I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
This is a great YA novel. I really liked the realistic dynamic between the characters. The writing and dialogue flowed nicely and it was an easy, intelligent read.
I liked the issues that were imbedded in the story, such as sexism (in STEM too), divorce, familial pressure, and relationships. Definitely a book most teenagers (and people) can relate to.
This is probably a book I will recommend my kids to read one day.

My Mechanical Romance is perfect for anyone looking for a fun romance read. The characters, Teo and Bel, were ones I could root for. I appreciate that they were POC's in stem. It was interesting to see the academic pressure they had to deal with from not only their families but there friends as well. I really enjoyed the setting since I lived in that area of LA. If you're in the mood for a fun teen romance I recommend picking this one up!

It wasn’t hard for me fall in love with it considering it served one of my favorite tropes.
I find the writing quite adorable and the characters quite relatable. I just love these nerds!
The story has been gripping from the beginning and I also see a great character development with 2 POVs.

Thank you to NetGalley and Holiday House for providing me with an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review

I would first like to thank Netgalley, Holiday House, and Alexene Farol Follmuth for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

Are you looking for a book about a woman in STEM featuring the very favorite trope of enemies-to-lovers? Boy, do I have the book for you!!

This is probably my most annotated book on Kindle, as an underrepresented woman in the STEM field this book was ABUNDANT in references to what that can feel like.

Key Points:

» Characters (specifically BEL)
I felt so SEEN in this book, and Bel was such an entertaining character to read from. I always looked forward to reading from her perspective. As an example, we got these ever-iconic quotes from her:
"I am flirting dangerously with tardiness, he is not even awake."
"I like to think I have eccentric tastes in most things, but I like Taylor Swift, too. I'm human after all."
"I mean, does whatever I do in life really require me to have gotten an A in Civics?"
Let's just say, I loved Bel.

Mateo was also a perfect love interest and a great contrast to Bel's quirkiness. I loved his journey to understanding the kind of privilege he has due to his gender and his family's success. He was a character we so much character growth with his own struggles.

In terms of side characters, AMazing! Jamie and Dash, the main character's best friends don't disappoint, and Naleem's "villainous" aura and her own journey were so well done. They have flaws, they aren't perfect and they grow together, it's just *chef's kiss*


» Important Themes
Her experience is one that many girls can relate to. Finding a passion in the engineering field only to be faced with looks of prejudice and being overrun with men. It's easy to be discouraged when you feel the need to fight for a sense of belonging in this space. The amount of situations she experienced that I still relate to in college is crazy (mansplaining, assuming you need help since you're a girl, not being taken seriously). I especially love this quote:
"There's a lot more kinds of strength than just being outwardly tough, and it's a lot to ask of anyone to succeed when most people in the room are waiting to see you fail"
or this one, that hit home so hard
"...you don't understand how hard it is to be a girl competing with boys who don't even realize that they, unlike us, are perceived as more competent no matter what they do."

» Romance
GUSH gush gushhhhh. I was so into their romance, don't even get me started. I have not read a romance book I was as invested in their love story in SO LONG and this one just did it for me. It was cute, they complimented each other, and the pacing was perfect (nothing dragged for too long, which is my biggest qualm with romance books). Also, me thinking about Taylor Swift after it was mentioned was reminded so hard of Our Song when they both had the same thought of wishing they had kissed *more gushing ensues* I was living for their love story, and couldn't get enough!

Ending Thoughts:
I can honestly not stop saying positive things about this book. I enjoyed this wholesome love story and their tribulations while they were finding themselves. We need more stories like these and I will never tire of reading them (ᗒᗜᗕ)
Definitely give this book a shot, while I'm on my way to read The Atlas Six since Alexene has written that too under a pen name ＼(〇_ｏ)／

This book isn’t really a book I would normally read as it’s a little to young adult for me but it sounded so heart warming I decided to give it a whirl!

It’s a very cute story and I love the direction and story line. This would be a great read for 14-18 year olds.

Side note the pressure some kids must feel in high school makes my heart hurt! My biggest worry in high school was getting to school on time!

All and all cute book and I appreciate the girl power!

hi everyone this was the cutest thing i've ever read and i wll stand by that.

read this book for
- academic rivals to lovers
- women of color in STEM
- dual pov
- banter & cutest romance ever
- nicknames hehe
- author of the atlas six aka olivie blake takes on ya contemporary romance
- banger quotes like: “it’s probably really stupid how much it unravels me to look at her right then, but i’ve never seen eyes that make me think about the mysteries of the universe the way hers do.”
- or this one: “because i think about her all the time. because she surprises me, because she makes me laugh, and because this, whatever it is with her, is the only thing i ever do that’s easy”
- he becomes a swiftie for her???? pls. ( “they definitely don’t mean the version whose spotify is currently paused on taylor swift’s entire discography so he can learn all the words that make her smile” )

my mechanical romance is about bel, who reveals a talent for engineering and is basically forced to join the robotics team. and who is the captain of the team other than teo, someone she immediately butts heads with. cue academic rivals to lovers arc and cool robot fights.

in all seriousness, as a high school senior going through the college application process & a woman of color looking to pursue engineering, i saw myself so much in bel. i'm grateful to always have had a strong support system to be able to not doubt myself when doing engineering, but i still deeply relate to bel and her struggles. not only feeling confusion about your future, but being the only girl in the room. feeling invisible sometimes.

this book tackles the misogyny that comes with being a woman in stem. the direct barriers & negative comments from others, but also the more subtle things. the subconscious doubting of your abilities. the idea that if you speak up, you’re being difficult and not a team player, but if you stay quiet, you get criticized for not saying anything and being passive. i am so thankful that this book tackles these issues.

also bel's just such a strong main character. i loved her POV -- it had so much personality, it was funny, it was insightful, it was everything i ever needed. love her.

the romance in this book is SLFJDLSJ my favorite ever. please. i must admit, teo at the beginning was in *dire* need of some humbling -- some character development, you know? and that's what happened. he's a changed man, tbh and that made his relationship with bel SO MUCH BETTER. they balance each other out. they make each other better. they push each other, they banter, they fit together so well. they're just so cute please i can't handle it.

okay also the robots were so cool fasldjfasd i want to do electrical engineering y'all can you understand why i am so fascinated

the side characters in this book are amazing. lora and jamie are my favorite support system, dash never fails to make me laugh, and i am SO glad neelam was able to share her full perspective at the end.

overall, a stunner. a must-read. a must-reread.

thank you to netgalley and holiday house for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

cw: misogyny, infidelity (mentioned)

5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
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Thank you to the publishers and Net Galley for giving me a copy of this book! This is my honest review, all views are my own.
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Combining robots with academic-rivals-to-lovers romance—could it be any more perfect? My Mechanical Romance is an adorable YA romance sure to leave you demanding more. Bel, after ignoring her college apps and leaving her future undecided, is strong-armed into joining the robotics team. Teo, after upholding his status as the school’s golden child, reluctantly lets Bel on the team. The two have an undeniable chemistry, even after a rocky start. Will the two of them be able to help each other survive senior year and win Nationals?
I. Loved. This. Book!!! The writing was the perfect balance of cheesy and sweet, with a smattering of references that don’t overwhelm the characters and a smart but realistically teenage humor. The book takes place over the course of a school year, and I think it’s done pretty well. My only argument would be for more fluff/pining/angst in the late fall to early spring section, but I’m a sucker for character development scenes. The plot itself went by relatively fast, and I particularly enjoyed the different checkpoints such as homecoming, winter break, and AP exams so I could orient myself with the time of year. The characters were well balanced, which I know is a common gripe with me. I so do love the side characters! The book did them very well, and I only lost maybe one or two of the group by the end of it (and considering the size of the group, that’s not bad at all!). The characters clearly showed their support for the main couple without overshadowing them too much. The side characters were well-rounded without utterly ruining the focus from Bel and Teo. As for the couple themselves: oh my goodness I love them so much! Bel is quirky-cute and creative, and Teo is focused and hardworking. They complement one another very well, and they challenge each other to do better and think differently. I was squealing and cheering for them the whole way through! If I were to nitpick anything, it would be the insertions of… I don’t know, political stuff? The references to MAGA and heteronormativity. I didn’t mind them, but it took me out of the story a bit. It just felt awkwardly inserted is all.
My Mechanical Romance is a super sweet robotics romance with the energy of a Disney Channel Original Movie, and I loved it so much! I honestly have little to no complaints, I really fell in love with the characters and the story. 5 stars.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and the NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy of “My Mechanical Romance.” I appreciated the diversity of the characters and the focus on mechanical engineering and robotics, particularly for the female high school characters. However, not every book is for every reader and this one was not for me. The pacing was too slow for me - I felt like I was building the robots myself, in real time. And it read really young, even for a YA novel.

Bel doesn’t know what she wants to do in life, and seeing as she’s a senior with college applications coming up, she really needs to find something, and fast. Problem is, she’s practically allergic to thinking about the future. Teo, on the other hand, has his college goals down pat. With four years of competitive robotics, being soccer captain, and maintaining a ridiculously high GPA under his belt, he’s confident in his plan to go to MIT. Their paths collide when Bel is forced to try out for the robotics team and Teo is intrigued by her creative and intricate bot design. My Mechanical Romance deals with what it’s like to be a woman in a male-dominated space, specifically physics and engineering, while also presenting a cute, well-developed enemies-to-lovers romance.

This book is super cute!! Bel is such a cute character, and I really felt for her as someone who didn’t know what they wanted to do with their life until recently. Teo was also relatable since even though I didn’t know what I wanted to do, I always pushed myself towards excellence just like him. The dynamics that Bel and Teo have with their respective parents were also (unfortunately) relatable, and this book had an understanding of parent-child relationships that I’ve only seen in Darius the Great, one of my all-time favorite books. No tears were shed while reading this book, but man was I close.

Teo and Bel also both grew a lot over the course of the book, and while I was initially surprised by the 1st person POV narration flipping between the two of them, I grew to love it. Their inner monologues were completely different, and really gave me a feel for who they were as people and what motivated them. The side characters were also great; I *love* Dash and Teo’s friendships, as well as Bel’s various relationships with Lora, Jamie, and her brothers. I really liked this book and highly recommend it if you want a cute romance with a STEM backdrop!

4.25 This was such a cute and fast, easy read. I’m honestly so surprised I liked this book as much as I did. I just couldn’t put this book down.

The characters and plot felt well developed and realistic. The struggles the seniors went through were very relatable to me as someone who recently graduated.

In the synopsis and in the book, they are said to be enemies to lovers, but they’re not enemies at any point in the story. And I wouldn’t say they were academic rivals either.

I do think the romance could have been a bit better. I did really enjoy the romance but I just felt something was missing.

I loved that this was about women in STEM and about the challenges they go through, like the sexism in STEM. At one point in the story it did kind of feel like it was being shoved down our throats, but all the other times it didn’t feel like that.

I highly recommend it if you’re looking for a fun and cute YA romance book with dual POV!

Thank you to NetGalley and Holiday House for providing me with an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

First of all, huge thanks to NetGalley and Holiday House for providing me with an advanced reader's copy in exchange of a honest review. All thoughts are on my own.

I LOVED THIS BOOK. It's amazing and cute and sweet and fluffy and everything I love to read in a romcom.

But I do have to say that this is NOT an academic rivals to lovers, they were never rivals, more like strangers to colleagues to lovers. It doesn't mean it's less cute.

I loved Bel and Teo, I loved how complex they are as characters, I could particularly connect with Isabel due to all her doubts about college (which I had), her complicated feelings towards her father (which I have) and how she felt towards Teo.

This book also has many messages towards women in STEM and feminism and I think it's a great read for girls that want to be scientists or engineers and to read a cute love story.

Can't wait for the book to come out (which is conveniently on my birthday) and buy it! It's a 10/10.

This was so cute and easy to read. Enemy to lovers is something I can't say no to so when I saw this book I knew I needed to read it. And oh God, it didn't disappointed me at all.

I quickly realized that this book was amazingly written. I never expected to start reading this book and become hooked in the first few chapters.
Firstly, I loved seeing Bel go through her senior year of high school unknowing of what she wanted. It felt so real and I could really feel her astonishment when she realized what she wanted to do in college. The robotics element was there, but it wasn’t overpowering to the plot. It was really the perfect balance.
I also really enjoyed the relationships that grew in the book. The most obvious being between between Teo and Bel. I really loved how the relationship grew, it wasn’t too fast but it also wasn’t too slow. The friendship bonds between Bel and the robotics team were also written amazingly.

Thank you to NetGalley and Holiday House for providing me with an eARC copy of this novel.

Cute read! Loved the connection with girls in engineering, and the nerdy being hot was something not seen very often in YA. Hot boys can like robotics and soccer-love that. Girls can be into science and engineering fields, too. Heck yes! Nice female teacher mentor in here as well. Full review on Goodreads

rating- 4.5/5
Hands down the best ARC i've received till date, no kidding.

Like the author just SERVED woc in STEM and academic rivals to lovers with no warning whatsoever. Did I mention it's also dual pov???? It's definitely making it to my 'Books i will pay you to read' shelf (The title isn't literal, i'm broke.)

(review may contain spoilers after this point)
THOUGHTS
I absolutely loved this book. The writing style felt very casual that helped the narrative of the book. The plot and the characters were extremely well developed and felt three dimensional and realistic throughout. The friendship dynamics were also really well done. Every single character felt complex, realistic and had their own form of development. Bel had actual problems and thoughts that weren't limited to the male protagonist. Her parents going through a divorce, not knowing what she wanted to do with her life, feeling alone., etc. Teo despite being more privileged than Bel, also had his own set of problems. The evolution of their relationship also felt very natural and was so much fun to read. The side characters felt fleshed out despite little description. Can we please talk about Neelam. Absolutely loved her. Her whole dynamic with Bel seemed so natural, even during the animosity. (no typical mean girl bull-crap. because let's be real, we don't have those in real life after middle school.)
Coming back to Bel and Teo's relationship. my heart. my absolute fucking heart. Teo's pov about Bel>>>. Honestly this is the standard. They have such an easy going, normal relationship which again, I LOVE SO MUCH. Give me all the normalcy in romantic relationships and i will absolutely devour it.

The pacing of the book was also really well done. Despite it being generally on the slower side, I was completely invested and didn't want the pace to be faster, at any point.
Last but not the least, the ending was perfect. The author already had me in a chokehold by this point, but the epilogue just made everything better.

The only problem I think people might find with it is the technical jargon. The plot does have a lot of physics terms. I love learning new things and eat that shit up. But i could see how a lot of people might not like this. However I do want to say that Bel doesn't use a lot of terms until much later. So for most part of the book, things are also explained in simplistic terms.
Another problem I had was, easing myself into the author's writing style. I found that Alexene Farol Follmuth / Olivie Blake writes in continuous sentences? Like she uses longer sentences than most authors do. My brain took a chapter or two to get used to this, but I devoured the book once I did.

Finally, I think the reason I enjoyed this book the most, was because I found comfort in the problems faced by Bel being a woc in STEM. I'm a south asian girl, in sciences and despite being from a country where everybody is essentially brown, there is a large amount of discrimination based on colour here and needless to say, TONS of sexism. I've never felt more understood tbh. My kindle is FILLED with notes because I would aggressively highlight everything i related to.
I loved that most instances of sexism in the books aren't blaringly obvious. The intricate way these instances are written in the book also stood out to me, for eg: something as simple as the conversations with Mac to extreme cases like Richardson (yes people like these exist). It felt extremely realistic and are things that have happened to every other woman at some point in life.

My Mechanical Romance has easily made it to my favourites and I'm definitely getting a physical copy as soon as it comes out. Please. go. read. this. book. as SOON as it comes out. You're definitely missing out if you don't.

i love reading books about women in STEM and this was one of the reason I loved this book. we all know that it's not easy for a woman when she decides to pursue STEM as a career and same thing happens with our main female character of the book , BEL . She is confused about her career and with her parent's divorce and moving to a new school it's tough experience for her. The author described struggle so splendidly that I can relate with Bel. I love Bel's character so much. She is smart , reliable and funny. and what can I say about Bel and Teo's relationship , It was so cute!
so if you're looking for YA romance with cute love story , woman in STEM and brilliant family dynamic , I'd surely recommend this book.
Thank you Netgalley , publisher and Author for the ARC.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

My Mechanical Romance follows in the perspective Bel and Teo. First of all, I loved the switch between the two because I was able to see how different they are from each other, yet how perfect they are for each other. All the characters in this book were very well written, but the two main character definitely made an impression. They each have their own unique personality and I love to see the dynamics of a character contribute to the story telling as a whole.

When I first starting reading this book, I will admit I was a little skeptical of the plot. I am not much of a science person and robotics has never piqued my interest, however I was quickly proven wrong. I was very entertained by everything in this book, even though I didn’t see myself reading anything that had to do with science. The book did get slow paced at times, but it was still entertaining enough that I was not exactly bored.

The romance was a bonus to the whole robotics part (I mean it’s basically academic rivals to lovers!!) I was smiling so much reading about Bel and Teo, I mean the tension was real!! They are so cute and perfect for each other and I loved the way everything about the romance was written. It wasn’t too drama infested, but it wasn’t written as a perfect, “everything goes right” sorta way. I will admit it was a bit cheesy at times, but it was bearable.

Finally, I think the reason I enjoyed this book the most was because I found a comfort in the issues the characters faced in this book. I was able to relate to some of it. Bel struggled with addressing what she wanted for her future. She deals with a lot of doubt about where she wants to go for college and how she feels pressured about every decision people are wanting her to make. Not only does this book address the stress of deciding your future, but it touches on topics like struggling with parents separating, feeling neglected by a parent and the struggles of being told you can’t do something because of your gender. I think those who are in high school can relate plenty to the stress both Bel and Teo face and it could ultimately be comforting to know that others struggle with the same things.

I am really glad I was granted the ARC of this book and i cannot wait to my hands on a physical copy of it!! Thank you again NetGalley and Holiday House!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
5/5
It was a bit slow for my taste but honestly, I was okay with it. This had one of my favorite troupes, academic rivals to lovers. Also loved the women in STEM representation, I feel like a lot of books these days are showing women in more male-dominated industries, and I love it. I also really related to her struggle to work in a team. Overall I loved this book, it was cute, fun, and uplifting.

Thank you NetGalley and Holiday House for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book was such a fun and fast-paced read. I could not put it down. The characters were so enjoyable and relatable. I loved the academic rivals to lovers romance and how it was incorporated into a STEM environment. Bel and Teo’s growth and development throughout the book was so well done. I highly recommend if you’re looking for a cute YA romance!

This book was adorable! Had a blast reading this definitely going to pick up a copy to have a beach read this summer!! Plus the titles play on one of my favorite bands!!!