Do we see the pattern of past Stacee needing to be pushed?

I loved Elsie and Jack. She's sweet and loving. He's charming and standoffish. Together they have some animosity, loads of button pushing, and the slowest burn of chemistry that was so delicious. I also really really loved Cece and could have done with more of her.

Plot wise, it was good. I really enjoyed reading Elsie figure herself out. And Jack...he was something else. I was absolutely here for his always wanting to talk, for honesty, and how he was so so so smitten with her. I will say that I wanted loads more from the epilogue, but that's because I'm greedy.

Overall, this was delightful and I am really excited to see what Ali is going to do next.

**Huge thanks to the publisher for providing the arc free of charge**

Such a fun book! Ali Hazelwood never fails to up the ante in her books and delivers a romance even bette than the last.

As with all other books in this series, I absolutely loved this one. I really liked seeing characters in a slightly different corner of this world.

"I want you to marry me tomorrow so you can go on my health insurance" is not a sentence I ever thought I would find attractive. But here we are.

Also, HELP, THE AUTHOR'S NOTE. 😂😂😭😭😭

I really liked this book!

Love, Theoretically has been on my backlog of books to review for months. I know, shame. on. me. Particularly, because I really enjoyed this one by Ali Hazelwood. Love on the Brain was a big miss for me and the elements of Elsie and Jack's complex relationship made for quite the page-turner. Although, really, it meant I was alternating my AirPods since I listened to the audiobook courtesy of @PRHAudio and finished this in a day!

What I admire about Ali Hazelwood is that she brings to the forefront experiences of women in STEM. She also addresses the need to quit assigning stereotypes to women and really tackles the ugly side of academia. In particular, in this novel, I was drawn in by the fact that Elsie's job to make ends meet was posing as a fake girlfriend. People go broke putting themselves through school in the US. College Debt is real. Needing to take on jobs to keep going is real. I found that Elsie's use of her people skills was particularly clever and once again contributed to Hazelwood's knack for providing readers with a different view on "reputable jobs".

I am sad this book took me so long to review, because I really really enjoyed it. I actually felt like it didn't get the attention it deserved and I am very excited to try Hazelwood's debut YA novel, Check & Mate !

Unfortunately I feel like this is the same book just slightly changed, several times over. Some people love that but I think I'm a little burnt out on the same STEM romance formula.

Ali Hazwood's books are like a really rich chocolate cake-- you know what you're going to get and it's delicious when you're in the right mood for it, but you wouldn't want to have it every day. Yes the enemies to lovers, oblivious heroine who doesn't realize the gruff, giant of a man is in love with her is all the same, but dang if I don't still enjoy it every time. And the theoretical vs experimental physicist drama was quite interesting.

Thank you so much to Berkley Romance for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I am a big fan of The Love Hypothesis, but I was slightly disappointed in Love on the Brain. Love, Theoretically captures the charm and romance that was missing from Hazelwood's last release. Hazelwood included a cast of characters whose interpersonal relationships were both heartwarming and meaningful. I really enjoyed Elsie's friendship with Greg and her protectiveness of him.

While Ali Hazelwood does niche, she not trying to trick people into reading something they aren't expecting. It's abundantly clear this is another steminist novel, and the criticism she receives for continually writing them doesn't make sense. Overall, this book was a fun and cheesy romcom, and I cannot wait for what Ali Hazelwood has next.

I always have an absolute blast with Ali Hazelwood's books. The chemistry between the main characters was apparent from the very beginning and the prose flowed smoothly and beautifully, pulling me along for the ride.

Ali Hazelwood is an auto-buy author for me by now. I love her stories! They are sweet and comforting with just enough of snark and sass that make the stories fantastic. I Love, Theoretically is no different then the rest of her books.

Elsie is a chameleon. She can change who she is to fit the mood that and the person on a dime. When meeting Jack you realize there is a chemistry there that they both fight but you root for them. The opening chapter of this book, showing a very different start than what Ali usually does. While there are similarities that happen, but the sexual tension starts from the start. The sexism that females still go through in the science community brings this story to life. Elsie who fights back for the first time with her mentor who is a sexist pig and stifles her growth in the field that could have started her life is possibly my favorite thing that happens in this story.

Elsie's and Jack's story is timeless and amazing. I love how Hazelwood's writing is amazing but different across each story that she writes.

Love, Theoretically undoubtedy lives up to expectations. I found Elsie and Jack's characters delightful, entertaining and adorable. Plus, that ending was super swoon-worthy too!

Love, Theoretically might be my favorite of Ali Hazelwood's novels. They're all cute, STEM romances, but this one felt the most dynamic and I enjoyed the characters more than others. Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes, and the main character does that as a side job that slowly melts into her regular life. It was enjoyable.

Review: LOVE, THEORETICALLY by Ali Hazelwood https://bit.ly/3LHy7un
Publication Date: 6/13/2023
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Reviewed by: Reading in Pajamas/ Donna
Rated 3.5 Stars

If you like quick banter and fast, rambling inner thoughts – then this book is for you. Elsie is a genius yet has such an inferiority complex that it makes her quite the people pleaser. This in turn does her no favors in life. I loved her quick wit and laughed at some of her inner thoughts. However, her need to please seemed a bit extreme and not consistent with her level of intelligence. Her blindness to other’s treatment frustrated me, especially her mentor. Jack is also a physicist that at first came across as controlled and brooding. It didn’t take long to see he was a rather caring person and up to the task of pulling Elsie out of her self-imposed misery. The storyline was filled with a bit too much science and academia for me, but that is a personal opinion. I just seemed to get lost in it all and found myself skimming a few places that dragged. It is a verbally fast paced book, (If that makes sense), that had me smiling quite a few times.

*Review copy provided by Penguin in exchange for an honest review.

Kindle https://amzn.to/3ZJx7vp

This is Hazelwood’s best work. I absolutely adored this. It was the perfect length, the characters were well rounded and compelling, and the interactions had stakes but were not over the top.

Ali Hazelwood's books are just so much fun. I'm not a reader of romance just for the sake of romance. Usually I like it tucked in with some paranormal shenanigans or as a side to a fantasy adventure, but Hazelwood's character's are so cute and enjoyable that watching them fall in love (and being a voyeur to their lives) is enough.

Enter Elsie, struggling physicist working as an adjunct professor as several colleges, desperate for the time she can land a tenure track positions with *gasp* health insurance so she can provide herself with insulin for her diabetes. In the meantime she supplements her income by taking gigs on Faux, a fake girlfriend/dating service. (Dating only, no sex thank you!)
She is offered the opportunity to apply at M.I.T. for the position of her dreams, only to find that her latest Faux companion's brother is not only in the department, but her arch nemesis!
Misunderstanding abound... but thankfully do not drag all the way through the book.
And there is a wonderful relationship between Elsie and her roommate, despite the presence of a slightly possessive and possibly vindictive hedgehog.
Fun all around!

“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Or makes you resent your pathological inability to set boundaries, one of the two.”

This book was so great!! I loved listening to the audiobook, the narrator was fantastic. I thought Elsie was a well-written main character, she had her flaws and was working to overcome them throughout the course of the book. And her chemistry with Jack was super great. Elsie is also just such a funny main character, this book had me laughing out loud so many times!!

I do think it was longer than it needed to be - the middle dragged on for me quite a bit, but I still enjoyed it overall! I especially loved that the sciencey stuff was still understandable even for a non-sciencey person like myself.

4.25 rounded up!

🌈 Queer rep: FF lesbian/queer side characters/couple

This is my new favorite by Ali Hazelwood! The narrator did a great job in the audiobook with the characters and tone of the book. I loved the romance, the STEM storyline (including a dive into how women are often treated in STEM fields) and the main character’s own journey of growth, trust and connection. And it made me smile.

Thanks to the publisher for a copy. All opinions are myown.

Ali Hazelwood hasn't disappointed me yet! The romantic hijinks in Love, Theoretically were a balm to my soul and gave just a bit of insight into the riveting world of tenure track academia. I could not put this book down, and it has gone into my regular rotation of 'read this to get joy' novels. I also really appreciated the nod to the characters of The Love Hypothesis.

Ali Hazelwood just gets better and better with each book! LOVE, THEORETICALLY might be my favorite one of hers so far...it was delightfully nerdy and incredibly steamy. Such a fun, fast-paced read!

ALI HAZELWOOD DOES IT AGAIN!! Love, Theoretically just became my new favorite AH book (+ just a new favorite book in general) 🤩

I am the BIGGEST fan of the rivals to lovers trope, so I went into this already expecting to love it, but this book exceeded my expectations and more! I could not put this book down. Ali Hazelwood has this classic formula of hers — hot, protective men who pine for the lovable but oblivious heroine to the ends of the earth — that I will just eat up EVERY time. I literally don’t even care how many times she does it because it’s just that good 😌

Jack & Elsie are just THAT hot, genius couple that you can’t help but adore. Elsie’s insecurities were painful and relatable. People said she was for the “mirrorball” girlies, and they were not lying 😅 Jack is the man of my dreams! He was so whipped for Elsie, and his pining was just everything. Jack being so incredibly patient with Elsie, just wanting to take care of her, and loving her for all that she was really had me emotional 😭 I absolutely loved them together and will be thinking about them for a long time 🫶

I also appreciated how Jack & Elsie both learned from their mistakes and grew through them together. They each have their own issues that need to be resolved, but they acknowledged them and communicated, which I loved 💛 

If you liked any or all of AH’s books and still haven’t picked this up yet, PLEASE DO SO!! Jack & Elsie are so fun and lovely, and their banter and chemistry are just amazing 🤭 I will read anything and everything this woman writes, I can’t wait for what’s next 🧡

Thank you so much to Berkley Romance and NetGalley for an e-ARC of this book! 💌