1.5/5
requested this after having a Not Bad! time reading the love hypothesis, but this one doesn't measure up. falling into derivatives (bee and levi are just olive and adam in a different font), hysterically cringeworthy humor, and odd commentary about generational gaps (we know bee is a millennial; you don't need to tell us again), love on the brain had all of the love hypothesis' ridiculous rom-com plot points with exponentially more reason for irritability.

firstly, i think that switching to first person was a detriment. while it allowed hazelwood's distinct voice to shine through and gave bee more characterization, it amplified all the tired traits of 2000s rom-com leads: blistering self-deprecation; catastrophic pessimism; the implicit i'm-not-like-other-girls distinction. what were supposed to be endearing quirks ended up being more reasons to dislike the main character, and having her narrate the entire story could be kind of bothersome sometimes — it heightened the heteronormative character designs (levi is big. huge. ginormous, even. he has a masculine scent and rippling pectorals. bee is small, itty-bitty, and you'll be sure to be reminded every 3 pages), accentuated the painfully millennial humor, and reinforced a general insufferable vibe in the book.

trying to implement race and gender-consciousness was commendable, i guess, but it often backfired for me. there's this one point were bee says "I was initially a bit distrustful of him — his bio says 'he/him,' and we all know how cis men on the internet can be," and it just came off as strikingly ignorant: pronouns don't indicate anything about cisness! while i can appreciate the fact the hazelwood attempts to be more inclusive, some of the times — many of the times, actually — it felt like an overstep or misstep on her part.

one of the most glaring issues, aside from everything else, was the plot: it was laughably predictable. perhaps it's because it's so similar to the plot of the love hypothesis, but having the stoic man pine for years after his unassuming muse should only be recycled, well, zero times. it was visible that levi was schmac, noticeable that all of his aloofness was due to his Irrepressible Male Urges, and exasperatingly discernible that he's had the hots for bee ever since grad school. also, miscommunication? it only works if it's done well, and in this book, it wasn't.

the only thing that i doubt anyone could have seen coming was the moment where guy whipped out a g*n and attempted on bee's life, which was utterly jarring and ridiculous to the point where i almost wanted to stop reading right then and there. bringing weapons to a rom-com tussle was never something i anticipated, which, i guess, points for being unexpected?? never let them know your next move.

anyway, i can see how this book might work for some people — if you really like marie curie facts, for example, you'd love it — but this was just not it for me. it gets an extra 0.5 stars for being an extremely quick, light novel (even if i didn't necessarily enjoy all of it); i did need a break as finals week approaches.

This was a super cute sequel to “The Love Hypothesis” and I think I actually may have even preferred it to the first! Clever, cute, and a fun read.

Awwww love this author's writing. Her couples are just so charming, down to earth, and have tons of chemistry. Her books are absolutely wonderful in every aspect. I love her writing, adore her characters, and just devour her stories. She is such an interesting and unique new voice in romance.
Of course I dropped everything to read Love on the Brain, and it didn't disappoint.
It has everything I love about romance.
An interesting story, a wonderful couple and supporting characters, the author's unique style of blending STEM with romance. It's a must read for every one who loves contemporary romance!!!!

4.5 stars probably a future re-read

Fast, fun read! I never thought I would like s STEM romance but the sexual tension is scorching!! So good! Highly recommend!!

Oh my gosh! This book right here is magic, pure masterpiece! When you thought that nothing is gonna top The Love Hypothesis, I have to confirm: LOVE ON THE BRAIN is everything that TLH, but so much more.
More nerdy, more scientist-y, more gut punching and more sexier. Smart, hilarious and uplifting!
I loved that it got more diverse featuring a super cute and funny f/f relationship and bipoc character.

We follow Bee who is a neuroscientist (PhD) and here life consists of constant attempts to find some stability, until the point where she does not care anymore about love and putting down roots (disastrous Ex).
She lands a co-leading job at NASA ( how cool is this??) and everything seems to turn better career-wise until… yupp you guessed it right: the co-leader is no one but her ARCHENEMY Levi Ward. I do not have to mention what goes down from here, but you can expect:

-Hilarious banter
-Lots of cat scenes
-Veganism
-Nerdy talk, SO MUCH nerding! :)
-Enemies to Lovers
-astronauts and brain puns
-fuzzy vibes, laughing out loud moments
-Feminist vibes

I really loved this book! Not only because of the romance aspect, but the value it holds: a statement for women and marginalized individuals (BIPOC ALSO) in STEM. It stands up for those who deserve a place in STEM majors, PhD for their knowledge and skills — and not because of their privilege.
As a scientist , It was so good to see myself through Bee and her struggles — it was encouraging and a warm hug for my little sad scientist heart.

Preorder the book if any of my screaming sparked your interest🥹
Thank you Penguin Random House and Netgalley for the arc!

I really enjoyed the Love Hypothesis so I was eager to read this book! Not being a scientist myself, it was interesting to read some of the history of Marie Curie and the scientific processes. Levi's love for Bee was very intense which felt a little dramatized, but I enjoyed watching them triumph! The twist at the end wasn't expected and I thought Hazelwood pulled everything together well!

Ali Hazelwood's romance novels set in the background of STEM are the best! It was so fun watching the relationship between Bee and Levi develop and find new footing, as all of their erroneous assumptions from grad school slowly seeped away. The Twitter relationship was easy to spot, but that didn't make it any less charming. All in all, a delightful read!

Ali Hazelwood delivers EVERY. SINGLE. TIME!! Love on the Brain is another steamy STEM story where our lonely lead finds her misunderstood brooding tall man. This is another perfect Reylo-esque plotline from the author but in a way transcends her previous book—which I didn't know could have been possible!

I really liked The Love Hypothesis so I knew I would like this book. I am happy to say Ali Hazelwood did it again with Love on the Brain.

This was such a great enemies to lovers story. I loved both Bee and Levi, I really enjoyed the other characters. Rocio is hilarious, I love how she interacts with Bee.

I enjoyed the scientific aspect of the story, I found it very interesting. And I love NASA. I highly recommend this book if you like fun romcoms.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkeley Publishing for sharing this ARC with me.
Love on the Brain will be released on August 23, 2022.

The moment I got the @netgaley email telling me I was approved to read an early copy I literally dropped everything I was doing/reading to start this one immediately.

Hazelwood is known for writing stories about women in STEM and academia, and if you didn’t know before, I love science and rom-coms so this combination is book goals for me. I am obsessed with The Love Hypothesis, if you've read and loved that one, you'll love this one too, In Love on the Brain we meet Marie Curie obsessed, Bee - she is offered her dream job at NASA to lead a neuro-engineering project - until she realizes that she will be co-leading and working side by side with her nemesis, Levi!

Things I loved:
- The setting - I will read/watch anything and everything NASA
- The science - Neuro was my fave class back in med school and I appreciated all the science jokes
- Bee is hilarious
- The critique of standardized testing and how they are NOT the way to measure a student's success and potential
- CATS
- So much banter!
- Levi - adding a new book boyfriend to the list - where can I find my own Levi Ward?

The only thing that got on my nerves was the miscommunication, you know, the "they obviously don't really like me it’s just xyz” trope.

Thank you, @netgalley and @berkleyromance for my copy in exchange for an honest review! Pub day is August 23!

Ali Hazelwood has officially joined my auto-buy authors list. I enjoyed reading this one so much - it had an excellent combination of lightness, tension + will-they-won’t-they, banter and romance.

I really just wanted to take a day and sink into and get swept up by the story, characters and world. I thought the characters were well developed, I was really intrigued by both Bee and Levi and loved peeling back the layers. The story also had some You’ve Got Mail vibes going, which I’m always a sucker for.

I loved so much about this book. I’m honestly torn on which I loved more - this or The Love Hypothesis. Both were such fun, enjoyable escape reads for me.

* I loved the banter and chemistry between Bee and Levi - I found the slow build, enemies to lovers to be both believable and satisfying.
* I’m who doesn’t love a good take on a real and relevant topic? So much love for the #FairGraduateAdmissions conversation/ subplot.
* Loved the supporting character of Rocio.
* No Spoilers but also really enjoyed the drama / mysterious element that played out throughout the book and project too.

Overall, just an amazing, fun, and wonderful read. One that I will definitely reread and can’t wait to get my physical copy for my bookshelf. Looking forward to seeing more from Ali H, hopefully soon!

Thank you to Berkeley and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own and freely offered.

Delightful! Loved everything about it and have the book hangover to prove it.

This book is just as gripping as The Love Hypothesis, but it fixes a lot of the pacing and plot issues I had with that book. Hazelwood clearly has A Type when it comes to heroines, and maybe a few books down the road I won’t be able to cope with how formulaic it is, but right now I neither want nor am I able to shake off the grip she has on me. There’s a big misunderstanding at the core of the story, and I think the book walks all the way to the line where it becomes annoying and contrived, but to me it didn’t quite cross it, but mileage may vary. Truly this book just juggles a lot of annoying balls and if I listed them I would put everyone off it, but man, the book never drops those balls! 10/10 would read again.

CW: parental death in an accident (happened in the past but there’s a few mentions of it); hero’s friend died in a climbing accident (also off screen but there’s a very graphic description of how he died); tons of gendered language.

Oh be still my nerdy heart!
I am obsessed with The Love Hypothesis so I was over the moon to be approved for a review copy of Love On The Brain.
Hazelwood doesn’t disappoint.
I love Bee. She is intelligent and an ace in her field. I like her inner challenges. She seemed very authentic to me, being a woman in a male dominate field. Levi is top of his game. He is co-leading this new team with her and of course she thinks he hates her. (He doesn’t.) And she thinks he’s sabotaging her. (He isn’t.) It’s a game of miscommunication but not in a frustrating why won’t they talk sort of way. It was easy to root for Bee and believe her POV, even when I knew there must be more to it than she’s seeing.
And sure, Levi is handsome and misunderstood. But that adds to his charm. I’m a sucker for a broody, serious, genius of a leading man. I love Levi’s personality, he is so obviously smitten with Bee and she is so not ready to accept that.
The external challenges they faced seemed real and frustrating. I have never worked in that area, but I can imagine those things happen a lot. Hazelwood does a wonderful job of creating authentic characters and placing them in settings that feel emotionally real and worldly. She either has experience or she does research/knows people who are in those fields because the problems and hurdles the scientist jump through seem well described. For me, this added a lot of additional charm to the book. I’m instantly immersed in their world and I know nothing about science, academia or brain research. (I went to music school for god’s sakes.)
Overall Love On The Brain is a wonderful follow up to her debut. She’s auto buy for me now. And those covers?! I’ll be buying a physical copy to put right up next to The Love Hyptothesis.

“I’ve been cataloging a million little quirks of hers in my head, and they are enchanting. She is enchanting. Smart, funny, an incredible scientist.”

This book. This FREAKING book. I honestly wasn’t sure if anything could top The Love Hypothesis and the things that it made me feel, but somehow Ali Hazelwood pulled it off. Quick paced, witty, swoon-worthy, and SO MUCH FUN, I devoured this book in one sitting and already want to go back and experience it again. This was a classic hate-to-love workplace romance, and I loved every second of it, but truly every moment of this book shines, from the main relationship, to the comedic support of the side characters, and the compelling scientific plotline centered around NASA.

First things first- thank you so much to Berkley and NetGalley for my advanced copy of this book, I am forever in your debt (you think I’m kidding? I’m not)

Without further ado, let’s get into the many things I love about this book, first and foremost being the man himself. Step aside, Adam Carlsen. I love you, but it’s time to talk about Mr. Levi Ward.

Also for the love of EVERYTHING, beware of spoilers.

It’s been a while since a love interest in a romance book has made me feel the things that he did. Naturally throughout most of the book, Bee is under the impression that Levi is not fond of her in any way, but us readers know better. This boy is OBSESSED with Bee from minute one, just as I was obsessed with him from the moment he was introduced.

“There hasn’t been anyone else.”

“Since the first moment I saw you. Since the moment I talked to you and made an ass of myself, there hasn’t been anyone else.”

I won’t say too much more about Levi, because that will just turn into me ranting about all the many scenes in which he stole my heart, but I really loved how aware he was of Bee’s fears when it comes to relationships. The major conflict between the couple doesn’t come from any miscommunication (don’t get me wrong, there are plenty of miscommunications between the pair but those mainly serve to bring Bee closer to Levi as she understands that she has misjudged him completely), but from Bee’s fear to take the leap when it comes to committing to Levi.

I completely related to Bee’s fears when it comes to love and friendships (why do I relate to main characters that have trust issues on such a deep level?? Someone help me), and I also loved watching her come to accept the gravity of her feelings for Levi.

“You don’t even have to admit to yourself that you love me, Bee. God knows I love you enough for the both of us. But I need you to stay. I need you to stick around.”

One of my favorite subplots of this book was the inclusion of Bee’s online alter ego @WhatWouldMarieDo, and her interactions with her online friend @Schmacademics, which gives off all the You’ve Got Mail vibes. Schmac is obviously Levi, but what I appreciated about these interactions was that they allowed for us to experience Levi’s perspective in a way that we don’t always see in single-POV love stories, and let me tell you the things he said as Schmac ENDED ME.

“I want to tell her that she’s luminous, she’s so bright in my mind, sometimes I can’t focus.”

I am DECEASED.

“She’s everything I ever wanted and I want to inject her into my veins and also to never see her again. There’s nothing like her and these feelings, they are fucking intolerable.”

Writing this review from beyond the grave. Too much? I don’t care, I love this book (and am severely sleep deprived) and will sing my praises of it to anyone who will listen.

I know I can’t spend this whole review talking about Levi (I mean I CAN, but I won’t), so let’s get into everything else I absolutely adored about this book, most important being Rocío and Kaylee.

THEY. WERE. SO. DANG. FUNNY.

I always love seeing the side characters form their own romantic relationships as the main couple works through all their angst and tension, and even though it was clear from minute one that Rocío and Kaylee would get together, watching their relationship develop was so entertaining. Rocío definitely stands out as a supporting character, something about the deadpan way in which she delivers morbid fun facts and her snarky comments really appealed to me, and made her scenes so much fun.

Beyond the supporting characters, this book as a whole was so funny from start to finish. There was rarely a moment when I wasn’t smiling for one reason or another while I was reading this book, and a lot of that was because of the wittiness of Bee’s inner dialogue.

“Is this how the lady feels in Scream 1, 2, 3, and 4, when she realizes that the caller is in the house? Did they ever make 5? God, will I die before Scream 5 hits theaters?”

Bee, honey, let me tell you. They made 5 and it was glorious.

All the characters had great banter with one another, and there were so many moments that added so much levity to each scene, moments that have stuck with me simply for the fact that they were a little random, not necessary to advancing the plot, but fit perfectly within the personalities of the characters in the scene.

“Look.” I push the notebook under his nose. “We’re going to do this. Look at this.”

He blinks a few times. “Bee, I don’t think this is… English.”

I turn the notebook around. Shit, I wrote in German.

This moment is just PURE GOLD. Not only does it incorporate Bee’s life experience in a comedic way (also can we address just how cool and smart she is, writing in German without even realizing it?), but it just WORKS with who Levi and Bee are and it’s SO FUNNY.

“I want to give you a token. To acknowledge your contributions.”

“There’s no need,” Levi says, just as solemnly.

Rocío rummages in her jeans pocket and offers him an unwrapped, slightly squished red gumball.

“Thank you. This is…” he looks at the gum. “A thing I now have.”

WHY DID THIS SCENE MAKE ME LAUGH SO HARD?! WHY CAN I NOT STOP THINKING ABOUT IT?! This interaction is just so THEM. Of course Rocío would have a gumball in her pocket and think that that’s an appropriate gift to give someone. And of course Levi would have no idea what to say except something that I find to be so dang FUNNY.

Finally, I am not a science person in any way (mad respect to those of you that are), but I actually really enjoyed all of the science-centered moments. I loved reading about Bee’s passion for Marie Curie, not to mention learning so much about Curie through her, and even the scenes at NASA itself as they are working on the BLINK project was both fascinating and entertaining (but don’t let my STEM-nerd sister know I said that, she would never let me hear the end of it). Also, can we talk about the small turn into suspense that we took at the end because that was so much fun and completely unexpected.

Okay, long story short this book was amazing. Favorite read of the month by far, and one I anticipate rereading in the very near future. It was funny, fast-paced, and oh so romantic, and this long and unhinged review is only scratching the surface of the many things that I loved about it. Moral of the story- if this is not on your list for most highly anticipated books of the year then IT SHOULD BE.

Thank you NetGalley & Berkley for the gifted eARC.

Ali Hazelwood does it again! This book was freaking CUTE! Dare I say I liked it more than Love Hypothesis???

Hazelwood is a master at writing amazing stories about women in STEM and making the science so easy to understand for readers who know nothing about science (ahem, me). She is also a master of writing HOT, broody, tall men (just my type), super perfectly flawed, badass women leads, and of course the best trope ever: enemies to lovers.

Bee was the cutest, quirkiest lead and I was just rooting for her the whole book. Levi is a cinnamon roll and my new book boyfriend. Sorry Dr. Adam Carlsen, you’ve been replaced. The supporting characters were phenomenal and I think Rocio was my favorite of the bunch.

The whole book from cover to cover was perfection and I am so thrilled to get the physical copy to add to my shelves when this book publishes August 23rd!

This was SUCH a fun read. It was very much in the same vein as Love Hypothesis so anyone that loved that one will surely love this as well. The characters were well drawn out and vivid and the chemistry was awesome. It was a quick read and kept me glued to the page. I am so excited to read more from Ali Hazelwood! She is a must read author for me for sure.

This book was even better than The Love Hypothesis and I am still shook about that. Before we get into the good though let's review that one thing that I could have lived without.

In Ali Hazelwood's previous book there was a spicy times moment and I and my friends debated forever. I am still in the camp, no it's not possible. If you know you know. It took me out of the spice with my confusion.

In this newest book there is also a spicy times moment that made me go EW. It just was a weird moment that I wouldn't have thought about twice if I was reading Seirra Simone, Penelope Douglas or a Katee Robert book. But I was enjoying this light and fluffy book and then bam confusion.

Okay on to the good. Ali has become a much better writer since her last novel. The jokes and humor kept their punch through the whole book. I laughed out loud several times and had to stop reading because it was so funny. The plot of this also felt better planned. I loved the enemies to lovers storyline and the tension was kept through the whole book. I can not wait to read whatever she write next. It was a wonderful book that made me forget myself and this world for a little while. Bravo!

I kept hearing about Hazelwood’s debut novel, “Love Hypothesis,” so when I saw this in netgalley I thought I would give it a try. I am glad I did. I loved it. I love the opposites and enemies to lovers trope. It felt like a weird mash up of “You’ve Got Mail” and “The Hating Game” and spoiler alert it worked! Reading this helped me through a little reading rut. Just enough sweetness to soothe me, plenty of smut and a badass woman in STEM. What else could you ask for?

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley, thank you to them. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Thank you to Netgalley and Berkley Publishing for sending me an early copy of this book! All opinions are my own!

Oh my goodness where do I start with my love for this book?? I think what first sucked me in is just how relatable Bee is. I didn't realize that I've never truly seen myself in a book until I read this, and now I know that I can find myself in Bee. She's so incredibly smart and successful, but there's so much of her that's just so real. The writing style made me feel as though I was on the phone with her, hearing about her days and laughing right along with her. It was so easy to read and get immersed in, and I could barely put it down.

I absolutely adored the women in STEM journey of this book, and as a medical student, I couldn't have been happier to see it unfold. The way that Bee was so powerful on her own, that she didn't need saving, and that Levi only complemented her was amazing.

And don't get me started on their relationship! It was so fun to watch them figure each other out and try to navigate a world that had not been the kindest to them. Their interactions with the world around them only made it so much sweeter, and I adored every second! (And also Levi is officially my book Daddy, thank you).

If you're a romcom fan, a woman in STEM, or just a nerd, you will not want to miss this book!!

This book was a great continuation that Ali Hazelwood has started of romance books featuring women in stem. I absolutely love learning more about the world of stem and what women have to go through every day in their field of study.

I loved Bee, our main character and her love for cats. I thought it added more humor to the book especially with the mysterious lab cat that she is the only one who can see. I loved how Levi worked very hard to make sure that Bee stayed on the project and that her name didn’t get ruined or her career.

The writing in this book is very easy to follow and was quite enjoyable. I find that Ali Hazelwood will be an auto-buy author for me. I love the banter between the characters in her books and love the troupes that she includes. Love On The Brain included enemies to lovers, forced proximity, and you got mail.

Overall I loved this book and can see Ali Hazelwood is definitely developing a style for romance books. The only thing I wish was that the book would be a little more different to The Love Hypothesis. They are different but have such similar things that my brain couldn’t remember what events happened in what books.