Romance with substance! Solid plot with an interesting cast of characters and multiple subplots that keep things moving. Out main characters move from ambivalence to wondering to finally HEA, but quite a bit happens along the way. A fun read for romance fans, and those that just want a good read.

I'm so conflicted on this one. I was sucked in so quickly by Hadley's devotion to her mom and Lex's silent, brilliant, mysterious nature. He's apparently infatuated with Hadley immediately and does all of these really sweet things to help her and her mom, unprompted, which had me swooning! Stuart was my absolute favorite character. His friendship with both Hadley and Lex was so sweet and wholesome, and his commentary and hate for Nicky was hilarious. But then as the story progressed and we see Hadley and Lex together as a couple (and specifically when the third-act breakup occurred) I started questioning how good they were for each other. I'm all for an overprotective, caveman of a MMC but Lex's actions and words-while he was experiencing jealousy-felt petty and immature. Then we see both of them absolutely shutting down over the weeks (?) that he leaves for Sweden... it just seems like a very toxic and codependent relationship. *Spoiler alert!* And this isn't even touching on Hadley basically cheating on Lex with her ex-boyfriend (yeah, yeah, the ex-boyfriend initiated the kiss BUT STILL) when she travels to New York while he is in Sweden and then not even telling him about it after they make up when he returns. UGH. First half is great, second half made me angry. Which leads me to have very complicated feelings. I think I did enjoy it overall, even if it doesn't seem like their relationship is the healthiest. Thanks Netgalley for the e-ARC!

This was a sweet and cute read.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

I was super intrigued by the premise because the characters are so relatable and the setting is super relatable as well. I actually really enjoyed how Hadley settled into Stanford and teaching, and I enjoyed the little tidbits of neuroscience we got from Lex. There were some cute scenes as they got closer to each other, and I think the pacing of their relationship was relatively good. I also loved the friendships we got to see. Hadley and Stuart were really cute.

However, Lex basically instantly fell for Hadley, which is somewhat annoying. I'm glad we got to slowburn it a little bit, but the severe hinting at the fact that Lex was instantly enamored by her was a little much. Also, Hadley was supposed to be funny, and I do think that some of the jokes were good, but her humor wasn't as good as it was marketed to be. And ultimately, my main qualm with the novel was the two conflicts toward the end. The characters did not handle the problems that they faced well. They had poor communication and it just wasn't very mature.

However, this was a cute, short read. It isn't something I'm going to remember or think about for a long time to come, but it did what it had to do.

And I'm out.

2.5 Stars (Rounded up to 3)

I enjoy romance novels with witty repartee between characters. This debut novel more than met that criterion – at times I found myself chuckling aloud at some of the dialogue and circumstances. I also enjoyed the premise of the story with two sensitive, highly creative, intelligent people with vastly different talents falling in love.

Hadley, a successful composer, songwriter, and singer, moves from NYC to Stanford, California where her mother seeks specialized treatment for a rare type of breast cancer. While there to support her mother’s recovery, she accepts a teaching position at the University and lives in faculty housing where she meets Lex and his team of brilliant neurobiologists. After a rocky start, the two engage in a passionate relationship characterized by misunderstandings, jealousy, and mistrust.

I enjoyed the first half of the book that laid the foundation for character development. However, the second half deteriorated into immature behavior for characters in this age group. Lex has real personality issues despite his brilliance as a scientist. His all-or-nothing approach to his research and his commitment to Hadley bordered on obsession. I found it hard to believe that a scientist of his caliber would abandon his life’s work (and the impact it could have in saving lives) because he could not tolerate being away from her and then completely shut down communication. On Hadley’s part, she had her priorities straight, but her behavior often seemed adolescent as she explored her feelings for Lex.

Another issue was the emphasis on appearances. Their good looks took precedence over their respective talents. Which leads to my third problem with the book. I do not care for overly detailed descriptions of sexual relations. The relationship between Hadley and Lex begins with their physical attraction and evolves into pages of graphic lovemaking.

I am sure there is an audience for this book, it just was not a favorite for me.

My thanks to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

Thanks to NetGalley, My Trope Productions, LLC, and Kristen B. Cole for this e-ARC of The Scientist in exchange for an honest review,

What do we want? More STEAM-based academia romance novels! When do we want them? Now!

Enter.... The Scientist by Kristen B. Cole. A solid 4.5 star rating rounded up to 5 stars.

Hadley, a music professor at Stanford, meets the enigmatic Lex, a neurobiologist and professor at Stanford. Sparks fly quickly between these two as they are thrown together again and again. From living in shared faculty housing to becoming friends, Hadley and Lex quickly become close. They are each navigating the move to California and the move into academia from applied settings, and it was exciting to read about them as they navigated this new world and the interpersonal relationships around them.

This book felt very Ali Hazelwood-esque, which is always a positive in my book. The characters were engaging. The repartee between them was quick witted and fun to read. There were lots of pop culture references sprinkled throughout (which sometimes became niche... including a reference to an obscure Hey, Arnold! character that Hadley's mom knew right away? I'm just saying. My mom would never.)

I enjoyed reading about Lex and his roommate Stuart the most. I felt like their characters were the best well rounded and most interesting of all the characters. Maybe I just like a brooding hero and a slightly comedic friend and sidekick, though. My only criticism about the book is I would have liked more about Hadley and her flaws. It felt like much of the book fawned over her looks, singing ability, music writing capabilities, teaching ability, and more. There weren't any flaws noted about the FMC, and that seems a little unrealistic.

Overall, this was a super fun read. It took me less than 24 hours to devour, and I would do it again in a heartbeat to re-enter their world!

I really enjoyed this as a romance novel, it had that element that I was looking for and enjoyed about this type of book. The overall concept worked well with the genre and was invested in what was going on. The characters had that realism that I was looking for and was glad I read this. Kristen B. Cole has a great writing style and can’t wait for more.

2.5 ⭐️ rounded up

First of all thank you NetGalley and My Trope Productions LLC for an arc in exchange for my honest review!

I think my problem with this book was mainly the pacing. Everything happened way too quickly for my liking and characters (that weren’t well developed) appeared so quickly I had to re-read previous passages to simply place them.

My only other problem is how one-dimensional everyone except the FMC is? But even her, she’s not written like a middle-aged adult, more like a fifteen year old teen experiencing a crush for the first time. The bits with her mom were cute tho.

Finally, reaaaally don’t like the overdone trope of the evil other woman who’s out to get the FMC and is only in the story to be slut-shamed and cause a slight miscommunication between the two love interests.

I’m sure other people will like this book, this just wasn’t for me.

Antes que nada, feliz debut, Kristen.





Hadley es una compositora que decide poner su vida en pausa y mudarse a otro estado para poder ayudar a su mamá, quien ha sido diagnosticada con cáncer de mama. Como es muy buena en lo que hace, consigue trabajo de inmediato como profesora en una universidad, donde conocerá a un grupo de neurocientíficos con los que se llevará bien, y surgirá una amistad. Sin embargo, con uno de ellos en particular, Alex, saltarán chispas y la posibilidad de un romance.



Hubo algunas cosas que no me encantaron, como el hecho de que muchas situaciones sucedían entre capítulos y solo se mecuonaban de pasada. Por ejemplo, la cantidad de tiempo que Hadley y Alex pasan juntos; al omitirse esos detalles, parece que la relación surgió de la nada. Otra cosa es que hay actitudes por parte de ambos personajes que me parecieron algo cuestionables, aunque no graves. La razón por la que no le puse una calificación más alta fue por la parte final, en especial lo que sucedió durante la estadía de él en Suecia, y lo que hizo y no hizo. Me pareció muy inmaduro.




Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.