Love on the Brain

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Aug 29

Love on the Brain - Ali Hazelwood

my review : ✮✮✮✮✮

When I read books like this, I am slapped across the face with the reminder that romance is my favorite genre ever!!!

So, Ali Hazelwood wrote a book last year called The Love Hypothesis. The world went nuts because it was perfect, fun, and a total breath of fresh air. From pretty much the moment Ali Hazelwood announced Love on the Brain (her second book), the world has been counting down the days until we could devour it. All that hype leads to very high, very hard-to-meet expectations!! All that to say, I don't think this book is getting the love it deserves. Here's what I think - this book freaking rocks, and Ali Hazelwood is so cool for creating these love stories focused on women in STEM! Is there anything more badass than a female neuroscientist!? No!!

Is this book a bit reminiscent of The Love Hypothesis? Yes! And to me, that is perfect (picture me holding that sign in Love Actually, except I am not holding it in front of my BFF's wife but am instead holding it in front of Ali Hazelwood). That book was a total treat, and I'm so happy another similar book exists in the world. Are there some elements that are a bit predictable? Welcome to the world of romance, baby! Maybe sometimes we don't want to feel like we're being punched in the face with a plot twist à la Colleen Hoover. The predictability in this book didn't bother me at all; it was somehow still fresh and made me think to myself, "yes, I know exactly where this is going, so I am going to APPRECIATE it." Even the use of miscommunication (one of the most frustrating tactics used in books, IMO) didn't bother me. Also, is it just me, or did our dear author turn up the HEAT on these romance scenes? Not a BRAD but definitely not a closed-door romance. Also, I learned so much! About academia! And standardized testing! And the world of science! Three topics that you typically wouldn't find sexy, but Ali Hazelwood makes interesting and funny and frustrating! Yes, girl, use that platform for good!

Ok, rant over. I loved this book, and it was for me - I hope it is for you.

Oh, you're probably wondering what this book is about: brilliant neuroscientist gets the job of a lifetime at NASA but is devastated to learn the co-leader of this career-changing project is her (hot, perfect) grad school "nemesis." Need I say more!? Enemies to lovers' perfection. Yes, you will undoubtedly be saying to yourself, "girl, how can you not see he is in love with you," but maybe it's hard to tell when it's happening to you!! I cannot speak from experience because, unfortunately, I have never been in an enemies-to-lovers situation.

I have very specific instructions for the drinks that should be made with this book!! They should be colorful and served in a beaker with dry ice. You should get all your girlfriends together for a LOTB book club, and the host should wear a lab coat! Everyone should share both a fun fact they learned about Marie Curie and their favorite sex scene in the book- it's called balance, people.

Ok, I am drunk on this book and just so freaking happy that Ali Hazelwood decided to write it for us. This almost made up for the fact that she wrote 4 novellas that should have been feature-length books/films.