I'm a fan of Ali Hazelwood, I've enjoyed everything she's written, from published work to AO3. So I obviously went in knowing I would most likely enjoy 'Love, Theoretically'.

I was so wrong. I loved it! This is my favorite book Hazelwood has written ever as well as one of my favorites of the year and will be added to my all time favorites. The formula is similar to most of her previous work, girl meets boy, girl dislikes boy, after various shenanigans and misunderstandings girl falls in love with boy. It's one of my favorite tried and true formulas and this author does it so well.

However! This one is just different. Our main couple, Jack and Elsie, shine individually and together. Our side characters are fantastic, especially Cece and Greg. The complicated family dynamics and academic hierarchies were just the right amount of realistic and fictionally dramatic. The inevitable 3rd act miscommunication and breakup actually made a lot of sense for the situation and characters but wasn't nearly as dramatic as it could have been. Everything just fell seamlessly together and worked. Also the ace rep and exploration was layered and well thought out. A truly excellent romance!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review

Love Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood is my new favorite Ali Hazelwood book & that is after I gave The Love Hypothesis 5 stars…that should show you how much I love this book! Love Theoretically has enemies to lovers, forced proximity, workplace romance, laugh out loud humor & banter galore all set in the impressive speciality of physics. There’s even a hedgehog & a delightfully blunt grandmother to win you over.

Ali Hazelwood does it again with her incredible writing, face-fanning spice & beautiful journeys all set in the world of STEM with wickedly intelligent & badass heroines. This book was even cooler because the main character, Elsie Hannaway, has a chronic health condition! Chronic illness representation means more to me than words can actively convey. I thought the author did a lovely job of showcasing a chronic health issue as well as the extreme stresses & struggles of finances, the healthcare system & insurance that come with it.

The perfectly balanced confidence of the hero is beyond attractive. The swoon worthy confessing speech is top tier. The banter between these two reminds me of getting lost in a fantastic tennis match. I feel like I could write a thesis on this.

The visibility for women in STEM as well as the passion & champion for the field & the incredible women breaking barriers is both appreciated, admired & awe-Inspiring. The fact that it’s taken even further & interwoven into romance stories is just so incredibly badass.

This story has me flipping pages late into the night because I did not want to let this story go. This is a book I will happily reread. The range of emotions this story brought out of me was the best kind of rollercoaster ride that left me with a smile on my face.

I also was fortunate enough to receive an audiobook arc of this book & the narrator did a wonderful job of brining this story to life. I listened at 2x speed & it was amazing!

For romance fans, my fellow nerds & any enemies to lovers enthusiasts, this is the perfect recommendation for you!

Massive thanks to NetGalley, Berkley Publishing, Penguin Random House & Libro.FM for the free arcs, which I voluntarily read & reviewed.

I will post to social media, Amazon & StoryGraoh this week after release & add links once I do!

We picked up this book and found the following: the pairing of a giant dude (Jack) and petite lady (Elsie) who fall in love in an academic setting. He's more established and has some say in the course of her career - which really sucks, because she's certain he hates her. ⁠
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So yeah, this book is, uhhh, kinda similar to her two previous romcoms. But - BUT - we were really into this one?? It hit us right in the feels: we both laughed, swooned, and even welled up (that's right, soulless Laine had tears in her eyes) throughout the course of the book. There's so much to love, especially in Jack's character: he's open and honest, does a great job drawing professional and personal boundaries, and really listens to Elsie. ⁠
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The final conflict felt super appropriate with the correct stakes - and the grand gesture was both specific to Elsie and general to Jack's character. So yeah, we absolutely, truly, sincerely loved this one. That said, we are looking forward to what Hazelwood comes up with next (our fingers are crossed for friends to lovers who are peers in their field pleeeeeeease!!!!!).⁠
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Laine's 43-Word Summary: Meeting your fake-boyfriend's bro at a job interview is super awkward, especially when said fake boyfriend can't help you explain. Then there's the added palpable lust. After the external shit is resolved, they do a great job of sexily communicating and processing together. ⁠
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Meg's 43-Word Summary: Interviews in academia are always tough, and that’s without counting on the following: a) your mentor’s professional nemesis is on the committee; b) you’ve already met him in a weird situation and thought he was a PE teacher; c) he’s way too hot.⁠

This objective review is based on a complimentary copy of the novel.

I felt really underwhelmed with Love, Theoretically.

I'm just going to be honest I could NOT get into this one. I kept putting it down and picking it back up. Ugh I know! I was bogged down with the physics talk....eeeeek.

I Know that Hazelwood said that she would focus more on STEM and academia in this one and feel that this was part of my struggle to get into this book at all.

I wanted more focused on the romance and less on the academia. I'm not sure her books are for me anymore.

But, take my review with a grain of salt and you may love it!!

3/5 stars

Thank you to Berkley and netgalley for my arc in exchange for an honest review.

Pub date: 6/13/23
Published to GR: 6/11/23

I just finished Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood and here are my musings!

Imagine being a theoretical physicist and having to be an adjunct professor during the day but because that doesn’t cover the bills, being a paid for fake girlfriend from a dating app. She has a unique set of skills where she can read people and instinctively know how to please her clients and those they are hiring her to fool.

Things are chugging along just fine until the brother of her latest client seems to see right through her. Trying to ignore the gnawing feeling in her guts, she is offered to interview for the job of a lifetime…. Until she finds out one of the men interviewing her is none other than Jack Smith, the man who ruined her mentor's career…. And the older brother of her client. He wants his choice to be hired and there is no way he will change his mind.

The more she fights for the job, the more she starts to truly see Jack and he seems to be the one person who actually sees her too and that scares her more than anything.

I am already an Ali Hazelwood fangirl!! Total fangirl so my expectations were super sonic high! I couldn’t put it down. I loved the whole premise being based on Elsie trying to win a job against another candidate against a man who is hellbent on stopping her. I have to admit, Jack was really well written and I loved watching it all unfold! Their banter was epic and had me giggling. Hazelwood has this ability to send you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions and leave you begging for more. She has a way of bringing a delicate balance of belly laughs, intellectual educational tidbits, witty conversation, a little heartbreak and some heartwarming moments that will give you a complete experience.

The character building was top notch and really sets this book apart from other rom coms. If you don’t fall in love with Jack… what am I saying… of course you will. The best book boyfriends always come with PhDs.

5 stars… all the stars… take my stars..

Thank you @berkleypub and @netgalley for my gifted copy

Elsie is the most relatable character ever. As women we all put on “fake” personas to facilitate interactions within our daily lives. Remember seventh grade and refusing to answer math questions in public? Jack is everything I look for in a hero, mostly because all he wants to do is love the heroine. This is a must read.
4.5 stars

Love, Theoretically has Ali Hazelwood at the top of her STEM romance game.

This is my favourite Ali Hazelwood to date: Love Thoerteically is funny, smart, sexy and delves into the fascinating world of academic jobs, politics and the pettiness that some of the world's smartest thinkers can sink down to. Now, full disclosure, I work at a university with theoretical and experimental theorists, so I think I loved the STEM aspects of the book because it mirrored some of my daily life. I’ve seen people online saying “is this any different from Ali’s other books?” The answer is yes - ok so Ali writes STEM romances, so there are obviously similarities. And she definitely has a big man fetish (seriously all of her leading men are these hulking men who could probably pick me up with one hand. It’s frankly hot). But this book delivers - it dives deep into our main characters life and work and explores the fascinating (to me anyways) politics behind academia; all the while delivering some seriously scorching sexy times. This needs to be on your summer reading list

Jack and Elsie are so funny and real. Elsie is a poor adjunct professor who is trying to make ends meet. There is a fascinating fake-girlfriend story line at the beginning of the relationship that pulls Elsie and Jack together (and involves Jack’s delightful brother, Greg). It isn’t the main focus of the whole book and I enjoyed it as it structured their relationship. What I realy liked was how the book explored Elsie’s pathological need to please other people - to the point that she had lost her complete identity and didn’t actually know herself. Enter Jack: he’s kind of an anti-hero at the beginning of the story but holy crow does he worship the ground Elsie walks on. He falls first and watching him work to show Elise how much she deserves in life and how far he’s willing to go to show her how amazing she actually is warmed the cockles of my heart. Watching the two of them explore their own identities, complicated histories and their own desires and needs (both in bed and out of it) makes for a really satisfying romantic arc in the novel. And good god, Jack could teach men a thing or two about pleasure…ladies get your men to read this book!

There is a delightful amount of backstabbing academic politics and university research discussions. However it isn’t boring: Love, Theoretically has a strong supporting cast of characters who really round out Elise and Jack’s story. There’s also a slew of very funny physics jokes that I plan on using in my day job.

Love, Theoretically is funny and smart STEM romance that is a summer must read.

Thank you to Penguin for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the latest STEM romance from Ali Hazelwood that centers around Elsie and Jack, Both are Physicists, she is theoretical and he is experimental. Elsie is struggling financially and cant pay her bills with her meager adjunct professor salary and hires herself out as a fake girlfriend. She is a people pleaser and finds that fake dating is well within her skill set. Her favorite client happens to have a hot, brooding older brother. Both of Elsie’s worlds collide when she finds herself face to face with the brother, Jack, who happens to be on the hiring committee for her dream job at MIT. Both have reasons to not to trust the other but find themselves attracted to each other anyway.

This was another hit from Hazelwood. This has a lot more science references that were over my head but I enjoyed it anyway. As with her previous novels the heroine is extremely smart but emotionally not so much. The love interest is huge and the heroine tiny. I enjoy the science setting but would love to see her mix up the story a little bit more. Try a different formula. Overall it was a fun read and I will continue reading Hazelwood’s books.

3.5 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest reveiw.

This book was very sweet! Our main character Elsie is very quirky and it took me a little time to vibe with her personality, but I think she will be relatable for many readers. It was nice to watch her find her voice and her inner strength throughout the book. The romance is definitely a slow burn but it was enjoyable to watch the pining that you knew was happening from one end of this romance! There were many moments in this book that I laughed out loud and highlighted because they were gold. While this isn’t my favorite Ali Hazelwood I’ve read, I still recommend it to fans and new readers of hers! 3.5 stars!

I cannot tell you how much I loved Love, Theoretically! I am going to try, but it will be a lot of "Gah" and "Swoon".

Elsie is a phenomenal heroine that I think will really click with a lot of readers. If you are a people pleaser, you will understand Elsie like she is your soul sister. She is so passionate about theoretical physics, but it isn't paying the bills. So, she uses her ability to read people to be a fake girlfriend for hire. She can make just about anyone love her! Jack is the brother of one of her fake boyfriends and she cannot figure him out. At first, neither could I, but he sees through Elsie's "con" and calls her out. Turns out, he is the man she has hated since middle school (by name only).

I adored Jack and Elsie together because Jack was so determined to get her to be honest. He really wanted to find out about HER-not what she thinks other people want from her. He manages to crack her shell and honestly, it had me in tears! I loved how he loved her. There are great supporting characters as well in George, Cece, and Greg. It is also humorous, in both actually funny ways and groanworthy puns! I loved that everyone in the story is intelligent and hardworking. Elsie and Jack are both brilliant and it is super sexy!

One of the signs that I know I'm reading a fantastic book? I keep giggling out loud, and reading parts to my husband. This book was FULL of them! Ali never fails to make me laugh, blush and kick my feet. I adored Elsie and found her extreme people pleasing to be so relatable. And when Jack occasionally let his "lizard brain" take over- ah I just loved them! There's spice, but it's high quality in my humble opinion, doesn't come too soon and didn't feel like too much, pretty much perfect to me. Honestly was a perfect read for a rom com mood and I highly recommend!

Oh fun! This has all the tropes AND all the smiles. Elsie and Jack are rivals and enemies (of a sort) until they aren't. What distinguishes it from the pack is the fact that it's set not only in academia but features physicists. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Good characters, snappy dialogue, and a zippy plot make this a fine read.

I adored this. I freaking adored this. I adored this one so much, I want to scream it out into the world.

Yes, it's like the other books, but it was also different. Incredibly different. Yes, it was set in the world of STEM, it had a quirky main character, it had a MMC that the FMC thought hated her. Similarities? Yes. But it felt different.

So different. I really don't know how else to explain it. But damn, I really enjoyed this one. I devoured it within hours. Something about the way that Elsie and Jack connected was... beautiful and well... Their relationship was written in the stars.

Also, I think I have a new kink because the way that Jack wanted to take care of Elsie? Hot. I loved how caring he was and how he truly saw her. Also, play "Mirrorball" by Taylor Swift because that is Elsie's freaking theme song (same, girl, same.)

Anyways, Ali, I adore you, and I really loved this book. You have not disappointed at all with all of your books. Thank you for bringing light to STEM women.

This actually ended up being very pleasant and even a bit swoony. But it was a lot at the beginning.

I keep trying these books from Ali Hazelwood, waiting for the one that clicks into place for me. This one might not have been a home run score, but it did grow on me and I ended up caring about this characters quite a bit.

I think the main stumbling block for me is what makes it work for others: the author really wants you to feel what it can feel like in Academia. In this one, it's about interviews and uncertainty and trying to please everyone. I believe she succeeds, but for me it made the first 60% of this story a huge slog. I just didn't care about all the intricacies and it had me skimming quite a bit.

Like.. did i NEED all these emails from students? No.

But Jack is where this one really shined for me. I felt more personality from him than from the 2 previous heroes. He sees through a lot of Elsie's BS really quickly and even when he is worried she is lying to his brother he is still so into her. He is also a caregiver and so good at withstanding her coldness to him.

I am also glad that the conflict was very minimal and felt well laid out. Because it took us SOOOO long to get things moving, if we were set back too far I might have checked out.

Overall I enjoyed myself and I even swooned for Jack a few times. This one was the steamiest thus far, but we still have a good slow building smolder.

4 stars
2.5 on the spice scale

Thank you to NetGalley & Berkley for the ARC

Ali Hazelwood is a joy to read, and one of my favorite aspects of her writing style is the humor and witty banter between her characters. I lost count of how many times I literally laughed out loud while reading this book. Per Ali’s style, it’s STEM focused, so if you’re not into science-y types of plots then this might not be the book for you, but it doesn't bother me. I might not understand all the science talk, but it’s never a distraction from the story. Also, having a child with Type 1 diabetes, I truly loved that Ali created a female heroine with the disease because you rarely see that. The only thing that bothered me is the fact that the Type 1 Diabetes arc didn’t seem very well researched. Instead of using the opportunity to spread more information about T1D, there was a lot of MISinformation instead. While I understand that most readers don’t have to deal with the disease and will never even notice the inaccuracies, there are some of us who do have to deal with it on a daily basis. So, it helps when an author does the research to make it believable. Still, I’m grateful Ali brought some awareness to T1D. I wish more authors would do the same.

Ali Hazelwood. Never. Misses. While nothing can surpass the high that Levi and Bee gave me, Jack and Elsie came close. I am a huge sucker for an academic rivals to lovers story, and the banter between the main couple was electric from the beginning of the book. Elsie is both a theoretical physicist and a professional fake girlfriend, which made her an incredibly fun heroine. Jack, on the other hand, is an experimental physicist and just so happens to be a famous critic of Elsie’s field, which makes him the bane of her existence. The pair were so well-suited for each other, and I loved watching their relationship develop. The only thing that kept the story from being a full five stars was the amount of scientific terminology, which caused me to struggle to get into the book, but that is less of a mark against Hazelwood’s true strength as a romance writer than it is my own personal issue. Overall this was a fun and engrossing read, perfect for anyone loves a good rivals to lovers romantic comedy. (🌟:4.5/5)

What’s it about (in a nutshell):
Love Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood is a heartfelt, fun enemies-to-lovers romance that is quirky, nerdy, and full of physics fun. My hat is off to any author who can make physics sound fun, as Hazelwood does in this story.

My Reading Experience:
I found myself instantly immersed in the story. It begins with a scene where the main character, Elsie, is pressed against the brother of a man she has been fake dating for the last six months in a BATHROOM STALL. She ponders how exactly she found herself in this position. Everything about it made me wonder what led to her being in that position too. I don’t know what intrigued me more - being stuck in a bathroom stall with a man or the fact that she had been fake-dating the man’s brother. I couldn’t have been more intrigued.

I loved the romance, full of snarky dialogue, witty comebacks, and starts and stops. I don’t know if I ever fully bought into the two characters together, but it was a fleeting concern, as the story was just too good to care. And for those concerned about open and closed-door scenes, know there is a large section of door-wide-open scenes after the halfway point. I prefer closed-door, but the story without the steamy scenes was so good I didn’t feel like I missed out by fast-forwarding through the scenes.

The plotline about how Elsie struggled to find a spot in the academic world and all she had to do to make ends meet was so relatable. Professionally speaking, finding your place in the world is often challenging, so I can see many readers commiserating with Elsie as I did. I became so invested I cheered for her success and shed a tear for her dealing with one setback after another. And to see her passion for physics and her determination to stay in that world was beyond inspiring and admirable.

Also, I think the plotline regarding Elsie’s type 1 diabetes was very well handled. It was informative and sympathetic and made me aware of issues I didn’t know about. This storyline also made the overall story much more important and added a layer that took it beyond the typical romantic comedy.

Characters:
Elsie is the main character. She reminded me of a female Sheldon (Big Bang Theory) in that she knew she wanted to be a theoretical physicist from a very young age. I hadn’t heard of physics beyond the basic apple falling story at this age. She is quirky and holds a lot of guilt for how much work her type 1 diabetes was to her family as she grew up. All the responsibility she felt and how that made her a people pleaser to an extreme created so many emotions in me as the story unfolded.

Narration & Pacing:
Elsie tells her story in first-person narration; this technique is perfect. It keeps the pace quick and allows the reader to experience the world as Elsie is experiencing, taking the relatability factor to unusual heights.

Setting:
Love Theoretically is set in Massachusetts near the MIT campus and other colleges of note. I can’t imagine any better setting for a story based on the academic world.

Read if you are in the mood for:
A medium to a fast pace
A funny, lighthearted, emotional read
A character-driven story led by a relatable and flawed character
Strong character development
Enemies to lovers trope

Queen Ali does it again. Every day I pick up a book hoping that it will give me the same sort of rush and emotion that Love Hypothesis gave me. Love on the Brain didn't deliver half as much as Love, Theoretically did.
Am I a scientist? No.
Did I spend the entirety of undergrad avoiding physics and chemistry by taking forensic science and astronomy? yes
Did I know what Elsie was talking about half the time when it came to theoretical physics? Not a lick.
BUT, Ali Hazelwood has a wonderful talent of making STEM relatable (or at the very least, not intimidating). The unstable life of a post-grad student with no funds and slim job prospects; the uneven power dynamics between mentees and the mentors we think we owe our entire careers to; the instinct to morph yourself into someone that will be liked and acceptable; being the daughter your mother depends on to "deal' with difficult siblings.... I know all of that. I saw myself in Elsie. And the conversations between her and Jack about honesty and being around someone you don't have to be a personality contortionist... a true attack, really.
Jack is something else. I do not accept the light hair. But that's neither here nor there. He's sexy and brooding in a way that isn't standoffish or emo (not that thats a bad thing, love you Adam); but it was a refreshing twist to see how open and clear he was about his feelings.
The smut is also just getting better and better, I had to take a lap halfway through.
I will be handselling the hell out of this book until further notice. If you like fun dialogue, screaming at main characters, and appreciate Twilight for the masterpiece and cultural reset that it is, this ones for you.

3.5 stars

When I first read the synopsis of Love, Theoretically, I immediately thought it sounded similar to two of Hazelwood's previous books. In all honesty, if you've read her books before, then you will notice similar themes in Love, Theoretically. Ali Hazelwood found a template that works for her. I know exactly what I'm getting myself into when I pick up one of her books. There are no surprises, which can be a good thing if you're looking for something easy to read.

Love, Theoretically is a slow burn enemies to friends to lovers romance. Elsie is a theoretical physicist and adjunct professor. She also moonlights as a professional fake girlfriend to pay her bills. Her latest client's older brother Jack doesn't like her. She doesn't care about him...except Jack happens to sit on the hiring committee at MIT, where Elsie is interviewing for her dream job.

We all want to find a partner who sees through us and understands us completely, especially when we have difficulty expressing ourselves. Elsie finds that in Jack. He sees through her act from the beginning and he understands her completely. While that is nice and all, it's also a little too idealistic. Sometimes, Jack comes across as Elsie's therapist, instead of her boyfriend. His psychoanalysis of Elsie is a little too on the nose, and it really took me out of the story. Maybe Jack should have been a psychoanalytic therapist instead of a physicist lol.

My favourite thing about this book is Elsie's breakdown, which sounds a bit dark, but hear me out. Everything about Elsie's breakdown is so well-written, clearly showing how her reaction is a culmination of everything that she didn't allow herself to feel. And I love seeing her get angry and lose it for once. She is her most authentic self in this scene and it triggers a chain reaction that pushes her toward self-awareness and growth.

There's also a conflict regarding an article Jack had written that destroyed Elsie's mentor's career. And I think this is where the story lost me. I couldn't understand why it took Elsie so long to confront Jack about the article. They are both aware that she hates what he did. But that article is the elephant in the room and they don't address it until the very end. I don't get how she was able to see past the article to date Jack 🤔 In addition to this weirdness, the pacing in the second half is very strange. And lastly, while I enjoyed the slow burn, there simply wasn't enough pining in this book for me. I think it's probably because Elsie was too much in her head, so I didn't get to feel the strong pining-hero feels I usually get from Hazelwood's books.

Overall, this was a predictable Ali Hazelwood romance, but fun to read nonetheless.

This was my favorite of Ali Hazelwood's books. I enjoy a story with found family and witty banter and that's what this had. If you've read her other books, the plot will not be surprising but it doesn't matter. This is a story about relationships, and the characters and relationships were delightful and felt authentic.