In My Mechanical Romance Teo Luna has everything figured out, captain of the soccer team and robotics team, he knows exactly what he is doing every minute of every day to prepare himself for the future as a student at MIT. Bel Meier’s life feels like it is crumbling around her, transferring to a new school in the midst of her parent’s messy divorce, her future is the LAST thing on her mind and she struggles to find the energy to try at school. When she throws together a brillant solution to an assignment last minute, her teacher Ms. Voss encourages her to transfer to AP Physics and to join the robotics team. Bel grudging does as she says, finding it easier to go with the flow than fight against it. Bel is everything that Teo is not, but she may be exactly what he needs. Teo realizes while Bel has the practical components down to be a great engineer she doesn’t understand how to program and he volunteers to help her to help their team. As they work together the two become closer and begin to change each other for the better.
I loved My Mechanical Romance. Author Alexene Farol Follmuth truly captures the excitement an anguish of being a teen. I was initially interested in this book as I found out that Alexene Farol Follmuth is also the author of The Atlas Six (writing under Olivie Blake) so I went into this book expecting a younger Nico and Libby. But My Mechanical Romance is not an aged down version of TAS it is its own unique book that gave me the same feeling as watching Never Have I Ever.

It was very cute and heartwarming book <3

Bel, the main character, is a typical teenager who is not quite sure what she would like to do in the future, she moves into some kind of prep school in her senior year, and struggles to navigate in this new world. She join the robotics team after her teacher notices her potential, and the story start to develop from there.

I had some problems with Bel's personality at first, like, she awnsers everthing with babbles, it anoyed me, and I stuggled with some expressions used in the firts chapters, maybe because I don't know much about robotics. That saied the second half of the book fells better to me, but I loved the story, the characters, and way that her relationship with Teo developed, no drama lhama, tks!

In general, it was a really good time and I feel like I could reread this book soon!

This book is for all my women in STEM lovers out there. I loved the asian rep and the strong/independent female characters we have in the book. I found the entire plot really unique and interesting because I am a bit of a science nerd myself. The rivals to friends to lovers relationship we see from the characters was so well executed as it we see really see the progress of their relationship from hate to not so hate to like to love and I couldn't help but swoon and giggle at their every interaction. This made me learn a lot about robotics and that epilogue was just too cute!! Overall, would highly recommend if you are in need of a cute, fluffy romance book.

I absolutely love this book. It was sweet and warm like a hug I didn't know I needed. Bel is so relatable and I adore the way she was described. Teo and Bel's relationship is adorable and I miss them so much now that I have finished the book. The overall vibe so to speak of this book is so spring and warm and lovely. I have never read a book that had a focus on a robotics club so it was very cool and fun to read about.

This novel was incredibly comforting to read and I’d like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC’s eBook copy.

The story features Bel and Teo, academic rivals to lovers in the cutest high-school romance I’ve ever had the pleasure to read!
This Young Adult romcom is set in the world of STEM. I loved the way the author, Alexene Farol Follmuth, balanced the romantic and the robotic parts of the story and I enjoyed both of the POVs. It’s always nice to see a boy’s POV in a relationship!

This was a great read!

Okay so that was a very cute read!

I love all the scientific bits mentioned (nerd alert sorry) and I love the robotics team! They are a great found family for our girl Bel. To be honest, Bel irked me out a bit during first 30% of the book because girl is indecisive and when she was given a single opportunity, she barged in rather shyly... but then and acted like she know all--which she is certainly don't since she is new in the area (I agree with Neelam in that argument). In her defense, Teo and Ms Voss kinda encouraged her a bit too much and she was just finding this one thing she is passionate in so there is that. But I also love how she slowly come to term with what she wanted to do for herself, which is great!

Overall, that was a quick, sweet, mechanical YA read. I enjoyed it a lot!

This YA romance book was really fun and cute to read. I love that the main character is half Filipino which makes her very relatable and I totally enjoyed all those Pinoy references all throughout. Even though I’m not really into robotics, I enjoyed this book a lot.

Bel, our main character was struggling to decide her future while being under pressure to do good in school. It reminded me of my own experience and I could relate a lot since my parents also had very high expectations of me. Aside from that, her parents got divorced and she felt like she had to choose because she’s turning 18. She randomly joined the robotics team as encouraged by her teacher and found out she's actually really good at it. She had a shaky start with her team and struggled to fit in when she joined them. Even though she got both talent and skills, she knew so little about robotics. Some members of the team didn’t actually trust her with stuff at first, undermining her because it’s unusual for a girl to excel in robotics.

Teo Luna is the engineering department’s heartthrob. He's smart, athletic, and a social butterfly who appears to have it all together But in reality, he’s a sweetheart and I love him so much. He's also someone who is trying to prove himself over and over and fulfill everyone’s expectations of him placing a lot of pressure on himself.

The romance in this book was like a slow burn and hate to love but it was just that felt intimidated by each other at first because they’re both geniuses and are very competitive. They were both just too adorable. I enjoy it when they argue a lot when their opinions clashed and that they always talk things out and never lacked communication. The robotics competition was really cool as well, I absolutely enjoyed it. It felt like I was also competing with them. The ending was really cute as well but it left me wanting for more. I wouldn't mind if this gets a sequel too! Overall, it was a feel-good book which I highly recommend to those looking for an easy and fast read.

Bel doesn't want to think about the future. She has no idea what she wants to be or do. She has a lot of talents but doesn't like to put herself out there, but rather stays in the background. When her parents separated, she had to switch schools and one of the teachers notices her talent and makes her sign up for the robotics team.

Boy ignore her and the only other girl is not her fan. Being a part of the time is new for her.

Mateo Luna is all about the plans. He is a captain of the club, plays soccer, is incredibly rich and all girls fawn over him. He has this intensity, wanting to prove himself and carrying way too much on his shoulder. They instantly butt heads.

They spend a lot of time together, building robots and making sparks fly all over the place. :)

It's such a beautiful story of falling in love for the first time, but also pressure to choose your career path early, the challenges of girls in STEM and finding the courage to be who you are in a field where is hard to be a girl.

The romance is absolutely beautiful, it develops slowly from them being rivals to working together to love. There are quite a lot of family dynamics in between, that help with character development, but also just to understand why they act the way they do.

I fell in love with the story and highly recommend it!

Thanks to Netgalley for the copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

An enemies-to-lovers STEM relationship. That’s all I’ve got to say. I love how this book not only covered the enemies-to-lovers plot but also talked about the struggles of not really knowing what you want to do in your future (me), avoiding college applications (me), the struggles of being a woman in STEM (me), and also the struggles of opening up to your family about what you really love to do (again, me).

This book feels like a found-family trope. All the characters coming together as one made my heart swell. Every character is unique in their own way. They all have different traits and characteristics which somehow complete the group and make them look like they were best friends since birth.

I really love Bel’s character development. She really found her best self with Teo’s help. I saw her hesitation toward the Robotics Club grow into a passion for robotics, or how she grew from not wanting to talk about her future to be excited about what is in store for her. Aside from this, I also admire how Bel loves to be herself. She broke the serious and proper STEM student stereotypes with her glitters and her bird jeans!

Teo being superstitious and keeping Bel on his left side during the bot competitions is so cute to me. I like how Teo pushed Bel to be her best self. I agreed with him when he said that he was doing all of these things to help Bel reach her highest potential. One thing that you will all love about him is how he tried learning all the words to Taylor Swift songs just to make Bel smile. That will be the death of me.

Here’s my favorite quote:
“It's like everything we've ever learned about force in physics, about materials that connect, about strong bonds and magnetic ones, about gravity and mystery, I've always believed that there's a possibility for everything in the world to collide for a single perfect moment, and that sometimes, if you're lucky, you get to have one for yourself. This one is ours.”

Women-in-stem, a robotics club romance, and the experience of figuring out what-the-hell-you-want-to-do-with-your-life during senior year, all rolled into one book?? SIGN ME UP.

Thank you to Netgalley, Holiday House, and Alexene Farol Follmuth (the author) for an eARC of this book!! This did not affect my thoughts or opinions :)

Rep: Jewish MC, POC MC, Indian SC

Summary:
When Bel's teacher not-so-casually pushes her to join the robotics team, Bel doesn't see the harm in trying out, if only to make her teacher satisfied. Dealing with the messy repercussions her parents divorce isn't fun, but if there's one thing her dad taught her to do, it's build. When Teo Luna, the head of the robotics team, sees her application and immediately selects her for their team, she's basically forced into joining. It's not like she can say no, right? But what's worse is the boys on the team won't listen to her and the only other girl there seems to reject her. She and Teo have a rocky start when they continue to butt heads and argue over the project, but after multiple late nights working the the robot together, it seems that they may be more compatible than they thought.

If you're looking for a book with an academic rivals to lovers and new girl x popular boy combo, look no further! My Mechanical Romance is funny, nerdy, and sweet. It's the perfect blend of senior year stress, engineering and robotics, and an amazing cast of characters.

My absolute favorite part of this book was the female characters though, especially Jamie and Lora. Nothing made me happier than seeing the two of them, plus Bel, be smart, incredible girls, but also just be happy and overall lovely. They were such supportive and healthy friends, I was never scared there was going to be drama between any of them. Just purely wholesome, girls-supporting-girls the whole way through. One of my favorite quotes from this book is from when they're having a girls night with Bel, and Jamie tells her this:

"You're this new color I didn't know existed yet and now I see it everywhere and I'm like, thank god I can see it now."

I genuinely think I would cry if someone said that to me, that's the sweetest thing ever. Anyway, everyone needs friends like Jamie and Lora.

Also, I loved Neelam. Her character perfectly portrays how women (especially women who are POC) in male dominated fields have to act like just to be respected. And even then, she still always wasn't. This was a big theme in this book and I think the author handled it perfectly. To anyone who hasn't experienced this kind of situation, or heard of it, it definitely seems like Neelam's an awful person at the beginning of this book. She wasn't lenient with Bel, she often wasn't kind, but you can clearly see by the end of this book that her actions were understandable. Not because Bel didn't deserve her spot on the team, but she wasn't really considering how easy she had it compared to the other girls and Neelam called her out on it. And to be fair, Neelam really wasn't that mean to Bel, she was just careful around people. She's not your typical, "like-able" female character but that's why I love her even more. She's 100% misjudged and anyone who doesn't respect her for that is a red flag to me, I'm sorry <3

To be honest, the romance never really hooked me in, I just didn't feel that attached to it. That doesn't mean I still didn't enjoy it though, they were definitely very cute together <3 They just didn't have me swooning or anything, I was really just here for the characters instead.

Both of the main characters were wonderful and very relatable, especially Bel! Half the time in my notes I was just remarking about how I would've reacted the exact same way she did (brilliant minds think alike?). She was just written so realistically. Her mannerism and reactions felt so personal and I could really see myself in her (and I'm sure a lot of others could too). This book also tackles child-parent relationships really well, especially with Bel's divorced parents. Having to constantly feel like you need to pick sides is exhausting and I really feel for Bel on that. Teo was also such a great guy and he was always very supportive of her. I was a bit iffy about him at first but grew to love him aftertime, and I think they're both really cute together.

This book is so so so good! Women in STEM fighting against sexism and being amazing AND beautiful romance. Bel was relatable because of her not knowing what she wanted to do with her life and finding her passion and going for it. Teo was relatable because of how he handled the high expectations he set for himself. The dual point of view was done so well. I loved all the characters and relationships in this book and so worth the read when it comes out!

Thank you Netgalley and publishers for the Digital Advanced Copy!

I am a mood reader and I really wasn't in the mood for a YA Romance but this book was a lot better than I expected and I'm glad I picked it up.

We follow Bel as she navigates senior year at a new High School. Bel is eccentric and incredibly smart but not very driven. She is pushed by Ms. Voss to join AP Physics and join the robotics team. There she becomes close with our other MC, Teo. Teo is loved by all (except Neelam) and bears the weight of HS and being the son of a tech genius on his soldiers.

I really enjoyed seeing Bel's character evolve and her way of making Teo see things in a different light. I don't really want to give any spoilers, but the writing style was great and the characters had substance.

Overall, I did enjoy this book and if you like a YA Romance that isn't too heavy, then I suggest you pick this up.

This was such a fun, romance read!

I loved how Bel was able to take things in stride and live in the moment. Not one for planning! Whereas Teo has everything absolutely mapped out for himself.

I have no idea what some of the robotics talk was haha 🙈 but I couldn’t stop turning the page.

It’s really fun to see how these two characters grow and the bond they have.

Definitely add this one on your TBR!!

Giving this a 4, the start was a bit slow but the story progressed really well. I enjoyed the fact that this story represents WOMEN in STEM. like breaking the normal archetypes. Can’t wait to read more of this author’s story in the future.

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i loved this book! my favorite author back at it again with another BANGER.

i really love the way that follmuth writes dialogue and narration. there's always some kind of lighthearted way her characters speak which make it fun to read overall. the way that she writes text message dialogue as well *chefs kiss*

both of these characters were fun and i fell in love with both of them (side note: have not read a dual pov book like this in a long time and i thoroughly enjoyed it). i loved all of these characters, even the side characters with barely any time in the spotlight like neelan or jamie. the two main characters bel and teo are also not flat characters - an issue i often have with fast paced books like this sometimes. they both have their own character arc within the story and its entertaining watching how their relationship grows. personally, lots of things they talked about were relatable as well so that just added a lot to all of it. if you're in high school (like me currently) this is definitely a book i'd recommend. its a bittersweet experience reading these kind of books in the sense that it's an experience that i am going through soon with college applications and nearing the end of my high school career. i also recommend this to people who like academic rivals to lovers (though, because the story is fairly fast paced so the "rival" part doesn't last too long).

one of the plotpoints/theme relates to the struggle women face in scientific fields and we see how that effects bel especially, but i also liked the way she incorporated neelan's perspective which added more nuance to how situations like that can affect different people. i loved the feminist message that was in this book and it was definitely something people needed to hear more. women in stem!! i love you!!

(bonus points for the taylor swift references <3)

I love the concept and cover art of this book. However, it's too slow-paced for my liking, and the jokes don't seem like things teens today would say. I think my expectations were too high for this one. It's still a fun read though!

Thank you to Holiday House and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this one and would gladly share it with my teenage niece now and my daughter when she gets older. This book is filled with instances of women supporting women, women in STEM, and women learning to lift each other up and to take up their own space.

I like the themes of figuring out who you are and how you fit in the world and finding people who really see you and support you. I like that the various characters in the book take different paths to realizing who they are becoming and in pursuing their futures.

The book depicts views into different family structures and different cultures.

It also provides insight into the increasing pressure high school students feel in pursuing college and future career paths.

This is a sweet romance, with characters that develop a strong team relationship and friendship before exploring their feelings further.

At a glance:
- Dual POV
- Senior year of high school
- New girl at a private school
- Class differences
- Girl without direction meets hyper-focused go-getter
- Strong friendships
- Multicultural cast of characters
- Women in STEM
- Kissing only on the pages
- HEA / HFN

Content warnings: separated / divorcing parents, distance / impersonal relationship with one of the parents, sexism, “diversity points” comments

SPOILER:
I also like that, while this is a romance, ultimately the direction of both main characters’ college futures is not determined by their relationship.

I really enjoyed this book. It was great reading about young people in STEM and I loved all of the fighting robots (that makes this sound sci-fi but do not be fooled, it is a contemporary YA romance). I loved Bel as a character and found her to be really likeable and easy to read from her perspective. I did like Teo as a character too but I felt like it was a little bit harder to get to know him and he could have been fleshed out a little more. The romance was cute if perhaps a little rushed. It felt like once they were together everything moved a little bit too quickly so we didn't really get time to sit with them as a couple. Overall a very enjoyable read that I would recommend.

This was a really cute YA book! I loved how representative it was too. It provided all the feel-good factors I've come to expect from a YA romance. I wouldn't necessarily recommend this above any other YA romance, but it is a nice easy read if stumbled across as I did.

THANK YOU NET GALLEY FOR THE ARC

“His name’s Teo Luna, which I wish I didn’t know, but unfortunately everyone here is in love with him.”

(You know the book is going to be good when this is how the love interest is introduced.) My Mechanical Romance is humorous, fun, and it still manages to address the sexism that can be deeply rooted in STEM towards women. This book has beautiful friendships, relationships, and character growth.

Isabela (Bel) Maier is a strong, witty, and opinionated lead character and I love that for her. Her character growth through the book is steady and so fascinating to watch. As the reader, you really get to see how she stops selling herself short and starts finding out what she wants while she goes out there and gets it. One of the best things about her is that she is not afraid to hide. Bel is a fantastic strong female protagonist.

Mateo (Teo) Luna… I love this man. He and Bel have a rivals-to-friends-to-lovers arc with lots in between. Like almost all of the characters in this book, Teo has lots of character growth. He feels a lot of pressure, given the fact that his dad is a genius who has his own business and everyone expects everything from Teo Luna. He carries his soccer team on his back, all while taking all AP classes and being captain of the Robotics Club. Bel makes him grow, and he makes her grow– it’s perfect.

This book HAS MY HEART! It’s cute, hilarious, nerdy, and high-school-rivals-to-lovers. The humor in this book had me laughing, even through the sadder parts. The author has the same sense of humor as me, to say the least.

I URGE EVERYONE TO PICK THIS BOOK UP THE SECOND IT COMES OUT! I am obsessed with our two main characters, and ALL of our side characters. (Dash, Jamie, Lora, Luke- I love.) This is a fantastic YA romance read that leaves your heart full and warm.

“I’m nervous, but not afraid. This is my comfort zone.”