Really surprised at how much I enjoyed this. The strengths are the relationship and the incorporation of the robotics/stem. I know nothing about Robotics and the descriptions were simple enough for someone like me to understand. Teo and Bel’s friendship to romance was realistic and quite adorable to read about.

Only critique is pacing. It wasn’t slow by any means but some portions had that “telling, not showing” feel to the writing. It was a quick, fun read!

3.5 STARS

After her parents divorce, Bel is forced to spend her senior year at a new school. Unfortunately this also means her teachers actually care about her success. So when one teacher recommends she tries out for the Robotics team, AND take AP Physics, Bel is not amused. The thing is though, she has a talent for building things, and it’s noticed.

Mateo Luna— Teo— is captain of the robotics team and is used to getting his way. So when Bel walks in questioning the team’s design, he’s initially not very happy. The two quickly become fast friends, and maybe even more, as they work together on their team’s robot.


I adored this story and had a blast reading it. I flew through it in a day actually, but I felt like something was missing. While I read the book fast, I felt like the plot dragged at points as well.

I love that this book handled the topic of misogyny in STEM, but I wish they would have done more with it other than just calling it out. The academic rivals to lovers was cute as well, but again I was really hoping for more in that aspect.

Teo’s nickname for Bel was adorable.

Read if:
• you are a woman in STEM who feels undervalued
• you like robotics
• you’re competitive
• you like YA rom coms

This book is going to be such a hit with my high school students, especially the romance readers. I absolutely adored the characters in this book, and I loved that it was a wholesome STEM book that highlighted a field a lot of students don't pay as much attention to.

I am a huge fan of young adult romantic comedies, but it's rare you find Ya featuring a Stem female lead, it's why I was excited to pick this up. I truely enjoyed reading this story and look forward to reading more from it's author.

Thank you Netgalley, Holiday House and Alexene Farol Follmuth for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
THINGS I LIKED IN MY MECHANICAL ROMANCE
The chemistry between Bel and Teo is very good. From beings almost enemies to being friends and understanding each other to slowly fall in love with each other.
The cultures and the way Bels mother love her and supports her in spite of being a nurse and being a single- mother and taking care of her kids.
Teo's friend Dash is a real comedian.
The many mention of food, being a foodie I obviously loved it.
* SPOILER * But the Holi scene where Teo kissed Bel, I mean I almost threw my phone, it was so good.
THINGS I DID NOT LIKE IN MY MECHANICAL ROMANCE
Neelam as a character is such a badass however they way everyone portrays her as a heartbroken nerdy girl. And she keeps getting into Bel's business, however her character development towards the ending was really good.
RATING-5/5
DETAILED REVIEW ON MY BLOG

I was really looking forward to this book since i first requested it.
and it fully delivered! this was such a cute YA book, The FMC was so relatable and the story just gave you such an empowering feeling as you were reading.
This was my first STEM book and i thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of it. The technical parts were interesting and not boring at all. The banter was superb. I also really enjoyed the Filipino Representation in this book.
All in all this book hit all the marks for me.

4.5 star

A super cute YA novel!! I adored the main characters so much, they both were relatable specially the FMC because I could see myself when I was younger. Such an empowering reading for girls and love the romance. There is not much to say just go read it!


Thanks NetGalley for providing me with an eArc in exchange of an honest review :)

This book was SOOO good. I loved seeing women in STEM and loved how the main character wasn't scared to be herself. I loveee the academic rivals to lovers trope so much so this was right up my ally. Would 100% recommend

This was a cute YA book I was excited to read and fly through (only 270 pages!). I thought there was a bunch of quirky and silly references but overall it was a cute and quick read. Told from multiple perspectives, this story is about Bel and Teo who are an unlikely pair but fall for each other anyway. I do wish this was a rivals to lovers trope which i think could shave added to the spice a little more, but instead this was just a teammates getting to know each other and fall in love.

4 stars

Thank you to Netgalley and Holiday house for an ARC of this book!

I find myself struggling with ya romance these days, but this one was great! I LOVE the woman in stem trope in books, and this was done so well. The banter between Teo & Bel was everything!
One thing I really liked was the fact that the characters were pretty mature, and that’s hard to find in high school romance books.
Also, Bel is HILARIOUS. I love her and I want to be her best friend.
I definitely recommend this book!

This was a charming story with a lot of potential, but at time the writing felt flat. The plot was interesting, but I had a hard time staying engaged in the book. The dialogue was forced, and at times didn't seem like teenagers.

I'm a bit late for this, but I enjoyed this book. Of course, there were things that could have been done better in my opinion such as Theo's and Bel's rivalry going on for a little longer. The book's pacing was somewhat weird at specific points, but overall I loved this book.

As a fan of stories about women in STEM, I was excited to read this YA take on the subject. I liked how the novel balanced coming-of-age storylines (including a romance) with social commentary about sexism within STEM and the pressure high schoolers face to achieve. The story is told through dual narrators, high-schoolers Bel and Teo, and I found both of their storylines compelling. Without getting too spoiler-y, I did really enjoy how the author handled the ending, giving the characters a happy ending while also allowing them to grow individually.

My Mechanical Romance reminded me a bit of Ali Hazelwood's STEM romances for adults, and this book is a good option for teens. I'd also recommend to fans of Nothing Can Possibly Go Wrong by Prudence Shen and Faith Erin Hicks.

I love a good YA romance, and I really liked how this one had more depth with real struggles. Not just surface level issues.
Teo and bel were so cute together. I loved the banter between them. The characters had such great chemistry together. I loved seeing them bond over robotics.

I’m deducting a star only because I feel like the “fall out” was just ehh. Like just a fall out for the sake of having one in there. But overall, I would recommend this one.

Thank you NetGalley, the publishers, and Alexene Farol Follmuth for a copy in exchange for an honest review.

i'll give the book 3 stars. The writing was okay, and the romance was average. Nothing remarkable, but was an enjoyable read. The Filipino rep was terrible. I think it was a decent YA book.

Extremely extremely late to giving a review on this book. But here goes.
I read this book in one sitting which is insane because I normally try my best to stay away from young romance novels.
Oh my God you guys, I'm not really into the science thing because I really don't like it, but this book was amazing.
The representation was spot on, and I love how each character that was necessary was given enough "screen time"
This book deserves nothing less than 5 stars

I'm going to be honest, it was the title that drew me to it as a massive MCR fan back in the day! That and the cover is beautiful but when I read the synopsis I got even more excited because STEM!

My Mechanical Romance is like Robot Wars with romance as well as a realistic look at what the world of STEM is like, particularly for women and people of colour. While Neelam might seem unlikeable to some given how hostile she is to Bel, she's integral to illustrating to Bel that the world of STEM isn't going to be a walk in the park but luckily the girls have one of their teachers, Ms. Voss to encourage them which was beautiful to see.

Bel was a super easy MC to relate to, she isn't sure what she wants or what she's doing and I think that's something a lot of people, teens or older, do struggle with at times. It was so satisfying to see her figure it all out and come into her own with it.

I really loved the banter and the chemistry between Teo and Bel, I shipped them so bad and I liked that Teo could open up to Bel and be different with her than the others and that Bel wasn't going to just go along with Teo and she pushed back against him.

While it did take me a little to get into this book, I really enjoyed it ultimately and the romance was really cute!

This romance was so cute and funny. The characters were all interesting and unique and I found myself rooting for them individually, not just for the relationship. The STEM themes were really well done and I enjoyed the commentary about sexism in the field.

Overall, really enjoyed this book and would definitely read more YA from this author!

edit : it has come to my attention that the filo rep wasn't depicted well and i can't say i was a huge fan of the indian rep either.

although the beginning is a bit difficult to get into, this book picked up quickly and was a wonderful journey right till the acknowledgements. bel and teo had a great dynamic but labeling them as academic rivals to lovers was a wrong choice since they had one argument which was sorted out pretty quickly. however, i loved how the sexism in STEM was tackled.

This was such a lovely book with lots of important topics, mostly concerning college and leaving high school, which should be represented more. I enjoyed how it handled all of these, and the characters all felt very mature and realistic. I really adored this book..

The romance was adorable and the ideal representation of what a relationship ought to be like. Although there will always be conflicts and obstacles, communication is essential, and I loved how they understood this and began to discuss their issues more. I find the writing quite adorable and the characters quite relatable. I just love these nerds!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with the arc in exchange for a review!