Ali Hazlewood's best work, hands down. Is there even anything else to say? Ali's the queen of spicy, thoughtful, fun, smart romances.

First I want to say thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an arc of 'Love on the Brain'!
I tried to keep this as spoiler-free as I could so that people could read it without being spoiled for the book but there are still some slightly out-of-context spoilers so proceed with caution!

Rating: 3.5 stars

I was very excited to read this because I thoroughly enjoyed 'The Love Hypothesis' and I would in no way say I did not enjoy 'Love on the Brain' but I did have some personal issues with it that stopped me from loving it.
I found that a lot of aspects of this book were too similar to 'The Love Hypothesis' and not in a 'this author has a distinct writing style' kind of way.

The most glaring to me is that Levi and Adam are almost the same people. Like if you gave me a quote from either of them that didn't have any identification markers I could not tell them apart. They're both these tall, handsome, brooding geniuses who don't know how to communicate and end up being huge softies and simps.
And while I don't hate that style of character in any way, I would have preferred if there was more of a difference between the two of them.

Olive and Bee also have very similar personalities and humour, with Bee's being more focused on neuroscience and Marie Curie. But I'll chalk that up to Ali Hazelwood being a millennial and obviously enjoying millennial-type humour. Which again is not a bad thing! But as someone who grew up on the cusp of millennials and Gen-Z, it is very glaring to me.

That being said I did enjoy the overall humour and snark of the book, Bee and Levi's dynamic was fun to read about for the most part (will get into that in the next part) and I enjoyed their banter. Was it strikingly similar to 'The Love Hypoethesis'? Yes, from this I can deduct that Hazelwood knows what she's good at writing and I respect that immensely.

I did enjoy that the huge commotion at the end was not centred on the relationship between Bee and Levi, even if I didn't enjoy the plot twist all the much overall. While I can see why (redacted) was the chosen 'bad guy' I think the way it was revealed and how it played out was super rushed and anti-climactic? Also when the gun got pulled out I did laugh because it felt like an Episode or Chapters story (which no hate, Chapters especially is my guilty pleasure app I will take no further comments).

Also, I liked the social media plot line, because obviously we as the readers are meant to put it together almost immediately even though Bee does not so I loved reading the messages between the two of them, I said to myself 'This is like 'You've Got Mail' and then when Bee through that reference out herself at the end I was ecstatic.

Now, these next critiques are more personal so keep that in mind.
The sheer amount of pop culture references was......concerning, to say the least. On average there's got to be at least one a page at some parts of the book it was overwhelming, and not in a good way. I'm also not a fan of when authors, specifically millennial authors talk about 'Gen-Z' characters and Tiktok and there were unfortunately too many references to both of those. In this case, it worked a little better because Bee was an 'oblivious millennial but overall I'm still not a fan of it at all. I'm pretty sure I also remembered reading a Harry Potter reference which like....come on now. Also the sheer amount of Star Wars references, now I love Star Wars with my whole heart but Jesus Christ. There were more Star Wars references in this book than there were in 'The Love Hypothesis', which is literally adapted Reylo fanfiction. I"m not sure if "Love on the Brain' was also Reylo fanfiction though.

Next, I was deeply uncomfortable with the emphasis that was put on how small and tiny Bee is in comparison to how large and tall Levi is. I don't know if this is something straight people themselves enjoy but it made me so uncomfortable because in my head I was just picturing Bee as a child's size while Levi is like this huge hunkering man. It did not help that a lot of these comparisons were made during sex scenes. I already skimmed most of the sex scenes and then seeing any of those 'my tiny hands' or "his huge d*ck' etc just made me skip until the scene was over.

Also Ali Hazelwood you will be paying me compensation for comparing Levi to a bull.
This book does get bonus points because the side couple was a sapphic couple whose dynamic I actually very much enjoyed for the most part. I love the 'scary goth sapphic w/ her bubblegum pink gf'. It is my one true weakness so Ali Hazelwood gets bonus points for giving me, Rocio & Kaylee.

Overall I did enjoy this book and I had fun reading it. I think that if you enjoyed 'The Love Hypothesis' you're going to enjoy this because of how similar they are. And if you did not enjoy 'The Love Hypoethis' I would probably sit this one out unless you're thinking of giving Hazelwood's work another go because I don't think you're going to like it.

tw// sexism & misogyny (both in real life & in the workplace), cheating and emotional abuse & manipulation (in regards to an ex-fiance, all flashbacks or mentions), mentions of dead parents, depictions of seizures (both related to epilepsy and not), sexual content, harassment and violence, gun violence ( I could be forgetting some because of my walnut brain so I apologize)

I enjoyed this book! Bee and Levi give off the perfect enemies to lovers vibe which is my favorite. I did also enjoy how they were enemies, then friends and then lovers. I will say Levi is just 😍😍😍 and I loved Bee’s character as well but Bee’s RA was a little annoying to me. I also thought the same thing about Anh in The Love Hypothesis if that says anything🤣 OH, and the epilogue. “I love you, I think. And you are my home.” Overall, I liked this book and I will continue to read more by Ali Hazelwood!!!

**Thank you to Berkley Romance for the E-ARC!**

I read The Love Hypothesis the day it came out and it is a big reason why I read romance today. So when this book got announced I absolutely freaked out. I truly loved Love on the Brain and I am so beyond excited I got to read it as an ARC. I also love that even though I am not super knowledgeable about STEM I can still read and enjoy these books.

After reading The Love Hypothesis and the three The STEMinist Novellas I thought I had an idea how this book would go and I was surprised by how much different it is compared to the other books this author has published. This book has so many aspects that make it so unique which has me so excited to read future books by Ali Hazelwood. Between the anonymous messages, to unique situations Bee kept finding herself in, and even that thing that happens towards the end of the book that I never saw coming (I don't want to spoil anything but if you've read it you know what I am talking about). I feel like this was a step away from some of the tropes and things she used in her other books and it worked so well.

These characters are so much fun and likable. I am not going to lie I was a bit indifferent about Levi at first because I thought he was going to be unapproachable and "I hate everyone except the main character" so it was a massive surprise when he wasn't like that at all. I really liked that we got to see more of his personality and life outside of work. I also really enjoyed Bee and getting to read about how passionate she is about the project she was working on was so much fun. I also adored the Star Wars references and when Levi would bring in "large portions" of snacks just so he could share with Bee.

My only fault with the book and the reason is it a 4.5 star read for me and not a 5 is because I didn't love the multiple situations that had miscommunication. I am not a big fan of the trope to begin with but I really disliked when Bee would openly express how she thought Levi hated her and he never really fought to correct her on the matter. Especially after Levi started to clear the air about other things that happened, it was really hard for me to understand why he wouldn't also clear the air about what happened in the past and just come clean about how he feels. I understand that they thought the other was married but between both of those situations it just had a little too much frustration and miscommunication for me. Although the twitter messages were the absolute perfect way to break some of the frustration and I loved that aspect of the book so much. Definitely not something to deter me from rereading or recommending this book, just something that was personally a little frustrating while reading.

Bee has just landed a dream opportunity working on a project with NASA, but when her co-leader turns out to be her arch-nemesis from grad school, Levi, she doesn’t know how she’ll be able to spend the next three months working with the man she loathes.

I don’t know what it is about Ali Hazelwood’s books, but they become my entire existence after finishing them. I absolutely loved The Love Hypothesis, but Love on the Brain was even more spectacular. Levi was the PERFECT male main character, and his relationship with Bee was just amazing. Enemies to lovers is a favorite trope of mine, and Love on the Brain executed that trope in the best way. I was in my feels throughout almost the entire second half of this one, and I wasn’t ready for Bee and Levi’s story to end. Putting my feelings about this book into words is a bit challenging because my heart is still hurting from it, but ugh, add this one to your reading list! Everything about this book was perfect, in my opinion, from the plot to the side characters to the spice and more, and I cannot wait to see it on shelves in a few months.

CW for loss of loved ones, emotionally manipulative/abusive parents, emotionally abusive ex partner, cheating (in the past, not between mcs), violence, attempted murder.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC of Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood!

Another sweet and spicy romance from Ali Hazelwood! She really brings the charm factor up in this one. Amazing chemistry, delightful humor, and all with her signature academic twist.

@WhatWouldMarieDo if their favorite author wrote another book? Request the ARC of course!! Thank you NetGalley for the eARC!

Is it possible for a debut author to write a second book as equally amazing as their first?

Yes. Yes it is.

I adored The Love Hypothesis, so when I saw Ali was writing another book I was ecstatic!! With many women in my family being in STEM, this book meant a lot to me. I relate so much with the issues addressed and I love how the heroine handles everything with such humor and grace.

Things I loved:
- the laughs, I was laughing out loud so many times like I was watching a rom com
- The Marie Curie references - they were absolute GOLD
- The tension between the two main characters. I’m a sucker for an enemies to lovers, even if this seems to be one sided it’s still so beautifully done.
- The plot twists! I was trying to guess the whole time what was going on and I was totally blindsided but in a good way.
- The character development. I love seeing characters grow and overcome their past and their struggles, it inspires me and makes me believe I can do the same.

5/5 stars would absolutely recommend!! Please keep writing Ali, WE LOVE YOU.

I was not ready for this book.

This book gave everything I needed it to and more! I didn't think Ali Hazelwood could top The Love Hypothesis, but I think I may actually love this book even more! I am now thoroughly convinced that I would read anything she writes.

Levi is the sweetest of cinnamon rolls, Bee is the badass STEM heroine I can't help but admire, and together they are the cheesiest couple that I could read about forever.

Read this if you like:
- He falls first
- It's always been you trope
- Cinnamon roll hero
- STEAMY open door scenes
- Women in STEM
- Witty/ sarcastic banter
- Mischievous cats
- Good books!

Pick up this book immediately if you're looking for your next escapist romance!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

This was amazing! If you liked Love Hypothesis, you’ll love this one just as much. It was predictable in the best way. I haven’t read a book this quickly in ages. Bee was so lovable—and Levi is perfect. Love the cats. Love the science. Love Rocío forever.

RATING: 4/5 STARS

Ali Hazelwood's books are pure, escapist delights. I flew through Bee and Levi's story in a single afternoon. It has strong women in STEM, fun supporting characters, a spunky heroine, and an excessively swoony hero that is low key obsessed with the heroine in typical Ali Hazelwood fashion. We love to see it! This book is like a cool ice cream on a sunny day.

🌟🌟🌟🌟

Happy MDW! I hope it’s filled with memory of those that have sacrificed, relaxation, sunshine, and maybe a few prickly pear margaritas. 🥂 And, a big thanks to @netgalley and @alihazelwood for the eARC of #loveonthebrain - Ali’s newest write hits the shelf in August and its ode to HTX had me captivated from the start. It’s engineer meets scientist in this NASA-based, STEM-chicklit novel that I finished in one day of travel during two plane rides. I did foresee some things coming that were obvious from the jump, and it is politically skewed (if you’re sensitive to that type of language). But nonetheless, it’s a solid 4🌟 from me and definitely worth the read (as is The Love Hypothesis).

#alihazelwood #loveonthebrain #STEMromcom #netgalley #bookstagram #bookrecommendations #whativebeenreading #whatimcurrentlyreading

I think everyone knows how obsessed we are with Ali Hazelwood books. She has a gift with her writing. She knows how to write addicting romance books that readers will die for. And she doesn’t disappoint with her newest book, Love on the Brain.

Love on the Brain will bring the two nemesis together again when they are both selected to co-lead a neuroengineering project with NASA. And that’s where the hatred continues with Bee and Levi. We get a brief description of their past interactions when they were graduate students, so we kind of get the hostile vibes when they see each other after so many years. It’s kind of awkward but yet delightful to read at first because it’s the start of their romance journey.

Bee is more than determined to prove her worth when she starts her new position with a neuroengineering project, even though she has to co-lead with her nemesis, Levi. She is more than willing to prove him wrong. But she does not factor in that there are other factors working in her favor. And Levi is more than willing to help her, which is kind of confusing to her as well.
There is always so much more to the story than before. And Levi is more than willing to tell his side of the story when Bee starts running from him. Don’t worry, we will get his side of the story, and it’s kind of a surprising yet delightful story. Levi is definitely a favorite book boyfriend after finding out his side of his story. It cleared up a lot of their interactions when they were graduate students.

I won’t go into any more details about their story because I want to avoid spoilers. But expect some spicy scenes between them and drama unfolding as well.

I liked "The Love Hypothesis" so I was pretty sure that I would like this one, but it totally surpassed it in every way! This one is just so good. I can't even describe how good it is and how much joy it brought me. I want to give it 10 stars simply because I was having a terrible week and this book made me smile. 10 stars for making me smile when I needed it. It's just smart and funny and makes you melt on the inside.

Thank you to Netgalley, Edelweiss, Berkley Publishing Group, and Ali Hazelwood for providing me with this eARC in exchange for an honest review.
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Can you give a book ten stars? I feel like that should be a thing. I could not for the life of me put this book down. I devoured it instantaneously. I’ve been waiting to read Love on the Brain since I read The Love Hypothesis and it surpassed all my expectations. I think hot nerds being good humans and doing nerdy shit while falling desperately in love is my favorite niche. I’m calling it.
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This was like an onion of miscommunication. Several layers. I usually hate the miscommunication trope, but something about the way Ali writes it just gets me every time! Was I gesturing wildly for Bee and Levi to figure things out? Yeah, but my eye didn’t twitch a single time! I think that’s a fantastic bar to set. 😂 And their love? I know it’s so fucking cheesy, but I fell in love with their love. It was sweet and genuine and intense. The spice?! Out of this world…I’m sorry! There had to be at least one space pun! 💫
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I think my favorite part of both Love on the Brain and The Love Hypothesis is the STEM aspect of things. I’m here for the romance and the spice obviously, but I also get pulled into the topics at hand. I genuinely want to know more about neurostimulation now. I didn’t expect that, but here we are. Turns out I like reading about smart people falling in love and talking about nerdy shit they’re passionate about simultaneously. It feels like a labor of love. I’m sorry, but the pun was there for the taking!
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Sidebar: I want Bee and Levi bobble heads. And they both have to be wearing lab coats with tiny, glow-in-the-dark cats in their pockets. It’s a necessity, okay?! Ali, take my money! (Also, if I could get like a full-length novel about Rocio and her quest to find La Llorona that’d be fantastic.)
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Love on the Brain is available for pre-order now and will officially be released on August 23, 2022.

Thanks so much to Berkley for providing an advanced review copy. All opinions are my own.

OH MY GOD THIS WAS AMAZING. Just perfect. The banter! The spice! The cats! Honestly this book made me ridiculously happy; I may have overdosed on the high this book gave me. Levi and Bee were so damn cute together. I loved the side story with Twitter, the discussion of women in STEM, the quips, ROCIO (!), and wow just everything. ALSO, this used my absolute favorite phrase of, “oh you sweet summer child.” And Levi is so freaking hot I can’t even deal.
To sum up, this book is amazing and you absolutely need to read it.

Love on the Brain has me so torn. I wanted to like this novel so much, and yet so many things fell flat for me.

Firstly: Bee. I don't know...there was something about her that just didn't click for me. On paper, she's the kind of character I normally love, but there was something about her actions that just...like, the constant fainting she was inflicted with (if you've read my Six Crimson Cranes review, you know how I feel about fainting as a plot device, regardless of the reason for it), the constant referencing to her gender being targetted throughout her career -- and I get it, and I understand that it's a problem that occurs in real life, but as a reader, we don't need that many reminders about it.

Secondly: Bee's RA, who came off the page as a child rather than an adult.

Thirdly: The plot. I felt that there were so many moving parts to this novel -- the NASA-NIH collab, the miscommunication between Levi and Bee, the twitter account, and the whole (view spoiler)--that they didn't all...need to be there. It made large portions of this novel feel disjointed or rushed, depending on the pacing in that particular moment.

Ugh. Okay! Now. The good things! As usual, I really love that Ali Hazelwood shines a light on fields that aren't usually covered under the romcom umbrella. Her male leads have been, at least so far, more compelling to me than the female leads--Adam, Liam, and now Levi--and I just eat up those scenes when their dialogue gets really good. There were several chapters in this novel that landed so well: the conference where Bee runs into Tim and Annie--[though here's another Bee criticism; there would have been nothing wrong with her holding on to that anger over Annie, forgiveness is not always more interesting in fiction! (hide spoiler)]--the first time Levi and Bee get together... probably others...

I don't want to hate on this novel, but I can't deny being a bit disappointed by it. The Love Hypothesis was so much fun, and Under One Roof was the perfect little novella, but Love on the Brain doesn't quite hold up to either of them. I'll still be looking forward to Hazelwood's next novel, but for now, I can only leave you with:

**STAR BREAKDOWN**

Cover: ★★★☆☆ [I prefer the cover I got on my uncorrected proof, actually: black and white with cutesy little science-themed doodles]
Story: ★★★☆☆
Characters: ★★★☆☆
Banter: ★★★☆☆
Spice Rating: ★★★☆☆ [frequent, but glossed over 70% of the time after the first encounter]
Overall Rating: ★★★☆☆

This was so much fun. I actually liked this a lot more than The Love Hypothesis. The relationship dynamics and power structure were less icky to me. Levi is also a stronger lead with a lot more sympathetic tendencies. Overall, I just bought the chemistry and the relationship a lot more.

Highly entertaining, “enemies become lovers,” STEM romance

Bee Königswasser is a 28-year-old, brilliant scientist with a Ph.D. in cognitive neuroscience, a field which focuses on studying the neural bases of human behavior. Her best friend is her identical twin sister, Reike. The two of them were orphaned in their childhood and, both before and after their parents’ deaths, they were bounced from one extended family member to another, in a dozen different countries. Since they graduated from high school, all Bee has wanted to do is put down roots, and all Reike has desired is to continue with the nomadic lifestyle of their youth. As part of her attempt to settle down, Bee had the same boyfriend for seven years, beginning early in her freshman year in college. Tim became her fiancé when she was only 21 and, though he cheated on her multiple times during their years together that Bee was aware of, she kept forgiving him and slogging forward with their relationship, partly in the name of stability and loyalty, and especially because she adored his family. But ultimately, three years ago, he committed the unforgivable sin of having sex with her best friend, and Bee finally dumped the lying louse. After that life-altering debacle, Bee discovered that she greatly misses her best friend and Tim’s mother, but Tim himself, not at all.

Bee first met 32-year-old Levi Ward seven years ago, on the same day that Tim theatrically proposed to her in front of everyone at the neuroscience lab where Bee, Tim and Levi all did graduate research work. Bee was a first-year graduate student, and Levi was fifth year. Levi was one of the most accomplished neuroscience engineers the department had ever seen, and their mutual advisor attempted to get them to work together on a hugely significant research project. However, with no explanation given other than a gruff remark that he was “too busy,” Levi flatly refused. Bee felt utterly humiliated and, between that major rejection and his continually standoffish behavior toward her, Bee naturally assumed that Levi actively disliked and disrespected her, and has ever since regarded him as an enemy.

At the start of the story, Bee is offered the opportunity of a lifetime as the team lead on a NASA neuroengineering project. She immediately, ecstatically accepts, believing it will be the best thing that ever happened to her career. Until she learns, to her dismay, that her enemy Levi is also on the team, with an equally important role as the project’s chief engineer.

I greatly enjoy romance novels which involve two STEM geniuses falling in love. It is a theme that AH specializes in, and she does it with great skill. She includes just enough scientific details to provide an authentic flavor to the story, but not so many as to be confusing or boring for those of us who are not scientists. Individually and together as a couple, I really liked both Bee and Levi. I especially liked that neither are promiscuous, and both are honorable people in general.

Similar to AH’s first novel, The Love Hypothesis, this one is written in only the heroine’s first-person point of view, which adds a lot of mystery to Levi’s motivation. This novel is not an outright romantic comedy, as TLH is, but it does have quite a few humorous moments, mostly based on Bee’s colorfully quirky personality in contrast to Levi as a classic, “strong and silent” type, in an “opposites attract” kind of way. Like TLH, this novel is “slow burn,” with no sex scenes until almost the very end of the book, and all of them are emotional and caring rather than, as in far too many contemporary romance novels, a series of crude descriptions of heaving body parts.

The romantic conflict between Bee and Levi is based on a series of misunderstandings, which are all cleared up by halfway through the novel. From then on, there is an increasing focus on a suspense subplot, with the two of them working together to solve the mystery as to who is sabotaging their NASA project. The way that the villain is disclosed at the end of the story is a bit of a cliché, but I did not guess who that villain is before the big reveal, so in that way the suspense subplot is well done.

I rate this book as follows:

Heroine: 4 stars
Hero: 5 stars
Subcharacters: 4 stars
Setting: 4 stars
Romance Plot: 4 stars
Suspense Subplot: 3 stars
Writing: 4 stars
Overall: 4 stars

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.

Well, I'm going to wear the Unpopular Opinion Hat on this one. I was excited to read more from Hazelwood after utterly loving the Love Hypothesis; but I admit some simultaneous reluctance that crept on me after all the novellas. Those were short enough that I didn't feel the need to critically examine them, and they cut to the chase with the romances and were largely entertaining.

This...is not. I'm not sure if I read the same book as everyone else or people are just blindly five-starring for affection's sake and the other books, but oh my gods. I could not bear the protagonist, and seeing as we're in her head, the entire story filtered through her juvenile, frankly agonizing POV, well, it didn't bode well. She's immature, unbearable, and...vegan. That worst-kind of vegan. And she mentions her hero Marie Curie just incessantly. There's a magnet on the fridge she talks to when she's not masquerading as a Marie Curie twitter account that gives advice. It was all just too much and prevented enjoyment of anything else about the book.

My very-much-humanities-student brain found the STEM content bearable in the other books because it felt...presented more accessibly, and I enjoyed the characters. This book was the opposite. There's other stuff, too. The protagonist meets a cat and immediately starts a bizarre verbal avalanche of dad jokes aimed at the cat? Like she's aware she's "on camera" and narrating the book? What even. And then there was a frankly tasteless, offensive reference to La Llorona as some sort of feminist icon ghost that, according to other reviews, keeps coming up. What the? No sensitivity reader on this or what?

I feel shellshocked at how bad this was. I'm not sure if they're cutting back on editing or what's going on, but it feels like no one reined in anything questionable in this book. A solid debut guarantees nothing, I guess.

I'm sad it's over. Truly, honestly, sad.

Ali Hazelwood is an absolute rockstar who creates characters you can't help but fall in love with. Bee is top five book girlfriends for me. She's hilarious, gah, is she funny. Some of the things she thinks are spit-your-drink-out funny, snort when you laugh hysterical, and of course smiling like a fool at a book (or kindle, we aren't picky). Levi is totally book boyfriend material as well. I just really loved Bee. #girlcrush
This story did not go the way I thought it would, not once did I anticipate anything that happened. So many things are happening that it's a constant state of 'what in the world is Bee gonna do now'? I loved every second. I wouldn't change a thing, the supporting characters? Loved them. The plot? Loved it. The smut? OH MY GOD I LOVED IT.

I can't recommend this one enough. It's enemies-to-lovers, a nerdy scientist determined not to fail, and a hunky engineer who just wants his love requited. If Love on the Brain isn't on your shelf, I highly, highly suggest you put it there. Pre-order the thing. You need it, I promise.

Thank you Berkley, in partnership with NetGalley, for an advanced ARC. This review is being left voluntarily, all opinions are my own.