This was my first book by Lily Menon and I really enjoyed it! Fans of friends-to-lovers and the grad school/academic setting in The Love Hypothesis might enjoy the similar setting here. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

In all honesty, I was pretty disappointed in this book. I just feel like it didn’t really give me everything it promised in the description. Lyric and Kiam and best friends and doctoral students. When Lyrica is having a hard time completing her thesis which has to do with sexual chemistry, Kiam offers to help. The description of this books calls it “The Kiss Quotient meets Love Potion No. 9”, and I think that’s where I got a bit disappointed. I was expecting more “lessons” in sexual chemistry between these best friends, and I just felt like it was lacking.

Apart from feeling let down from the description of the book, there was a couple of other things that bothered me and I just wasn’t able to let go, which honestly made it hard for me to enjoy the book. I felt like I didn’t really know the characters really well, which made it hard for me to vouch for them. I felt like some of the manners or quirks of the characters that were described and just kept coming up again and again instead on expanding on the character. I felt like all I really know about Lyric is that she has a big family and she is I to crystals, and all I know about Kiam is that he’s handsome and tall, and has had difficulty believing in love because of his family history. I felt like I wanted MORE from these characters and to get to know them and there 7 year relationship better. Another thing that I didn’t like was that I felt like it went from 0 to 100 super fast! Events were happening here and there, out of the blue at times. Again, I feel like I would have personally wanted more descriptions, which I think is lacking in this book.

I liked that this book was set in academia, was a friends to lovers and had “sexual lessons”. I also really liked the epilogue and I thought it was really cute. I just felt like this book was rushed and lacked descriptions that would have made me more engaged in the story and the characters.

There are slow burns...and then there are painfully low roasting burns that eventually turn into something great. Unfortunately, it was a struggle to get there. I think it was just the way grad school was portrayed that seemed a bit...romantic? Yes, the towers of the school and the libraries and the research labs...and the utter struggle to pay rent while downing copious amounts of coffee...The one thing I LOVED was the dual POV. This was so much fun and I do hope to see more from this author!

I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Sizzle Paradox seems like the perfect science experiment with a spicy twist. It features beloved tropes like Enemies to Lovers and Fake Dating. It’s a recipe for success until you take into account the science-based romance that was published last year with a similar title. The Sizzle Paradox was the diet coke version of The Love Hypothesis, yet it still somehow managed to incorporate more legitimate science into the plotline than its competitor. This particular book featured a pair of chummy roommates who were trying to find that certain spark which occurs between the perfect romantic connection. I think this was a wonderfully original idea, but it was waylaid by slow pacing and introduction of multiple dating partners despite knowing the main couple would be endgame.

The Sizzle Paradox had great elements within the plot and fantastic steam, but I couldn’t help but draw similarities to The Love Hypothesis. Perhaps it’s a poor timing issue or it was directly inspired by that book, but I constantly compared the two romances. Maybe if I read Sizzle Paradox first, then I wouldn’t have that issue? Regardless, this book succeeded in creating a heroine in STEM and a diverse cast of characters. For me, this sizzle was extinguished at the halfway mark but I’m sure many others will keep the flame alive.

I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed this book! It was light and fluffy. One of my favorite tropes, the fake dating, was not as strong as I thought, and the worst thing is the lack of communication between characters. People, just communicate!! Let's find plots that go beyond us not being able to share how we feel. Anyway. A fun read without too much intensity.

I enjoyed this one a lot. It was a fun, quick read without a lot of angst or depth. Lyric is brilliant and awkward but not in that over-done doesn't know how to interact with anyone way. She's just really bad at interacting with men she finds attractive which hey, fair. Kian on the other hand is smooth and charming and never has an issue getting a date which of course leads him to a dating slump where they're all just the same. In order to help them both a deal is made for some fake dating for Lyric to practice how to behave on a date and for Kian to learn how to woo a girl with a little more substance than he usually goes for.
The fake date thing was kind of flimsy from the beginning but I let it go because I enjoyed the rest of the story so much. The transition from friends who are obviously in love with each other and just don't want to admit it to people who are actually in love with each other and know it was handled so well. As someone who fell for her "just a friend" guy friend, there were parts that rang very true based on my experiences.
The writing style was really straightforward and conversational. The story was pretty light and fluffy and just a little bit silly. It's a great read for those days you just can't handle anything deep.

i had a hard time getting into this one. i just don't think this authors writing style is for me. i think it has a great concept and others might still like though

Oh my Gosh, this book!!! Loved it. Lily did a great job with this cute rom-com book! It has the romance and spice! Its a make you feel good book.

A cute and light read with laugh out loud moments timed perfectly, The Sizzle Paradox brought a much needed smile to my face. Friends to lovers has a special place in my heart and Lily delivered on not just the friendship, but also Kian and Lyric’s move to romance.

Kian is easy-going and charming, Lyric is awkward and hilarious, and they come together for the best kind of romcom, one that could easily be a movie. The spice was perfect, if only there was more than one scene but maybe that’s just me lol.


(Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.)

I am a huge fan of this author - I have read most of the YA books she has written. Unfortunately, this "adult" book sounded like it still had teenage characters, and I could not get behind their behavior/actions and how childish the whole things was. The premise of the book fell apart for me too. I am disappointed in this particular book, but look forward to other works by Sandhya!

3 ⭐️

This book reminded me a lot of "The Love Hypothesis" mixed in with a bit of "The Kiss Quotient" (but not a lot of that). Lyric and Kian are both grad school students who became best friends their first year of undergrad. They now live together and share basically EVERYTHING with each other.

Lyric, working on her thesis, has come to a sort of standstill. She cannot crack her "sizzle paradox", aka finding the perfect mixture of romantic and sexual chemistry with a partner. Lyric is having trouble writing about something that she herself has never found. Buuuuut here comes Kian, the dating guru to teach her how to date so that she can crack the code. And, as time goes on, lines seem to blur, and things start to heat up between the two 😉.

Here's what I liked about the book:
✅ The beginning half build up
✅ The friendship between Kian and Lyric
✅ The treehouse date
✅ The London scenes

What I didn't like however, was how stupid these characters were when they both "discovered" they love each other 🙄. They both had feelings for each other but continued to think the other person didn't rather than saying something. It was the whole "Why didn't you say something?" "Well, why didn't YOU say something". Like GROW UP. They would both rather suffer in silence than admit how they feel. Okay, I think I'm done with that. But I would like to say, I did still enjoy the book, I just wish that we got this resolved before THE LAST CHAPTER.

Plot: 3/5
Characters 👫: 2/5
Spice 🌶: 1/5
Tropes: Best friends to lovers, roommates, college romance, *kinda* fake dating

**Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for this arc in exchange for an honest review**

Thanks to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the advance copy in exchange for my review.

Lyric is a psych grad student studying sexual chemistry, compatibility, and the brain’s response, however, she is utterly failing when it comes to her final project, dubbed “The Sizzle Paradox.” Unable to find someone she has good chemistry and a genuine connection with, she turns to her best friend and roommate Kian for some lessons on dating. Even though Kian knows her better than anyone else, Lyric insists that they would never date… or would they?

I loved the premise of this book and I really wanted to love it, but it was missing something. First of all, it felt way too short. There were some unnecessary details included, in my opinion, that detracted from the story and left me confused. We get little background on Lyric and Kian, no idea that they have any kind of romantic feelings for each other except a one-off dream, and little to no character growth. We learn that Kian’s dad is a serial cheater and Kian is worried he’ll become that, but then it’s just a HEA with no chance to work through that? Other characters were there for no reason other than to push the plot along and served little value to the story - Eli and Ava who? I also was really disappointed with Lyric’s character development. It felt like she was fairly stagnant and the only thing she accomplished was dating Kian and finishing her paper.

All of this to say that it’s not that the book didn’t have some redeeming qualities. It was a quick, fun read and I will never turn down a romance. It could just use some more development and expansion, in my opinion! 3 stars!

This was a fun book but it fell a little bit flat for me. I didn't connect too much with the characters but I did enjoy their romance.

Thank you to Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I could not finish this book, so take my review with that in mind. This writing is, in my opinion, incredibly juvenile. The style, the phrasing, the overuse of superfluous details that crowd out the actual content. This reads as a high school story aged up to target a different audience but with the exact same vibe and maturity. Lyric is painful to read, Kian is fine I suppose. I'm grateful to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for the eARC, but I cannot force myself to continue reading this.

I really enjoyed this romantic comedy. Lyric and Kian are full of personality and chemistry. And while the early scene in Target where they both leave with a gorgeous hook-up had me rolling my eyes a bit, it was just such a fun, youthful, and joyful read! The two main characters definitely sizzled, and their journey to realize their true feelings, along with mutual hesitation to communicate for fear of rejection, kept the tension going the entire time. Definitely a quick, well-paced read.

This was a delightful rom-com featuring some heavy tension and enjoyable characters. This is a quintessential friend-to-lovers story with all the classic tropes we know and love like fake dating.

Here’s what I liked:
- Our main character is a woman in STEM and both parties are going for their PhD
- The dynamic between the characters was great both before and after they realize their attraction
- This doesn’t include the quintessential he or she was always in love with the other trope. They were both genuinely happy in their friendship until they realized they wanted something more.
- The relationship developed organically between Kian and Lyric and we get some pretty great scenes as a result.

Here’s what I struggled with:
- Sometimes the characters were just unbelievably dense in their reactions to the other and how the other was feeling. It built the tension but sometimes felt a bit contrived.
- Kian’s tense relationship with his parents is presented, but never really concluded. We just see and experience the tension, but then nothing much comes of it.
- The ending felt a bit rushed and so did Lyric’s reaction to everything that occurred. She seemed to be a woman who asked more questions rather than just acting rashly without all the information.

Overall, however, I really enjoyed this novel and can’t wait to read the next by Menon.

📚 The Sizzle Paradox by Lily Menon 📚

Releases June 14, 2022!

⭐️⭐️⭐️ and a half/5
🌶🌶.5/5

~ARC REVIEW~

This was such a cute and steamy read! I devoured it within one setting and I’ll admit I scrolled back through a few scenes that stuck with me! “The Sizzle Paradox” follows Lyric and Kian, two best friends who met in their early college years and have been together since. Lyric is a grad student who is struggling to finish her thesis project on sexual chemistry as she finds her own romantic life lacking. Kian wants to help her out, and so he offers to teach her how to flirt, and takes her out on fake dates!

I’m such a sucker for fake-dating between friends!! There is just something about two long term friends who suddenly start feeling attraction and tension that makes my heart flutter! Lyric and Kian had amazing chemistry, and once they both realized their feelings had changed, the sexual tension was top notch and when they finally get together? I was blushing and I may have re-read that scene a few times.

The reason I rated it 3.5/5 was that I felt the pacing could have been better and the miscommunication went farther than it needed. The first half of the book felt like a build up to their romantic relationship, and once the story hit the halfway mark, they were just started to see the other differently. A lot of of the conflict between Kian and Lyric could have easily been solved if they both just communicated and listened to each other. When they did resolve their conflict, it felt easy after they both made big decisions in order to get space and I would have liked to see them discuss it before making those choices.

I will say that I consider this more of steamy read than spicy, and I reflected that in my spice rating. There was only one major scene that was descriptive and lasted a few pages, but “The Sizzle Paradox” had lots of sizzling tension and build up that was definitely worth it!

I do recommend this book for anyone who loves:
- dual POVS 💜
- Steamy academia 📚
- Friends to lovers 👩‍❤️‍👨
- Fake-dating 🌶

Thank you to NetGalley, Lily Menon and St. Martin’s Press for approving this copy of this ARC for an honest review!

- Dual POV
- Friends to Lovers
- Fake Dating
- Miscommunication
- Academic Setting

What happens when doctoral students in STEM have to study sexual chemistry but struggle with their own romantic life? You get your friend/roommate to teach you how to flirt and take you on fake dates. Lyric and Kian's chemistry and miscommunication make this book perfect for anyone fan of The Love Hypothesis. This romcom will keep you laughing and swooning over the STEMASTIC romance that Lily Menon has concocted in this one. The Dual POV has me hooked, and the steam kept me reading. I finished this one in two sittings because I had to cook dinner in the middle. It was fun, fast, and blush-worthy—a solid 3-star romance.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martins Press for the Advance Readers Copy of The Sizzle Paradox in exchange for my honest review.

A full review with spoilers will be posted on my blog on June 14th.

Honestly this book just did NOT do it for me. I liked the dual point of view (I always prefer dual POV) and the general idea of the book, but the execution just wasn't there. The combo hit of friends to lovers and miscommunication tropes was just too much, and there wasn't good writing to overcome it. I almost DNFed when the author used the phrase "curly brown hair the color of wet dirt."

Loved how they just found the perfect connect. The amount of spicyness was just a *chefs kiss* a fast easy read.