Publishers Weekly noted that Wang's "clipped, funny, painfully honest narrative voice lights up" the novel.

[7] Kirkus also applauded Wang's created voice, stating that while the unnamed narrator is "essentially unhinged, [she] is thoughtful and funny...

However, Huffington Post did not enjoy the narrative voice, saying, "The tight first-person can feel somewhat claustrophobic and familiar ― a cerebral depressive slowly unraveling in front of herself ― and much like the protagonist’s Ph.D. project, Chemistry doesn’t astound with its originality of concept or virtuosic language.

"[5] The review continues, explaining that "the present tense also suggests the extent to which the past is, for this narrator, an ongoing anxiety.

"[5] Library Journal stated that while Chemistry "could have been a clever, witty novel of self-discovery," but it might have been "more effective" as "a distilled short story.