Thank you NetGalley for this book! I loved this book. I have read all of Ali’s work and this was one of the top ones. She writes from such a good point of view being a scientist. I love the tension and growth of the characters. Such a smart book, but easy for people to understand and like.

I was pretty disappointed when I started "Love, Theoretically." I have loved Ali Hazelwood's books, and this almost seemed like the same book wearing a new wig. It's fun, but we've seen it before: she's petite and silly, he's big and serious; the plot is built on misunderstandings and negative assumptions.

But. Then it picks up! It's emotional and intense, dreamy and dramatic. And HOT. Seriously sexy.

There is also an excellent portrayal of self-improvement, especially in standing up for yourself. And the best part? An incredibly supportive partner. Like, dream level of being cared for.

It really won me over. I would love to see some fresh ideas from Hazelwood, but I'll be back regardless.

Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Book Review for Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

First Impressions: Been There
What’s Your Type? Career Rivals, Misplaced Hatred, Little Woman, Mountain Man, Fake Dating, But With a Twist,
Meet Cute: Wait, That Jonathan Smith-Turner?!?
The Lean: I See The Real You
Dirty Talk: What Pleases Me, What Pleases You, What Pleases Us
We Need to Talk: More Millicent, Please Now
Was it Good For You? Comfortable

First Impressions: Been There
Hazelwood’s covers are cute. But they’re not exactly fresh anymore. Do they need to be? Perhaps not. But there’s only so much to say when the covers start to blur together.

The guy totally has Human Beast* vibes, though (Is it the eyebrows? It might be the eyebrows.) and I dig it.

*As in the Prince from the animated version of Beauty and the Beast. Not something from the Saw franchise.

What’s Your Type?
- Career Rivals
- Misplaced Hatred
- Little Woman, Mountain Man
- Fake Dating, But With a Twist

Dating Profile
Dr. Elsie Hannaway wants nothing more than to get a job as a professor on a tenure track, and her upcoming interview with the Physical Department at MIT is exactly the kind of job she both wants and needs to get out of her current adjunct teaching gig. There’s only one problem: one of the people interviewing her for the job—the job—is the bane of her existence, Dr. Jonathan Smith-Turner, a man who nearly ruined her entire field with a fake paper and brother of a man she fake dated through her other job, which sees her changing her personality completely to play fake girlfriend/date for men through an app called Faux.

Meet Cute: Wait, That Jonathan Smith-Turner?!?
Elsie wills herself to believe that changing her personality and figuring out the “Elsie” that people want is half-superpower, half-how she excels at her job as a fake girlfriend through Faux. She’s rarely truthful with anyone, even her so-called best friend and roommate, CeeCee. But she can’t help but be herself—her sarcastic, confident self—around Jack, in part because she can’t get a read on him and part because she hates his (giant) guts.

The first time Elsie and Jonathan—or Jack to his friends—meet, she’s playing at being his brother’s librarian girlfriend at a family function. The fourth time they meet, she’s interviewing to become a member of the Physics Department at MIT, where he works as a researcher and professor. Jack is convinced that she’s been playing his brother the whole time, and she’s too much a professional (and kind person) to out his situation before he can talk to Jack himself.

The Lean: I See The Real You
Jack has spent the first three times he met Elsie trying to catch her in a lie. But when he finally does, both the lie and the woman are nothing like he expected. He pushes Elsie in ways no one else ever has, and she both chafes at his pressure and loves the fact that he wants nothing more than for her to be herself—something she hasn’t done in so long, she can’t remember when the last time was.

Dirty Talk: What Pleases Me, What Pleases You, What Pleases Us
Elsie and Jack take it slow both because they take a while to get past their mutual dislike and also because Elsie isn’t really sure she wants to go there, with anyone (again). But when they do get there, things are just as spicy as can be expected from a Hazelwood novel, with a heavy and welcome helping of consent and frank discussion about what they prefer when it comes to sex. Even their kisses are hot.

His mouth is on mine, and I’m overwhelmed, then dizzy, then confused. In my experience, kisses are brief, something to do before moving to other body parts, to the real thing. But Jack won’t let this one end: his tongue presses against mine, strokes slowly, coaxes my jaw open. He kisses like he’s already inside me. I don’t know what to do about that, so the moment stretches endlessly, full and hot, until I cannot help squirming against him.

Ms. Perky’s Prize for Purplest Prose
Hazelwood is known—for better or worse—for combining giant men with teeny women. And although Elsie describes herself as “medium” in every way, his hands (and, ahem, other parts of his anatomy) are "massive."

“Shh.” His giant paws tighten around my waist, as if to contain me and my panic. They span my waist. Our size difference sits somewhere between absurd and obscene.

This description makes me think Jack is Hagrid-size and Elsie is Hermione-size, and that’s a ship I cannot get behind.

We Need to Talk: More Millicent, Please Now
I love a sassy grandmother figure, and Jack’s grandmother and matriarch of the family, Millicent, is an absolute spitfire and someone I wanted to spend way more time with

“What else shall we discuss? I am but a helpless elderly lady. Nothing ever happens to me. Ah yes: the neighbors’ dog has been defecating on my lawn again. I’m considering hiring someone to go defecate on theirs. Would either of you be interested?”

Elsie and Jack were great, but Millicent was a level above.

Was it Good For You? Comfortable
Love, Theoretically is very similar to its siblings, but if you’re a fan of them, you’ll likely be a fan of this book, too. (If, that is, you can overlook the kind of eye-rolly mentions of Elsie and Jack’s size difference. The continued “discrepancies” in every Hazelwood book is getting to be a bit much.) The book is nicely spicy without veering too much into smut territory—though there’s nothing wrong with that!—and includes a good dose of realism in the form of Elsie’s struggle with being both a woman in a STEM field and an academic.

Elsie -- an adjunct professor by day and a hirable fake girlfriend by night. Jack -- a physicist by day and by night. He is also on the board for Elsie's dream job. He is also the brother of one of guys Elsie is fake dating. Oh.. and he is also her lifelong nemesis.

PSA -- this is my new favorite Ali Hazelwood! It was so. damn. good.

Elsie was so funny. Big Twilight fan. Very smart. Incredibly relatable. But Jack.. Jack is who stole the show. He is confident, slightly brooding, brutally honest (but in the best way). The slow reveals of his past just added to the obsession.

Romance was 10/10
Banter was 10/10
Steam was 10/10

Cannot recommend enough. A must read. Chefs kiss. GO READ ASAP!!!!!

How often do you start a book, and before you even start you just know you're going to LOVE it? Welp.. this happens to me every time I read a novel by @alihazelwood 😍
What I didn't expect, was how much I would identify with the MC, in a non scientific way way of course.. (I wish)💫
Elsie is smart, kind, caring, introvert, and lover of Twilight (like any true book lover) 😍
I have 4 brothers, and I'm the only girl in between them, and the way Elsie handles herself with her mom and her brothers, mirrors my life. I ended up learning more about myself than I expected from this one #LoveTheoretically
But also, I'm here for the #romance like all of you!😍
I loved the narrative, It's fast paced, worthy binge read.. you won't put it down.. I promise!

LIKES:
📝 quirky, fun, jaunty, witty writing
🧭 plenty of plot outside the romance
👩‍🏫 a people-pleasing theoretical physics prof
👱🏼‍♂️ a bold, kind, & TALL experimental physicist
🔭 physics vibes (duh)
🧠 explores people-pleasing & anxiety
🏫 + the TOXICITY of academia!!!!
💉 + life with type 1 diabetes
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 + toxic family dynamics
👭 + friendship (w/ a people-pleaser)
🤺 rivals-to-lovers (5/5 steam level!!)
💼 + workplace romance
🥰 swoonworthy!!!!!
🌱 themes of personal growth
•
DISCLAIMERS:
⚠️ dm me for tw!
🧀 cheesy as HECK!
🤪 so silly & maybe overly quirky (but I loved)

5⭐️ My favorite Ali Hazelwood book yet!!!!


"That’s not how love works, Elsie. But don’t worry, I’ll show you.”


WHAT TO EXPECT:
✨ STEM romance
✨ he's a straightforward, confident, perceptive, head of the MIT Physics Institute
✨ she's a broke, people-pleasing, adjunct professor of physics interviewing for her dream job at MIT
✨ academic rivals/hate to lovers
✨ he falls first
✨ lots of tension
✨ amazing banter
✨ 2.5/5 spice
✨ complicated family dynamics
✨ found family
✨ lie by omission
✨ HEA
✨ single pov
✨ diabetes representation
✨ ace/aro spectrum representation
✨ Adam and Olive from The Love Hypothesis cameo


My Thoughts:

Absolutely LOVED!!!! Better than the Love Hypothesis (4-stars) and Love on the Brain (3-stars)! Honestly, my favorite contemporary romance of the year! 🤩

Ali Hazelwood is the QUEEN OF STEM ROMANCE! Seriously, I could give two flying f*cks about STEM, yet somehow Ali is able to center an entire story around it while making it interesting and explaining it in a way that allows me to understand. But what always stands out is the way Ali portrays the struggles women in STEM have to go through. From blatant sexism to sexual harassment to manipulation, the challenges are appalling and endless. I specifically liked how she dives into the 'type' of acceptable women in STEM:

"The you people want is sharp, impeccable, perfect enough to justify your intrusion in a field that for centuries has been 'rightfully' male. But not too perfect, because apparently only 'stone-cold bitches' are like that, and they do not make for congenial, affable colleagues."

It's infuriating to see the amount of pandering women in STEM have to do to the men in their field so that they are accepted. Once again, thank you, Ali Hazelwood, for bringing awareness to such an important topic.


I really connected to Elsie on a personal level. Elsie has been a people pleaser her entire life, to the point that she masquerades many different faces around different people in order to fit their expectations or make them love and accept her. This begs the question of who is the real Elsie Hannaway? Unfortunately, Elsie doesn't really know since she's been living her life for others and ignores what she truly wants and needs. I know some people might think that the extent to which she people pleases is dramatic, but I can with 100% certainty say, I've been her. Yes, I've put on facades to make people feel more at ease. I've lied about my likes and interests to fit in with people. I've tampered down my own personality so people will find me more acceptable. I've done things I didn't want to do because it's what was expected of me. And this didn't just happen with strangers. It also happened around friends and family. And let me tell you, it was exhausting and terrifying not being able to just be who you are - living in constant fear that someone will dislike you or find you weird or think you're beneath them. Luckily, I went to therapy and have worked on breaking out of the people-pleasing cycle. And I'm so glad Elsie also starts therapy at the end. I really think Ali Hazelwood did a fantastic job portraying what it's like being a people-pleaser and how much it can emotionally and psychologically impact you.


The friendship between Cece and Elsie was everything. I really adore Cece's humor and how incredibly loyal, supportive, and loving she is to Elise. And even after finding out Elsie hasn't been completely open and honest with her, Cece's first instinct is to say, "I will love you forever." My heart nearly burst wide open because that is true love.


Jack. The love of my life. One of my favorite MMC of all time! Where do I even begin with this man? He's perceptive, confident, honest, charming, thoughtful, intelligent, kind, handsome, sexy, and pretty much the most perfect man to ever be written! I love him (in case you can't tell lol). Not only does he fall first, but he is a huge freaking simp for Elsie and just wants to take care of her. Seriously, this guy is a dream. 😍 But what I love even more is that Jack is a supportive KING! Jack encourages Elsie to just be herself, and while she struggles to learn exactly whose that is, he is there with constant love and support, and lets her discover these things in her own time.


The romance is perfection! We start with so much tension, misconceptions, and hate (on Elsie's side), and then it explodes into this profoundly wonderful and deeply emotional love. There's so much chemistry, respect, love, and care between these two that it makes my heart soar.


The spice was a RIDE! Our girl Elsie has never really enjoyed sex or felt much sexual attraction towards anyone . . . before Jack. And while Elsie wants to just jump his bones, Jack takes his time and focuses first and foremost on her pleasure and her pleasure alone, all so she can discover what she likes. And DAMN it is HOT. 🥵 This is the spiciest Ali Hazelwood book yet, and I ATE THAT SHIT UP!

"I think I want to do this every day," he responds, kissing my p*ssy like he would my mouth. "Every day for the rest of my life."

I also love that Jack sets some boundaries sexually because he wants to make sure this is truly something Elsie wants, and not just something she thinks she has to do for him to like her (which we learn is something she did with a previous partner).


Overall, Love, Theoretically is a witty, charming, and sexy story with lots of depth that will make you laugh and tug at your heart. Ali Hazelwood's writing is a dream, the pacing is fantastic, and the characters are so amazing that you can't help but fall in love with them. I could go on and on about all the things I love about this book, but this would turn into a full-blown essay, so I'll stop here. But the bottom line is this is one of the best contemporary romance books I've ever read. I 100% recommend reading it and hope you love it as much as I do!

Thank you to Netgalley for an Advanced Copy of Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood. This story felt the most formulaic of her published materials thus far and fell really flat for me.

I always say I’m not going to read the next one but every time I always change my mind at the last minute. But this time I actually liked this one. Don’t get me wrong, it was the same story as all the others, but I think it was the diabetes rep and the narrator that I really liked. It definitely made me get more into the story.

When I say it was the same as her others, it most certainly was. All her books are about academics in STEM. Now while I love seeing women in STEM, I would most like to see something else from Hazelwood. (I’m really interested in trying to see what she’s going to do in this new YA she’s got coming out this fall…..) The other thing that was just the same was the freaking academic rivals to lovers. And just like, ARE THERE NO MORE STORYLINES?! At this point I don’t even have to read the synopsis anymore. At this point it seems lazy lol

The romance was cute enough tho. I was actually more sold on this one than the others tho. I think because I could immediately tell he was in love with her immediately. I knew from the beginning at the opening scene. It was just the way he looked at her. I thought I knew the twist that was going to happen, but I was wrong. It ended up being something completely different. I don’t know which was worse tho. Because what actually happened was terrible. I wanted to hug him. But also I just need to tell someone…. As someone who isn’t a fan of science, I just thought this entire argument was dumb lol But that’s just me. (The argument that I think was dumb was the whole article and the way these two huge branches of science were feuding each other. Like do y’all both not have to get PhDs? That’s not a small thing.)

Another reason I liked this a bit more I think was because I related to Elise so hard. I KNOW how it is to be a people pleaser. I do it all the time. I recognized it as soon as I realized she was doing it. I didn’t like that Jack called her out like that. Only because it was too close to someone calling me out lol But I do know it was something that she had to hear. Especially since she still didn’t believe it when he told her and she had to experience things on her own. And that pissed me off. Because we both knew she wouldn’t have believed him if he did tell her.

I also liked the diabetes rep. My mom is someone who has diabetes and I know the struggle she goes through all the time. She’s very stubborn and doesn’t like to change anything, so when she found out about it a couple years ago she wasn’t excited. She’s nowhere near as ontop of her meds as Elise is. Now I only have proximity to someone with diabetes, so take what I have with a grain of salt. But all in all everything in the books was something that I recognized in something my mom had done.

This one was different than the others and I enjoyed it so much more than the others. Mainly because it was something I related to. The things I didn’t enjoy were the things that were the same in all her other books. I just wish she would do something else. Could they be partners and be like friends to lovers or something? Anything without them being so dense that they are arguing over dumb things over and over.

Will I stop reading Hazelwood’s books? Of course not. Will I ever read The Kiss Hypothesis? Hopefully one day in my busy schedule.

Well we are back in Hazelwood’s world and she never disappoints. This story follows a woman who needs a job that a man makes the decision of. This is a book that IS a rom-com and I loved a good bit of everything in it. Hazelwood wrote strong characters that readers will never forget about and a man that they list on their book boyfriend list. The chemistry between the MCs were strong and there were those cute, heartfelt moments. With many side characters and some from other books, readers will enjoy exploring this world. The storyline was fantastic which is told from the FMC’s perspective and I love how far the author is going into this STEM world. Hazelwood never disappoints with her stories and I can’t wait to see what she comes up with next.

- enemies to lovers
- academia romance
- client’s older brother
- grumpy x sunshine
- FMC with Type One Diabetes
- 2/5 spice

The Queen of steamy-STEM is back and she's brought with her a BIG man! Oh yeahhhh, you better believe it!

His name is Jack, he's brillant and he's the size of a refrigerator. His chest is so wide, that when our MC, Elsie, runs into him, black holes are brought to mind. And his hands!? Don't even get me started on his hands!!

Listen. We all know Ms. Ali Hazelwood has a formula. She knows what works and she is sticking to it. Clearly, as I have read everything she has had published, I AM HERE FOR IT!! Seriously, I am such a fangirl at this point, it's embarrassing. I don't think I have ever rated one of her books less than 4.5-stars. It's a whole thing.

The setting of this one is Boston's bustling academic corridor. We have Elsie, a theoretical physicist, who is currently working as an adjunct professor at multiple area colleges and universities.

Elsie is sweet and quirky and also, struggling financially. She has acquired a bit of an undercover second-job, where she works as a fake girlfriend. She has kept this part of her life completely secret, except from her best friend/roommate, as it could put her academic career in jeopardy.

Sure enough, she finds herself in a bit of a pickle when the grumpy older brother of her favorite client turns up on the hiring committee of her latest job interview. It's MIT. She wants this.

Jack Smith, an annoyingly attractive experimental physicist believes Elsie is a librarian dating his brother, so needless to say he's a little shocked to find out who she really is.

Confusion ensues on both parts. What to do, what to do?! It's Ali Hazelwood, y'all! You know what's about to go down in this story. Sparks, steam and all out nerdy romance bliss.

I loved these characters. Again. Always. Hazelwood creates such charming, lovable characters. They have issues, they're not perfect and they're so relatable because of that. Jack is an absolute cinnamon roll. I loved how thoughtful and open he was. His feelings for Elsie were pretty clear, although she was a bit more bumbling, I did actually really adore her. The chemistry between the two was fantastic.

I feel like we do wait a bit longer for the steam to set in with this story than with previous Hazelwood books, but boy, oh boy, was it ever worth the wait!!! I loved this. It's that simple. I will continue to pick up every single thing that Hazelwood writes. I would love to see an archaeologist thrown in the mix at some point, but that could be my own personal kink...

Thank you so much to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. As expected, this was steamy, swoon-worthy, witty, perfection. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing what Hazelwood comes up with next!!

This was def an easy read from Ali Hazelwood! Having read both her previous works, Love, Theoretically was my favorite thus far. I enjoyed that it felt like the most character struggle? Like there was an obvious character arc when it came to Elsie, and we were on a rollercoaster the entire time. I thought that it was also nice to see a diabetic main character in academia, as well as an ace character in the story, it definitely felt like it was well-fleshed out for a side plot on top of the very warm, and steamy romance plot.

This book has to be in the top 3 favorite books that I have read this year! I have loved everything that Ali Hazelwood has written, but this one might be my favorite of hers. I really love all the inner work that the main character is doing on herself. And, as always, I continue to appreciate the representation of asexual and otherwise queer characters in her books.

Ali Hazelwood is desperately trying to become one of my new favorite authors, and...it's working. Her stories are amazing.

Elsie Hannaway absolutely loathes adjunct teaching, but she pretends, for her mentor, that she is thrilled to be teaching basic science classes to students who can barely show up to class.  Not only does it suck, but in order to pay her bills, Elsie needs to teach like three...four...thousand of these classes.  Even that isn't enough if she also wants to eat and pay for her insulin, so Elsie has a side hustle as a Faux-girlfriend for hire for the last few years.   It's not a bad gig, aside from those few clients who don't understand the difference between Faux-girlfriend and paid "escort."  Elsie's always had the ability to  figure out exactly who someone wants her to be and morph into that girl, which makes it easy to come off as the perfect girlfriend.

Her biggest problem lately is the fact that Elsie's current "boyfriend" has a brother that obviously loathes her, since he's always watching her, and who keeps asking pretty probing questions about her relationship with his brother.  He also has an uncanny ability to see through Elsie's faux personalities which is really irritating since Jack is the one person who she can't read herself.

But Elsie's luck might be about to change when she is asked to come to MIT for a final interview.  It is down to her and one other candidate and she thinks she has what it takes to land this job.  Just as she she begins to fantasize about teaching real physics to students who actually care and also having free time for her own research and, wait for it, actual medical insurance, in walks the bane of her current existence, Jack Smith.  Jack Smith, who hates Elsie and who now knows for certain that Elsie isn't the librarian she has been telling his family for the last month.  Jack Smith, who is on the committee to determine  if Elsie will get her dream job.  Yikes!

Thoughts:
I have to confess that some some of the things in her women of STEM stories goes over my head but I am having so much fun with these stories that I just don't care that I suddenly become  the stupidest person in the room.  I absolutely love the characters she has created and the stories they have to tell.

Of course, right of the start Jack is giving me those Mr Darcy vibes.  He is always watching Elsie and he knows when she is being false and when the real Elsie pops up.   Of course, Elsie thinks that he just wants to criticize her at every opportunity, but  we can see how much they like to debate and challenge each other since there are few people around as smart as both of them.

I was so stressed that Elsie would do something to topple this fragile romance.  Initially, she believes that Jack doesn't like her, so she doesn't like him back, but there is also a very large conflict of interest between Elsie's mentor and Jack.  Of course, since her mentor took her under his wing when it seems no one else would, she is very conflicted about her growing attraction to Jack.   But, as Jack tries to point out, why would someone as smart as Elsie have a problem getting a real teaching position unless her mentor is more interested in keeping Elsie working for him rather than working to help Elsie achieve her own success.

I love how Ali Hazelwood points the spotlight on the trials and tribulations of women in STEM and while there are more and more women joining the ranks, it is more a trickle than a flood and the women in STEM are still battling against centuries of misogyny for acceptance and for their ideas to be heard.

Ali Hazelwood is definitely a new author to put on your TBR list and I would recommend you pick any one of her stories to get started.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced reading copy! I loved this book, and full disclosure, I work in academia, so this story and the characters really spoke to me. This is a great addition to Ali Hazelwood’s STEM rom com world, BUT if one of your complaints about Hazelwood is that she writes similar books, this is definitely in the same plot zone and world of her other novels. Saying that, I did not mind at all - Jack is a great main male lead and Elsie’s imposter syndrome and molding to fit people based on trauma was well written and worked for me. There is just something so great about Hazelwood’s writing - she makes you feel like a friend, comfortable with the characters, and writes great banter. She’s also super funny, making me laugh out loud many times throughout this book and devour it in about 2 days (which is fast for me). This book might be a little “inside information” in terms of how it works within the world of academia, but as someone who works at a university and sees the issues of toxic masculinity and adjunct abuse, this story resonated with my experiences. I recommend this book for fans of Ali Hazelwood, STEM and academic settings, contemporary fiction, and romantic comedy.

This review was originally posted on Books of My Heart


Review copy was received from NetGalley, Publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

4.5 hearts

I'm all in for a stem world. The academics and politics fascinate me. Ok, the misogyny and treatment of women also infuriates me. The world in Love, Theoretically, is connected to some of the author's other books, which was only recognizable in a very brief mention near the end.

Elsie loves her work and she has a real talent. But she's starving herself and without health insurance because she's just an adjunct professor. She has no health insurance and she needs it. So she and her roommate also have jobs as fake dates to supplement their incomes. Suddenly, she gets and interview for a job she really wants at MIT, and the older brother of one of her fake dates is on the hiring committee.

Elsie is manipulated by her family, and her mentor, and works really hard for everything. If she's a little tired and used to putting on an agreeable face to the world, well it's what she needs to do to survive.

The annoying older brother, Jack Smith, is unreadable to her. (Jack Smith - lol) He knows so much more than he can tell her and he may have an easy road as a white male but he's not unfair. While Elsie battles him fiercely, he takes steps to protect her. While I dislike a situation where the woman is down on her luck / money, and the man has lots of money and influence, it is often the way it is and certainly shows how strong and capable the woman is.

I found this to be such an emotional ride as Elsie learns some truths about herself, and being herself. Of course, she and Jack are so compatible and the sparks lead to such a good relationship in the end. It was heart-warming. I loved all the feelings here and look forward to much more in this world.

4.5🌟 - I really liked it!

Thank you @berkleyromance and @netgalley for the E-ARC and @prhaudio and @librofm for the ALC!

I really liked this!! I thought the academic rivals plot was so fun, and loved the fake dating aspect! The STEM rep is always such a fun and a characteristic trait of her novels too which I love!

Jack was such a good MMC! I loved him, and how he was so honest and helped made Elsie her truest self ❤️‍🩹.

I love a he falls first trope, and this was the epitome of that 🤌🏻. This is my second fav of her books so far, and I can’t wait to see what comes next from Ali!

Elsie Hannaway is a theoretical physicist juggling many adjunct professor positions along with her side job of fake dating, in order to make rent. When a faculty position opens up at MIT, Elsie thinks this may be the solution to her career and money problems. However, she discovers the brother of one of her fake dating clients is part of the interview panel and Jack seems determined to keep Elsie from getting the job. Part of the enmity stems from Jack being upset with Elsie for seemingly lying to his brother, and the other part is the fact that Elsie is a theoretical physicist versus Jack's own field of study, experimental physics. What ensues is a lot of miscommunication, with Jack being antagonistic and Elsie feeling the need to be defensive. Their focus on honesty as their relationship developed was nice, but it was also frustrating how Jack kept deciding things for Elsie and it was good that was addressed to some extent. The most frustrating part of the book was Elsie's mother and her constant badgering that Elsie solve the issue between her twin brothers, despite that having nothing to do with Elsie whatsoever. The emails from the students to Elsie were rather humorous and a nice break between chapters.

When Dr. Elsie Hannaway, theoretical physicist, adjunct professor and Faux-dater realizes her latest fake-date has ties to her most hated experimental physicist -- the one who messed with her mentor and wrote about how her field of theoretical physics is a joke -- things go from bad to worse. It turns out he's more connected to her life when Jack Smith-Turner is connected to her dream job. She finds out just how small of a world it really is. And just how rigged academia can be. And maybe things just aren't exactly the way they seem with Jack Smith-Turner.

There is great romantic tension in the first third of this book. It was masterfully done and I could feel the sparks between Jack and Elsie in a major way and I loved it. I loved the emotional building in this part of the book. I just wanted it to go on and on.

I really did love Elsie, her humor and insight, even her cluelessness when it came to Jack. I loved it even move when she figured out what she wanted and decided to go for it. That was just lovely. This slow-burn, enemies-to-lover romance was just perfect for this reader. I love how it built up and that neither Jack nor Elsie were perfect in how they handled the stuff that is thrown their way.

I found this story to be an accurate representation of the sometimes nasty, back-stabbity world of research and faculty tenure I had to stop reading at the pivotal moment that Elsie realizes that she wants to be supportive of her female colleagues in science, but is lured into slamming one of them -- that was just so meaningful and real moment to me. A beautiful one too because women should always support other women in their career aspirations. The power moves made by Elsie's mentor also rang true unfortunately and it made Elsie's growth just that much sweeter.

I really liked Love Theoretically. Elsie is terrific, I connected with her right away. Jack took longer to show his heart, but he was a swoony romantic lead when it counted. They are hot stuff together, for sure.

So this is going to be on my favorites of 2023 list. The slow burn romance has great tension and doesn't disappear when the characters connect. The conflicts are realistic, timely and often gut-wrenching and I loved that about it too. A terrific romance in the world of STEM research.

There is just something about the books that Ali Hazelwood writes that has be hooked. I this story definitely stands strong among her other titles. Elsie had such a fun story and her work as a girlfriend for hire was a fun start to the story. I also love how supportive she was of Greg and genuinely wanted to help protect him from his family and their intrusiveness. I love how the story also took you through the academic process as well and allowed a look into that. As for the romance, I loved all the bickering between the two of them. I also loved how Jack was continually trying to get her to have and acknowledge her own voice instead of being who everyone else wanted her to be. There are definitely some other things I loved but they are full of spoilers. I loved this one and can’t wait to read what Ali puts out next.