This was my first Ali Hazelwood book and I really enjoyed it! I'm all for women in STEM and this one didn't disappoint! The characters were likeable and even though they were enemies, I found myself rooting for each of them (and eventually, for them as a couple)! I really enjoyed Bee's inner dialogue as well! That really added a comedic punch to the book! I also enjoyed the pacing of the book - not too fast or too slow - in my opinion! Overall, I would definitely recommend this book!


Read if you like:
*enemies to lovers
*women in STEM
*a driven, determined female character
*definite steam

Mmmkay. So I LOVED The Love Hypothesis... like really loved it... but, oh my gah, I am over the moon for Love On The Brain!! What a profoundly hilarious and heartwarming read! I was immediately hooked from the first few pages — I really love it when the writing style makes the intro sound like an opening monologue overture of a phenomenal TV show or movie (same with the epilogue/ending!). This was sarcastic, witty, and charming. Snort-laugh, burst out loud funny. That covert kind of snark and dry wit that completely sneaks up on you. It's angsty. Heartracing. And just splendidly splendid. I forgot I was reading half the time and just zoomed right through. It's basically a glowing 5 stars and I already want to read it again! I'd also like a next chapter in Bee and Levi's lives, thank you very much. 🐝👖🐈🐈‍⬛

WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT:
— a NASA project
— academic setting x neuroscience labs
— the convergence of the brain x tech
— sworn archenemies to lovers
— also friends to lovers, slowburn
— secret academic Twitter accounts
— fancy swag for astronauts
— “it’s always been you” x he falls first
— serial fainting spells (or swooning moments, if you will)
— a workplace mystery!
— some science trivia
— clever, mysterious kittens
— hummingbirds x gardens x vegan things
— eccentrically lovable side characters

Potential Content Warnings: past trauma, death of a friend (off page), cheating (off page), friendship breakup

I absolutely loved this book. Ali did it again with her dynamic characters and storyline. It really dives into the issues women in STEM face. You couldn’t help but love Bee and Levi. I have attached my full length reviews in the links . If you loved the Love Hypothesis, you will love this book as well.

Thank you Netgalley for the advanced reading copy! If you were a fan of Hazelwood’s debut novel The Love Hypothesis, I think that Love on the Brain will be enjoyable for you! I really loved the banter and inner dialogue of the main character Bee. I liked the women in STEM themes, the side characters, and how gone Levi was for Bee. I thought the plot moved quickly and it was a fun read. I thought the characters developed over the book, learning to communicate and learn from their past issues and traumas. Overall this was a super charming and quick read, and I highly recommend it to fans of romance. This book was slightly more open door, steamy than The Love Hypothesis. My main issues with this book is that it’s very similar to The Love Hypothesis and the ending felt a little rushed, but still would recommend to fans of sweet, steamy, fun romances. Overall I recommend this book for fans of Ali Hazelwood, contemporary romance, women in STEM, and big men that look like Adam Driver :).

In a perfect blend of science and romance, Hazelwood writes another stellar novel. Bee and Levi, who everyone thought were rivals in grad school, are both picked to co-lead the BLINK project combining NASA and NIH. While the base plot is similar to The Love Hypothesis, I found there to be enough differences that it stands on its own. I don't see anything wrong with reusing the same base plot, especially since it works: an academic setting with some sort of rivalship added to the mix. The dynamic between Bee and Levi was really well-done. I could feel the chemistry between them in all the best ways. Hazelwood is excellent at writing multifaceted characters.

I guess you're just what I needed... yes, I am singing to a book because it was one hundred percent just what I needed.
Bee remembers Levi from before. The broody, scowly man who can't be bothered with her. Now she is being sent to NASA to work with him on a new BLINK helmet and everything seems to be going wrong. He's not responding to emails, or helping her get the equipment needed or even making sure she's at important meetings to discuss the project. She understands he doesn't like her, but career sabotage is where she draws the line.
Once Bee starts to confront Levi though, she sees maybe things haven't always been as they seem. Maybe the two of them have to work together to see this project to completion and hope that no one gets in their way.
There was a little bit of mystery tied to this one, as well as a "you've got mail" vibe which I am always here for. All I know is that I am drawn to Ali's smart women and the heroes that have their backs, no matter what. Her heroes are the ones I want to read about, the nerdy guy who is grumpy just cause he has it bad and off the charts pining. Even though it is told from Bee's POV, we see glimpses, even if Bee can't see them, we do. I absolutely adored this book.
Thank you to Netgalley, Berkely and Ali Hazelwood for an early copy.

This book was amazing - just like Hazelwood's debut, it managed to capture all the feelings and left you wanting more. The characters were relatable and lovable and each character (even the sides) added flavor to this novel.

I'm going to give this one a fair 3 star review. It was enjoyable, but nothing special. I think the best take away was the phrase "for cakes sake" I've adopted it into my vocabulary!

4 stars = I liked it. Love on the Brain has similar vibes to Hazelwood's previous book, The Love Hypothesis. Another quirky diminutive scientist in the lead (Bee) and another leading man who is secretly pining for her (Levy) and more misunderstandings to draw out the 'lusting for the enemy' vibe. There are some fun added elements this time around: NASA as a workplace (I will always geek out over that even though the pair aren't astonauts), entries for the leading lady's 'What would Marie Curie do?' blog and some fun females who are part of Bee's support group. What worked less well for me: the love scenes which I tend to skim (there are more this time too), and, while I acknowledge that working in a male dominated environment and needing to work extra hard to be treated with the same respect as your colleague can be very problematic and frustrating, the use of genitalia based deroguative terms in reference to said colleagues bothered me.

Overall, I still enjoyed this and am looking forward to reading Hazelwood's three STEMinist novellas when they come out - Let hear it for smart heroines and heroes!

ARC courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley - this is an unpaid review.

There is a reason Ali Hazelwood is so beloved by romance readers: she knows what we want and gives it to us. Told in her incomparably charming voice, Love on the Brain is a very tropey-book, more so than her debut even, so if you love tropes, you'll love this book! I, personally, love the anonymous communications trope - when the characters have no idea they are talking to each other online - so I was a happy reader. The LI, Levi, is very similar to Adam from the last book (no complaints...) in terms of his overwhelming affection for Bee disguised as hate/grumpiness. I admit to wanting to strangle Bee at times because she gave off a slightly "not like other girls" vibe and her cluelessness regarding Levi's feelings was a little hard to buy, but it added to the tension. In summary, this book was delicious, steamy, trope-tastic joy in a book and I've no doubt it will be an instant bestseller just like The Love Hypothesis.

She’s done it again!!! Who is excited for Ali Hazelwood’s newest novel? It’ll make you feel 🥰🥰🥰🥵🥵🥵

🧠 REVIEW: LOVE ON THE BRAIN 🧠

By Ali Hazelwood

📖 SUMMARY: After a heartbreaking and humiliating end to an engagement and years with a boss who thinks women can’t be capable scientists, things are finally looking up for Dr. Bee Königswasser. Well, things WERE looking up, until the dream job she was offered lead on — a NASA neuroengineering project — turns out to be a project she’ll be CO-leading… with her academic arch nemesis. Levi Ward, who has hated Bee since grad school, makes it very clear he’d rather be on this project with anyone else. She just has to get through the next few months, and then she can leave Houston ASAP. Right??

💭 THOUGHTS: Just when I thought I couldn’t love anything from the mind of Ali Hazelwood more… BOOM! LOVE ON THE BRAIN! I was so thrilled to read about another amazing female scientist. Bee also anonymously runs an academic Twitter called @/WhatWouldMarieDo (as in Marie Curie) and I loved the You’ve Got Mail // A Cinderella Story scenario sprinkled in there. Most importantly… can we talk about Levi Ward? 😍🥵 Adam girlies, prepare to fall head over heels for Dr. Ward, who is The Love Hypothesis’ Adam Carlsen mixed with The Hating Game’s Joshua Templeman. ALSO, we’ve got cats!! I could probably make this review go on forever, but just know I loved it and I think (hope!!) you’ll love it too. 🥰

Thank you @netgalley and @berkleyromance for the ARC! This pubs on August 23.

✨ RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

🥰 YOU’LL ENJOY IF: you like THE LOVE HYPOTHESIS, the movie YOU’VE GOT MAIL, and THE HATING GAME and wonder what would happen if you combined the three

Love on the Brain can be described as a first-person (instead of third), NASA version of The Love Hypothesis, which is super awesome for those of us who loved TLH. Personally, I enjoyed this author telling the story in the first person. I am ALWAYS here for a workplace, enemies-to-lovers, grumpy MMC story, and I can't get enough of STEM in romance. Pick this one up for a fun, enjoyable read.

Thank you Netgalley and Berkley Romance for the advanced copy!

So... I read this entire book in one sitting, but that might not be surprising.

This was a cute story with colorful characters to fall in love with. Although at times, I felt as if the tension between the main characters Bee and Levi was a little hostel and not so much romantic, it was a fun read and I really wanted to get to the end of their journey to see what happens.

3.8 stars!

this book was good! the characters and the plot were funny, relatable, and entertaining. i was scared that this wouldn't be as good as the love hypothesis.. but it proved itself!! adding levi ward to my loooong list of book boyfriends. hazelwood also discussed some important topics about women in STEM dealing with their male counterparts, which was interesting to read about. also- the smut. if everyone thought chapter 16 was good, it gets better here. read for yourself.

however: what deducts this from being a five-star read is the fact that it feels VERY similar to the love hypothesis. we have a hot, in-control male mc and a younger female mc who is trying to make it in their respective field. this female mc ultimately comes face-to-face with a man who tries to ruin her career. it seems that the plot for the love hypothesis was barely changed and introduced a different cast. the millennial humour also got annoying eventually. sometimes i laughed, sometimes i needed to put the book down out of cringe.

this was a great book! i recommend if you enjoy millennial humour, tall brooding men, and strong women in STEM.

Oh boy, Ali Hazelwood has done it again!

Ali weaves interesting facts about Marie Curie to highlight all the issues Women in STEM are still facing today. When are women going to start getting the recognition they deserve? We are smart, we are capable, we have brains! It is very frustrating, but I have high hopes.

Bee and Levi’s enemies to lovers' story is a great combination of You’ve Got Mail and The Big Bang Theory. Witty banter and hilarious scenarios have you routing for this couple despite all the misunderstandings. All the supporting characters are likeable (except for one) and I would love to spend a day with them in their labs. Who knew there was so much mystery and sabotage in the day to day lives of scientists and engineers.
While the premise is basically the same as The Love Hypothesis, it is still a very enjoyable read. Ali seems to have found her niche, and if it's not broken, don't fix it.

Love on the Brain is a must read for all those who love Enemies to Lovers, Women in STEM, Star Wars and cats. If you happen to have a knack for passing out (ahem ME) then you need to pick this one up pronto!!

Thank you to Net Galley and Berkley Publishing Group for my eArc. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I devoured this one in one afternoon. I was so invested in Bee and Levi’s relationship and their project.

I absolutely loved Bee - her obsession with Marie Curie, her wit and sarcasm, her love of cats. I liked that the relationship with Levi was an enemies to lovers trope (though the enemies part was all miscommunication of course). I loved Bee’s relationship with her sister and her assistant, Rocío.

The sciency stuff was great. And I loved all of Bee’s talk about women in STEM and how much of a challenge it still is.

The ending was a little wild, but I was invested. It took a crazy turn and I was weirdly here for it.

Basically this was great and a solid follow up to The Love Hypothesis.

[cw - death of parents; toxic family relationships; epilepsy]

"Love on the Brain" by Ali Hazelwood
Release Date: 8.23.2022

Dr. Bee Königswasser idolizes Madame Skłodowska-Curie and asks herself regularly - What would Marie Curie do?. If Bee was offered a lead position for a neuroengineering project with NASA, she'd accepted, no questions asked! She is so excited!! Of course, Madame Curie did not need to co-lead with Levi Ward. He's handsome, but they have been enemies since grad school.

She finally thinks Levi might be an ally when her equipment begins going missing, shipments don't arrive on time, and the staff ignore her.

Bee must change her question to -- What would Bee Königswasser do?

I love that Ali Hazelwood focuses on smart, quirky, and lovable female main characters! Bee was so funny, and Levi really made my heart melt. Ta książka jest cudowna!

Thank you to @netgalley for the opportunity to read this novel in exchange for my personal opinion.

#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #loveonthebrain #alihazelwood #romancereads #romanticcomedy #2022bookreleases #netgalley #netgalleyreads

Thank you to Berkley Publishing Group and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. These opinions are my own.

After The Love Hypothesis was one of my all-time favorite books, I expected I would love this. And I did. All I want to do is shout to the rooftops of my love for this book and everything that Ali Hazelwood writes. And I expect to re-read this immediately.

But I will try to be semi-coherent first. This book is everything.

It has amazing romance with a hero who is all in and unbelievable. He is incredibly hot, amazingly smart, and knows how to apologize and be an ally to women.

It has a brilliant heroine who is flawed and perfect simultaneously.

It has chemistry and steam.

It has women in STEM, Marie Curie references, accurate depictions of what it means to work in science, truth about gender biases, and facts about the GREs and how standardized tests help the privileged. This is what women in STEM novels should look like.

It has epistolary content from academic Twitter.

It has adorable cats and cute kids.

And it is all written in Ali Hazelwood's delightful, funny, and charming style.

So basically, read this book if you like any of the above. I pre-ordered a copy as soon as it was possible, and I can't wait for it to arrive.

The Love Hypothesis is a bookstagram and booktok darling, so I imagine the pressure to produce a second book was immense. But Hazelwood managed to do it again.

I have so much love for this book. Hazelwood has a gift for writing relatable, quirky characters with distinct, specific interests. Bee’s obsessive love with Marie Curie is endearing, as is her intense and Vegan love for all animals -including roadkill! Hazelwood does rely on a lot of the same things that worked in The Love Hypothesis. Big, broody man. Tiny, quirky, scientist girl. Men in STEM who subvert women. Adorable miscommunication. Awkward love. But I can’t even fault her for it because she writes all of these things so well. (And let’s face it, the displacement of women, especially in STEM, really can’t be reiterated enough).

Love on the Brain is brilliant (I mean that literally. I learned so much about the human brain). But it’s also real and sweet and human. An enthusiastic five stars. I’ll read anything Hazelwood writes.

Thank you so much for an advanced copy of Love on the Brain. This was one of my most anticipated reads this year!

Star Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Pub Date: August 23, 2022

I was super pumped about this book, and for the most part, I really liked. By the end, I actually liked it better than The Love Hypothesis. I'm not going to lie, though...the first 30% of the book I did not enjoy at all. It made me frustrated and angry, and I contemplated DNFing the book. I kept reading, though, and around 50% in, I feel like the book really hit its stride. It had a lot of good elements and things I enjoyed so much, and I couldn't not put the book down once I hit that point.

I really liked NASA as the setting for the story. I thought it was unique, and the project Bee and Levi worked on was so cool. I also liked that the project had a personal connection for Levi, and that Bee totally embraced that personal aspect. I thought Bee was a super cool character. She was quirky and layered in personality, and I liked her a lot. Levi, though, was the character I was super invested in. I loved all aspects of him, and I thought his character was so sweet and endearing. I'm a sucker for pining, and the pining he had going on for Bee just did me in. The thought of him carrying a torch for her for so long, the awareness of himself enough to realize he needed therapy at some points, and just his overall support of Bee was perfection. If only we could all find a Levi to love and to love us! I think I fell a little in love with him when he immediately dismissed Tim when he found out all the bad things he did to Bee. Perfect perfect perfect!

Storywise, I liked the elements in this one! I especially liked the twist with the "villain" towards the end. I was suspicious of that character from the literal first mention/appearance of them, and I got my validation when they did what they did. Points to Ali Hazelwood for crafting a romance that had so many elements to it.

That being said...there were several things I didn't like about this one too. First and foremost, I get tired of all the language about a woman's workplace being a sausage fest, a cock cluster, etc. I'm an academic/PhD myself in a male dominated quantitative field, and I'm just tired of the rhetoric of the "big bad man" ready to put the woman in her place. Instead of having it thrown in my face in books that it is, in fact, a horrible part of the workplace, I wish the characters would show ways to handle the conflict that always arises from conflict with cis white men in the workplace, ESPECIALLY when women outperform them. I know this is part of the field, especially the fields in these stories, but I just don't think complaining gives women ways to handle themselves when these situations occur. Give us actionable, repeatable ways to come out on top of this conflict! Second, the clueless woman trope is annoying to me as well, and Bee was that clueless woman at times. An example from the book is when Bee references the guys having a "sports ball" talk. I know some people think it's cute to talk like this (or they just don't care), but I think it's always better to be more informed than less informed...and I just don't find that type of attitude cute anymore. Third, I'm beginning to wonder if Ali Hazelwood is a one trick pony in her story casting - teeny tiny woman, big hulking man, and a penis that "just won't fit" seems to be her go-to for relationships...and that's fine if that's her kink. I wish her characters had more variety because EVERY SINGLE BOOK of hers is the same in that regard (The Love Hypothesis, her novella series, and this book). I wish her character casting had more variety and didn't depend on a girl whose rib cage is so so tiny that a man's single hand basically covers the entire rib cage etc. Lastly, the miscommunication in the first 30% to 40% of the book really annoyed me. I'm not sure if it classifies as a trope, BUT it bothered me to the point that I almost didn't continue reading. While I have in general enjoyed Ali Hazelwood's books, I feel like these elements of her writing are potentially problematic.

Overall, I liked more than I disliked about the story, and that's a win! The things that bothered me, though, really bothered me. ALL of that being said, I already know I will re-read this one! Given that this is my fourth Ali Hazelwood book/novella, I was just hoping for her to show more depth in the character development than basically repeating what she's already published.