Honestly, maybe it's because I'm not a STEM person, but most of the mathematical theoretical stuff didn't quite connect with me. Still, Madeleine Henry can write a couple with chemistry.

What is life without love?

Philosophical, thoughtful, and unique this love story is one that will leave a lasting impression.

Jake and Sophie are highly intelligent individuals who fall head over heels for one another while in college. Both complex and deep, I immediately became entranced by their stories. I found myself thoroughly examining the complexities of first love, connection and time alongside Sophie.

This was a quick read at 275 pages and I could have read another hundred or so pages. Releasing February 9th this wonderful book should be on your radar.

I'll be honest, I was not a fan of Henry's debut and wasn't planning on reading her sophomore novel, except the plot of this was greatly intriguing to me. I love a strong female, especially one in the STEM fields. However, the plot was not enough for me to overcome the writing style, which I was just not a fan of. Unfortunately, I don't see myself reading anymore of Henry's novels in the future.

Thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria for this digital arc!

I found myself swept up in this story— it had everything I wanted and needed: love, philosophy, joy, and some tears! I highly recommend this book for way it sees the life and world— that love and science are ultimately about finding connections.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Interesting novel on brilliant people who fall in love. What is more important--maximizing your potential or accepting less in order to meet the demands of a relationship?

We all know that deep feeling of love and euphoria when we meet that one person. It’s down deep in your bones and you can’t stop thinking about that person. If you’ve experienced that then you will totally be able to relate to the feelings and connection of our two main characters in this book.
It was beautiful, sad and deep. Sometimes in love you have to make decisions that are best for the other person, even if it means your heart needs to break.
The book left me sad. I wish there was more but I guess that this is how life is sometimes. Not everything gets a happily ever after.

Sophie Jones arrives at Yale as an already world renown physics prodigy. Great things are expected of her especially by a professor in her field of study relating to how time works in the universe. Jake Kristopher is also a freshman determined to make his place in the world no matter what the personal costs or sacrifices. Meeting their first week at Yale, Sophie and Jake quickly become an inseparable couple; it’s more than instalove as they seem to have a near cosmic connection. Sophie’s focus changes from physics and science of unlocking time to the mysteries and complexities of love because of her intense feelings for Jake. She feels love is a force not well understood by science and has a much more significant place than the scientific world gives it.

During their four years, Jake and Sophie seem to be the perfect couple with a set future; however, Jake begins to feel their relationship has come at an untenable cost to Sophie’s brilliance and potential. Jake seemed to think the most loving thing he could do for Sophie would be to break up with her, at least that appears to be his motivation. And this break up goes on for years despite the possibility of their reuniting.

Sophie is devastated by Jake’s actions sent into a rudderless tailspin until she decides to focus her grief and talents to prove the physics that there is more to love than mere banal emotions. Both Jake and Sophie seem to be living in an alternate universe where the time they spent wrapped up in each other is still ongoing. What they have is much more metaphysical than just memories. Sophie makes a career and a life out of proving her theories though with a more scientifically accepted bent while Jake’s life only appears to be predicated on work and making the most money possibly.

This story spans decades both backward to their childhoods and forward until Jake and Sophie are middle aged. Besides the complex science in this story that will certainly challenge readers, it is a very compelling yet frustrating tale for anyone who expects one with love in the title to have not only romance, but an actual relationship rather than a metaphysical one that goes on for years. Jake’s life seems rather empty and one dimensional because his work is the end all and be all.

Such a book reads almost like a tragedy in part, one of lovers separated for decades by Jake’s brutal choice. The quality of the writing is such that this is the unusual book stayed with me long after the end of the story; however, like a lot of Women’s Fiction for me, not all the thoughts relating to it are pleasing. I may feel smarter for having read this book which certainly gave me a lot to think about, but in some ways, sadder as well because both of these characters seemed have given up something precious in their lives for no really compelling reason.

The Love Proof by Madeleine Henry is a fabulous addition to the love and time genre. Physics prodigy Sophie Jones heads to Yale to unlock the secrets of the universe, but when she meets and falls head over heels for Jake Kristopher, she's only interested in unlocking the secrets of the heart.

It's not the love story you might expect from the blurb, and there will certainly be times you will want to shake some sense into the brilliant Sophie, it's a captivating love story told over a span of years. I look forward to reading more from Henry.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing a copy of this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

What I liked - this book was pretty unique, the kind that I devour. Two people whose souls and energy are bound together from the start. When that happens there is just something so beautiful and intense, fireworks occur but as a reader what is most appealing to me is not knowing whether or not that setup will be something amazing or a recipe for disaster.

What I didn't like - As intrigued as I was about the story, as a whole it ended up being a miss for me. Love the premise but found the execution to be a bit choppy and weird at times and because of that the end result was short to deliver.

I try not to read reviews of books before I write mine. I allowed myself a peek at a couple of the negative reviews for this book because I couldn't fathom how anyone would give it few stars. The good news is that those comments in no way changed my opinion of the book. Sure most of us don't want a man who makes decisions for us but that's not the point of this story.

This story is big picture beyond the every day transactions between Sophie and Jake. Their love is intense, transcends everything even decades of separation and their accomplishments are impressive. All of which is written in the most impressive way. Henry gives us such depth of emotion both the good and the sad. She creates characters that might initially appear a bit too focused on each other but as we learn more about them are so incredibly complex. She asks questions that are relevant and timeless. Women have always struggled with their own capabilities and their desire to have love and families. Sophie is not the first to find her real happiness in not her talent but her relationships. It's such a travesty when Jake decides they can't be together but it's done from his own deep and intense love for her. And in the end, we can never know what was the right course for either of these two? What if our greatest and proudest accomplishment isn't necessarily unique and remarkable or a product of our genius?

The Love Proof invoked levels of emotion in me that I seldom get from a book. I cannot praise it enough. If you're looking for a light, typical, formulaic romance you too might get hung up on the details of Jake's heavy handedness. If you're looking for a read that will make you think and wrench emotions from you, you'll love this book. I certainly shed more than a few tears and yet never wanted to put the story down.

I really enjoyed this book. It a story about love and how love can last over a lifetime.

Sophie is a science prodigy and gets into Harvard where she is expected to do big things. However, Sophie falls in love and things change.

Sophie changes so much during this story. She gets lost and has to find herself again. At first, I didn’t like the way her priorities changed but liked how much she grew in the book.

The Love Proof is like no other book I have ever read. It is so original and unique and that’s what made me love it even more. A definite love story, but not your typical one. I just loved reading about Sophie and Jake and their relationship! The science, physics, the philosophical questions stimulated me and really made me stop and think several times. What a quirky and distinctive novel - very well done!

2.5 stars
This had a lot of great reviews, so I was quite excited to read this one.
Sophie is a brilliant character, and I liked learning where she “got” her intelligence from.
It made me think a lot about love and the concept of love... but that’s about all I found myself enjoying.
I love a good backstory, but there was a lot of backstory here, and it wasn’t that interesting.
It also seemed very choppy and all over the place.
I also didn’t find this romantic at all. I mean, it was cute at first when they were young and innocent, but then it took a turn.
Jake was not a great guy, and she let everything slide. He controlled everything and Sophie basically gives up her ambitions for this man who just doesn’t seem worth it. It was frustrating to read. Having a sad background doesn’t excuse poor behavior.
I kept waiting for something good to happen and I was left waiting.
This brings up interesting conversations about love and how we fall in love and what we give up for love. But I just didn’t like the “love” story it was paired with.

Sophie is a math genius entering Yale to study the physics of time. She meets Jake who is motivated in his own field. They fall for each other immediately and spend all their time together throughout college. They study together and admire each others’ ability to enter the flow state when working. He follows his dreams and she... supports him, ultimately losing herself. After losing him, too, she finds the motivation to prove that true love knows no bounds, especially time.

I love that the main character is a female physicist, and that there’s just enough actual physics in the book to keep it interesting. I must warn you, tears ran down my face non-stop for the final 2 hours of reading this book. There are a lot of feels.

This book leaves you thinking about important decisions about work, love, and legacies without giving you the answers. Perfect for fans of The Midnight Library.

Big thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Love Proof was one of those stories that sucked me in, tossed me around like a rag doll, and then spit me out both bruised and better for it. I really loved it.

Sophie is a young physics genius on track to change the world. Jake is the man who changes hers. Their story takes place over decades and yet all at once.

Just a really wonderful book.

A wonderful love story filled with struggle and sacrifice for the betterment of others. Henry's intimate knowledge of science and love makes this a riveting read for both the science and love.

This was such a unique story that captivated me in the beginning. Physics and love....why do we love someone? This was a thought provoking read and a very good one.
Many thanks to Atria Books and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

This was a really original and lovely love story. Two students meet at Stanford, both working incredibly hard, at the top of their game. They meet, fall in love and then things start changing. Their relationship affects each of them differently and causes them to separate. And then their lives move forward.

I will say that the physics in this book was in the last 4-5 stories I've read this month. The multi-verse theory has clearly inspired a lot of stories. I don't know enough physics to tell if much of ut was well-done or not but I can say that I enjoyed this story and the time I spent with it.

I really enjoyed how it wasn't super typical and I really loved the ending quite a bit.

with gratitude to Atria Books and netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Love Proof by Madeleine Henry left me with mixed feelings. I am not into physics so all of that stuff went right over my head. I was more interested in the relationship between Sophie and Jake. Sophie is a genius and Immerses herself in physics while being sutured to Jake's side. After four years Jake unilaterally makes a decision that affects both of their lives. Here is where the story just runs out of steam for me. I thought Jake was a coward for many years and When he returns Sophie just placidly accepts him. I didn't really care for either one of them. Which is proof that even after all these years I still don't like math or much of science.

I admit it, this one takes you out of your comfort zone in regards to some of the theories it explores, however it's not so much so that you get lost from the story...and oh my goodness does it have HEART!

Sophie is a wonderful young lady on the cusp of opening doors the world didn't even know they needed open, and the genius of her mind is ready to take her there. Her dedication to her work at such a young age is inspiring and the things she knows would put some of the best scholars to shame. Thing is...up until now, her interactions have been limited to her family and scholarly endeavors. Her equations never factored in...Jake. From the moment she sees him, the moment they first pass words between them, her heart takes a sudden detour. She doesn't forsake herself for the relationship that builds, but she is content. She is happy. She is in love...but with a mind like hers, no one seems to understand or accept that fact...including the one who should the most. Years pass and all seems somewhat well, until an end she never anticipated coming, comes to pass. To say it shakes her world is the understatement of the century, and yet it is the cataclysmic event that puts her in limbo. Nothing lasts forever and though a lifetime passes, she rebuilds her foundations, and discovers an alternate purpose to pursue, but never forgets her first love...

As I said, the ideas explored about time and the present versus future existing on the same plane, are definitely the cause of some peculiar looks when I was talking about the book with fellow readers, but the concept of love never really leaving us, of being there in the moment and yet somewhere else at the same time, experiencing things in such detail that they are memories not dreams and yet you can't recall actually DOING them, those things transcend the intellectual aspect of the story and speak directly to the heart.