3.5 - thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book. This is a cutesy little read with some heavy themes behind it. Overall, I really enjoyed the story, even though I think there are moments where I felt very frustrated with the characters and like the story was getting a bit repetitive.

I loved this book so much! It was like a more fun, lighthearted modern version of the X-Files. Hayden was such a great character as well.

This review has been posted on my Goodreads and Instagram
✨ARC Review 3.5 Stars ✨
Publishing Date: August 20,2024

“Sometimes the truth is the real story. It’s all a matter of what you believe. Some people trust what they’re told, some of us don’t”

Brief Summary-
A fun and quirky debut rom com you follow two very different main characters. You have Hallie who is down bad and looking for promising new storyline for her job so she stumbles upon Hayden a big cinnamon roll conspiracy theorist. She sets up a meeting with Hayden to see if they would work together in a show based around finding, Bigfoot, aliens and all sorts if cryptids. Hayden agree only if Hallie will be his co-host.

What To Expect
👽Aliens
👽Spooky & Cryptid Hunting
👽Cinnamon Roll Love Interest
👽YouTube Web Series Co- Host
👽One Bed
👽Forced Proximity
👽Work Environment Romance

My Thoughts:
I like to wear a tin foil hat to some degree. So to read a romance novel centered around the MMC being a conspiracy theorist was interesting. The plot was so entertaining and paced really well. It was fun to read about aliens and Bigfoot etc. This was a somewhat lighthearted read and certainly goofy. But the subplot held some heavy weight. With that being said I really enjoyed this book.

Hayden & Hallie were such fun and likable characters. The banter between these two will have you blushing and kicking your feet in the air. I loved witnessing Hallie’s growth throughout the book 🥹

This story is told from Hallie’s POV and I really wish it was told in a Dual POV.

I definitely recommend this read, if you want a quick, quirky and some spice this book is for you.

Playlist-
👻You’re On Your Own Kid- Taylor Swift
👻Just A Girl- No Doubt
👻Basket Case- Green Day
👻What’s My Age Again- Blink 182
👻American Idiot- Green Day
👻Semi Charmed Life- Third Eye Blind
👻My Own Worst Enemy- Lit
👻The Middle- Jimmy Eat World
👻Drive- Incubus
👻Champange Problems- Taylor Swift
👻You’ve Got The Love- Florence and The Machine
👻Too Sweet- Hozier
👻Sweet Creature- Harry Style
👻Slow Burn- Kacey Musgraves
👻Work Song- Hozier
👻Iris- The Goo Goo Dolls

I’m a huge fan of all things conspiracy and cryptid so this book seemed like it would be right up my alley. It’s an extremely easy read and enjoyable for the most part. I did find out mc a bit tedious at times. Like we get it… you don’t believe. You don’t have to keep going on and on ya know? But besides that it was a silly fun time. I enjoyed it :)

This book was right up my alley! Aliens, cryptids, conspiracies and ghosts, a sort of paranormal romance, just a few of my favorite things. A wonderful debut that appealed to my inner Millennial!

Hallie is definitely not on the conspiracy train, but when a work opportunity presents itself, she jumps at the chance to adapt The Out There podcast into a web series, featuring the swoony tattooed host, Hayden Hargrove. Hallie and Hayden get along great, she brings out his on screen charm and their budding relationship makes the show hugely popular with its audience.

I enjoyed this plot quite a lot, it was a little bit silly but also had a lot of heart. Hallie was very relatable, dealing with the aftermath of a toxic relationship and learning to remove that person’s influence from her life. On the other hand, Hayden was now starting to let people in after taking care of his ailing father for many years.

I loved the connection they had from the start and that they build this great friendship before starting to fall for each other. The writing was catchy and witty, Hallie really had some good lines and comebacks, but Hayden also saves the day a couple times! He was very sweet and smart, in that tortured hero kinda way.

I have a small knowledge of the conspiracies mentioned and always loved X Files and Ghost Hunters/Adventures, so I was immensely entertained by all the alien and cryptid facts and jokes. It was a great time all around and I’m counting down to read Mallory’s next book!

Thank you to Berkley for the giveaway copy to review!

Such a fun romance, a conspiracy theorist and a nonbeliever - the perfect couple! I loved their banter, it was a quick read and just delightful!

I LOVED this book!

The main characters had so much chemistry and their backstories made them even more interesting and likable. I think this is such a fun read and a cute romance. The smut level isn’t huge, there are just a few scenes but it’s worth it! The way that Hallie and Hayden respect each others boundaries, don’t push one another past their limits, and just listen to eachother is so heartwarming. I did not once find myself annoyed with either person while reading (which is pretty rare tbh).

The only thing that I didn’t really enjoy was how geared towards the younger generation the language that was sometimes used was. It’s a book about an online tv platform so of course it’s gonna be more modern day with language but some of the terms used did make me cringe just a little bit.

Also - Cade can go to hell.

This book hooked me in from the first chapter. I loved the character development and how the story progressed.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley Romance for the ARC!

I absolutely adore this book! The romance is so well written, and it fed my cryptid-loving heart. The blend of banter, humor, romance, and conspiracy was masterclass. Hallie and Hayden are such loveable characters, and I happily spent the entire book rooting for them (and was so glad it had a guaranteed HEA). LoOC is a refreshing take on classic, loved tropes with hilarious adventures and believable romance. An easy five stars for sure!

this! was! so! much! fun! i don’t think there is any crazy overlap between xfiles fans and romance readers but!!! for anyone out there who loves the xfiles and lovessss spooky mulder with his unwavering belief in ~extraterrestrials~ and scully with her unwavering skepticism and ALLL the banter that came with it, this book is for you!!! and for anyone just looking for a fun romance read that’s a little different than your typical contemporary romance i would def recommend giving this a shot!
hayden and hallie were such fun and likeable characters!! the plot was so entertaining and paced really well! and even though this book is relatively lighthearted and goofy and full of delicious banter and giggling and kicking your feet worthy moments it has such a great amount of depth to balance it out! i absolutely loved watching hallie’s growth throughout the story and seeing hayden’s vulnerability and protectiveness !!
AND! i mean i’m just always going to be a sucker for a “he washes her hair” niche micro trope what can i say? i’m just a girl?

a knock out debut from mallory marlowe! cannot wait to see what she does next!!

**thank you so so so much to netgalley and berkley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review**

I finished this after being in a major slump, and it ended up being absolutely so cute!! Any time you have two people absolutely nerding out on their passions and lifting each other up in what makes them happy - you can root for the character's romance.

(But also, as a Kentuckian, I'm pretty sure we're obligated to think anything with Big Foot on the cover is adorable. It's all over our state parks, etc., and it's hilarious. Legends, myths, and tall tales abound in our mountainous regions!)

**Thank you to Berkley & NetGalley for the advanced reader copy. I received this book for free, but all thoughts are my own. – SLR 🖤

Is it too early to call this the best RomCom of 2024? This book is hilarious and the romance is perfectly swoony. Love and Other Conspiracy Theories warmed my cold dead heart. As a lover of the Mothman, this will probably become one of my comfort reads.

Hallie is a producer for an online media corp. She is in need of a new show when she stumbles on a hot man talking about conspiracy theories on late night tv. That hot man is Hayden and he is the nerd of my dreams. Hallie and Hayden create a show where they search for cryptids like Bigfoot and Mothman. Their banter is top-tier and the chemistry gave me butterflies. Just two weirdos falling in love 🥰

Throughout the book both Hallie and Hayden rely on each other to help heal from their past traumas. Hallie’s personal growth is so heartwarming 🥹

I recommend this to everyone that loves The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary and You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle…… aka 2 of my favorite books!

Thank you to Berkley Publishing and Netgalley for letting me read this masterpiece! 🤍👽🛸

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️.5

For starters, thank you SO much NetGalley and Berkley for approving my very first ARC. Beyond thankful for the opportunity. 🫶🏼

If you’re a fan of the X-Files, ghost hunting, think conspiracy theories are a fun out of the box way of thinking, or maybe you’re true believers, this one’s absolutely for you. I loved this one so much. I remember as kid having a random period of being obsessed with aliens/UFOs. This made my inner child so happy.

When I first heard of Love and Other Conspiracies a few months back, I knew this was going to be good. Oh boy, it exceeded expectations. Dare I say, I was even educated on some of these conspiracies. Soo fun! Also, I was spooked by a few haunted scenes. (Not me putting my kindle down to turn on a light 🤭).

Hayden is a total cinnamon roll cat daddy with tattoos who is down bad for Hallie. They have amazing banter and chemistry. Hayden is so passionate about these theories and Hallie is a non-believer, but totally believes in Hayden.

Cannot wait for this to officially come out August 20, 2024. Do yourself a favor and pre-order now! 👽💚🛸

⚠️ TW: grief of a father/parent, toxic past relationships, workplace harassment.

Despite being in the camp of mostly non believers (aliens have to be real - space is too big for them not to be), I LOVED Love and Other Conspiracies! We meet Hallie after a rough break up; Hayden at a low point in his life as well. Through developing a web series about conspiracies and cryptids, they find a healing love - one that does not attempt to erase what they’ve been through but where they see each other as whole and find ways through the hurt together. The spice level is low, but not nonexistent, and you will fall a bit for both Hallie and Hayden by the end of the book. For a book built on kind of an Out There topic (😏), Love and Other Conspiracies has emotional depth that hits just right, reminding me of some of my other top authors.

If you enjoy Chloe Liese, the Brown Sisters series by Talia Hibbert, or the depth of Anita Kelly’s writing, this may be a new fav for you too!

This was one of my first ARCs I’ve ever gotten and it was amazing! I was a little doubtful when it said that the mmc was a conspiracy theorist with a podcast, I’m not a huge Bigfoot believer myself. Being completely honest, I thought this was going to be my least favorite ARC (which I why I saved it for last) but it was actually my favorite! The writer handled romance so well, not rushing right into it but actually giving the characters some chemistry. One of my biggest icks is when the author gives all of the emotion to the fmc and the mmc’s just standing there with no emotion like 🧍‍♂️ However !! This was not the case. All of the characters were really well done and you can tell that the author spent a lot of hours of character development. I found myself laughing out loud many times throughout the book because it was that enjoyable ! Oftentimes I find humor in romance books cringy, but the jokes in this book were really funny.

The only way I can describe the author's writing style is if you combined Emily Henry and Lynn Painter with a little sci-fi. I hope that she never stops writing books because she has a gift and it would be wasted if she didn’t.

I cannot wait until this book comes out for real so I can annotate it completely (the last slide is how much I highlighted).

thank you Mallory for writing this wonderful book, and to NetGalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review

this book comes out August 20th (3 days after my birthday)!!!
*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Love and Other Conspiracies is a cheeky, feel good contemporary romance with originality and flare.

Armed with blue box hair dye and determination to out preform her ex at work, Hallie stumbles upon Hayden. A self proclaimed nerd & weirdo with a podcast on everything strange and unusual. She may not believe in everything (or anything) Hayden does but she believes in his ability to engage an online audience. Together they create something magical and sparks fly from their very first encounter.

In this fast paced, quick witted story you get to see two people find themselves again while looking for the unbelievable and falling in love in the process.

Would I recommend this to others? - Yes
Would I reread this or listen to it on audiobook? - Yes
🌶🌶🌶 out of 5 for spice
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ out of 5 over all

Getting access to this ARC really made my heart so happy and I’m excited to share my thoughts. I love cryptids and aliens and the X-Files. Scully and Mulder are my favs. If you’re into Bigfoot or UFO’s this book is FOR YOU. The relationship and banter between Hallie and Hayden is so good. I could feel the chemistry coming off the page. There were parts of this book that made me smile and laugh out loud. I devoured this book from beginning to end. I can’t wait to read more from this author.

SPECTACULAR!!! Thank you NetGalley, Mallory Marlowe and Berkley Publishing Group for granting me access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

"Love and Other Conspiracies" was an absolute blast!! It's perfect for fans who adore the dynamic between Muller and Scully from "The X-Files" and who have indulged in the world of Roswell. This genuinely distinctive <I>debut</I> romantic comedy expertly blends humor, quirkiness, and heartwarming moments, creating an intriguing and irresistible read for fans of conspiracy theories, cryptid hunting, spooky ghosts, Bigfoot, Mothman, and aliens. Packed with hijinks and heartfelt emotion, the story is enriched with witty banter, magnetic chemistry, passion, dash of spice, a lovable cinnamon roll male main character, opposites attract, workplace romance, the classic "one bed" scenario, and forced proximity, all skillfully woven together to tug at your heartstrings! What truly captivates me about this story is the author's masterful handling of emotional, relatable, and heavy topics, all while adeptly balancing humor in lighter moments. The narrative explores profound and weighty themes, addressing the journey of overcoming a toxic past relationship (emotionally abuse), navigating workplace harassment from an ex-partner, and coping with the loss of a parent. How is this possibly a debut novel? Mallory Marlowe's writing is absolutely stunning leaving me utterly impressed and eagerly anticipating more of her work!! 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

In this enchanting debut romantic comedy, Hallie Barrett, a paranormal conspiracy theorist, and Hayden Hargrove, a web series producer, find themselves in the unlikeliest of circumstances-falling in love. Hallie's life has imploded after being dumped by her coworker and ex, jeopardizing her job as a producer for an online series. Desperate for a new show idea, she crosses paths with Hayden, a charismatic cryptic expert known for his hit podcast. Despite initial skepticism, Hallie sees potential in Hayden and offers him the chance to host his own web series. However, when Hayden's on-screen presence proves lackluster, Hallie steps in front of the camera, injecting both skepticism and undeniable chemistry into the show. As they delve into the mysteries of crypto's and the unknown, their shared adventures unearth feelings that challenge their beliefs and ultimately lead them to a profound discovery of love. Amidst their search for Mothman, aliens, and the truth, they find that the most elusive revelation may just be opening their hearts to love once more.

In conclusion, I adored this book immensely and wholeheartedly recommend it without reservation. It truly surpasses all my expectations, delivering everything one could desire and more in a literary experience. 💫💫💫💫💫

Thank you @netgalley and @berkleypub for the eARC of Love and Other Conspiracies by @mallorymarlowewrites in exchange for an honest review!

📖📖 Book Review 📖📖 Yes, our family’s greatest adventure last year was a day trip to Sutton, West Virginia for the Bigfoot Museum and to visit the site of 1952 Flatwoods Monster sighting (and their amazing museum as well). This book really is for all of the believers and just might make a believer of those skeptics…Los Angeles is a tough city and Hallie is feeling it. When her luck is down and out personally and professionally, she finds charismatic Hayden, a cryptid expert for her next project. What follows is just the perfect rom com with the most unique and wonderful focus on all of the best cryptids. I love love love this book!!!!

Review is posted on Goodreads and will be on Instagram soon!

I need more from Mallory Marlowe, and I need it now.

Hayden is a tattooed cinnamon roll, and I love him. He doesn’t go for the really harmful conspiracies, but is obsessed with cryptids and hauntings. He takes care of Hallie when she gets sick, gives hugs that make me jealous, and isn’t afraid to be a little weird.

Hallie is recovering from an emotionally abusive relationship with a coworker that’s still giving her a hard time, and while she’s very into Hayden she is also quite hesitant. They take it slow, he’s concerned with pleasure and consent, and the spice is more progressive than repetitive. She’s emotionally supportive and gives him comfort when he needs it, because the man isn’t afraid to emote.

The cryptids and conspiracy theories covered include: bigfoot, northman, fresno nightcrawlers, aliens, and more. I’ve added one or two to my insomnia rabbit hole to do list. Fans of lizard man will be disappointed to know there are no cars being mauled in a backwoods swamp, but the banter between Hayden and Hallie is enough to soothe the slight.

I basically requested the ARC and preordered the book at the exact same time, and I strongly suggest adding this to your August TBR.