I can’t stop thinking about this book. Smart, steamy, and feminist? This is what dreams are made of! I will read anything by this author!!

I'm obviously very much in the minority here, but this book was just Not For Me. (Not, I hasten to add, because it's fanfiction with the serial numbers filed off and a cover by a fan artist with characters resembling the originals, because I'm a huge supporter of fanfiction and fanfiction authors going mainstream and fanfiction being re-released as original fiction--my reaction is just due to this specific story and author's writing style here not being the right fit for my personal tastes, rather than anything to do with the book's origins as Reylo fic). But I do think a lot of other readers will enjoy it much more than I did, and I'd still buy it for that reason, and because in general this is the kind of title I want to support by having in our collection regardless.

Finally, a book that ranks up there as high as The Hating Game. Olive has spent much of her life alone and wrapped up in academics. She has a couple of good friends for who she'd do anything. Anything including kissing a random guy in a hallway late at night and starting a fake relationship with him. Unfortunately, the random guy Olive has decided to make her fake boyfriend is, Adam Carlsen, the most reviled professor at Stanford.

But as Adam and Olive spend more time together (you have to be seen having fake dates for people to believe your fake relationship, after all) Olive starts to let her walls down a little around him. And Olive gets the feeling Adam isn't only the mean, hard-to-please professor everyone says he is.

While not exactly an enemies-to-lovers romance, this might just fit the bill if that is what you're looking for. The dynamic between Olive and Adam is great. There is a lot of humor and the dialogue feels real. This will get added to the list of books I read at least once a year. Highly recommended!!

I loved this book so much!! I sort of figured I would like it since this was originally published as Star Wars fan fiction and even though I had not read this specific story, I've read a ton of Star Wars fanfic. Thus, I was highly anticipating this one when Ali Hazelwood announced it and it did not disappoint.

I'm going to list my main critique here as I believe it is important. Olive often refers to her lack of sexual attraction in the past as something she thought was "broken" about her. This seems harmful to the asexual community. I see why the author wrote it this way as plenty of Star Wars fan fic has Rey believe that she is different/broken due to her isolating childhood, but in this novel that is not the case as Olive grew up with a parent and her isolation was 15 to graduate school. This topic comes up at least twice in the novel and I don't think it was handled well. Olive is probably demisexual, but that word is not used and it is not discussed. I personally would have the author change the wording a bit more to make it less ace phobic, especially since this wasn't a huge part of the plot. There is nothing wrong or "broken" with someone because they don't want to have sex or experience sexual attraction.

That being said, I adored everything else about this novel. There are so many fun tropes and Hazelwood leans into them, but they never feel overdone or forced. Olive and Adam have the perfect grumpy/sunshine dynamic that was so much fun to read. Of course we have fake dating and it was just perfectly done here. We have the meddling friend pushing them along and everything. Olive and Adam also have amazing chemistry and banter. I highlighted so much of the dialogue in this.

Even though there are so many tropes, Olive is aware of them. She is fully expecting only one bed when they go away together and is happily surprised when she was wrong.

There is also a subtle hand touch moment a la the 2005 Pride and Prejudice film which was excellent.

This also is a novel about women in STEM and their is mentions of the struggles women in STEM face. I also loved the academic setting and how it meshed with the plot. There are also discussions on what professors have to deal with, which is often not on page.

I thought this novel is so well plotted. It reads so quickly because stuff keeps happening. This is a slow burn and it almost does not feel like it because stuff keeps happening.

The parallel moments between Adam and Olive. She will think something and then he says the same thing out loud. But also the moments where they are opposites. Like his favorite cover is black and hers is white.

My only other minor critique is that their is a lot of lying, which I am not a huge fan of. I thought it worked in this novel and the characters apologized faced consequences for their actions which I appreciated.

This book was an absolute delight from start to finish! I seriously could not put it down, and read the entire thing in one sitting. Ali Hazelwood is a fresh new voice, whose wit, charm, and energy radiates from the page. Her characters are unique as they are loveable, and the way she plays with tropes in a meta, tongue-in-cheek way, had me laughing out loud. If you love a classic grumpy/sunshine, this is definitely the book for you. I loved that the story was completely steeped in the world of STEM, and explores the difficulties women experience in academia. It's clear that the author has as much passion for science as her heroine, the incomparable Olive, and her expertise is evident. Olive is a quirky heroine with spunk and drive, and her messiness makes her all the more relatable. But it's Adam, the young genius love interest, who is definitely going to remain in my heart forever. There is so much depth behind his "grump" exterior, and it's his quiet stoicism and intense passion that sets him apart from similar characters, and Hazelwood does a fantastic job of weaving in his backstory. The pacing is absolutely perfect in this slow burn. And the LONGING! The YEARNING. Ugh! It is simply to die for. Beyond the hilarious banter and real issues in this book, there is a truck-load of warmth and heart, as well as some of the steamiest steam I have ever read. (Seriously, BRING YOUR SMELLING SALTS!) I am counting down the minutes until Ali Hazelwood's next romance is released. I am a fan forever!

Oh my goodness. Where do I start?

I adored The Love Hypothesis. The pacing was fantastic and there was never a place where I felt bored or like the romance lagged. I am not sure how she did it, but Ali made this very scientifically ignorant woman feel included and intrigued by the STEM aspect of the book. And never once did I feel like the scientific side plot overshadowed the romance plot.

I was deeply invested in Adam and Olive's love story. It was funny. It was intelligent. It was well-paced. It was everything I want in a romance! And Adam....oh goodness. I love a good mysterious book hero, but especially one who takes such good care of our heroine. And the side characters were a blast. I want to be their friends in real life!

This one pulled me out of a book slump!

Content: Steamy, open-door romance. Adult Language.

I loved this book so much. I couldn't put it down.

The Love Hypothesis features one of my favorite tropes (fake relationship isn't fake at all) but in a new way that I absolutely adored.

BRB, going to go read it again.

I truly loved everything about this! The romance was sweet (and sometimes very spicy), the banter was witty, the science was interesting and presented in a way that I didn't get bogged down in it. Olive's knowledge of romance tropes added a fun meta layer to this fake-dating scheme and I was along for the ride. Give me anything Ali Hazelwood writes in the future - she's on my radar now and I can't wait to see what she does next!

I was so excited and couldn’t wait to get to read this book and IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT!!! It was so fun to read a romance novel that had a big scientific focus and the cutest characters!! Olive is a PhD female student who is trying to make it in predominantly male centered world. Her focus is on her goals and those only… until Adam that is. A fake romance, some white lies, and steamy chemistry make for an awesome story that will keep you on your toes and gives you ALL the warm fuzzies!! Definitely a five star read for me! I couldn’t put it down and if you like romance, you need to read this one!

I believe in romance books with women in STEM supremacy. Olive is a perfect female lead. Inspiring, funny, and very very human. From one grad student to another, Olive felt like an old friend. Naturally, I absolutely devoured this book as soon as I had access to it, casting all other current reads aside without a second thought, and I know this will be a story I read multiple times over. Which...doesn't happen for me. The day I read a book again is the day pigs fly. But I see airborne piglets in my future. I loved every second of this, and can't wait to see what this author puts out moving forward.

Oh gosh, there aren't words to describe how much I adored this book. As in, this, alongside of 'A Dangerous Kind of Lady' by Mia Vincy, both of which I read this year, might qualify as my top two. My heart melted into a puddle over and over again, so much that I'm not quite sure how to return to normal. What a high.

Olive. Let's start with her. She's absolutely precious on every level, and a protagonist I think most will relate too. She's nervous, awkward, shy, completely self deprecating and self conscious, but lively and funny and ahhhh. Adorable. Most of all, though, a demisexual character on page was a big deal for me, something I completely relate to (for those who don't know, it means being generally unable to feel or form attraction to someone unless you form an emotional bond). Not that it's a thing that's the same for everyone, but I very much related to Olive on that front.

And Adam, for his part, was not what I expected. The synopsis touts him as an asshole, which ok yes, he is. Except also he isn't, and not around Olive. His tenderness towards her over and over is what did me in.

But this book is not without tension. I'm not going to recount the summary here, but I can say the fake dating situation very much felt like a will they-wont they, as in, every moment that they aren't wrapped up in each other feels like DYING. You can see how hard they've fallen for each other, early on especially, but there's so many false assumptions, complex situations, and wrenches thrown in their way that UGH it left me panting. But trust me, in the process of them getting together, there's plenty to keep you satiated. Banter, flirting, sparks exploding.

I also have to nod to the writing, which was genius, the issues this book tackled (women in STEM especially), and the absolutely adorable and loving best friends that surround Olive even when she felt most alone. Again - my heart.

I do have to preface this by saying I am a Reylo fan, so it was kind of a given that I would like this novel. But I ended up absolutely swooning over the sweet storyline and tender character development. The way Adam quietly pined over Olive and was always there for her just got me. I laughed out loud because of Olive's antics. I struggled so much with having to put the book down to go to work or get something else done. It was a sheer joy to read.
My only criticisms would be that I didn't really enjoy reading about the lab mice. As an animal lover, it took me out of the story and grossed me out a bit.
Also, I felt like Malcolm wasn't fully fleshed out. I would've liked to have seen Olive have more one-on-one time with him where they were just being friends (maybe not talking about their love lives?). He seemed like someone I would've liked to have learned more about.
These were minor issues, though, and I won't have any problem recommending this book to my customers.

I am OBSESSED with this title. I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a romance novel so much. The characters were vivid, fleshed out, and so lovable. The plot was intriguing all on its own, but my god, the ROMANCE. I felt romanced by this book. Like I had a real life crush. And the spicy scenes were exceptionally spicy. I've already sold so many people on this title just by raving about it. Perfection. Can't wait to see more from Ali Hazelwood.

Olive has a great reason for randomly kissing a professor in the middle of the hallway at Stanford. She has to convince her best friend Anh that she is over her ex so that Anh will feel ok with dating him. Of course, Dr. Carlsen has some questions about the kiss, which then leads to Olive fake dating him to continue pushing Anh to pursue her happily ever after. Nothing can go wrong, right?

This was a fun romance. I blasted through it and laughed out loud a couple of times. Fans of a light comedy with a slightly nerdy setting (Standford Department of Biology) will enjoy this.

This book was so cute! I loved the awkward chemistry between the two main characters! The romance aside, I thought the characters were well-developed and interesting on their own. This was a fun, easy read and look forward to whatever else the author writes.

This novel was one of the best romances I've read lately. I love the nerdy elements, but most importantly the banter between the two romantic leads. The female protagonist was a tad too teary, but all was forgiven because the rest of the novel was well written. There was humor throughout and the novel was very tightly plotted. The secondary characters were enjoyable. This is one to definitely recommend to library patrons!

I read this in one day. ONE DAY. I'm that dumb that I didn't savor the tension, the banter, the amazing grumpy/sunshine dynamic.

I immediately searched to see if Ali Hazelwood has written anything else, and she has the GALL to make this book her debut novel. RUDE. I need more, Ali!!

Anyway, if you too want to swoon over a grumpy genius and a lonely but charming grad student, then you MUST BUY this book. I'm not joking.

What a wonderful year for romance books. Highly recommended.

I really loved this book. As someone who spent time in a grad program and has a friend is a bio PHD program so many things rang so true. I loved the fake relationship trope and I loved Olive even referencing other tropes like sharing a room and there only being one bed. I loved Olive and Adam and they way they changed each other and I just really loved this book.

We were a bit nervous before starting this one, because student/teacher romances don't usually do it for us. That said, sunshine/grump pairings are fun, fake dating is fun, and as soon as the grumpy pair of the fake daters cleared the fake relationship with the dean's office, we were there for this one.

The Love Hypothesis tackles a lot: women in STEM, unequal relationships (both in affection and power dynamics), and imposter syndrome are just a few. It's also a very self-aware novel, and the moments where it explicitly embraced the tropes were perfect for romance fans! Simultaneously fun, hilarious, and thought-provoking: we really enjoyed it.

A fun, steamy contemporary romance novel. Great pacing, fun characters - I really enjoyed it. The setting in science academia made me a bit hesitant, but I thought the author did a great job including enough to immerse you in the setting without getting overwhelming or tedious. Can't wait for more from her.