I wanted to like this read, the description sounded cute and exactly like something I'd pick up.

Unfortunately, the story just didn't flow for me and I ended up DNFing for a week before picking it up because of lingering questions. The couple was super hard to root for with all their drama, and the in the ended I hated the mmc. As other reviews have stated he was MARRIED THE WHOLE TIME!!!!!!!!!! and if you can some how bring yourself to ignore that he ran so hot and cold, and basically punished the FMC because her family grew up wealthy.

Overall, it wasn't my cup of tea.

A fairly decent one night almost stand to enemies to lovers tale. I wasn't too crazy about the heroine, and the age gap got to me a little. But the plot stood up.

title: Once Upon an Algorithm

author: Clara O'Connor

publisher: One More Chapter

publication date: January 19, 2024

pages: 329

peppers: 3 (on this scale)

warnings: none

summary: While at her friend's bachelorette trip, Lenora has one weird night with Jack in Paris. Then, it turns out that she has to work with him on developing and launching an app her step-brother has borrowed money from her step-father to create. If she fails to help with the app, her step-father and mother will be financially ruined.

tropes: 

I'll never see you again
evil step-sibling
raised by a single mom
doesn't fit in with step family
keeping big secrets

what I liked: there were some funny lines in this book

what I didn’t like:

The main character changed her mind a lot, was self-centered, and wouldn't listen to people.
There was too much technical talk/jargon about the app and people developing it. It seemed like she was trying to get the same readers who likely Ali Hazelwood's books without having AH's talent for creating likable characters in STEM.
This book would have been more enjoyable with a more ruthless editor; 25% shorter would vastly improve it.

overall rating: 2 (of 5 stars)

I absolutely love these characters! Leonie is smart, but complicated with a huge chip onn her shoulder and prone to assuming things. Jack is… the same. Misunderstandings ensue, as they always do, and I get whiplash from all the emotional about-faces… but that’s what makes them interesting. We have a great cast of friends (the chat Greek Chorus), and some real personal growth- which is basically my catnip. I love watching characters grow- learn to think differently, begin to heal from their past, just grow up… all of it. I found this book fairly satisfying in that reguard.

Leonie’s family life is complicated- her feelings about the step father that swept her single mother off her feet. I love that she can see how good he is for her mother at all times, but at the same time can at least acknowledge the fact that his money money and excessive generosity made her uncomfortable. Growing up never feeling like you belong…this would put walls up. Mike was unexpected. Hardly the evil step-father but one that simply tried to hard and didn’t know how to connect. I loved that he and Leonie could talk, that he cared about her so much. Eric, though, is almost cliche in his evil stepbrother/ spoiled rich boy persona. I nearly found his sections difficult to get through- I understand the need, for the plot he was absolutely necessary, but it didn’t make his addition to the story any less cliche. Still, it was a charming, funny fast read that checked all my rom-com needs. I would give it a four.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rating: 4 out of 5.
As far as adult content, there’s a lot. Drinking, language, and sexual content (Level three spice, and still way more time spent on building the relationship than writing sex scenes). Trigger warnings: gaslighting and possible cheating. There was nothing too over the top, I would say new adult and up.


I was lucky enough to receive an eARC of this book from Netgalley and One More Chapter in exchange for an honest review. My thanks.

When what was supposed to be a one night stand with someone completely not your type turns into a life lesson!

It's been a while since I've read a single POV book so it took me a couple of chapters to get into the book but once I kept reading I ate it all up.

I felt there was multiple lessons to be learnt while reading this book. They weren't only romantic ones but also life ones. While reading this there were times where I would sit and think about what happened.

I enjoyed the chemistry of the 2 characters and would like to read more from the author.

Unfortunately, this was a DNF for me.

I just really struggled to get behind the style of writing and found the abundance of characters overwhelming from the get go. There was just no spark for me in what was happening and I loveeee a book that has female friendships rooted in the centre!

Interesting concept that unfortunately did not deliver for me.

Once Upon an Algorithm by Clara O’Connor blends the spicy elements of a love story with the backdrop of the tech world. Leonie, an American living in London, embarks on a romantic journey guided by a dating app. However, her list of preferences is challenged when she finds herself in Paris with Jack, a brooding stranger who doesn't fit her criteria but sparks undeniable chemistry.
The plot thickens as Leonie starts a new job at a tech startup, only to discover that Jack is working there too. The narrative skillfully weaves geeky tech speak into the romance, making it a compelling read for those who enjoy both chick lit and a touch of technology.
The story remains engaging, exploring themes of love, humor, and the complexities of modern dating.
Leonie and Jack, navigate through constant misunderstandings and confrontations stemming from their backgrounds. The step brother adds an extra layer of irritation, making readers root for Leonie to stand up for herself.
Once Upon an Algorithm offers a blend of romance and tech, creating a captivating reading experience with an intriguing plot.

She almost gave up on ever finding someone, but her friends are not letting it go. When they go on a trip they download a new dating app and insert the opposite of all the things she would like in a guy.

The dating app leads her to meet a mysterious stranger. He is younger, but the sparks between them are undeniable.

They ran into each other again, but this time at her new job.

I liked the storyline at first, but there were some things that I just couldn't get past and I didn't like the male MC.

Freaking PERFECTION. 10/10. This was just so so good. I couldn’t get enough of it and wanted a thousand more pages of this. I am so glad I read this. For any fans of Ali Hazelwood, this is for you.

This started off as a good idea. A woman looking for her perfect man ends up going on a date with someone a complete opposite from her “list”.

But that’s about the only thing I liked about the book. It was described as a rom com but there wasn’t any comedy to be found. The main character has rude friends, a step brother who belittles her, and then finds out she was lied to the whole time.

I was hoping for another Ali Hazelwood, but it definitely was not.

I'm a simple woman: the synopsis says for fans of Sally Thorne and Ali Hazelwood, I request the ARC! Once Upon An Algorithm is a contemporary romance book that has a complex rollercoaster of a relationship between the STEM FMC, Leonie, and a STEM MMC, Jack. Their rollercoaster could be summed up in tropes by strangers to lovers to enemies to lovers! That's a whole lot of movement! There are also some other tropes such as age gap, witty banter, and workplace romance, which all make for a really interesting read!
I really enjoyed the beginning and middle of this book because the chemistry was 🔥 BUT the ending was a little hard to read.... I can't say much because of spoilers but it was a really interesting turn of events that I was NOT expecting and didn't really love... BUT you definitely get the anxiety of wondering if this book would be an HEA or not! 👀
Thank you so much to One More Chapter and Harper Collins UK for a free e-ARC of this wild ride of a book!💖

The first thing I noticed in the beginning of the book was that I couldn't really picture what was going on because there wasn't enough description of the characters' surroundings. There was too much exposition about their lives that I felt could have been explained differently. Show don't tell. Or use dialogue to explain it. Next, I noticed that the dialogue was using the wrong kind of quotes. It used single quotes (') instead of the standard double quotes ("). Third, it's written in the present tense instead of the standard past tense.

I didn't like the plot of the story. Stella sets up Leonie for a date with someone the opposite of what she likes. Stella used Leonie's phone and set up the date even as Leonie protested and said no. Her date, Jack, is creepy and not nice. He does things like kissing her without her consent. Leonie doesn't like him, yet she still falls for him because of his looks.

There aren't enough dialogue tags. Sometimes I can't tell who's saying what.

I really like the premise of this story but I felt mislead about our main female character due to not knowing her age and that this is an age gap romance. I personally don’t like age gap so I would have loved to know that up front before reading. Because of that I just couldn’t connect to the MFC like I was hoping to. While her emotions in parts connected to me there were others I couldn’t relate to. I did think this had some funny moments with her friends and the banter she and Jack have. But unfortunately because this played on a trope I don’t like much at all it was a no from me. This though would be a perfect book for those that do love a stem romance with an age gap.

It started very well. In her late 30s woman, with high standards and confidence. She went to Paris with her friends and she met through dating app with Jack. They spent the night together and then there was a lot of miscommunication. Which irritated me all the time.

It was also too tech for me. I skipped a lot, I understand some stuff, but not much.

I was promised a romance rom-com. But I got a sad story. And I was so angry. I wanted to punch Jack all the time. In the end, I would punch in the nuts and walk away. I would have been happier if this wasn't HEA. If it had a dramatic end.

But still, I wanted to read it, it was entertaining and kept me on hook. I was so angry all the time. At Eric, at Jack at Leonie. You were supposed to be strong and smart woman and you let some rich stepbrother walk over you, not okay.

The writing style was good and the story was fast-paced. I think I gave it 3 stars because I was angry with the characters. But anger is better than no emotion, right?

*An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review. Thank you Netgalley and HarperCollinsUK

Okay so the blurb and cover of the book were looking promising but unfortunately I wasn't feeling this book. The language was pretty complicated and the writing was hard to get into. Then there were these long monologues of Leonie which went on and on and I really lost my interest at that. Also, the side characters were terrible especially her mom and stepbrother. I did not like them one bit. Her friends too were too eccentric and I couldn't imagine them as people in their forties because they were way too immature and their behaviour was very weird tbh. Then comes the issue with Jack, he was a cheater and I can't stand those. Hard to believe he was the MMC because there was nothing likeable in home, at least to me. And he did not even tell her that he was married, she had found out after her stepbrother told her. Seriously, not any single character was remotely likeable and this book has potential but it got completely ruined. I wish I had read all the reviews before getting into this book because it was nothing but a huge waste of my time. I quit reading after I found out that he was married and lied about it.

This was a simple, fun, easy and quick read. The perfect type of book for your holiday, beach, pool kind of read. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

I will always stand by a romance! Nice fun little read, read it in one sitting. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book.

This is not going to be very constructive criticism, but after having received this book from NetGalley, I decided to read the reviews. “Cheating MMC” and “Warning: Do Not Read” scared me and honestly gave me a bad taste in my mouth even before starting the novel. Why do we praise such tropes?? So gross. I attempted to read this, but the knowledge of that trope made me DNF it after 10%. This isn’t a very valid review, but I want the author to consider these comments when writing their next novel. Which I hope does not include a cheating mmc!

Ps why can’t we give 0 stars boo

I was really enjoying this book, until about 69% through and then I had to force myself to finish it. Honestly, it broke my heart, and not in a good way. There was nothing romantic about the book, as hard as I wanted to find it, and the comedy went out the window as soon as (insert spoiler here) happened and I just, I wanted to love this book but I was left really wishing for a different *gestures to multiple parts but I don't want to spoil it for those that do read it and love it* than this one had.

E-arc provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

2.5 stars

Tried my best to give this an honest chance but it just ain’t it for me. The synopsis sounded so exciting but this failed to hit the mark. The writing was slow and I just couldn’t connect with the characters and the plot, especially Jack. Also the fact that he’s married? MARRIED?? And whatever happened did so while he was married? What a mess