Thank you Celadonbooks and Macmillan Audio for all the advanced readers copies via Netgalley and the gifted finished copy for the Celadon Reads Together! What a fun idea to match other bookstagrammers together to make a buddy read for an upcoming release!

Let me first say:
Cover? Stunning.
It’s what initially drew me in on NetGalley.
Premise? Promising.
But I’ll be frank- it took me 3 times to get into this one and even still it remained difficult for me to stay invested. I think that while it may have had more to do with my mental capacity at the time and being preoccupied with heavy life things, not necessarily due to the writing or science talk per se, but I never connected with the characters or story. I do advise this to be read in as few and frequent sittings as possible (but that could be because it never left an impression on me so I was quick to forget what happened and where I was in the story).

It’s like a mix of Theranos and Tomorrow x3 in terms of concept (college-aged kids starting a product; I’m curious if these were Taylor’s inspirations?). It’s ambitious beyond its capabilities (like its main characters) and I never felt fully sold on the concept in general (also, these “geniuses” never seemed genius, just driven by a young, naive and faux-invincible mindset and happen to love science). While I applaud Taylor for her attempt, it just didn’t do much for me. I wanted more intrigue, more character depth and development, more suspense even. I also thought there would be more sci-fi/speculative fiction in this so perhaps that expectation made the actual story fall flat too. Maybe I’m too critical of a reader…

I’ll probably still keep my copy and possibly give it another chance in the future but for now I’ve got more than plenty on my tbr to pick up before that option crosses my mind. Content includes profanity, light sexual content and remarks, suicide, allusions to drug abuse and eating disorder.

🌀✨ Thoughtful, emotional, and unique—but the structure didn’t quite work for me ✨🌀

Notes on Infinity by Austin Taylor was one of my most anticipated reads, and I’m so grateful to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Macmillan for both the ALC and a physical copy!

This story had so many of the elements I love: emotional depth, introspection, and a love story that doesn’t shy away from life’s complexities. I was deeply invested in Zoe’s point of view, and I appreciated the raw honesty and heart she brought to the narrative.

That said, the book’s structure didn’t entirely work for me. Most of the story is told from Zoe’s POV, with several chapters from Jack’s perspective appearing only toward the very end. While I understand why this choice was made, I personally would have loved Jack’s POV sprinkled throughout..it would’ve added more balance and emotional resonance earlier on.

The audiobook, however, was well done and added a layer of richness to the experience. It definitely helped me stay connected to the story even when I found the pacing uneven.

A unique story with a lot of heart, especially for readers who enjoy emotionally driven narratives and character exploration.

This is a quiet, slow-burn kind of story—one that follows two brilliant Harvard students, Zoe and Jack, who drop out to chase a shared dream. What starts as a scientific theory turns into a startup, a bond, and a complex exploration of ambition, intellect, and connection.

Yes, the pacing is slow—but purposefully so. It lingers in the moments, allowing the emotional undercurrents to build. I actually loved that about it. If it feels slow at first, just keep going—it’s worth it. I’ll admit I didn’t fully grasp all the science (and you don’t really need to), because the emotional and psychological dynamics are what drive this story forward.

Zoe and Jack are magnetic in that intoxicating, almost toxic way—two brilliant minds drawn to each other with a force that feels both inevitable and doomed. You can feel them trying to create something meaningful in the world, even as they struggle to understand themselves and each other.

Where the story ultimately goes took me by surprise, and I won’t spoil a thing—but it added a whole new layer of poignancy I didn’t expect. It’s been compared to Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and while it has a similar emotional weight and introspective vibe, it’s very much its own journey.

By the end, I found myself more moved and more invested than I thought I would be at the beginning. If you enjoy stories that feel both smart and sad, strange and human—stories that could almost be about real people—this one is absolutely worth the read.

Having been involved in a startup for boosting longevity and medical device development, I was instantly intrigued by this one. I definitely see where the comps to tomorrow x3 are coming from. This was a very approachable listen, I think it portrayed the issues with a fund-seeking startup really well! I wanted it to go a bit deeper in all the aspects but I think that's more on me. Helen Laser and Shahjehan Khan make a great narrator duo for this one and I flew through the audiobook!

Although Notes on Infinity shows some sparks of promise, ultimately that promise is never fulfilled. Anyone who reads or listens to the news will be familiar with the thinly-veiled plot. Taylor writes well enough but the characters are not drawn well enough for the readers to really understand them or many of their motivations. 2.5 raised to 3 stars because of the narrators’ skills. The decision to use two narrators was an excellent one,

This was so out of the realm of what I usually read but I actually really enjoyed it! The writing was so engaging and entertaining, and even for a science-heavy book it was very approachable and easily understood.

My only issue with this was how the timeline was laid out. Some paragraphs took us to the future and back to the present sometimes within the same sentence. That got confusing at times and I wish those moments were called back to toward the end of the book, but it was more like a stream of conscious thing. A bit harder to pay full attention to.

Other than that, this was a very interesting and at times devastating story! Highly recommend if this topic interests you.

Read if you like:
👩‍🔬 women in stem
🏫 college science
❤️ romance sub plot
🔬 discovering a new science

There have been many comparisons between this book and Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. While both feature college aged main characters who are friends that start a technology-based project together, that’s where the similarities end for me you. NOTES ON INFINITY felt more character driven, and relationship and ethics focused.

Zoe and Jack are brilliant Harvard students who meet in an Organic Chemistry class where they promptly recognize each other as being equally driven, academically curious, and highly competitive. Through a series of connections, they find themselves investigating a potential cure for aging. When their research shows promising results, they drop out of school and launch a start up. But, things are not what they seem and it’s clear they are on a trajectory toward disaster.

There are significant references to the biotechnology elements of their endeavor, but my non-scientific mind was able to skim past the details and, instead, focus on the motivations of Zoe and Jack and the blurring of the lines between their personal and professional relationships. The more I learned about their origins and upbringing, the more I connected with the characters.

When an author can make you care about highly flawed people making questionable decisions, something special is happening. Austin Taylor accomplishes that feat while examining unbridled ambition and the fallibility of genius. I was surprised at how much these characters grew on me throughout the story and was unprepared for the impact of the ending.

Helen Laser and Shahjehan Khan handle the narration of the audiobook. Their performances enhance the story and are top tier. Don’t let the science scare you off. This is a highly emotional story that will sneak up on you.

Thank you to NetGalley, Celadon Books, and Macmillan Audio for the advance copies. All opinions are my own.

Notes on Infinity is a debut novel from Austin Taylor. It is a fictionalized story that was in the news the last couple of years.

"Zoe and Jack are two undergraduate students at Harvard. They hope to follow the normal career track of all students...until they believe they've stumbled on a process to reverse aging. They drop out to form a startup to commercialize the idea. Venture Capitalists are happy to give them money - lots of money - billions of dollars. But sometimes data is from outliers. What now?"

You will recognize this story. I won't mention it by name because then you won't be able to see it through any other lens. The characters were hard to relate to and to pull for. I wanted to pull for Jack because he was a scholarship kid that didn't come from much. But greed took over any moral compass he might have. This story is mostly about greed - everyone wants to get rich and be known for something amazing - no matter what they have to do to get there. There is a lot of Harvard, Harvard, Harvard in these pages. It gets to be a bit much.

Helen Laser does a nice job as the voice of Zoe. She captures the naivete of Zoe trying to run a startup and giving Ted talks. Shahjehan Khan is the voice of Jack but only near the end.

If you want a story about 20-year-olds running a startup and controlling billions you may enjoy this one.

♡ 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘈𝘙𝘊, 𝘊𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘯 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘴. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘔𝘢𝘤𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘯 𝘈𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺.

This was an interesting debut story. It gave me a bit of Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow vibes. Maybe a bit of Ali Hazelwood STEM, too. This one was a bit more bogged down by scientific details, though, which made it feel slower. Still, it was an interesting listen with some good depth.

Notes on Infinity follows two brilliant Harvard students through their meeting to tumultuous business and personal relationships as they drop out to pursue a novel theory on reverse aging. Similar to some real-life situations, they quickly become media and venture capital darlings, and face increasing pressure to deliver results on top of figuring out how to be adults, run a business, and navigate relationships. The science, personal, backstories, and business elements all come together well to help explain how people can get in so deep by trying to please people and tell the right story while hoping the data can match up. It's very entertaining and also exposes pretty large cracks in the system that incentivizes hype and how people can fall for the story when they don't understand or look for the facts.

Thank you to Celadon books for a copy of Note on Infinity and for providing me with the opportunity to participate in the Read Together Initiative!

Zoe and Jack meet at Harvard University. Jack immediately catches Zoe’s eye, and soon they are working together on a potential anti-aging drug. Soon, investors are interested, and Zoe and Jack take on their own startup with their discovery. But the path is a little more complicated and filled with very challenging decisions for both.

I come from a science background and am currently working on my MSc in Microbiology and Molecular Biology. So, this book was right up my alley, combining my love of genomics with my love of reading. Most of the science was written very well, which I appreciated. My only qualm is that patents and getting money for the kind of research Jack and Zoe were doing is incredibly difficult. And the tests they would be running are pricy, so it’s a little unrealistic for two 20-year-olds to take on this venture.

But let’s put realism aside. I enjoyed seeing the path through both scientist’s lenses because suddenly we were seeing that each one was hiding some things from the reading audience. It was a creative way to show how people act in the professional world. When it comes to science and research, some things are best hidden.

The novel reminds me of Theranos in some ways, which I followed in the news so that intrigued me! I listened to the audiobook for some of this while I was waiting for my book to arrive, and Helen Laser and Shahjehan Khan did a great job! In my opinion, Helen Laser can do wrong. This was my first listen from Shahjehan and I found his voice was quite soothing and matched Jack’s more relaxed attitude but adjusted perfectly to the more tense scenes!

So happy to have read this one and I can’t wait to talk to my book group about it!

I stopped listening at 27%. I was getting lost in the scientific descriptions and having trouble following the story. I thought this book had a very intriguing premise but I am not typically a sci-fi listener, so I think this just isn't the book for me.

Well, this is certainly a walk down the collegiate halls of knowledge. Thank you @celadon for my early finished copy, and the opportunity to list as well as read in print! I had a great time discussing the novel with my buddy read group.

Shout out to my buddy readers!

NOTES ON INFINITY is also a book that definitely needs to come with some content warnings, so you aren’t blindsided.

The book is broken down into parts that coincide with Zoe and Kyle’s lives. It vacillates between present time for the particular part of the story, along with flashbacks from each character strewn between. This *could* make for a confusing read, especially on audio, so I am glad I had the print version to reference regularly.

First these characters are immensely spart, and have each overcome their own obstacles in life, despite their drastically different upbringings. It is impressive how Austin Taylor sources the information needed to truly build these characters.

The content of the novel provoked MANY thoughts for me, and opened a stream of consciousness laden with questions. Questions about Big Pharma, the medical RX approval process, patents, venture capital, investors in potential new drugs, the aftermath of failed ventures, Big Pharma again buying up failed drugs (whyyy?), who is hurt the most by failures, who is our life’s work ultimately for, why does Harvard fit the token character casting, the list goes on and on and on.

Watch out for the abrupt ending, it will catch up slippin’ and blindside you.

If you are looking for thought-provoking, familial and found family drama with a scientific forefront you may truly be intrigued by this one.

In this day and age, it is important to say all of these: beware of drug use (and misuse), child abuse, loss of family members, infidelity, smokescreen and coverup lies, suicide, loss of jobs and friendships, and collegiate dropouts.

I had heard this book was akin to Tomorrowx3 and was anxious to read. The first 3/4 of the book was definitely reminiscent of said book but wasn't as strong. However, in reviewing the book without the comparison, I still enjoyed the story of two college sophomores who start working in a lab trying to perfect a new idea for an anti-aging therapy and become multi-millionaires during the startup process. The last quarter of the book felt rushed. I had hoped for a more solid ending. Still a good story.

What if you could end aging and remain forever young. That is the goal for Zoey and Jack, two Harvard students. They drop out of college and form their own startup company Mana to develop their product. Later they will deal with questions about the validity of their research and explore their relationship. The story very much reminded me of the Netflix series Dropout and the book Tomorrow, Tomorrow, Tomorrow. Thank you @macmillan.audio @celadonbooks for the ALC. Pub day is June 3rd. #bestestbookclubever

Zoe and Jack are Harvard classmates who as undergrads start researching and developing the chemistry that has potential to be the foundation for a revolutionary anti-aging drug. They quickly become friends and partners navigating the wealthy biotech startup world as 20 year olds. - what could go wrong? When researchers report data irregularity the relationships and research begin to fray.

This book is part love story, part science, and part true crime. It felt very relevant given the immense pressure on smart young people to succeed and produce, and the real world fallout from that. I really liked how the characters’ families and early life were woven into the decisions they make in the present. Zoe as a brilliant woman in science and the business of startups was a particularly well written character arc.

Thank you Celadon #partner for the finished copy and to Macmillan Audio for the ALC to review.

This was a little slow to start for me, but the content and character development was strong and the way everything came together I thought was very well done. This was a fascinating peek into biotech startups and how they work, a little scary even, as I’m sure this is not too far from reality even though it is fiction. I started this via physical copy and finished via audio during a long drive, and both were excellent ways to read this one. Once I got a good ways in, I knew it was going to take a turn, but did not expect the turn it took, and man, it got me.

There is a lot going on in here, but Taylor writes it in a way that it is not too much, in fact it really got me in my emotions and if I tried to cover everything in here I would be writing a novel myself. I enjoyed this overall, I am still thinking about it, and definitely recommend when it publishes June 3.

4.5 for sure!

A beautifully written story reminiscent of Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, Taylor shows how the dynamics of two brilliant minds chart a course between love, success, betrayal and despair.

When Zoe and Jack stumble upon a major breakthru of Longevity at Harvard, a whirlwind success story begins. As the two drift in and out of relationships, though, they quickly find that success, and keeping one another happy, may be out of their reach.

With great character growth and a compelling story, I devoured this biotech read and wanted more!

My thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

How far would you go for an idea, for success, for love? This book explores all avenues of this question from an academic team attempting to find the next big scientific breakthrough. A slow burn of science and relationship as the reader gets ingrained in their world of young minds and big money. I appreciated the perspective and experiences that I am sure are true to life in this realm. I mostly enjoyed the developing relationships between characters. Volatile. Forgiving. Distraught.

As it has been said, I had a lingering feeling this was similar to Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow. If you loved that one, you’ll love this one!

The audiobook read by Helen Laser and Shahjehan Khan brought life to these characters. Both are easily understood at faster speeds. I listened to audio in tandem with the print version.

Thank you NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, Celadon Books, and author Austin Taylor for the ALC, eARC, and printed finished copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is a slow-paced story of two Harvard students, both brilliant, who come up with an idea and drop out to create their own startup and explore their scientific theories. And while it is slow-paced, it is intriguing and full of depth and emotion, and the pace is fitting. I liked this pacing for this story, I only mention it because if it feels slow to you, just keep going. I definitely did not understand all of the science parts, but I didn't have to. Zoe and Jack have this intoxicating and toxic pull towards each other, but they explore, as college-aged people do. I just picture these brilliant people with this inevitable pull towards each other, trying to create something in this life together. Where it winds up going was a surprise for me. I don't want to give anything away by even hinting at it, but I didn't see it coming. It adds tremendously to the emotional aspect of this story. People are comparing it to Tomorrow x3 and while it serves similar vibes, it is absolutely different and its own journey. By the end of it, I enjoyed it more than I anticipated I would at the onset. If you like interesting and tragic and quirky stories about what could be real people, give this one a go!

Book releases 6/3/2025. Thank you to Celadon Books for sending me a physical finished copy ahead of release and inviting me to join in a big "read together". Discussing things along the way with fellow readers was fun! Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC. I'm glad I could listen along while I read, I love doing that, and the audiobook narrator did a wonderful job.