Ali Hazelwood delivers another enemies to lovers story that features women in STEM. Bee is our protagonist who is co-leading a neuroengineering project at NASA with her nemesis from grad school, Levi. There are several misunderstandings from both sides, with Bee thinking Levi has always hated her and Levi thinking she is married to her douchebag ex. As they work to complete the project before the competition, they cannot fight their attraction towards each other. I enjoyed, The Love Hypothesis but this book felt like it was trying too hard to keep up the nemesis plot. Since early on you could see the misunderstandings and I felt the plot dragged through resolving the issues.

*incoherent disappointed groan*

alexa, play traitor by olivia rodrigo

let me start off by saying that i LOVED the love hypothesis…like gave it 5 stars, dropped $60 on a special edition, made my heart sing, l-o-v-e loved

but love on the brain…really took every brain cell working overtime to finish

i don’t even know how to properly convey why i’m disappointed…bc it was *gestures vaguely* everything

firstly, this book was a hundred tropes in a trench coat

don’t get me wrong. i adore romance tropes, but when they’re so blatantly shoved in for fan service rather than purposefully integrated for the plot…it just doesn’t work

let’s also not forget our two main characters. bee and levi are supposedly world renowned geniuses…but tell me why they are dumber than bricks

i genuinely cannot fathom how someone who is supposed to be a NASA scientist has negative critical thinking skills

it’s not enough that our main characters can’t be bothered to communicate with each other…they are the worst versions of ~not like other girls/guys~

we GET it. she is smol. he is tall. it does not need to be repeated every other page

good thing this is a book about stem bc the pick me energy is off the charts!

finally, the finale

IT’S SO BAD IT’S PRACTICALLY FUNNY. like if you went into this book ironically, you would’ve had a great time. imagine trina vega’s production of chicago in the hit nickelodeon tv show, victorious

*deep inhale*

there’s really nothing more disappointing than having a book you thought would be an instant favorite just fall flat…

…but it happens…yeah…

Okay, so this really is just The Love Hypothesis with a different setting and slightly different characters but I loved it anyway. It's laugh out loud funny at times and I enjoyed the side characters immensely. The end is...ridiculous, but in a fun way. I do need Ali Hazelwood to move on from her teeny tiny woman/enormous man kink soon, though.

Ali Hazelwood does it again! I am absolutely obsessed with Levi and Bee - SO CUTE! the tension between the two of them was immaculate and they just work so well together. The only (teeny tiny) I didn't love was the repetition of Bee's phrases. Otherwise - sheer perfection. I cannot wait to read anything and everything Hazelwood writes.

I told y’all how much I loved Ali Hazelwood’s The Love Hypothesis last year, and she’s back with a brand new STEMinist rom-com. When NASA offers Bee Königswasser her dream job, saying yes is a no-brainer. But when she finds out Levi Ward is her co-lead, she comes back down to earth so fast. Archenemies since college, working together is going to be more complicated than rocket science. Can Bee complete the project (without all the necessary equipment or the support of her team)? Are those sparks coming off Levi really hatred? You’ll have to read this sexy-yet-nerdy novel to find out!

I loved this book and wish there were more characters like Bee in women's fiction!

Although we still love Ali Hazelwood, we both thought that the heroine was a bit too quirky for our tastes. But dang - can this girl write tension between characters! We will be back for more... but hopefully with a little more editing next time.

I absolutely loved this book! The characters were a lot of fun and it was just so unique! Yes, there were the usual tropes, but I loved the setting and felt like the character were just so interesting. If you’re a fan of rom-coms and a little nerdy stuff, you’ll loved this! Thank you netgalley for my free copy!

Another fun and enjoyable read from Ali Hazelwood — at this point, I'll pick up anything she writes.

Love on the Brain is funny with a swoony romance, what more could you want? I love that Ali's books are so easy to read and always can be counted on as an enjoyable read. I'll always enjoy the STEM focus in Ali's books and can't wait to read what comes next!

Ali Hazelwood could write a grocery list and I would read it. I just love her books so much and Love on the Brain was no exception. It was funny. Ali always writes the most witty characters, it is so hard to not laugh out loud. The characters were smart. So many issues are touched upon in such a graceful and real way. 10/10 recommend.

Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood is a contemporary romance novel that follows the love story of Bee, a plucky neuroscientist, and Levi, Bee’s nemesis. This story is a run-of-the-mill enemies-to-lovers romance that takes place in the STEM community. I found that the most interesting part of this book was the connections made to neuroscience, especially in the chapter titles and descriptions. If you loved Hazelwood’s debut, The Love Hypothesis, I believe that this book would be worth the read. Other than that, I found the story to be unremarkable and just a middle of the road romance. In all honesty, writing this review proved to be a struggle for me because I couldn’t remember most of what happened, and I feel that is the most representative thing I could say.

Rating - 2.5/5 (round up to 3 for this site's metrics)

Not as good as The Love Hypothesis but that was a tough act to follow. This was cute though. I enjoyed it.

I love a good "rivals" romance book and this follow up to The Love Hypothesis did not disappoint me at all.

Ali Hazelwood has such a gift at making characters that I fall in love with in moments, and revel as they also fall in love with each other. I also love how she brings science and interesting situations to the books in such a accessible way.

Bee and Levi were both wonderful characters that I loved and got frustrated with and were very into their relationship. The situations were complicated, but not in a way that got in the way of the story and I was rooting for the two of them the whole way through.

Thanks to NetGalley for the copy in exchange for an honest review. I was unable to finish past 20%.

I rated the Love Hypothesis (author's previous book) pretty high last time but I really couldn’t stand this one—the protagonist was insufferable. No wonder the love interest kept shunning her, she's REALLY annoying. It's frustrating because I'm happy to see more STEM fields get notice in romance but how was Bee (protagonist) able to get this job for being a self-centered know it all?

Yeah, I'm not gonna try any more of Hazelwood's books, if the formula works for people go for it, but I'm not continuing.

This was my first read of the author Ali Hazelwood and, as I am not a fan of romance, was not thinking I would get into the novel, be engaged by it. I was wrong. Right from the start, I was hooked. Whether it was the Science that was in her novel or the fact her main characters were scientists, I don't know. I did like how the story was intertwined with actual scientific historical knowledge, especially about women scientists (the few there were, focus really on one, in the book) but though the genre is romance, there is entertainment value in it, for me now, with an author like Hazelwood. My eyes were opened to romance writing! And, it was great!

The dramatics in the romance relationship mix with the scientific historical facts perfectly and moves the story, in the beginning, in the gone wrong direction (the relationship, not the book, how the relationship went wrong). All along, two perfect people, who would be perfect together, do not see what the readers do. It is a frustration that the writer makes great for readers. The only angst in life I like to feel (when it is not actually mine).

As the story goes on, time after time, the characters miss what the readers see, what is before their very eyes. They are in a dance where their steps are out of place with one another, almost right but not quite yet. Hazelwood however, is a master at having her readers know what her characters cant see. And, since this was my first novel reading of her, I was left wanting more of the same.

The bad thing, however, was the book expired before I was able to read the ending. I was given 90 days to read it and I should have been able to read the "happy ever after". But, at the time, I didnt have the devices or time that I do now. Plus, I was going through several surgeries and, was reading more print books then on my devices. I was at the end of the book, had about twenty more pages, when I realized I had it no more. So, when I have the extra cash and time I will buy this book and only to read the last twenty pages. Trust me, I am a cheap person and, unless it was really good, would never go after a book for such a short ending. This one, worth it!

**4.5-stars rounded up**

The Queen of Steamy-STEM is back and she's done it again!!

Without putting too fine a point on it, I'll just say that Hazelwood's stories are the romances of my dreams. I loved this one even more than The Love Hypothesis.

In Love on the Brain the Reader is introduced to Bee Königswasser, a neuroscientist, who has just been offered the opportunity to work on the project of her dreams for none other than NASA. Moving to Houston, Bee gets to bring along her dark-ray of moonshine assistant, Rocío, who contributes her own brand of humor to the story. The project is set to run for 3-months, which could turn out to be the greatest 3-months of Bee's career thus far. She's pumped to get started.

Then Bee discovers her co-lead on the project is Levi Ward. Ughhhh, way to ruin an entire vibe. Levi is a huge jerk who spurned her at every turn in grad school. Bee never really understood what his deal was with her, but she knows she doesn't want to repeat any of it at this point in her life.

Unsurprisingly, as Bee and Rocío attempt to settle in at their new office and get to work, it seems that someone is sabotaging them. Honestly, it's like Levi isn't even trying to hide it, but the longer they're around each other, Bee begins to see a different side to him. Is Levi softening towards her, or was she possibly misreading him all along? Also, if it isn't Levi sabotaging her, who is it?

Y'all, I adored this story. From the very first moments in Bee's perspective, I knew I was going to become so connected to her. I adored the way her brain worked, her passions, her backstory, her insecurities, it was all so solidly developed.

Then there is Levi, the epitome of a leading man. He's handsome, smart, industrious, athletic, motivated, charming, sweet and a Star Wars fan. I mean, sign me up.

I love an Enemies-to-Lovers trope, so I wasn't surprised that I enjoyed this plot. One thing I really appreciated was that most of the miscommunication between the couple is cleared up earlier in the book than is generally the case. This allowed a better building of their relationship in my opinion. Usually you spend so much time just trying to have characters actually communicate with one another, it can get frustrating. I didn't really feel that here. It felt like just the right amount to build tension without causing annoyance.

I also really loved the side characters, particularly Rocío, Bee's assistant, and Levi's cat, Schrodinger, because who doesn't love the cats who star in romance stories!?

I will say towards the end, there was some silly drama that felt very eye-rolly for me, hence the 4.5-stars rounded up, versus a full-5. With that being said though, that's a pretty minor thing and it was the only time where I was sort of shaken out of the hypnotic trance this story put me in.

I have read all of Hazelwood's currently published works and I have enjoyed them all. I love that she is shining a spotlight on women in STEM and that her characters are all so robust and likable. As with many Romance stories, there is a formula to them, but hey, they work. You know what you are getting into when you pick up a Hazelwood book and I'm here for it all the way.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. This is my favorite Hazelwood yet and I cannot wait to see what she has in store for us next!!

I have been SO excited to read this book, but also a bit anxious because her first book, The Love Hypothesis, was excellent and what if this book wasn’t as good? I’m happily here to tell you that Hazelwood’s sophomore release is every bit as amazing and, honestly, I think it’s even better than TLH, which I didn’t think was possible. Bee is just so loveable, and she thinks Levi is the WORST, but he is actually just a big, awkward cinnamon roll and I am HERE FOR IT. At this point, I’m not sure Ali Hazelwood could write a bad book if she tried. The only bad part now is waiting for her next book … thank goodness I saved a couple of her novellas to read during the wait!

✑ LOVE ON THE BRAIN, by Ali Hazelwood 🪐💗
rating: ★ ★ ★ . 5 stars (3.5) enjoyed it!
“You were always in my head. And I could never get you out.”

Let me start off by giving a HUGE thank you to @prhinternational for giving me a change to read and review this book ahead of its release! the fact that I was given the opportunity to do so is beyond amazing!!

I read and loved The Love Hypothesis last year, so I had so many expectations when it came to this book. The plot was so intriging to me, and the promised tropes we can count on by the blurb got me so excited! And I have to say that, while it ended up being as much as I expected, It was such a nice, good read.

As said, I loved all the science/NASA setting and plot we were provided with. Seeing Bee shine in that department was one of the things I enjoyed the most about this book. Then, we had Levi. I know it is difficult to get better than Adam guys, but I promise you that Levi won’t disappoint. I loved him SO much, he was such a sweetheart with Bee. Seeing her be completely cluless about how head over heels he was for her was fun to read (although I feel like she could have come to that realisation sooner, it was SO CLEAR!).

The spice was, in my opinion, bigger and better in this book, and I personally enjoyed the fact that we got to see glimpses of romance between secondary characters too! While there were things that made my love for this book go a bit down (the plot being quite predictable in the end, bee sometimes beeing way too clueless for my liking, the ending being so soon! i wanted to see more of Levi and Bee’s relationship development), I quite enjoyed this read, and I promise you guys will fall in love with Levi Ward in a heartbeat.

Besides all those points, here are other small things in the book that I personally loved (NOT SHARING SOME BECAUSE OF SPOILERS):

🪐 bee’s hair colours
🪐 the cats. i’m always here for the cats
🪐 levi’s personality
🪐 penny and levi’s relationship
🪐 bee’s personality (take out how clueless she was, though)
🪐 bee owning a secret twitter account

Mark your calendars! Love on the Brain is coming on August 23rd!✨💗. #PRHInternationalPartner

I love this authors writing so much! This book was a 4 to 5 stars for me. Not as good as the last hypothesis but still very cute! I love the intelligent banter the romcom atmosphere. I rooted for the couple and laughed as well as cried

Thank you @berkleypub and @netgalley for the complimentary digital ARC and @prhaudio for the complimentary audiobook.

In my opinion this was just ok. I’ll start with what I didn’t like. Bee! Yes, the main character was so annoying, to the point that I considered not finishing a few times. I eye rolled so hard so many times it started to hurt. Also, the miscommunication trope 🤦‍♀️. Again, this is because Bee didn’t listen or pay any attention to what was in front of her, even when practically smacking her in the face. Romance is predictable, I read it because I want the guaranteed happy ever after, but I do appreciate when twists are thrown in that I don’t expect. This delivered a twist, part of which I saw coming, but then it veered into the ridiculous. Overall I appreciated this as a light quick read, and if you’re looking for something with 🌶 then look no further. I haven’t read the Love Hypothesis, but I still plan to.

Thank you to @berkleypub and @netgalley for the eARC of this book!

I’ll be honest… I was disappointed by this book. While there were some great parts, Love on the Brain just missed the mark for me.

What I liked:
- Levi was a gem
- The supporting characters were hilarious
- Women in stem rep!
- Lots of talk about cats
- Focus on sexism in the workplace

What I didn’t like:
- The tropes we’re so so similar to The Love Hypothesis
- The ending was super rushed
- Background on both MCs was just brushed upon
- Dialogue was kind of cringey (also breaks the 4th wall multiple times)
- Focus on size and appearance was waaaay overdone and lowkey problematic

Overall, not a favorite for me, which is a bummer. I wish I would’ve enjoyed this book more but we can’t win ‘em all. That said, I’m still glad I gave it a chance and I hope others enjoy it more than I did.