This was the best of slow burns. There was so much lovely pining and angst. Jonah and Sadie were perfect together; their chemistry was electric, and their banter was fabulous. I had the best time reading this book, so much so that I dragged it out so that I could savor how much fun I was having. This was a new author for me, but now I think I will have to go looking for more of their books. Disclaimer: I received an advanced reader copy from NetGalley for an honest review.

This was a cute little snack of a book, though I wished there was more time spent on the 10 years before the marriage, so the slow burn felt like it made progress rather than a 0 to 100 situation. Other than that, very cute.
Is- can we get this man some contacts!? (You know what chapter I’m referring to)

Reviewed for NetGalley:

McAlister’s An Academic Affair pits two brilliant minds against each other in a world saturated with intellect. While the prose dazzles with scholarly flair, it often sacrifices emotional depth. The characters feel more like ideas than people, making it tough to fully connect. Thought-provoking? Yes. Heart-stirring? Not quite.

Okay I loved this! The academic setting was everything. It is such a binge worthy read and was so fun. This book made me want to go back to school.

The characters were well done and felt very human. Also academic rivals is such an under rated trope and it was done perfectly! Really looking forward to the release.


Thank you to the publisher and net galley for the opportunity to read and review this arc copy. All opinions are my own.

Sadie and Jonah have been academic rivals since they were in Undergrad, vying for the same awards and accomplishments. They spend 3 years teaching side by side, becoming known for their arguments and constant rebuttal of each other’s theories. Then after what they thought was an understanding and truce, a job becomes available that they both desperately want. When Sadie gets the job, and realizes there’s an spouse employment clause, her and Jonah decide to marry to both have a shot at continuing their careers.

***Enemies to friends to lovers
***Marriage of convenience
***He fell first…..years before
***Slowwwww burn
***Dual POV

The writing style was great, and the premise of the novel was a fun idea, I just don’t know if the romance was brought together like I would have hoped. While the chemistry of our couple was there from the get-go, I didn’t feel like we got a good build up for a slow burn romance, at least not from the FMC. Though it’s important that every novel has side characters that are strong and other relationships to be explored, I felt like this novel was heavily concentrating on Sadie’s relationship with her sister. For me, it took center stage, not the romance.

All and all, I enjoyed the novel and would read future works by the author.

Thank you to Atria Books and Netgalley for the ARC of this novel; all opinions are my own.

ok I think im obsessed with academic rivals. This book was fun and a quick read. I loved the progression of their relationship and how real it felt. and no 3rd act break up!! win

An Academic Affair was such a cute read! In any romance book, I get so nervous about a third act breakup but I LOVED that all the conflict was external in for Sadie and Jonah. It felt more realistic for an adult relationship between two academics.

If you love academic romance, fun banter, solid character development, and open door (but low level) spice, this is the perfect book for you!

i was lucky enough to receive this as a widget but after multiple attempts to read it i can’t get past 30% percent and am dnf’ing for now!! it seems like a good mix of womens fiction + romance, so if that’s up your alley i encourage you pick it up as this could absolutely be my slump talking 😅

I REALLY liked this. Fun academic stuff, references to books and literary items I've actually read, fun Australian setting. Big fan all around, loved the footnotes, should be read by all book nerds who like romance.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley.

I really loved these characters right from the beginning. I love the academic rivals trope and all of the other tropes explored in this story. However, I feel like the story didn't wrap up fully. I think there is so much more in this story to be explored and that problems with the university was just wrapped up in the epilogue when that should have been fleshed out in the novel itself. I still really enjoyed these characters and spent the night kicking my feet and giggling at the things Jonah was thinking about Sadie. I love this little world created in this novel and I'm hopping there's opportunities to explore the other characters in the future.

An Academic Affair was an absolute gem — witty, swoony, emotionally rich, and perfectly balanced in plot and pacing. The banter had me grinning, the slow-burn tension was delicious, and the emotional growth between the characters felt so real and satisfying. I usually don’t love miscommunication, but here it was more of a nuanced misunderstanding born from vulnerability and flawed communication, which made their journey feel earned and authentic. I also really appreciated that it wasn’t just a romantic love story — it highlighted the love between siblings, too, in a way that added even more heart. I'm already excited for the side characters’ stories. Smart, sharp, and full of depth — this one hit all the right notes for me.

An appealing romance set in Tasmania. Sadie and Jonah have been academic rivals ever since they met their first year at university. Their rivalry heats up when there is a rare full-time teaching position they are both interviewing for…

This was charming—there is a lot going on including family/sibling drama, navigating academia, and the rivals-to-friends-to lovers trajectory of Sadie’s and Jonah’s relationship. I enjoyed the scholarly banter. There are likable side characters and the setting was fun. The author laid the groundwork for a few other potential romantic relationships and I would be interested to read a follow-up(s) featuring the other couples. 3.5 stars.

Thank you to Atria and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.

What a cute book!

I really enjoyed the premise. This book was well written. The enemies to lovers was well done, and I really appreciated the pacing.

This is the first book I've read set in Australia by an Australian which I really appreciated - so a lot of the lingo (i.e. how academia works/wording) was new to me. But I didn't feel lost or confused and everything was well explained.

i do feel that it ended really abruptly.- like mid-scene. that is why i took off a star in my review.

SPOILER
Is this going to be a series? i think we need stories about julia/elias and chess/isamu

I really enjoyed this book. Jodi McAlister has quickly become one of my go-to authors! I loved both of our main characters and thought their enemies-to-lovers plotline was very well written. You really got to know both of them, through their wins and their complex feelings too. 3.5/5 for me!

bring back YEARNING in romance. and have jonah fisher teach a class on how to do it!

i really enjoyed this book, i've read a few romances in an academic setting before, but this was such a unique premise with the marriage of convenience aspect to secure a job. i love MOC trope and this was no different, i loved seeing them soften to each other and loved seeing how down bad jonah was :')

there were a few times where sadie frustrated me a little bit, like when she was yelling at jonah over him being upset about always basically being an accessory to somebody elses success. i understand what sadie was saying about how she has no empathy for his white rich male privilege in academia, and she is absolutely right to acknowledge that. however, i don't feel like that should exclude jonah from being upset that he always has to second guess whether his accomplishments are the result of someone elses. they both made good points in that argument, but at times i felt like she was a bit cruel about it!

3.5 stars. I liked this book more than expected -- but there was a definite problem with pacing.

We are just told 15 years of data in the first 50 pages. Then the story starts to build and it really picks up from there. The characters develop and have a fun and interesting dynamic. And then the book just ends? It is like the author became tired and decided just to finish the novel. Nothing was wrapped up. You get a piecemeal epilogue that everything is resolved. I am still very confused. It's like I lost the last 20% of the book.

I absolutely loved this book — it was such a smart, fun, and emotionally satisfying read! The academic setting felt so real (you can tell McAlister knows this world inside and out), and I was immediately hooked by the dynamic between Sadie and Jonah. The rivals-to-lovers energy was chef’s kiss, and I couldn’t get enough of their banter and tension.

I loved how self-aware the book was about romance tropes — fake marriage, forced proximity, academic rivals — all the good stuff, but with so much heart behind it. Jonah’s quiet love and Sadie’s ambition made them such a good match, and I genuinely felt for both of them.

Also, the footnotes? Hilarious and surprisingly moving. I didn’t expect to get emotional over academic references, but here we are!

This one had me smiling, swooning, and highlighting lines like crazy.

*thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

Jonah’s glasses are the supporting character of the year.

Rival academics in Australia, Jonah and Sadie have been facing hiring challenges and job insecurity for years. When an opportunity presents itself for the pair to be hired on full time, the position seems like the answer to Jonah’s desire to live near his divorced sister and Sadie’s desire for financial freedom. Despite their long history of arguments and needling, they begin a fake relationship to qualify for the job’s pair hire loop hole.

What a surprise! This is a new-to-me author so I was unsure what to expect. I really enjoyed this. Jonah was the star of the show me with his yearning, selflessness, and personal growth. His care for Sadie, his sister, his nieces, Sadie’s sister Chess… Very sweet to read! Though I felt like his inner realization of his love for Sadie came a little early/a little abruptly in the story, he was an excellent marshmallow-soft male lead.

Admittedly, I did skim some of the long paragraphs about academia and its inner workings. I also felt like the ending was rushed (Jonah’s sister Fiona’s ex husband [who we haven’t seen all book long] walks into the bar they’re celebrating in and then the book just ends?) (There was so little resolve with Jonah’s obnoxious dad?) (The university really backed down from their huge restructuring plan after like, five minutes of push back?) BUT! All things considered, this book still kept me engaged from start to finish.

The advertising says this book gives Ali Hazelwood - I think I’d agree with that! It was an interesting look into the world of academic hiring with easy to root for characters, lots of banter, and lovely family/found family moments.

I absolutely love this book. Jonah and Sadie were such well-rounded characters, and I love their ever-developing relationship. Every chapter left me wanting more, and I thought the build-up of the slow-burning relationship between them kept me reading. I could not recommend this book enough. The writing felt very appropriate through the POVs of academic characters, using references and language that lend to the characters, but also don't distance the reader from the prose. I never felt lost, and anything I might be unfamiliar with was explained in the story, but not in any kind of patronizing way.
If you like academic rivals to lovers, you will most definitely enjoy this book.

If you love yearning, Jonah Fisher is quite literally the man of your dreams because oh, did this boy yearn for Sadie so much. I typically don't read books like this, but I knew with the premise of academic rivals, especially in literature as someone who is doing college for lit I'd love this and I did.
Jonah and Sadie are academic rivals, who end up getting married so they can both work at the same university. An interesting solution to a unique problem since they both need the job.
I loved our main characters, Sadie was unique in a way but I felt myself relating to her immensely especially when she brought up how it can be exhausting to be loved in a certain way. I immediately found myself connecting to her more in that moment making the story more enjoyable. And well Jonah, my professional yearner I knew that he was in love with Sadie at the start and couldn't wait for them to get together. There were a few spicy scenes that were decent, but overall their romance was what mattered the most because it unfolded beautifully.
I'm curious to see if there will be books for other characters we met in this book, like Elias and Julia or even Jonah's sister Fiona.
Thank you to Netgalley and Atria for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.