I'm having difficulty putting my finger on exactly what it was about this book that kept me reading because, honestly, I really didn't enjoy it.

The premise seemed really interesting to me; I appreciated the idea of undergrad rivals-to-lovers-to-exes meeting up again in grad school to battle it out once again.

However, while I understand that these graduate students are still really young, Allison came off to me as more of a teen MC from a YA novel. There was a frustrating level of immaturity and I felt like I couldn't relate to many of her viewpoints. She's also really quick to judge/cut people off while she's hung up on people doing that to her. She clearly has a lot that she's working on and unpacking in her life - past and present - but I felt at times like her confidence -socially - was maybe overconfidence; to the point of narcissism. For instance, Jed's an asshat (obviously), but when she visited him in the hospital, she was only concerned with trying to force him into saying he's proud of her accomplishments. It was cringey and wouldn't have led to any progress in their relationship even if he hadn't ignored her. I'm sure my opinion will not be popular on that front, but there it is. She was just too focused on her own hurts and hang ups- a teenage-level of selfishness.

On the flip, I did appreciate that she was perfectly confident in who she was as a person, a scholar, a female- those were all really positive, solid attributes that I enjoyed. Colin- take him or leave him. I think my favorite character was actually Wendy Frances.

Overall, I am not sure that I was the right audience for this one. I'm not a huge fan of YA, and this felt really juvenile to me.

Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for sharing this digital ARC with me in exchange for my honest review.

I was very happy to grab this lovely book before it was archived on NetGalley as it was a thoroughly enjoyable read that was not without its issues.

Allison was a great MC. We're pushing society foward everiytime there's fat rep in a book. But Allison deserved a better love interest. Colin was a dirt bag. I was jonesing for another romantic option to pop up even though I know the second chance romance is the trope at work here. Maybe I was too invested the academic rivals portion of the story to see his appeal.

I'll check out Jenny L. Howe's work in the future.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press, St. Martin's Griffin, and NetGalley for providing an eARC for a honest review.

I had high hopes for this book. I loved the premise of it but it ultimately fell short for me. I found that I enjoyed the literary references and grad school element more than the actual romance or main characters. I truly could not stand the male main character. I found their relationship to be very toxic, so I did not enjoy this as much as I hoped I would.

Let me start off this review by telling you I am fiercely loyal and incredibly salty. Once you betray me or lose my trust, it is going to be Mt. Everest to gain it back and I hate listening to apologies. I just want to level with you! So while I love Allison so much - and she's the reason I rated The Make Up Test 5 stars - I could not get behind Colin. Look I'm the best friend in the story who gives the ex the stink eye years later, holds a grudge and doesn't invite them, and will go out of my way to be the ice queen. So normally second chance romances are hard for me.

But normally they are dual POV so I end up realizing the why behind what they did. The miscommunications, the flawed nature of everyone. And while I'm not saying Allison doesn't have flaws. I am saying that - without spoilers - I would be that best friend who, even at the end, is glaring daggers remembering the pain my bff went through. Maybe it's also just because I'm even more primed to see the sexism in academia, the privilege men have, that I was so fierce, but also I deeply loved Allison.

A very quick romance novel to read. Lots of miscommunication which I don't particularly enjoy but had an overall satisfying ending!

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review!

I went into this story without knowing what it was about. I'm not normally a huge fan of enemies to lovers and second chance romances. This book was actually really good. I found myself laughing at some points and crying at others. The relationship between Colin and Allison was so fun to read. There are some places I would have rather had a little more build, but it was still a really cute read.

If you're a current or former academic, you'll love this book. The chemistry between Allison and Colin is undeniable, but their competition in their PhD program pits them against each other. I have friends who felt this competitiveness was unrealistic, but I found it incredibly accurate. I usually hate the big third-act conflict that threatens to drive apart romantic pairings - in most books, they feel contrived, an obligatory "maybe they won't survive this!" challenge - but here, I was right there with Allison in her response to Colin's actions. I really enjoyed this read from start to finish!

Allison Avery has strived for perfection ever since she can remember. When she is accepted to her dream PH.D program studying medieval literature under the professor she has always admired, she is finally achieving her lifetime goals. What she does not expect is her ex-boyfriend Colin Benjamin also on board for the same program spot that ultimately will go to one or the other. Allison still remembers the unforgivable betrayal and breakup and is determined to not let Colin stand in her way this time. However what starts out as a competition between the two begins to turn into something else as old feelings are rekindled and both are there to support each other as they face personal challenges outside of the program. Allison must decide if she can open her heart again once more, even with everything on the line.

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This was a cute academic second-chance romance/enemies to lovers. I adored Allison’s character, my heart ached for her as she faced so many challenges and heartbreaks in her life not just from Colin but her best friend and even her own parents. I have to say my biggest issue was that I was not a fan of our male MC AT ALL. In my eyes, what Colin did, did not sit well with me at all and it was very hard for me to support their romance, I was solely rooting for Allison and her success and honestly would have loved to just see the story focused on her and not the romance. Miscommunication is HUGE in this story and at some points it was driving me crazy, SO much could have been avoided if these two just TALKED to each other. I also did not really buy Colin’s explanation of things, it felt like gas lighting to me and just could not get on board with it. Overall, I enjoyed reading Allison’s journey as she navigates through hardship after hardship and ultimately standing up for herself and loved the academia setting! Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review. This title is now available to purchase!

First of all, I love reading books where the lead is wholly and unapologetically into their very niche topic and taking a go at making it their life's work. This means that I'm predisposed to like Allison even before the plot even starts to take shape. Which makes the fact that the story is engaging and passionate and full of random, very specific literary trivia all the more delightful.
There are a lot of things to process in this one, from body image to failed parent-child relationships and even further into career aspirations and expectations. I can't believe how many plot and important points Howe managed to touch on with this one in such poignant depth.
I'm not sure how I feel about Allison's relationship with Colin as it feels like things develop way too fast even with their past (and because of it), but it's good to see a second-chance romance that clearly acknowledges how both characters have grown and changed from how they were with each other the first time around. Colin still has what I consider to be many red flags, but Howe does a solid job of presenting him as a work in progress.
Overall, it's packed with feelings and emotions while also being slightly educational, what's not to like?

Happy thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Griffin for the fun and educational read!

Oh how I wanted to love this book and oh how it disappointed. The main characters are unlikeable, immature, and unrealistic.I pushed through to the end even though I wanted to DNF it multiple times - I kept hoping there would be growth or good chemistry or SOMETHING that would turn it around. Nothing ever made Colin likeable and I truly do not understand how Allison could ever move past how he treated her...which is terrible. I really like to support debut authors, but this is not it.

I DID like the plus size rep and the fact that Colin is not your typical male romcom hottie in his physical description. But that is so not enough to make me like this book.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and all opinions are my own.

DNF at 44%

"fat was only a ugly word if you let it be"

i hate doing this sm but i have to. i have been trying to read this for almost a month and i can't. it was tiring to read, and the writing was just not good. i really wanted to enjoy this, because i really liked the message and the plot line but the characters had no personality.

i couldn't connect to any of them and i would literally ask myself after i finish reading a chapter and stop for a while "what are their names again". the writing was too wordy for a fiction book, honestly felt like i was reading a non-fiction.

also felt as though the romance was barely there. despite them being literally second chance, THEY HAD NO CHEMISTRY.

i liked the message, and i loved how the mc didn't feel like she needed to lose weight but i just couldn't get into the story :(. maybe one day i can try to read this again but today is just not that day sadly.

thank you netgalley for letting me read this book :).

The Make-Up Test by Jenny L. Howe is the story of Allison and Colin, a pair that started out not liking each other when they met as academic rivals to lovers to enemies and back to having a second-chance at love. Allison and Colin end up being teaching assistants for the same professor in their PhD program and from there it is pretty much game on. The two of them are super competitive, but have an undeniable chemistry and history together. I did not care much for either of the main characters, they never seemed very likeable to me.

The Make-Up Test was your typical rom com about academic rivals. If you enjoyed the Love Hypothesis, you'd probably like this book. It wasn't my favorite book but it was good. Probably wouldn't read it again but it was an enjoyable read.

Skip this one unless you like stories about a dysfunctional relationship between two deeply unhealthy young adults. Sorry

enjoyed this one ! it was a 3.5 for me mainly because although i enjoyed the plot it was kind of slow for me. academic rivals to lovers is one that gets me to pick it up but it took a while for me to get into it !

would love to read more from this author tho !

Allison and Colin are exes, who are being put into direct competition during their P.H. D. program. This was a typical Romcom. It was low on heat and high on conflict.
What I liked quite a bit about this book was the body positivity and inclusivity throughout.
What I didn't like so much was that often times Allison and Colin came across as self absorbed.

Thank you, Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was not a fan of the love interest and felt certain aspects were drawn out far too long. But a major plot point dropped my rating because it was not necessary.

I really enjoyed the academic rivalry in this book. But as to the romance, chemistry is a big factor for me but unfortunately, I don't feel much of it from the characters.

This book is still a cute read. Other fans of second chance romance and academic rivals might enjoy this.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I really loved Allison but I didn’t care for Colin. Interesting enough this keep me reading. I’m tired of the perfectly match couples I read about lately.

What would you do if your ex was part of your graduate program? What if you were in direct completion with him for the professor research trip with him? Would you see this as completion or a chance to repair things with them and move forward?

So in the synopsis they said this was similar to One to Watch meets Beach Read. I honestly don’t see it. Yes they talk about being bigger but they didn’t really focus on a being body positive they focused on how everyone treats you. For me this was so uncomfortable to read as a plus size woman. The word “fat” is used in such a negative tone in media and in life and to see it used so much in this book was hard to hear / read. I did listen to this book thank you to @prhaudio for the #gifted copy.

This book was cute it just wasn’t for me. I would say it focused on the FMC family dynamics way more than it did the relationship. Also the romance was also a given, I could tell that the characters were still invested in each other from the beginning.

It’s probably a great book for others just not the one for me.