I'm still trying to wrap my head around this book. Sometimes I think i got whiplash from it, but not in a bad way. It was amazing and endearing and gave me anxiety all at the same time. I love a book that can put you through the gamut, and this one definitely does. You need to read this one for yourself. Great character and story development, and the writing pulls you in. 5 stars!

I loved this book so much; I couldn't put it down and finished it in one sitting.❤️ 💜 If Netflix is looking for a new sci-fi show, this would be perfect. Then again, maybe a different streaming platform. Netflix cancels all the good shows after one season.

Loved all the Wisconsin references, like Kwik Trip and Bay Beach. Haven't thought about that place in years and years.

Definitely a must-read for sci-fi readers, especially those looking for a sapphic romance.

Thanks so much to NetGalley for the free Kindle book! My opinions are my own and are freely given.

A unique plotline leads to an entertaining story when two women discover they are living in parallel universes. Readers follow the two sets of characters as each tries to bring their timelines in sync. Different, but in a great way.

two women who fall in love despite living in worlds that are five months apart.

sapphic yearning at its finest. the found family vibes were wonderful. i loved how tressa fay actively worked at improving the relationship with her dad. tbh this book felt a bit over my head and i definitely did not understand what they were talking about a lot of the time but I still had a great time reading it anyways. there were a bit too many texting convos for me and the chapters were a TOUCH too long. overall id recommend going into this one blind if you’ve been in the mood for an interesting FF storyline with great LGBTQIA+ rep!

rating: 4 stars
pub date: june 3rd
read if you like:
- Found family
- LGBTQIA+ rep

quotes:

“I need to make a chart to see if you ever miss an innuendo.”

“This was so rare, to like someone this much, to feel so much ease with them. It made her think about how many love stories she’d read where two people met and felt nervous butterflies, which she’d always thought sounded like they were afraid, when obviously this was the way she would want to fall in love with someone - to slip into it, warm and happy, excited and joyful.”

“I’m going to die from the anticipation, and it will be such a happy, horny death.”

thank you so much to @berkleypub @berkleyromance for allowing me to be an early reader. All thoughts are my own!

Cosmic Love at the Multiverse Hair Salon is a wildly original blend of sci-fi, romance, and offbeat humor. In a salon where every haircut could transport you to another universe, one stylist finds herself tangled in parallel timelines, unexpected love, and cosmic identity crises. Sharp, funny, and surprisingly tender, it’s a genre-bending ride through love, loss, and great hair.

I fell in love with the cover for this book as soon as I saw it a few months ago and I was so excited when Berkley sent an advance copy! This is a time-travel/multiverse Sapphic romcom mystery? There’s a lot going on lol

I was hooked from page one and pleasantly surprised at how contemporary the tone of this book was despite it being a sci-fi romance. We have an influencer hair-dresser FMC named Tressa Fay (that name slays) who ends up in a situationship that transcends the space-time continuum.

Her love interest, Meryl, is probably one of my favorite characters because she’s timid but has a hidden spicy side that complements Tressa Fay’s character really nicely.

The storytelling style for this book was a unique choice, as much of it is dialogue-based which can cause some confusion when dealing with time-travel/multiverse hijinx. For this reason I can understand why this book might not be everyone’s cup of tea. Not me though, I’m eating it (have about 20% left to solve this mystery).

I’d recommend Cosmic Love at the Multiverse Hair Salon for lovers of Queer Sci-fi Romance (because let’s be real, Space Queer romance just hits different), fans of Doctor Who and other Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey ™️ stuff, and those who believe that Queer love truly does transcend time and space.

Also, there’s a cat named Epinephrine.

Thank you to Berkley Pub for providing me with a copy of Cosmic Love at the Multiverse Hair Salon! As always, all opinions are my own and this review is being left voluntarily. ✨

3.75 stars rounded up

✨ Sapphic Adult Sci-Fi
✨ Third Person POV
✨ 3/5 Spice Level
✨ Multiverse Romance
✨ Mystery
✨ Stand Alone
✨ Rep: lesbian MC, bisexual MC, nonbinary SC, gay SC, polyam SC, allergy/asthma rep, port-wine stain birthmark rep

> micro-tropes and content warnings after review

First off, I loved the plot of this! I thought it was so interesting. Once the main characters, Tressa Fay and Meryl, started interacting I was SO hooked on them and their romance. Their banter was so cute and lively. I really felt like I was falling with them. As I was reading, the story almost felt like… surreal or dream-like in a lot of ways. Fitting for the storyline, for sure. Plus, having a supportive friend group is always a great addition! Combined with the rep? Bonus!

I did have a few, pretty minor complaints, but the way this book was written the character names are used SO much. I didn’t noticed for a bit; however, once I did I couldn’t stop noticing. Now, I read on my kindle with the font decently large and the amount of times Tressa Fay’s name was mentioned, in full, on just one “page” was astounding. I think at times, using her name repeatedly did add to the “vibe” of the story, but at a certain point it just became too much and a bit distracting. Along with this, perhaps because of how it was written, I didn’t feel like the voices of the side characters were distinct or developed enough. I don’t really know who any of them are, in a way, though I enjoyed their overall supportive nature toward the main characters.

My other minor issue, which may just be a me thing, which is although I am a fan of sci-fi, I don’t necessarily need or want an in depth description of why, in this case, the plot makes sense. It was a bit much a couple times and I was just trying to get through it to get back to the story.

I did have some conflicting opinions with this book; hence the 3.75 star rating. But the plot felt fresh, and the romance was fun and flirty. I was invested and overall enjoyed the book. I would say it is worth the read because overall the positives outweighed the negatives for me. I was SO there for the flirty text messages, lol.

A fun debut from Annie Mare. I’m curious to see what future works are in store~

(beware potential spoilers below)

Micro-tropes
✨ A cat named Epinephrine
✨ Flirty texts
✨ Hands tied up
✨ Vibe

Content Warnings
(may not be all inclusive)
cheating (past, not between MCs), broken engagement (past, not between MCs), de*th of a parent (past)

if you like love stories that transcend time and space, gorgeous queer found families, and heartwarming family reconciliations you should definitely pick this one up <3

full review posted @shelfconscious.library on instagram

Ooooh my little nerdy, gay, former-cosmetologist heart loved this story! The smart, quick-witted, flirty banter between Tressa Fay and Meryl was EVERYTHING. I loved them! Also, the hair washing scene? HELLO? How Mare made that feel spicy with zero actual spice is some kind of witchcraft. Incredible. Not only were the two FMCs delightful, but I was obsessed with the diverse found-and-real family that surrounded them. I would love to have a core group of friends who are as smart, loyal, and outrageously queer as Tressa Fay & Meryl’s friends are.

The only thing that kept this from being a 5-star read was the resolution. I’m all for a brilliantly messy story, as long as it comes together in the end. This one just... didn’t. The resolution was so chaotic that it was almost impossible to follow what was going on. I understand that that was kind of the point, but I had to re-read paragraphs multiple times before I finally just accepted the chaos and that it wasn’t going to make sense. There is a way to write the chaos of what was happening without it being difficult to follow, but that’s not was happened here, and it was really frustrating after loving the rest of the story so much. I think it would have played out beautifully in a movie, but the writing style did not effectively lend itself to the chaos of the moment. Since I read the ARC, I’m hoping that this comes together a little better in the final edit to resolve what was otherwise a beautiful story of love conquering all of space and time.

“Try to think about this extraordinary glimpse into how time operates as proof that you never really lose anyone. All your love exists everywhere all the time.”

I adored this story by Annie Mare. It delivers a genre-bending sapphic romance that’s tender, poignant, and breathtakingly original. The premise—a love that transcends every version of the multiverse—is executed with heart, humor, and profound emotional resonance.

Tressa Fay, the grounded hair salon owner, and Meryl, the woman of science, share a connection that feels cosmic in scope and achingly intimate. Their dialogue is filled with longing and layered meaning—so much so that I found myself highlighting entire pages. The chemistry is instant yet earned, proving that when insta-love is done right, it works.

This story also features a rich, found family, a quirky but lovable cat sidekick, and a time-sensitive quest that brings urgency without losing the emotional core. The multiverse logic is smart, accessible, and beautifully ties into the larger themes of connection, memory, and fate. It asks: What if soulmates really do find each other, again and again?


🔮 What to Expect

A unique multiverse/time-travel premise

Queer rep & soulmate-level pining

A swoony, quote-worthy romance

Found family vibes

Hair salon meets theoretical physics

Cat companion

Beautiful, memorable prose

Steam: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

“The Final Verdict: Cosmic Love is everything I want in a romance—fresh, emotional, queer, and brimming with wonder. One of the most original debuts I’ve read in a long time. A must-read.”

[I also recommended this on the June 3rd All the Books podcast]

When Tressa Fay gets a text from a wrong number, it’s not long before they’re flirting. In fact, they decide to meet up that night. But when she arrives at the bar, Tressa Fay is disappointed to realize the cute engineer is not there, despite Meryl’s continual texts insisting she is. Soon, Tressa Fay learns a few key facts about Meryl: she’s texting Tressa Fay from eight months ago, and—unbeknownst to her—in the intervening months, Meryl disappears. Can Tressa Fay prevent her disappearance? And is there any way for them to meet in the same timeline?

This is the most sapphic romance novel I’ve ever read. Us queer women have a reputation for U-Hauling and instalove. Then there’s the sapphic love affair with tarot, horoscopes, and other ~signs from the universe~. Oh, and our romanticization of yearning. Those may all be simplistic stereotypes, but they’re not wrong. Which is why I except many sapphic readers to fall in love with Cosmic Love at the Multiverse Hair Salon.

While there is a sci-fi element to this book, it’s far heavier on the romance side. In fact, I think it would have been stronger with even less explanation of the timelines and alternate universes—it’s totally fine that it’s all a little hand wave-y. Instead, this is about Meryl and Tressa Fay’s star-crossed (or destined) romance.

Despite initially only being able to communicate through text, the two of them immediately hit it off. Their rapport really worked for me. Some of the first texts they send are:

M: I just realized. I used the wrong first three digits.
TF: oh, no. numbers are so tricky
M: I’m an ENGINEER.
TF: remind me not to drive over any of your bridges.
M: One collapsed bridge and a girl’s got a reputation.

I, too, would immediately be crushing on Meryl. And that’s important, because it’s believable that Tressa Fay doesn’t just put this weird text conversation behind her. It helps that she’s not alone in this: Meryl’s sister and friends show up at her hair salon to demand an answer to why her texts are showing up in the missing Meryl’s phone. Once they get on the same page, they decide to work together to see if Tressa Fay’s texting can help prevent whatever caused Meryl’s disappearance.

This is a very romantic story, to the point where it can be a little cheesy, but ultimately, that’s the charm of it. It’s like a romcom movie—and I would love to see this on screen. I also liked that Tressa Fay is genuinely attracted to Meryl’s nerdiness: there’s nothing sexier than a Mathlete shirt or her waders she wears as a stormwater engineer. Meryl is also fat, and her body is described so lovingly.

There are also some details that make this more than just a star-crossed romance. I really enjoyed the queer community and friend group, especially because we get some subplots with other queer romances. In this take on multiple universes, changes made to the past cause characters in the present to remember multiple versions of events, which eventually get reconciled. This means that their attempts to change Meryl’s life ripple out to the secondary characters’ lives, too.

I especially liked Michael and Guy’s friends-to-lovers romance. Guy has been in love with Michael for years, but because Michael is gay, Guy doesn’t pursue that romance until after they transition. There’s a lot of yearning, miscommunication, and jealousy, but as timelines shift, their love story only deepens.

Despite this being an affirming and cozy queer friend group, they also do have some difficult conversation. Specifically, I appreciated the discussion of polyamory. Linds eventually opens up about how she feels like her friends don’t take her polyamory seriously, which has made her close herself off from sharing how important these relationships are to her, and how central this is to her identity. Tressa Fay apologizes and their friendship is strengthened, but it shows that this queer community is maintained through difficult conversations and isn’t just an ideal.

While I maintain that the multiverse aspect didn’t need so much explanation, I did like how it functioned. I haven’t read (or seen) another story where changes function like they do in this one, causing characters to briefly remember multiple past events before folding them into their narrative. This makes total sense to me, as someone with a bad memory. I feel like I’m already doing this all the time. One character is an author and says it’s like how she’s rewritten her book so many times, but it’s just the last version that really matters. There’s also the added element of Tressa Fay’s jealousy over her self in a different timeline, which is not something I’ve seen navigated in any other romance!

I also have a pet peeve about time travel/Butterfly Effect-style stories where any attempt to change things in the past makes things worse in the present. It’s incredibly common—in fact, it’s hard for me to come up with stories where you can positively affect the present. But that implies that we’re living in the best of all possible timelines, which statistically is unlikely—and stats aside, I just cannot believe THIS timeline is the best things could be. So it’s nice to read a story where that’s not true: characters are able to get a do-over, and that generally goes well.

If you’re in the mood for a very romantic story about sapphic love written in the stars, I highly recommend this one. It’s such a heartwarming queer story—not just in the romance, but also in its treatment of queer community and queer-accepting family. I can’t wait to see what Annie Mare writes next.

Thanks to @berkleyromance for inviting me on their blog tour!

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started this book, but it turned out to be better and more interesting than I expected. The premise is very creative; two girls who met through a misdirected text, Tressa and Meryl, agree to meet a bar but they can’t find each other. After their missed meeting, Meryl’s sister comes Tressa’s hair salon to report that Meryl is missing.

They text back and forth and come to the unlikely, but accurate, conclusion that they are living in parallel universes 5 months apart. Meryl has somehow fallen into a different timeline. They develop deep feelings for one another from texting back and forth, and try to figure out how to get on the same timeline.

Can they bend nature’s laws, get to the same timeline, and be together?

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley, I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

4.5 stars

I really enjoyed this time paradox novel featuring a queer hair stylist and an engineer falling in love via a 6 month time gap. I enjoyed the parts about the various friends and Tressa Fay's relationship with her father. This explores the idea of love existing over multiple universes and infinite possibilities, and it was a really interesting read. There are parts that are a bit repetitive or a little too slow-paced for my liking, but this was an overall really good read.

Highly recommend to people who enjoy Sapphic books with a time warp twist.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

I absolutely loved this! This debut, sapphic romance blended with a multiverse sci fi premise is about two women in love who find each other in every universe. I mean, what a beautiful notion. The execution was everything I’d hoped it would be!

“Try to think about this extraordinary glimpse into how time operates as proof that you never really lose anyone. All your love exists everywhere all the time.”

There’s a lovely found family friend group. There’s a race against the clock type quest that will have you reflecting on your own time with loved ones. The multiverse element was unique and I found the explanations for it fascinating. And the romance between Tressa Fay and Meryl leapt off the page with palpable tension and yearning. Their dialogue was deep and meaningful. And, for an insta love trope it was entirely believable with undeniable chemistry. You’ll walk away with an appreciation of fated love and soulmates. I was completely invested in seeing it all come together and can’t recommend this enough.

“Entanglement- it’s such a beautiful idea...If two things are entangled they are linked together forever no matter how far apart they move from each other in space.”

I did a mix of physical & audiobook and while I definitely loved having my physical to highlight all the meaningful quotes within, I absolutely loved the audio! The narrator did an incredible job with Tressa Fay and Meryl! Please pick this one up!

•𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭 •
+ a unique premise about multiverses and time
+ queer representation
+ supportive friend group
+ love that spans across the multiverse
+ a hair salon owner + a woman of science
+ swoony quotes
+ characters you’ll want to root for
+ there’s a cat sidekick
+ profound passages and memorable quotes
+ steam level 🌶️🌶️🌶️

𝐏𝐮𝐛 𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞: June 3, 2025
𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: Romance • Sci-Fi
𝐅𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭: 🎧 Audiobook (11h 1m)
𝐍𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫: Mia Hutchinson-Shaw
𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ★★★★★ 𝟓
𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭: Must Read!

“I love that even teeny tiny things get fossils. You are not forgotten.”

“Water, air, fire, earth, they must have a memory of everything even as other things come and go.”

“Maybe everyone was living different versions of life all the time. We could accept there was more to living than we think.”

“Think about your first love. No matter how long you live, how far away you are from that first love, you’re linked to them. Your story can’t be completely told without them you’re entangled.”


Thank you @acebookspub @berkleypub for my #gifted ARC and @prhaudio for my ALC! #berkleypublishing #berkleypartner #berkleyig

First and foremost, thank you to the publisher and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. I loved this story and it was definitely worth the read! The different time/multiverse lines were really well done!

3.5⭐️ rounded up because I loved the story/premise of the novel!
In this debut novel by Annie Mare, two women meet and fall in love despite living in universes separated by five months. Tressa Fay—a popular hair stylist and influencer(??)— exists in October, while Meryl—a stormwater engineer for the city—exists five months prior in May. Meryl disappears in September without a trace in the future timeline, where her sister and best friend are desperately searching for any clues to find her. With the help of their loved ones, they attempt to find a timeline that doesn’t end with the disappearance of Meryl in September.

A cozy sapphic romance that keeps your brain engaged with the multiverse talk and the nerdy aspects of Meryl’s character. I did love this story but I had some issues with the style of writing. It’s told from a third person POV, which works for this story, but it definitely got confusing at times. There’s a lot of dialogue and text messages, and it was difficult to know who was talking when sometimes. I felt myself going back and re-reading passages and portions more than I normally like.

!!!!! However! the themes present in this novel are so beautiful. The main love story is not the only relationship affected by the characters changing the timeline, and we get to learn about changes as they do. This novel also had some short chapters throughout the book that told a story one specific side character, and I enjoyed getting some insight into their character away from the main plot.

Okay, I think that’s all i have to say ab my girls Tressa Fay and Meryl! happy pride month to them and all Tressa Fay’s friends <3

ARC provided by NetGalley for review. Release 3June 2025

DNF at 22%

I was kind of getting into this book. I enjoyed the text conversations that were shown as actual text bubbles. The plot itself reminded me of the movie The Lake House.

But then I got to the short chapter titled "Michael" and it had nothing to do with what was currently going on in the book. He had a small part in the book previously, but it was relevant to what was going on. This chapter was immediately after a chapter of a text between the 2 main characters. Seemed unnecessary.

Did I really understand the sciencey, multiverse, timeline stuff? No. But I really loved the characters and their quest and the love and connection in this one (and the Green Bay setting was a bonus). This is filled with heart and charm.

I love a temporal paradox, and the fact that our aspiring couple were at opposite ends had me endlessly intrigued. I love Tressa Fay and her adorable romance with Meryl. All of Tressa's and Meryl's friends and relatives are also great characters on their own, and I loved getting snippets from them throughout the story.
I loved it from the beginning; however, towards the middle, when we started getting into the more scientific stuff, I found myself a bit lost. I was still enjoying it a lot, I do love sciency stuff even if it sometimes goes over my head.
This was a great book from beginning to end. We have an epic romance that goes across time and space, great characters, and a plot that had me whipping through the story to see if and how they were going to fix Meryl's disappearance.
I had a great time from beginning to end, and I will definitely read more by this author.

I really enjoyed this solo debut Sapphic romance with a time loop twist that has hairdresser Tressa Fay connecting to civil engineer Meryl via text only to realize they are living lives five months apart and Meryl goes missing in her timeline. It's best not to try and puzzle out the physics of the multiverse in this contemporary romance with a scifi twist. Perfect for fans of movies like Frequency and books like Oona out of order and anyone who enjoys stories with great found family and queer rep, this was equally heartfelt and tender and I was rooting for Meryl and Tressa Fay to find their way together throughout the whole book! It was also good on audio narrated by Mia Hutchinson-Shaw. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review!