This book had so many wonderful elements: academic rivals, second chance romance, lots of nerdy literary analysis, and soft cardigans. I really expected to love it, but unfortunately it wasn't for me.

Allison is a great main character and I enjoyed spending time with her. Unfortunately, I found the rest of the characters to be either one-dimensional or unintentionally unlikeable. While I appreciated Colin's quirkiness and having a love interest that wasn't the traditional romance "hero", I found that he was quite awful to Allison in ways I couldn't forgive. The most important thing in a romance is to root for the couple, and I couldn't help feeling they'd be better off without each other.

That said, I could really feel the author's passion for the characters and subject matter coming through in the text. I hope this book finds people who love it, and I look forward to reading whatever Jenny L. Howe writes next.

Unfortunately, The Make-Up Test by Jenny L. Howe just wasn’t for me, and I really wanted to love it.

I wasn’t a fan of the characters or the relationship dynamics.

The third act breakup could have easily not have happened if Allison and Colin properly communicated. And their “happily ever after” just didn’t work for me.

Thank you to St. Martins Press for an advanced digital copy via NetGalley in exchange for review

Thanks to Netgalley and St Martins Press for an advanced copy!

I love me a good academic romance and this one was such a good read, especially for those of us loving history and literature. Allison shows up to her new PhD program only to find her ex has also been admitted and through the course of the novel we learn more and more about why they were in love and how it got screwed up, all while Alison deals with a toxic father and changing relationships with her friends and family.

I really loved Alison as a character. She is fat-positive, lives in her full body, and is on her journey of knowing her self-worth. Colin, on the other hand, I was lukewarm about. He eventually explains his past actions, and I get the sense that he has changed, but I think I wanted to show him actually making more change. He is constantly not conveying his thoughts or communicating his actions and he KNOWS that Alison is triggered by so much of what he does and yet he can't get out of his own head to be a better partner. I almost wanted this to be Dual POV to hear more of why he was the way he was, but in the end, I'm glad the author stuck with Alison.

The plot of the story feels a little low stakes, except that it's academia where something like this plot is decidedly NOT low stakes, its everything, and I appreciated that those not in academia don't dismiss Alison and her anxiety about her future. The toxic father storyline felt a little under developed and I felt like I never got a sense of whether or not Alison understands she is beautiful to people other than Colin. She mentions other past relationships, or at least sexual partners, but her hyper focus on Colin left me wishing she would talk more about how she feels about literally anyone else or whether she feels attractive in relation to other people on campus or in her life (please note, I'm making the assumption that other people ARE attracted to her, because why not, she sounds like a delight).

Overall, I really liked this book for its themes and heroine, I think the hero could have been a little more, but this is also a debut novel and I'm excited for what Howe has next. I'll definitely be reading it.

Allison is very excited to begin her PhD journey with her academic idol in Medieval literature when she is confronted with the fact that Colin, the man who betrayed her and broke her heart 2 years ago, is also in her program. And the hits just keep coming when the university changes the rules about advisor/advisee relationships and her professor can only take on Allison OR Colin as an advisee, a role that would basically make their careers. So now, not only is she confronted with heartbreak past, but she's in competition with Colin for the position for which she has worked for years. On top of all of that, her asshole, fatphobic father may or may not be dying and her mom doesn't seem to understand why Allison isn't falling all over herself to be by his side.

Have you ever read a Romance where you're hoping that an alternate love interest will show up at the 11th hour because the actual love interest is so terrible? Yeah, that's the feeling Colin brought out in me. He was vile to Allison in college (and his reasons and lack of real apology were not enough) and he's only marginally less awful now. Allison definitely has her own issues, but she deserves better. The writing was great and, with a different love interest, I think I could have really enjoyed the story, given that I was an English major myself. But I just couldn't get past hating one of the two MCs so very much. CW for emotional abuse by a parent. Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC. Available 9/13/2022.

Unfortunately I just couldn't get into this one. It may be for some but it just wasn't for me. There's a lot of literature talk since both characters are academics, TA-ing a college class, and I just wasn't interested in all the lit talk. Allison was constantly focused on winning and always being the best and since it's not dual POV, we only see Colin through her lens. It was hard to form my own view on Colin since I only saw him as she did. Overall, just not the right fit for me- but some may love this one!

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

I really would have liked to like this book but I just didn’t :(
I really loved some of the tropes in it but I just didn’t like the layout and I didn’t really care for Allison’s and Colin’s relationship. I wish we would have actually saw more growth with Colin. The miscommunication trope did not have my heart.

So I did not like the two main characters. They was not likable at all. I did like the story and like the ending of the book. But half of the book I was hating both of the main characters.

I love a good second chance romance and THE MAKE-UP TEST was a thoughtful and enjoyable read!

I liked the way the relationships in the book were written – watching Alison and Colin’s growth as the developed a new relationship with each other and the portrayal of Alison’s relationship with her dad was poignant, incredibly relatable, and a fresh take on navigating challenging or unhealthy relationships.

Overall, I thought it was a solid debut!

The Make-Up Test by Jenny L. Howe is set against a background of English literature. This friends-to-lovers-to-enemies-to-rivals-to… undeniable chemistry will take your breath away and sweep you off your feet. The Make-Up Test is a fun read with plenty of bickering, overcoming prejudice, and forgiveness.

DNF at 26%.

This book was hard to follow. Jumping back and forth from one timeline to the next for long stretches and then you are back to another. I feel like I read so much but didn’t even get that far. I feel like it was trying hard to be too progressive. Hitting all the political, racial, sexual orientation ideas as it could.

Just wasn’t for me.

I really enjoyed the female protagonist in this book. Allison is mature and very aware of her true self. But the male protagonist Collin was really difficult for me to like. Even when the reveal comes out midway through the book I still couldn’t find myself rooting for him. I guess what I’m saying is I would’ve preferred this book to be a dual POV. Maybe that way I would’ve understood his motivations more. I was really impressed with Jenny Howe’s writing especially since this is her first published book. I thought she did an amazing job writing a plus size heroine who is accepting of her body and sexuality but dealing with her own insecurities. Overall I enjoyed this book but I wish I liked the main male character more.

Thank you #Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was fine. I wasn't in love.

What didn't work: Random pandemic references, the FMC was kind of arrogant and unlikeable in my opinion, and I really hate the miscommunication trope, which is really all this was.

What did work: I enjoyed the enemies-to-lovers set up, all the academic vibes, second chance romance, literature references, and the corgis. Corgis will literally make anything better.

I have such a difficult time with second chance romances because the couple broke up for a reason, usually a pretty good one, so why would you go back to that? This was a particular bad breakup and I still can’t figure out how Allison could have ever forgiven Colin the first time and gotten back together with him. Still, their nerdy romance is cute and as far as relationships go, they have some cute banter and interesting situations to get themselves out of. There is a lot of fat shaming in this book and Allison handles it well. There’s also a lot of insufferable conversation among intellectuals that just irks me. I get you’re smart. You’re all in a PhD program. I’m trying to get lost in a book, not read so much “discourse” on academic topics.

I liked the story. I just didn't warm up to Allison until pretty far into the book. Colin was a much more likable character. This was probably because we didn't know Colin from the previous relationship in which he seemed to be pretty egotistical. We get current Colin and he is much more relatable. Allison was way too competitive & cruel for a while. I still think this is a good story and worth reading. You just might have to gut it out through some of the issues in the beginning.

Thanks to the publisher & NetGalley for advanced copy in exchange for my honest review

This was a solid contemporary debut. I really enjoyed the academic setting, the body positivity on the heroine's part (she is comfortable and accepting of herself even if other people aren't), and the doggy side character. The writing style worked well for me, and there was strong character development. There could have been better communication between the main characters regarding a few central issues/conflicts, but overall I enjoyed this book and would read this author again.

Allison gets into a PhD program and becomes a TA to a professor she admires, one who can further her career in academia as a medieval literature professor. Unfortunately her ex, Colin Benjamin, is also in the program. This is a second chance romance with a fat female protagonist. I am totally on board with being who you are and proud of your body and even though Allison professed this I don't feel like she owned it. At one point it was mentioned that her and her mom had a thyroid condition. To me that felt like a cop out, like I am fat but can't help it when I would bet that most fat people just eat a lot and love food like me. I found medieval lit totally something I could not identify with and found those discussions boring. Her dad, Jed, was a horrible human and he just seemed a distraction to the rest of the story. Most importantly I don't think I liked Allison or Colin. I didn't like how they kept things to themselves and found them to be immature. Even Sophie, Allison's roommate, could have been more of a support but all we know about her is she designs plus size clothing and leaves fabric all over the house. It was a pleasant enough read but more like 2.5 stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with a digital copy.

Being from/in academia myself, I wanted to love this book, but unfortunately there was just too much wrong.
Do you know that awful ex boyfriend that was terrible to the heroine in the past and/or present in romance books? Well, this book has that ex-boyfriend… and it is the hero. Colin Benjamin is the definition of a mediocre white male. Why is Allison giving him another chance? Why is that the plot of the book?

Everyone in Allison’s life was so awful to her. Her mother forces her to have a relationship with her shitty father, and her father calls her fat all the time and underestimates her job, but then after he dies it’s revealed that he had her on a pedestal at work.

The worst for me was how a smart woman in academia basically makes herself small and blames herself for a mediocre man's ego being hurt. No thanks.

TW: Fatphobia, death of a parent

Thanks to St. Martin Press and Netgalley for my ARC.

The Make-Up Test is a cute, academic rom-com, with an exes to loves trope. Intertwined with PhD classes and family health / drama, this was an quick and easy read! Highly recommend if you enjoy exes to loves tropes, romantic comedy stories, and stories of that similarity.

Overall, I would recommend this.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I tried very hard to get into the book..but unfortunately couldn't gel with the setting of the book which is important to me .. I will definitely give this one another try after a couple of months till then it stands as DNF.

DNF read to 20% and skimmed to 30% before stopping..
I was ready to DNF on page one when I was supposed to believe that Allison made it through an undergraduate program and into a PhD program without having a laptop. I should have taken it as a sign and stopped there, but no I' am a glutton for punishment and kept reading. Allison is immature and unlikeable but she has nothing on Colin who is one of the worst MMCs I've ever encountered. He is an immature, sleazy, lying, know-it-all scumbag that no amounts of hazel eyes can redeem. Top the book off with an abusive father and a whole lot of fat-phobia and this book is a giant NO from me. I've looked at reviews from others and it doesn't look like this book is going to improve at all, so I'm stopping and will never pick it up again. It's not worth any more of my brain power.
DNF. do not pass go. do not read this book or anything else by this author.