The Intimacy Experiment by Rosie Danan is effervescent. It is the perfect combination of endearing vulnerability, swoon-worthy romance, and scorching chemistry. Rosie Danan brings us a charming exploration of the intersections of sex, love, faith, and identity in a fiercely feminist novel that will leave you breathless."-Denise Williams, author of How to Fail at Flirting
"The Intimacy Experiment delivers on every promise: humor, steam, and an 'unlikely' couple that readers will not only fight for, but admire."-Felcia Grossman, author of Dalliances and Devotion
"Danan's book is at its very best when it's connecting faith, trust, strength and desire in complex ways...an ambitious and rewarding story."-New York Times Book Review
"This follow-up to Danan's steamy 2020 debut The Roommate is filled with humor, healing, and heady good times (and, yes, that is a naughty pun)."-Vulture
"Rosie Danan has a staggering gift for subverting expectations . . . The Intimacy Experiment on the whole, is a blessing of a book -tender, bruising, sexy, and transcendent."-Entertainment Weekly
"I could cry about how much I love Naomi and Ethan. Rosie Danan's writing brims with compassion and wit, and there's a tenderness that runs underneath everything-even when her characters are positive they're not falling for each other. A stunning, subversive romance that made me proud to be Jewish."-Rachel Lynn Solomon, author of The Ex Talk
"The Intimacy Experiment by Rosie Danan is effervescent. It is the perfect combination of endearing vulnerability, swoon-worthy romance, and scorching chemistry. Rosie Danan brings us a charming exploration of the intersections of sex, love, faith, and identity in a fiercely feminist novel that will leave you breathless."-Denise Williams, author of How to Fail at Flirting
"The Intimacy Experiment delivers on every promise: humor, steam, and an 'unlikely' couple that readers will not only fight for, but admire."-Felcia Grossman, author of Dalliances and Devotion
Readers Top Reviews
Natasha T
It doesn’t happen all too often that I become so enamoured with a book that I feel utterly drunk on it, but this radiant gem of a story stole my heart and fed my soul in ways I didn’t even know it had needed it. In this slow-burning, opposites-attracting romance between two unlikely lovers, Rosie Danan makes us believe that love truly conquers all, and that a cynical former sex performer and a forward-thinking young rabbi could find their happily-ever-after in a world that is set on rejecting the very idea of them together. The soft shimmering sensuality of Danan’s voice is intoxicating, subtle yet bold in the way she makes the reader feel each tantalising increment of desire between the characters, but it is her ability to give them genuine emotional depth and complexity that leaves a lovely, lingering effect long after we close this book. A rare delight! Naomi Grant, former porn star turned co-founder of an über-popular sex education website, has spent her entire adult life with her guard firmly in place. Her whole identity was built around being an outsider and shocking people into submission with her prickly persona, but deep down, under all her confidence and rebellious bravado, beats the tender heart of a woman whose past taught her to see love as the ultimate weakness. So, when a handsome young rabbi approaches her at a conference, inviting her to teach a modern intimacy seminar at his synagogue, Naomi is torn between her desire to reach a live audience with her experience and theories on human sexuality and relationship dynamics, and her unexpected attraction to the sexy rabbi. Her longing to educate ultimately wins. Thirty-two-year-old Ethan Cohen has filled many shoes in his lifetime—those of a son, a brother, a teacher—but it is in his role as a rabbi that he found his true sense of purpose. With congregation numbers at an all-time low and still dwindling, however, Ethan is forced to think outside the box to save his crumbling synagogue, and a non-traditional seminar series that would appeal to a more modern audience might just do the trick. Even if it means working with a woman whose very essence continues to test the limits of his self-control. As candid conversations about love and intimacy begin to take place inside the classroom, Naomi and Ethan’s relationship somehow begins to organically follow the same step-by-step blueprint that Naomi’s syllabus is designed to teach. Their attraction is mutual and downright magnetic, but they both continue to harbour strong reservations about admitting their feelings to the other, struggling with all the ways a relationship between them would force change into their loved one’s life. When they finally give into temptation, loving each other becomes as easy as breathing, gently anchoring them to the person they were born to be, and no amount of discouragement can stop some...
Gilli
This is an utterly charming and thought provoking read, when I read the blurb I wasn’t sure if the storyline would be for me, but I’m so glad I went
Libriamo3116
Ethan is one of Los Angeles's most eligible bachelors, and he's also a freshly minted rabbi with his own synagogue. Unfortunately for him, he was hired because the synagogue isn't attracting patrons or funds, and if he doesn't get people excited about coming to worship, then it's lights out. At the same time, Naomi has crafted a sex-positive educational platform that has become a hit around the world, but she wants to gain insights and remain personal by bringing her platform to students in person. Unfortunately for her, she can't get educational institutions to entertain her unconventional course as a matter for study. With both Ethan and Naomi trying to find a path forward, they team up to use his synagogue to host a seminar that she's crafted on Modern Intimacy. That's when they begin to realize her love lectures are so potent, that the two of them are ready to stay after class to put it to the test. First things first, Naomi started out as a character in Rosie Danan's first book, The Roommate, so if you want more of her back story, you'll (want to) have to check that one out. Having said that, The Intimacy Experiment works just fine as a story on its own, and it's certainly an interesting premise to find a rabbi and a former adult video entertainment worker thrust together by need, and soon enough, by desire. What makes this compelling is, of course, the fact that people in Ethan's congregation have things to say about their potential pairing, and he also has his duty and commitment to his faith to think of. Naomi is doing all of this not for the money, but because it's something that fulfils her. I appreciated that the story remained faith-positive and sex-positive, and didn't feel like it had to act as if intimacy and faith were unable to become entwined. If you've read The Roommate, you'll know what to expect, because this one does get hot and heavy. In case it wasn't clear from the premise, this is not a young adult story. I am a grown woman, and I had to step outside for some fresh air a few times when Ethan and Naomi took all that modern intimacy to a more private place. These two are beautiful, adorable, and sexy as all get out together, and I wish that more stories would tackle the intersection of faith and sexuality with such frankness and steam. Come for the seminar, stay for the heat, and hope beyond hope that this rabbi and his modern lady have what it takes to find excitement, intimacy, passion, as well as some commitment and love, before the seminar is through. The Intimacy Experiment's results are in, and they say you should get intimate with Ethan and Naomi's story now. Bring a fan and some iced tea along for the ride.
Mamamama
I can't say enough how much I love this book. I read it in 24 hours, letting the laundry and other obligations pile up around me. I won't repeat what everyone else said but add that this is easily in my list of top romances. If we are honest with ourselves, we like romance heroines, but we really read for the book boyfriend. No? Just me? ok. Well I usually read for the book boyfriend. All I need from the protagonist is someone I can vaguely insert myself over. Maybe I am a terrible romance fan- but there we go. I loved Naomi the way I love characters in other genres, where I have no desire to cover them with my own self- just love them like friends. And I loved Naomi and Ethan in their entirety. I desperately wish they were real, and that I could sit in Naomi's seminar and go to Ethan's Synagogue and brag like "oh that book? I know the people it's about! I'm totally friends with them!"
Short Excerpt Teaser
Chapter One
Naomi Grant knew that every superhero worth their salt had a secret identity. An alter ego that represented their humanity and kept them tethered to "the real world," usually by virtue of being unassuming-Bruce Wayne notwithstanding.
Naomi could relate, though her given name was dusty from disuse. Hannah Sturm, with her easy smiles and trusting eyes, hadn't made a public appearance in over a decade. And why would she? Naomi Grant was the one people wanted.
The one musicians invited to launch parties. The woman paparazzi followed to the drugstore. The shiny sexpot that tech moguls attempted to fuck when they wanted to feel edgy.
Of course, Naomi Grant wasn't a superhero.
She was a porn star. Well, former porn star turned co-CEO of an inclusive sex education start-up. Try fitting that on a business card.
Her superpowers, at least most of the marketable ones, were of the distinctly bedroom variety.
There wasn't much use for her lauded talents here, at the Los Angeles Convention Center for a national teaching conference full of harried, unappreciated, and underpaid people in sensible shoes.
At the registration desk this morning, bent over her blank name tag, a strange urge to write Hannah had flitted across her brain. The impulse was so strong, she had to stop her hand from moving, from clumsily following the long-dormant instinct to re-create a signature that no longer belonged to her. It would have been nice to slip on anonymity for a few hours. Hannah could blend in with a crowd, while Naomi, in unforgiving contrast, had been born, or rather made, to stand out.
Ever since her thirtieth birthday had come and gone last year, Naomi had spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about the seams of her identity. Making sure no one found out that the line separating where Naomi Grant ended and Hannah Sturm began had grown wan and thin. Some days the current pulling her toward her past was an undertow that threatened to take her out at the knees.
It didn't help that her best friends and business partners, the people she spent the most time with, were normal-adjacent. Engaged. Homeowners.
Sure, Clara and Josh fucked more than average, but that hadn't stopped them from sending out a saccharine Christmas card this year. It was still hanging on her fridge in March. Yesterday, she'd caught herself smiling at it when she went to get cream for her coffee. Gross.
Hannah would have known better than to show up to an all-day teaching convention wearing vegan leather pants and a bra that left her trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey. But at least Naomi wasn't the only one uncomfortable in this lecture hall. Behind his lectern at the front, the poor workshop instructor was sweating bullets.
"Thank you all for joining me today." A crack of piercing static cut through the room as he brought his mouth too close to the microphone.
Naomi winced.
"Let's kick off today's inclusive design workshop with some brief introductions. I'd like to get a sense of what and where you teach so I can tailor my materials to your collective use cases. Let's stand, shall we?"
Everyone got to their feet in the slow, grumbly way that stank of collective reluctance. This conference on the future of education had seemed like a good idea last month when Naomi had received yet another rejection on an application for an adjunct professorial position at the local community college. She figured the broad appeal of the programming would provide opportunities for her to network in expanded education circles, as well as the chance to learn new techniques for Shameless, the subscription web platform she ran. It was a stretch that adding conference attendance as a credentials line on her rŽsumŽ would convince higher ed to take her accomplishments in the analysis of human sexuality and relationship dynamics seriously, but she'd run out of better ideas.
To her left, a man in his midfifties introduced himself as a medieval literature professor from Green Bay. This wasn't exactly her usual crowd. She had a feeling her fellow educators weren't going to warm to her subject matter expertise in quite the same way they did to more benign departments. She braced herself for the impending impact of leers and jeers, but the shift in her normally fluid posture felt like overkill. Hadn't she faced worse crowds than this?
Back in her waitressing days, she'd once hosed down a pack of drunk frat boys on the Venice boardwalk.
The workshop attendees mov...
Naomi Grant knew that every superhero worth their salt had a secret identity. An alter ego that represented their humanity and kept them tethered to "the real world," usually by virtue of being unassuming-Bruce Wayne notwithstanding.
Naomi could relate, though her given name was dusty from disuse. Hannah Sturm, with her easy smiles and trusting eyes, hadn't made a public appearance in over a decade. And why would she? Naomi Grant was the one people wanted.
The one musicians invited to launch parties. The woman paparazzi followed to the drugstore. The shiny sexpot that tech moguls attempted to fuck when they wanted to feel edgy.
Of course, Naomi Grant wasn't a superhero.
She was a porn star. Well, former porn star turned co-CEO of an inclusive sex education start-up. Try fitting that on a business card.
Her superpowers, at least most of the marketable ones, were of the distinctly bedroom variety.
There wasn't much use for her lauded talents here, at the Los Angeles Convention Center for a national teaching conference full of harried, unappreciated, and underpaid people in sensible shoes.
At the registration desk this morning, bent over her blank name tag, a strange urge to write Hannah had flitted across her brain. The impulse was so strong, she had to stop her hand from moving, from clumsily following the long-dormant instinct to re-create a signature that no longer belonged to her. It would have been nice to slip on anonymity for a few hours. Hannah could blend in with a crowd, while Naomi, in unforgiving contrast, had been born, or rather made, to stand out.
Ever since her thirtieth birthday had come and gone last year, Naomi had spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about the seams of her identity. Making sure no one found out that the line separating where Naomi Grant ended and Hannah Sturm began had grown wan and thin. Some days the current pulling her toward her past was an undertow that threatened to take her out at the knees.
It didn't help that her best friends and business partners, the people she spent the most time with, were normal-adjacent. Engaged. Homeowners.
Sure, Clara and Josh fucked more than average, but that hadn't stopped them from sending out a saccharine Christmas card this year. It was still hanging on her fridge in March. Yesterday, she'd caught herself smiling at it when she went to get cream for her coffee. Gross.
Hannah would have known better than to show up to an all-day teaching convention wearing vegan leather pants and a bra that left her trussed up like a Thanksgiving turkey. But at least Naomi wasn't the only one uncomfortable in this lecture hall. Behind his lectern at the front, the poor workshop instructor was sweating bullets.
"Thank you all for joining me today." A crack of piercing static cut through the room as he brought his mouth too close to the microphone.
Naomi winced.
"Let's kick off today's inclusive design workshop with some brief introductions. I'd like to get a sense of what and where you teach so I can tailor my materials to your collective use cases. Let's stand, shall we?"
Everyone got to their feet in the slow, grumbly way that stank of collective reluctance. This conference on the future of education had seemed like a good idea last month when Naomi had received yet another rejection on an application for an adjunct professorial position at the local community college. She figured the broad appeal of the programming would provide opportunities for her to network in expanded education circles, as well as the chance to learn new techniques for Shameless, the subscription web platform she ran. It was a stretch that adding conference attendance as a credentials line on her rŽsumŽ would convince higher ed to take her accomplishments in the analysis of human sexuality and relationship dynamics seriously, but she'd run out of better ideas.
To her left, a man in his midfifties introduced himself as a medieval literature professor from Green Bay. This wasn't exactly her usual crowd. She had a feeling her fellow educators weren't going to warm to her subject matter expertise in quite the same way they did to more benign departments. She braced herself for the impending impact of leers and jeers, but the shift in her normally fluid posture felt like overkill. Hadn't she faced worse crowds than this?
Back in her waitressing days, she'd once hosed down a pack of drunk frat boys on the Venice boardwalk.
The workshop attendees mov...
