If you asked me how I felt about a romance book set at NASA before reading this, I probably would’ve said something along the lines of “well that sounds interesting, it’s different I guess.” Now that I’ve actually read it though? I’m saying “That was EVERYTHING I never knew I needed.”

The book follows Bee, a neuroscientist who gets the chance to work on a project called BLINK as part of NIH, partnering with NASA. She is shocked when she finds out Levi, her archenemy from grad school, is her co-lead. She thinks this will be the worst because Levi despises her…but does he?

I absolutely loved following along with Bee and Levi on the process of the project. What I loved even more however, was Bee’s strength and pride as a woman in stem. The feminist references throughout the book had me cheering on Bee and all the other women in STEM who have to deal with the difficulty of proving themselves as competent because they are women.

Now for what you all really want to hear about: the romance.

It was adorable. The “I thought you hated me (but turns out he never did)” trope is MAJOR in this book, and it made for so many hilarious and ironic moments between Bee and Levi. Speaking of Levi, God I love that man. He is the man we all want to have a real version of. He is everything Bee did not expect. He’s a cat guy too, which is just the cherry on the icing.

Our girl Bee has been through a lot. So following her on her journey, including being tasked with this project and having to interact with Levi, was such a pleasure to read but also enlightening. I learned a lot, blushed a lot, screamed a lot, and cheered a lot.

Ultimately, I loved reading all of Bee and Levi’s interactions, down to their banter. This was such a refreshing read, as I have never read a romance that takes place at NASA, but also because it perfectly balanced serious situations with comedic and cute moments. I highly recommend this book, and cannot WAIT to see all of the booktok videos depicting their interactions once it’s out.

Not, strictly speaking, a wholly different experience than The Love Hypothesis, but that's really to it's credit. It's clever, it's fun, the good guys are so good, slightly affected by y-chromosome-itis, but here we are.

I loved this book! Ali Hazelwood knows how to write a good academic romance, which is a genre that I really didn't think would ever exist. Can't wait for the next one!

Ali Hazelwood has become one of my must read authors and she has delivered once again.

Love on the brain is a fantastic STEM inspired romance. I love the (faux) enemies to lovers and I immediately fell in love with Bee and all her quirks.

Hazelwood is so good at creating characters that you instantly fall for.

This book should be at the very top of your TBR

All in all, another solid romance story from Ali Hazelwood!
I love that her books are set in the STEM world. It's something I personally don't know a lot about or work in, so it's fun the have a change of scenery from my life too.
Without trying to compare too much to the Love Hypothesis, if you loved Adam then you will love Levi, because they are very similar. Which I'm ok with! Any sort of moody, tall, but secretly sweet is an A+ in my book. I enjoyed the development of their relationship and especially how he supported her and trusted her in her work.
My only slight criticism and reasons for giving this 4 stars instead of 5 are the research assistant character and the final climax scene. Rocio didn't add much to the story for me and I never quite got her humor or felt like we understood why she was in the science field. I don't want to add any spoilers but the ending conflict just seemed a little rushed and a big deal but not a big deal at the same time?
Ultimately, I really enjoyed this book and look forward the next quirky and sweet couple that Hazelwood creates.

I think Ali just solidified herself as one of my favorite authors with this one. Who am I kidding, she had me at the love hypothesis but she kept me with this one. And holy moly was the heat cranked up on this one. So much yes! So so so much. I should probably leave a more eloquent review but I’m still riding on a post reading high to think of anything more intelligent to say. If you want to laugh, follow a bad ass women in stem, and read a nemesis to lovers story….pick this up…if you don’t, still pick this up.

When I say that Ali Hazelwood's writing has me in a chokehold...I'm not kidding.

The Love Hypothesis was one of my top books last year. To be honest, I wasn't sure if anything could top that one. Well, insert Love on the Brain. It's only April and I have found my front runner for romance of the year.

This book was INCREDIBLE. Oh my goooood. I devoured it. I literally could not put it down. Enemies-to-lovers set in academia? I'm here for it.

Bee, our main character, was so perfectly imperfect and relatable. Her inner dialogue was hysterical and I really appreciated the way she was written; it was like I was talking/listening to a friend. She was wicked smart. Funny. Flawed. Kind. Emotional. A total bada$$. Everything I love in a FMC.

And Levi. Wow. Okay. Adam was great, but Levi might take the cake for me. His humor. His kindness. His willingness to help. Talk about ultimate book boyfriend!

I adored the secondary characters and underlying plots, too! Ro was incredibly, and Penny was such a typical kid with her questions.

Also, those plot twists?!??! I did NOT see them coming and holyyyyy cow. I was shocked!!

THE STEAM, Y'ALL. TLH touched on it a little bit but Ali went all TF in with this one. I mean, Levi really said "I want you to open your mouth and show me." O.K.A.Y.

Yeah, this review is unhinged because the book is that freaking good. Ali was an auto buy author for me after TLH and I'm so glad I preordered LotB because I cannot wait to reread it!

ALL THE STARS!!!

I basically inhaled this whole book in one sitting. And it was delightful! Ali Hazelwood does such a phenomenal job of blending romance, science, and academia into a hilariously irresistible story.

It just wasn’t quite a 5 star for me, because I get very annoyed with the "she's so tiny; he's so big" trope.

I was so excited for Ali's sophomore book, and guys it did not disappoint! I found myself very invested not only in the romance but even Bee's career- the obstacles she faced made me want to scream sometimes! This was full of funny moments, banter and bursting with quirky personality that makes these characters so likeable. You really start rooting for these two to get together, and I've never read about a male quite like Levi before, he's so sweet but not in the way that takes away from his hot-ness, lol. And there's a smidge more spice than in her debut🔥 There were a couple bits that were supposed to add some mystery to this one that I did find easily predictable, but honestly I didn't mind, I liked that those elements were included regardless. This story was so much FUN! Highly recommend!

Huge, big thanks to the publisher for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

Bee is basically married to her work. Her last relationship ended with the dissolution of a friendship and having to send wedding gifts back. But now, she's headed to work on an amazing project as the co-lead which is great, until she finds out her co-lead is her grad school nemesis. All her history comes flooding back, especially when the co-lead thinks she did marry the old boyfriend. And Bee thinks he still hates her.

Somehow, they find a way to work together and be friends...or maybe more? The enemies part of this book is mercifully short. I appreciate the animosity to start, but I also appreciate that most of it is in Bee's head--and everyone else's. The discussion of academia and especially STEM fields as a boys club is hysterical (if unfortunately true). The Twitter touches are pretty good, too. It's run and satisfying, though sometimes Bee is a little too hyperbolic for my taste.

I genuinely don’t know how to move on from this book. Before starting, I wasn’t sure how Ali Hazelwood could top The Love Hypothesis but this book did it for me. This book was PHENOMENAL!! Levi and Bee were two of my favorite MCs ever I might say. I loved their chemistry so much and Bee’s chaotic personality. I loved the idiots to lovers that this book had as well as a little bit of a secret identity trope?! SIGN ME TF UP!!!! This book is an early contender for a 2022 fave!! I am anxiously awaiting whatever she releases next, I have found a new insta buy author!!

4.5 Stars

Cute Cover? STEM? Romantic Comedy? Great Banter? Sign me the f*ck up.

This book was everything I hoped it would be- it was hilarious and heartwarming. I loved Bee and Levi as a couple and the side characters were great. I read the entire thing in one sitting.

Highly recommend it to romcom lovers and fans of the enemies to lovers trope. I am looking forward to reading whatever Ali Hazelwood writes next because she has quickly became an auto buy author for me.

THANK YOU Netgalley and Berkley for providing me an ARC to read and review. I may have screamed in excitement when I seen that I received it!

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

If you’re wondering if Love on the Brain and The Love Hypothesis have the exact same vibe, let me just say that YES. It’s the EXACT. SAME. VIBE.

But idk that this is necessarily a bad thing? Ali Hazelwood brings a lot of that zany humor and voice to her story that I enjoy. But it did make Olive and Bee seem the exact same person. And Adam and Levi are the same too now that I think on it………

But that’s NBD. I liked The Love Hypothesis, I can get down with same vibes!

However…

The thing that made this book a middle of the road read for me is the miscommunication trope. Not just that. The miscommunication trope for SO. FREAKING. LONG. The only thing keeping these two lovers apart was a conversation. A very brief one at that. Really just one sentence. I found myself scratching my head at 50% like……………we still aren’t here yet?

And Bee drove me a little bonkers. Okay, a lot bonkers. Okay at times I was rolling my eyes because for a brilliant scientist she was completely clueless and oblivious. Why did Levi have to tell her ten thousand times that he never hated her? Why is she convinced that Levi only wants to be friends with benefits? Bee?? Why?? And what was that random family scene injected in the middle The Hating Game style for absolutely no reason? It made no sense.

Speaking of not making sense…the ending…I just glazed right over whatever that was…because…what was that? It seemed so outrageous I couldn’t believe what I was reading.

I was also having Bridgerton season one petty outrage because I don’t think Bee and Levi ever look at each other and say “I love you.” Y’all. I need this in my romance books. It’s a requirement.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

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. Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school—archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away. 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. There’s only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?

Ali Hazelwood, you have done it again. I have once again devoured a story you have written. Another love story, Gina? Yes. I’m apparently in a mood, and Ali Hazelwood has delivered. I was worried after her debut, “how will she do it again?” “She’s an exceptional writer, but will her story be as good?” The answer is, she’s amazing and I will forever read her stories.

I loved the characters. Nerdy scientists may just be some of my favorite characters to read. They were quirky, but not in an unrealistic, creepy way. They developed nicely. I laughed, and cried, and felt a whole range of emotions. The side characters were charming and fun, and while I wished I got to see more of everyone, I would not have wanted to take anything away from the story.

The two main characters, Bee and Levi, made my heart feel large and my head hurt. Normally the lack of communication trope makes me irrationally angry, but in this book, it was almost charming. Trope-wise it had one of my all-time favorites: when the man falls first. There’s just something so romantic to a story when you see a man fall in love with the woman, and then patiently waits for her to catch up. And let me tell you, Levi was patient.

Overall, I won’t say this book wasn’t without its flaws. I’ve read too many books to say any book is truly perfect. However, this book was exactly what I wanted it to be. Funny, romantic, quirky, emotional. It had it all. I am desperate for another novel by Ali Hazelwood.

*Thank you NetGalley for a copy of this E-Arc in exchange for an honest review*

I smiled through this entire book. Ali Hazelwood's books just ooze charm. Her characters are so easily lovable, quirky, and simply put...charming. I was charmed. I laughed, I cried, and I fell in love with Levi.

I flew through this book in a single afternoon. The writing was easy to read, had me laughing out loud, and my heart squeezing in my chest at the romantic moments. Speaking of romantic moments, this had it all: enemies to lovers (but it's all actually a misunderstanding and he's been in love the whole time), a tall brooding love interest with a heart of gold, a heroine who's reluctant to let anyone in, funny well meaning friends and side-characters, cats performing heroic acts, and the love interest always stepping in for the mc's best interests in the most swoon worthy ways.

You don't have to worry about second book blues when it comes to this one. It was just as good as The Love Hypothesis, if not even better if I do say so myself.

PS: It's nice to see a fellow Reylo thrive. I loved the Star Wars references (of course) and the nods to the traditional Reylo tropes.

I loved this book as much as I loved The Love Hypothesis. I need Hazelwood's next book in my hands as quickly as possible, because I am OBSESSED.

Ali Hazelwood has done it again! This book had me hooked from the very first page. The characters are funny and quick to steal your heart. Ali Hazelwood has created another book that is sure to keep readers laughing and smiling throughout and after. She has found the perfect balance of romance, comedy, drama, and..... spice of course!

I eagerly awaited Ali Hazelwood's next book and I was not disappointed! Though the setting may seem similar to "The Love Hypothesis", her new book tells another story of colleagues going from enemies to lovers as they're forced to work on a new project. Hazelwood has created another amazing romance with lovable characters which also engages in the issues that women face in STEM professions. Her background in science provides the kind a nuance that elevates a story from good to great/fantastic/memorable/awesome. It's so good that at one point I
found myself close to tears in frustration over Bee's situation. I devoured "Love on the Brain" in one day, and I can't wait to see what Hazelwood will write next.

Ali Hazelwood, as per usual, did a phenomenal job of making me fall in love with her characters immediately. I wanted to know who hurt them, why they hurt them, and what I could do to help them. I’ll absolutely recommend this to every single person I find browsing the romance section.

It was never a question whether I would love this book. I read The Love Hypothesis last year (loved it) and immediately knew that Ali Hazelwood was a phenomenal writer and everything she writes was going to reflect this.
Love on the Brain had everything that made The Love Hypothesis great and more. Like her first book, her protagonists are working in STEM careers. There was an enemies to lovers plot, done in such a creative way. There were all of these fun details and quotable moments. This book is definitely in my top five for the year.
Honestly, anything I say probably won't do this book justice. So just read it!