"The Unbalanced Equation" by H.L. Macfarlane is an enemies to lovers Romance novel. This novel was rather straight forward and the supporting cast of characters/side stories was a good deal of fun. My biggest struggle with this novel was the 2 main characters Liz and Tom...they got on my nerves from nearly the very beginning and never really found their way off. I found it as if their entire story was deception and over dramatics and it was really hard to care about them. The issue with the main characters is unfortunate because the supporting characters were so great and I felt as if the story had potential but fell very short of what it could have achieved.

The Unbalanced Equation follows Liz as she starts a new job after her PhD, however the perfect job gets turned upside down when she has to share her workspace with her PhD supervisor, Tom, who made her life hell for 4 years.
Overall, this was a cute love story with a successful woman in STEM (which I love), good banter and some lovely characters (Daichi, I'm looking at you). However, Tom is incredibly toxic from the start. He knowingly made every bad decision rather than communicating honestly and openly. He took everything in Liz's life and turned it around to suit him and his agenda. For someone so smart, he's so dumb.
For this reason, it is not my favourite book but I did enjoy it in the end and the plot, and all the other characters, massively kept me going. I just couldn't help rooting for Liz to meet someone better.

After being a little unsure and tentative at the beginning, I ended up really liking this one! Some of the circumstances felt a little ridiculous but I love a trope so I didn't mind that much. Once I got into it, I literally could not put it down. The themes of complicated grief and forgiveness were very well tackled and I loved those elements of the story. I will definitely recommend this to my friends.

Tom and Liz first met at a social event and they hit it off. A spilled drink accident results in Liz disappearing before he manages to ask her out. Fast forward years later, we find out that Liz hates Tom as he has made her life miserable from the moment he was appointed to be her PhD assessor. She thinks she has finally broken free from his clutches and can spread her wings and fly away; away from him.

But fate has a different say. An accidental fire in his lab, throws them into working together once again; right on the same bench. And life has one more little throwball to cross their paths together. Can the fractured be repaired after all this time?
 
The story was engaging and structed well. The flow was smooth and not to detailed in scientisty biologyish talk, so for us non-genetic scientists speakers, we can read and be able to enjoy the story. The side characters added quite some flavor to the story; their parents and colleagues at the lab. It was really nice to see glimpses of people from their circles and their interactions with them in and outside the lab environment.
 
Personally, I liked Liz more than Tom. Enjoyed her intellectual ambition, quick wit, and sweetness. The chemistry between these two was off the charts. The banter and comebacks were great and it managed to stay strong throughout the story. I’m always a sucker for good banter in a story. I could have done with some of the miscommunications, but their interactions made up for it a bit … somehow. Additionally, it had it moments when it handled their grief. Sympathized with them both on their losses and the feelings residing due to so.
 
Okay, flipping to the other side of the coin. So the pace of this one took me a bit of time to get into it. Also, there were some irritating situations and some questionable immature decisions taken which kind of swayed me with this one. The parent matter as well had me pausing in a do-I-like-it-or-do-I-not moment. However nevertheless, it was a good fun book which I am glad I did have the chance to read.
 
Thank you to Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review.

Gahhhhhh! Super loved this book! These two are now part of my favourite couples forever! The chemistry they had ever since the beginning, the fact that they could both nerd-out to each other, and the bedroom scenes were sooooo hot I burned…ahhhhh, I love them! This book was really sweet too and, although Liz and Tom were smashing together, the plot really showed the ups and downs that they had in their relationship. I really liked how the book showed that life isn’t perfect and neither are relationships but it’s trying to get better and foster relationships that’s key. The flaws of both Liz and Tom were clear as daylight and it was nice that they weren’t downplayed or hidden, instead, they were accepted as a part of the person and both Liz and Tom did their best throughout their story to become better people. It was a great and fun romance, and the laughs/giggles and grins that came over me as I read it were too many to count! A romance worth picking up!

Ein richtig süßer, humorvoller Liebesroman. Ein typischer "Erz-Feinde" weden Liebespaar Setting. Die Geschichte erinnert ein bisschen an das letzte Buch von Ali Hazelwood.

The Unbalanced Equation | H. L. Macfarlane
A cheeky rivals/stepsiblings to lovers with a side of cozy winter academia.

Tomorrow won’t come soon enough for Dr. Elizabeth Maclean to get some distance from her grumpy PhD assessor, Dr Thomas Henderson. Unfortunately, the combination of unattended equipment destroying his lab, a surprise family engagement and an eviction notice means that coveted space is out of the question.

Some of my favorite tropes are represented – close proximity, enemies to lovers, and “I didn’t know you were THAT rich” with a sickeningly generous helping of off-the-charts chemistry. I loved watching sour turn sweet with flowers and gifts – and teetering on the edge of my seat to see if (or when) the would get caught in all of their sneaking around in plain sight!

I loved the wintery setting and characters who know what they want – a relatively quick read with ups and downs, hot and cold emotions and a happy ending with lovers you know were always meant to be.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

I really enjoyed this! Such a cute balance of cheesey romcom and fun!
The character development made me worry a little in the beginning but I love the having to work together but falling for each other trope and the fact it's a stem area ticked all of the boxes for me.
Fans of Ali Hazelwood will enjoy
4/5*

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced review copy in exchange for my honest opinion. 

The Unbalanced Equation was such an enjoyable read. A four-star read that includes,
-STEM Romance
-Hate to love'
- Workplace romance
- Forced proximity 

Elizabeth Maclean and Dr. Thomas Henderson have an undeniable chemistry which they both pent down for four years when he becomes her PhD assessor. As she is about to leave the scrutiny of Tom his lab has burned down and now has to work alongside Liz on the same bench no less. To make matters worse they learn that their widowed parents are engaged, and they are soon to be step siblings. Liz didn't think her luck could get anymore terrible, but her landlord kicks her out with a three days' notice and has no other choice to move in with Tom, and their parents. 

The book is set in Scotland which in my opinion what made Liz and Tom's banter grittier, funny and all together made their attraction fly off the pages! It did start slow in the beginning but once the main characters got up to their antics and the tension between them got more prominent, I couldn't put it down. I love some tension!

I also loved seeing the relationship they have with each of their parents. Tom loses his dad to cancer and Liz her mom so if parent death is sensitive topic, I'd be weary but I thought it was written very well and I enjoyed how supportive they are of their parent's engagement.  The book's biggest trope is the miscommunication trope, the main characters time and time again have to be told by their loved ones to own up to their feelings and things they shouldn't have done. Usually it really irks me but I enjoyed how it was written in the plot. 

My favorite plot point and the reason why I would recommend this book is Tom and Liz' view on marriage and kids. It was nice to see something other than the standard HEA and it was ultimately more relatable.

The Unbalanced Equation
Author: H. L. Macfarlane

eARC & Book Review
Publish Date: September 15, 2022

We love a STEM-romance combo!

The Unbalanced Equation follows Elizabeth "Liz" Maclean, a postdoc, and her formerPhD assessor, Dr Thomas "Tom" Henderson. After suffering under Tom's scrutiny for four years, Liz is finally free of him as she begins her postdoc - or so she thought. After Tom's lab goes up in flames (shoutout to the undergrads), Tom has no choice but to share a lab bench with Liz...for three whole months.

Just when you think things couldn't get any worse, they do! Much to the duo's dismay, the find out (together) that Liz's dad and Tom's mom are getting married! Combine sharing a workspace, engaged parents, and having to live together (read and you'll find out why!), emotions come to light about why Tom acts the way he does.

This is a smart, spicy rom-com that combines enemies to lovers and forced proximity all wrapped in a STEM-themed bow. For fans of The Hating Game, The Love Hypothesis, and Love on the Brain, this one is for you!

This truly was such a lighthearted, sexy read! It had a great pace and was truly a fun book.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the free ecopy. This review is wholly my own.

The cover art gave me Ali Hazelwood vibes and that is what hooked me, plus the enemies to loves story line, but man, this book was a bit of a letdown. The characters were completely unlikeable. They are extremely annoying and hard to stomach.

This book is compared to The Love Hypothesis and The Hating Game and while there were similarities in the storyline, please don't degrade those other two books by comparing with this one.

I will start off by saying I did enjoy the story. I just wish it lived up to its full potential. For me, the enemies part never materialized. The prologue to Chapter 1 jump just skipped over all of it. We got the meet cute, then we jump to she hates him because he has been rude to her all without us seeing any of it. We never see the antagonism between them and are just expected to be on her side because she keeps telling her friends and family how horrible he is. I wanted to be more invested. As a result, when things finally do get spicy, I'm not really as into it as I want to be. There's not a big character transformation for either of them because he's just been being "fake mean" the whole time, and we never see any of it. I just wanted more. More enemies/fighting/meanness, more character depth, more payoff when the spice hits... more everything!

If you love Ali Hazelwood then this is the book for you! Macfarlane mixes romance with science in this deliciously sweet romance. An enemies to lovers, forced proximity romance between Liz and Tom leads to a lot of arguments and misunderstandings, but it is not without it's warm moments too. The Unbalanced Equation was a fun read, though some of Tom's actions were certainly reputable, I did overall enjoy the book.

The hype is strong with this one and it didn´t disappoint.

Forced proximity and enemies to lovers are two of my favorite tropes and even though I wouldn´t considered Tom and Liz to be enemies, cause he doesn´t hate her, he´s just really dumb for a scientist.

Olive is a very relatable character, a sweetheart I adored her throughout the whole book.
Tom on the other hand deserves a good smack for how dense he is, it´s like looking at a teen doing puppy eyes to his teacher.

The story is super cute and the reason for the close proximity is hilarious and ridiculous but it certainly helps to make this book entertaining. The level off scientific detail that the author put into this book leads me to believe that she has background in that area.

The age gap between the characters is BIG but at the end works great and makes all of Tom´s dumb moments to be even funnier.

I loved this book and for sure will be in the lookout for more books from this author.
This book is a quick, fluffy read that had me glued to the pages, couldn’t put it down.

I do not mean to sound bitter but, I was promised a "A Smart, sexy enemies-to-lovers story perfect for fans of The Hating Game and The Love Hypothesis' and I did not get the smart part or the enemies-to-lovers part. This seemed to be another fanfiction, like The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood (which was very well written but was a bit triggering for me in some aspects).
I loved loved how badass the FMC was, the humour was on point, and the sexual tension was steamy, pun intended.

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, because the enemies-to-lovers part was, to put it plainly, a disaster and the STEM part was almost non-existent and blander than porridge, a mere excuse for the characters to engage in conversation. The plot was cliche and not to mention that age gap, honestly, I was not prepared for it. I could've ignored it if it wasn't in my face every time the male mc had his PoV.

The attraction between the two MCs was mostly sexual with little to no character development. Also, most of their conversations happened when at least one of them was drunk or intoxicated.

Overall, the plot was very cliche and any fanfiction reader could've seen this from a mile away. 2/5, not my cup of coffee.

In the vein of Ali Hazelwood, The Unbalanced Equation is a delightfully nerdy rom/com. Liz and Tom meet and hit it off the day before he finds out he'll be her assessor for her graduate program. After a tortured several years, Liz finally graduates and is free of Tom... Or so she thinks. Then life finds every way to throw them together. Liz is unapologetically nerdy and firm in her convictions. Tom for his part is simultaneously sweet and frustrating. Overall the book came together in a telling that was hard to put down.
#netgalley #theunbalancedequation

Anyone out there looking for an “enemies to lovers to enemies to step-siblings to lovers book”? Very specific trope isn’t it? This book really has it all. Great banter, steamy sex, some amazing groveling, step siblings who hook up and nobody thinks that it’s weird. Overall, this was a big winner for me.

Tom and Liz are geneticists forced to share a lab bench after Tom’s lab burns down. Liz hates Tom bc he was her PhD assessor and acted like a big dickwad bc he had a crush on her yet has the emotional maturity of a 6 yo. Tom and Liz find out that their widowed parents are engaged to each other and as fate would have it, they all end up moving into Tom’s luxurious townhouse together. Things get steamy fast as the crazy genetcists are attracted to each other like cytosine is to guanine (#dnahumor), but then Tom blows it all up bc he’s a child who makes bad decisions. Neither of these two boneheads could effectively communicate their feelings…even all the other characters in the book were telling them to stop being fuckwits and just talk to each other. Despite their flaws, I still rooted for Tom and Liz and loved their chemistry. Would def recommend this one…I’ll say it was a tad slow for me to get into, but once I did I couldn’t put it down.

Allow me to step on my soapbox for a moment- why does at least one character in a romance have to have a dead parent? Walt Disney started this trend with all his princesses and it has carried over into romance novels and I don’t love it one bit. For some people this is a trigger and we use smut as an escape. It’s hard to escape reality when there are dead parents littering the pages of our favorite romance novels. It was a necessary evil for this plot bc the main characters’ widowed parents met and married, thus joining them as sexed up step siblings- so I forgive. But many times, it’s just used as a reason for one MC to be sad/lonely/messy/etc and I’m tired of it. The end.

Smut- 3.13 stars
Romance- 4.82 stars
Story- 4.75 stars
Hot and horny Scottish men as step-brothers with benefits- 17.39 stars

Enemies to lovers trope. A favorite of mine though in The Unbalanced Equation the enemy part is really just on Liz’s side. Liz dislikes Tom with a passion. After they met at a party, he became her PhD assessor and was super tough on her. He had his reasons though she does not know. Now, due to a fire in a lab, they are working in close proximity to each other. It gets better in the fact that their parents have been dating and are now getting married. Liz’s landlord asks her to vacate her apartment, so she moves in with Tom. It is a enemies to lovers trope but also a close proximity one.
I really enjoyed this book a lot. The characters were well written. Looking back on the author’s other books, this book seems to stray away from what she usually writes about. I have not read her other works, but I think she really killed it. Out of the two characters, I preferred Tom to Liz when it comes to attitude but I do understand the issue for the chip on Liz’s shoulder.
The Unbalanced Equation has funny parts, nerdy parts, and hot steamy parts. This is definitely not a closed door romance. I recommend this to anyone looking for a nice, quick, hot read.
Thanks to NetGalley, BooksGoSocial, and H.L. Macfarlane for the e-ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

I utterly enjoyed myself during this one. Fun and super easy to get through. Some anime references that I didn’t follow, but it doesn’t take away from the story. Spicy scenes are explicit but they weren’t super long 🥺.

No epic plot, but it was a great pallet cleanser with a side of escapism.

Special thanks to Netgalley and BooksGoSocial for this digital ARC.

18+ always check content warnings

The only reason I finished this was for net galley.
This book was so slow and I hate Tom.
He’s a waking red flag. Not even just the childish crux of the enemies to lovers. Because god forbid he control himself or report a conflict of interest sometime in the last four years. Or the fact that he was in her phone controlling her dating life and housing situation. He is way too controlling and it is concerning. He makes everything about him and sucks at being a decent human.

Characters: 24
Plot: 30
Overall: 37

- enemies to lovers
- coworkers
- woman in stem
- forced proximity
- a controlling walking red flag