Ali Hazelwood - Love, Theoretically

 

Ali Hazelwood - Love, Theoretically 

4⭐

Genre: Contemporary Romance,Romance, Fiction,STEM,Academia

Pages: 389

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Sphere

Date Published: 13th June 2023

Book Blurb: 

The many lives of theoretical physicist Elsie Hannaway have finally caught up with her. By day, she’s an adjunct professor, toiling away at grading labs and teaching thermodynamics in the hopes of landing tenure. By other day, Elsie makes up for her non-existent paycheck by offering her services as a fake girlfriend, tapping into her expertly honed people pleasing skills to embody whichever version of herself the client needs.

Honestly, it’s a pretty sweet gig—until her carefully constructed Elsie-verse comes crashing down. Because Jack Smith, the annoyingly attractive and broody older brother of her favorite client, turns out to be the cold-hearted experimental physicist who ruined her mentor’s career and undermined the reputation of theorists everywhere. And that same Jack who now sits on the hiring committee at MIT, right between Elsie and her dream job.

Elsie is prepared for an all-out war of scholarly sabotage but…those long, penetrating looks? Not having to be anything other than her true self when she’s with him? Will falling into an experimentalist’s orbit finally tempt her to put her most guarded theories on love into practice?

My Review: 

I love Ali Hazelwood’s writing and romances. There is no doubt about it. Yet, Love, Theoretically for me just wasn’t as good as her first two full-length books. Although I still loved the academic setting, the drama and the light that Hazelwood shines on misogyny and sexism in STEM when it comes to females, the romance itself for me was a real letdown.

The story follows theoretical physicist Elsie who is living two lives. She is an adjunct professor in two different universities, teaching graduates and hoping one day she can land a tenure. She also offers her services as a fake girlfriend on the online platform, just so she can pay her rent and bills. However, her best client’s older brother Jack Smith ruins her perfect double life when Elsie meets him during an interview at MIT, where she is hoping to get her dream job. Elsie’s hate for Jack doesn’t end there, he is an experimental physicist who ruined her supervisor's career and now is on a path to ruin Elsie's career too. Or so Elsie thought…

I didn’t like Elsie at all. She is not likeable. She pretends to be a version of herself that people want to see, thus it was hard to figure out who she really is. For someone who is also a Dr and theoretical physicist, she is also very naïve. I liked Jack as a character, he was more open than the male love interest in the other two Hazelwood books, so that was very interesting to read.

Romance-wise, I just didn’t buy it. She and Jack’s chemistry for me felt really forced and very instant. I didn’t believe their romantic story one bit, and honestly, I didn’t care that much about them both. I didn’t root for her like I did with Olive or Bee.

I enjoyed the Olive and Adam cameo, as well as the cheeky appearance of Bee’s name…It was so wholesome. Also, I really enjoyed the nature of academia being discussed during the book and all the drama that comes with it.

Overall: Not my favourite Ali’s book but still a very enjoyable read, academia and STEM wise mostly, instead of romance. However, I can’t wait to read Check & Mate, her first YA book and see what it’s like. 

About the Author:

Ali Hazelwood is the pseudonym for an Italian neuroscientist and writer of romance novels. Her main characters are women in a variety of different STEM fields and in academia. Her debut novel, The Love Hypothesis, was a New York Times best seller. In 2022 she has published three novellas: Under One Roof, Stuck with You, and Below Zero. Her second novel Love on the Brain was published on August 23, 2022.

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21098177.Ali_Hazelwood

Ali Hazelwood - Below Zero

 

Ali Hazelwood - Below Zero  

4⭐

Genre: Contemporary Romance,Romance, Fiction,STEM,Academia, Novella

Pages: 139

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Sphere

Date Published: 3rd January 2023

Book Blurb: 

It will take the frosty terrain of the Arctic to show these rival scientists that their chemistry burns hot.

Mara, Sadie, and Hannah are friends first, scientists always. Though their fields of study might take them to different corners of the world, they can all agree on this universal truth: when it comes to love and science, opposites attract and rivals make you burn…

Hannah’s got a bad feeling about this. Not only has the NASA aerospace engineer found herself injured and stranded at a remote Arctic research station—but the one person willing to undertake the hazardous rescue mission is her longtime rival.

Ian has been many things to Hannah: the villain who tried to veto her expedition and ruin her career, the man who stars in her most deliciously lurid dreams…but he’s never played the hero. So why is he risking everything to be here? And why does his presence seem just as dangerous to her heart as the coming snowstorm?

My Review: 

I have to say that Below Zero was my favourite STEMinist novella by Ali Hazelwood. I really loved both Hannah and Ian, but especially Hannah, as she is so authentic and nerdy, yet true to herself. I just really wished this novella was longer, as I needed more of Ian and Hannah.

The novella follows Hannah who is a NASA aerospace engineer currently working in a very cold and remote part of Norway in a research station, conducting her ground-breaking research. Unfortunately, she gets herself injured and is unable to get back to safety, however, the person she least expects comes and rescues her. That person is no other than her long-time rival and arch nemesis Ian. However, being stranded in the cold and brutal wilderness, Hannah thinks about the past and Ian, especially the reasons why their rivalry started in the first place. Are being below zero will make Hannah’s heart colder or being faced with a life-threatening challenge will make her heart finally melt for Ian?

I loved how many character development Hazelwood put in this short story. It was amazing to see Hannah grow as a character between her memories and being stuck in a remote part of Norway. She is so likeable, authentic and cool. Loved her so much! It was really interesting to see the instant connection and the shared interests between them both, which is why their attraction and romance were so believable.

Overall: Fluffy, cute and brilliantly written novella. I loved the flashback scenes and how each added to the story, as well as covered all the blanks and helped to piece the story altogether. It just worked so well.  I actually wish this was a full-length book as I need more of Hannah and Ian since they are amazingly developed and interesting characters. 

About the Author:

Ali Hazelwood is the pseudonym for an Italian neuroscientist and writer of romance novels. Her main characters are women in a variety of different STEM fields and in academia. Her debut novel, The Love Hypothesis, was a New York Times best seller. In 2022 she has published three novellas: Under One Roof, Stuck with You, and Below Zero. Her second novel Love on the Brain was published on August 23, 2022.

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21098177.Ali_Hazelwood

Ali Hazelwood - Stuck With You

Ali Hazelwood - Stuck With You   

3.5⭐

Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romance, Fiction, STEM, Academia, Novella

Pages: 127

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Sphere 

Date Published: 3rd January 2023 

Book Blurb: 

Nothing like a little rivalry between scientists to take love to the next level.

Mara, Sadie, and Hannah are friends first, scientists always. Though their fields of study might take them to different corners of the world, they can all agree on this universal truth: when it comes to love and science, opposites attract and rivals make you burn…

Logically, Sadie knows that civil engineers are supposed to build bridges. However, as a woman of STEM she also understands that variables can change, and when you are stuck for hours in a tiny New York elevator with the man who broke your heart, you earn the right to burn that brawny, blond bridge to the ground. Erik can apologize all he wants, but to quote her rebel leader—she’d just as soon kiss a Wookiee.

Not even the most sophisticated of Sadie’s superstitious rituals could have predicted such a disastrous reunion. But while she refuses to acknowledge the siren call of Erik’s steely forearms or the way his voice softens when he offers her his sweater, Sadie can’t help but wonder if there might be more layers to her cold-hearted nemesis than meet the eye. Maybe, possibly, even burned bridges can still be crossed….

My Review: 

Stuck With You was definitely my least favourite of Ali Hazelwood's novellas. Firstly, there was no chemistry between Erik and Sadie nowhere in this story. Secondly, the instant love just seemed super unrealistic, especially the way they met. Very disappointing, especially as I heard so many good things about this one on Bookstagram.

This novella follows Sadie who is a civil engineer for a small company and who is very superstitious. Due to this superstition of hers, she meets a gorgeous Erik and she straight away is smitten by him. Erik seems to like her too. 24 hours and one spicy fling later, Sadie suddenly hates Erik. Why might you ask? Well…all of the details are revealed when both of them get stuck in an elevator and have to face each other once and for all…

I think if this wasn’t a novella but a full-length book, I think I would have liked it more. In this format, I didn’t get the whole instant love and then instant hate idea. Also, the story itself felt a bit unrealistic to me. Also, Erik’s character was very underdeveloped and oh don’t get me started on them talking about football. That just ruined the story for me. I liked Sadie but there wasn’t much of her true character or personality there, and at times she just felt a tad childish. I really felt that the trope took the front and the characters with their personalities took the back seat in this novella.

However, unlike in Under One Roof, at least the smutty scene here kept me interested, since the story and characters didn’t. Also, I was glad it wasn’t a long story, as I couldn’t face more of Erik and more of their silly miscommunication/ hate, which was sorted within an hour whilst stuck in the elevator…

Overall: Very disappointing story, with very underdeveloped characters and a miscommunication trope, which had so much potential but felt very short. I think this would have worked in a longer story but not in a novella format. 

About the Author:

Ali Hazelwood is the pseudonym for an Italian neuroscientist and writer of romance novels. Her main characters are women in a variety of different STEM fields and in academia. Her debut novel, The Love Hypothesis, was a New York Times best seller. In 2022 she has published three novellas: Under One Roof, Stuck with You, and Below Zero. Her second novel Love on the Brain was published on August 23, 2022.

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21098177.Ali_Hazelwood

Ali Hazelwood - Under One Roof

 

Ali Hazelwood - Under One Roof    

4⭐

Genre: Contemporary Romance,Romance, Fiction,STEM,Academia, Novella

Pages: 112

Format: Paperback

Publisher: Sphere 

Date Published: 3rd January 2023

Book Blurb: 

A scientist should never cohabitate with her annoyingly hot nemesis – it leads to combustion.

Mara, Sadie, and Hannah are friends first, scientists always. Though their fields of study might take them to different corners of the world, they can all agree on this universal truth: when it comes to love and science, opposites attract and rivals make you burn….

As an environmental engineer, Mara knows all about the delicate nature of ecosystems. They require balance. And leaving the thermostat alone. And not stealing someone else’s food. And other rules Liam, her detestable big-oil lawyer of a roommate, knows nothing about. Okay, sure, technically she’s the interloper. Liam was already entrenched in his aunt’s house like some glowering grumpy giant when Mara moved in, with his big muscles and kissable mouth just sitting there on the couch tempting respectable scientists to the dark side…but Helena was her mentor and Mara’s not about to move out and give up her inheritance without a fight.

The problem is, living with someone means getting to know them. And the more Mara finds out about Liam, the harder it is to loathe him…and the easier it is to love him.

My Review: 

Although it doesn’t compare to how amazing were The Love Hypothesis and Love On the Brain, it was still a very cute, fun and feel-good novella. Excellent pallet cleanser in between heavier books.

The novella follows an environmental engineer Mara, who after graduation moves to DC to start her graduate position. However, she has a big problem, and that problem is living with Liam, who she hates from the minute their meet each other. Why is she cohabiting with him? Well, her PhD mentor left half of her house to Mara and half to her nephew Liam. Mara also can’t afford to leave…Plus she loves the place…Well, apart from Liam. However, as much as she hates him, she also starts getting to know him and that might turn her whole world upside down….

I liked the fact that it wasn’t instant love between Liam and Mara, and there was a bit of a slow burn (as much of a slow burn as you can have in a novella). However, I think the issue with novellas is that you can’t get to know the characters that in-depth, which for me affects how much I like and care about the story. I need to be invested in the characters to enjoy actually reading the story. As far as the novella’s length both Liam and Mara were very likeable characters, even though I wished I got to know them better. Also, I felt that there were so many things that both characters talked about that could have been explored in more depth and would have added to the plot of the story. This is especially if the smutty scene, which in my opinion was just awkward and unnecessary, was removed.

Overall: Likeable characters, feel-good story with hints of enemies to lovers and proximity tropes. Definitely a great pallet cleanser. I wished it was a bit longer and gave more actual romance between the two characters, not just a few scenes and a smutty chapter, especially after a quite slow start. Still, however, an enjoyable read if you want something easy and quick to read.

 

About the Author:

Ali Hazelwood is the pseudonym for an Italian neuroscientist and writer of romance novels. Her main characters are women in a variety of different STEM fields and in academia. Her debut novel, The Love Hypothesis, was a New York Times best seller. In 2022 she has published three novellas: Under One Roof, Stuck with You, and Below Zero. Her second novel Love on the Brain was published on August 23, 2022.

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21098177.Ali_Hazelwood

Ali Hazelwood - Love on the Brain

Ali Hazelwood - Love on the Brain  

5⭐

Genre: Romance, STEM, Academia, Contemporary Romance 

Pages: 362

Format: Paperback 

Publisher: Sphere  

Date Published: 23rd August 2022

 

Book Blurb: 

From the New York Times, bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis comes a new STEMinist rom-com in which a scientist is forced to work on a project with her nemesis-with explosive results.

Like an avenging, purple-haired Jedi bringing balance to the mansplained universe, Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project-a literal dream come true after years scraping by on the crumbs of academia-Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward.

Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. And sure, he caught her in his powerfully corded arms like a romance novel hero when she accidentally damseled in distress on her first day in the lab. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school-archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away.

Now, her equipment is missing, the staff is ignoring her, and Bee finds her floundering career in somewhat of a pickle. Perhaps it's her occipital cortex playing tricks on her, but Bee could swear she can see Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas...devouring her with those eyes. And the possibilities have all her neurons firing. But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there's only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?

My Review: 

Unpopular opinion but I loved Love on the Brain more than I loved The Love Hypothesis. Oops! Yes, there were some similarities between the two books but I felt that most of the book was different. Adam and Olive were fake dating, whereas Bee and Levi were more enemies to lovers/ second chance romance. Also, the book setting was completely different, which for me made a huge difference.

This story follows Bee Königswasser, a neuroscientist who is invited to work on an exciting new project called BLINK at NASA in Houston. The success of this project will mean Bee can have an amazing career in research but if she fails then all those years put into becoming an academic will be wasted. However, she soon realises that she will have to work with her archnemesis from her graduate school years, Levi Ward. Levi Ward is a tall and brainy engineer who for years worked at NASA. Once the project starts Bee notices that the equipment she was promised is missing, other people on the project refuse to listen to her and Levi after all these years still cannot even look at her or even be in the same room as her. Bee now needs to either confront her enemy or lose her dream job and subsequently her career….Or maybe after all Levi might become an ally to Bee in search of who is messing around with the success of BLINK.

I really liked the fact that Bee is quirky and geeky, as well as completely in love with cats. She also fangirls after Marie Currie and runs an undercover Twitter account What Would Marie Currie Do?, where she discusses all the challenges and barriers in the academic environment with other academics. It just felt that Bee was a more developed character than Olive in The Love Hypothesis, as Bee actually has a life and hobbies outside her research, whereas Olive didn’t really.

I also loved that Hazelwood discusses misogyny in STEM and how even though you are an intelligent female who achieved a lot in their respective academic field, you are less likely to be listened to or given authority in comparison to a white male academic. It is sad but it's true and I love that Hazelwood shines the light on these problems through her novels.

All the scientific aspects of this book made me so geeky and nerdy. I loved it! There was so much more science in this book and I am all here for it!

I also think that this story was more authentic than The Love Hypothesis. The premise of how Bee and Levi knew each other and how they became ‘enemies’ is more real than the one of how Olive started fake dating Adam. The characters in this book were also more relatable, especially the fact that before romance there was a genuine friendship that took time to develop happened between them at first and only then the romance followed.  

Overall: Honestly, this book had everything that I love, STEM, Academia, Romance and Spice. What else could I want? It made me smile, made me geek out, filled me with joy and was just a feel-good book to read. You should definitely read this if you want an easy, quirky romance with a bit of spice and science. I, however, can’t wait until Loathe to Love You in January 2023 and Love, Theoretically in June 2023! So excited! 

About the Author:

Ali Hazelwood is the pseudonym for an Italian neuroscientist and writer of romance novels. Her main characters are women in a variety of different STEM fields and in academia. Her debut novel, The Love Hypothesis, was a New York Times best seller. In 2022 she has published three novellas: Under One Roof, Stuck with You, and Below Zero. Her second novel Love on the Brain was published on August 23, 2022.

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21098177.Ali_Hazelwood

Ali Hazelwood - The Love Hypothesis

 

Ali Hazelwood - The Love Hypothesis 

 5 ⭐

Genre: Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Romance, Academia/ STEM 

Pages: 384 

Format:  Paperback 

Favourite Quote: ''Carry Yourself with the Confidence of a Mediocre White Man'' (Page 198).

Book Blurb: 

When a fake relationship between scientists meets the irresistible force of attraction, it throws one woman's carefully calculated theories on love into chaos.

As a third-year Ph.D. candidate, Olive Smith doesn't believe in lasting romantic relationships but her best friend does, and that's what got her into this situation. Convincing Anh that Olive on her way to a happily ever after was always going to be tough, scientists require proof. So, like any self-respecting woman, Olive panics and kisses the first man she sees.

That man is none other than Adam Carlsen, a young hotshot professor and well-known ass. Which is why Olive is positively floored when he agrees to keep her charade a secret and be her fake boyfriend. But when a big science conference goes haywire and Adam surprises her again with his unyielding support (and his unyielding abs), their little experiment feels dangerously close to combustion.

Olive soon discovers that the only thing more complicated than a hypothesis on love is putting her own heart under the microscope.

My Review: 

This book! It is the cutest rom-com I have read in a while! I absolutely love this book and not because of BokTok but because it is actually an amazingly written book! 

Firstly, of course, I loved the STEM/ Academic representation in a fictional romance book. It is so rare to see STEM and academia represented in fiction, especially in romance books. Also, it is so fresh to see a romance book set in a different and not conventional environment. For someone who is passionate about STEM and academia and who was a graduate student in a STEM subject and who knows academia, it is amazing to see that it is represented in this book.

This book displayed so many everyday realities of STEM and academia: long hours working alone, long hours doing research and experiments, competition for funding and research, challenges when applying for grants/funding, stresses of publishing and conferences, to name a few. All that whilst barely having any social life and barely surviving from the smallest possible student loans and scholarships...and of course constantly doubting your ability and research. This book covered all of this perfectly! I loved how I could relate to Olive so much because of all that! 

Olive is so bright, determined and ambitious to achieve what she wants even in a very male-dominated field of STEM. Her navigating the world of STEM and academia really shows how hard is to be a female in the STEM and academia. I also liked the fact that at times Olive was portrayed as socially awkward, introverted, especially when it comes to socialising with friends and having a relationship or even not having a life outside a lab. She always has her work and research on her mind, as well as, most of the time she is doubting herself and her abilities. That imposter syndrome is not uncommon with graduate researchers and thus made Olive even more relatable.

I was really happy that this book didn't jump straight into lovey-dovey romance but allowed Olive's and Adam's fake relationship to grow slowly into a friendship and then into strong feelings towards each other. They got to know each other, then they also started to show each other their true personalities, which made this such a brilliant and more realistic read. 

I think what would make this book even better is chapters from Adams's POV. Mainly because I wished there was more background on Adam so that I could've gotten to know his character better since in this book I only got to know his character as how Olive saw him and how his students stereotyped him. I haven't seen the true Adam Carlsen. Although, there were a couple of places in the book where some of his true personality was presented, but not as much as I would’ve liked. 

To be perfectly honest I just wish there was a second book as I want more Olive and Adam and their adventures in academia.

Overall: It is definitely my favourite romance book! Apart from the cliche kiss and fake dating, this story was just an amazing portrayal of two people becoming friends and falling in love, struggles in academia and challenges in STEM research. 

Any romance lovers should add this book to their TBR list (if you haven't already read this) - you will not be left disappointed. 

 

Now I am just going to eagerly await more Ali Hazelwood books...👀👀👀