I love enemies to lovers, especially when one of the main characters doesn't want to be the enemy. In this book we follow Jonah and Sadie as they compete and navigate the Australia academia world. The yearning in this book was the absolute best. Jonah is one of my favorite MMC this year! Also, the sibling relationships and struggles was so real. I cannot wait to read more books by this author!

I’d like to thank the author and NetGalley for this ARC! All opinions are my own :)

This is a really cute story with some great characters. I liked the setting being academia as well as the realistic plot points of the struggle of finding a secure job. This is perfect for fans of rivals to lovers-fake dating-and he falls first! The banter between the two main characters is top notch.

I did not love Chess as a character though. I don’t love the way her relationship ends with Sadie at the conclusion of the book. It felt unnecessary.

loved the fake dating relationship and the aspect of it being academic/ teacher teacher relationship/ grumpy and fighting! i loved the book and couldn’t put it down!

Rivals to lovers is actually my middle name so we knew how I was going to feel about this one. This book is the most top notch yearning I’ve read in a while with a love confession that genuinely had my jaw on the floor. Enemies/rivals to lovers banter is always the best and this was no different. This felt like such a unique premise and the book itself felt so cozy and I had such a good time reading it. This was the perfect use of a dual pov, if we didn’t have Jonah’s pov this would’ve been an entirely different book so I’m so glad we did. Rivals that argue incessantly but would also defend the other to anyone else, plus the rivals to friends to lovers pipeline (but the love has always kinda been) there is just elite. This was so cute I love them.

Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher have been academic nemeses for almost two decades, starting with undergrad through their PhDs in Australia. Now, when they are up for the same permanent position in Tasmania, their competition becomes even more intense. Here comes the fake-romance part--since the position offers a partner hire option, Jonah and Sadie get married. For the job, but maybe for more?

This was such a fun, refreshing romance. The best romances are about the romance but also about the people in it-- their family relationships, their baggage, their hopes and dreams. As someone who has lived through post-graduate life, I know that McAlister describes so very accurately the life--how hard getting your PhD is and then how hard life is after, and she doesn't shy away from talking about the poverty of post-grads and their unglamorous lives.

I was fortunate enough to get a pre read from
Net galley and I am so happy I did! This book was well written, the characters had depth and told a great story. I was eager to see where this story went and was tempted to stay up late every night devouring more and more of their story. Highly recommend for anyone looking for a well written, enemies to friends story with complicated family backgrounds and character evolutions. I hope this book turns into a series as there are a lot of great characters with potential for side stories to really tie these characters together.

An Academic Affair was such a fun, clever read. Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher have been academic rivals for years, constantly butting heads over lectures, publications, and recognition. When a coveted tenure track job opens in Hobart, they both want it. Sadie realizes the contract includes a clause for partner hire and proposes to Jonah so they can both get jobs, and divorce later. What starts as a professional arrangement quickly becomes far more complicated in the best possible way.

I loved how this book managed to feel so smart while still being an easy, engaging read. The banter between Sadie and Jonah was sharp and funny, and their alternating perspectives gave so much depth to their relationship. The use of endnotes was a brilliant touch, adding humor and insight in such an academic way, and I’ve truly never read a romance that used them like this before.

This is a romance that delivers both brain and heart in equal measure!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

"I never really dreamed of having a husband," she said, "but if I had, I would have dreamed of one like you."

Review: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️

After spending years as academic rivals, Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher find themselves competing for the same permanent position. The stakes are high - Sadie needing the stability and freedom of a job, while Jonah needs the job to move closer to his recently-divorced sister. Sadie discovers a way that they can both get their way, through a partner clause in their contract. The only stipulation is.... - that they have to get married.

This book was gorgeous. When I wasn't reading it I was thinking about them, and so eager to dive back in. There's so many details I appreciated - Sadie's love for romance novels (with winks to beloved books and authors I love as well), to Jonah's footnotes that I was always eager to flip to. I am such a fan of marriage of convenience novels and I feel like that's a difficult trope to pull off in a contemporary romance, but it was handled so so well and I was grinning the whole time as they were working out the details. The POVs were such a treat, getting to see each side's views on each other (forever in love with how head-over-heels Jonah is, and how Sadie is hit with her realization so suddenly and completely) - the flashbacks and years spent together truly flesh out their world and relationship and so draw you in.

Every character captured my attention as well - I loved the (heart-aching) conflict between Sadie and Chessie (and how Jonah accurately critiques it, that layer was so fun), and the relationships between everyone as ties were strained and bonded and forged stronger was so emotionally satisfying to read. It had me hoping for more (will Elias and Julia reconnect? What about Fi and Satoshi?? Did I sense a connection between Chess and Isamu?? If there was ever more of them & their world I would so inhale it!) but also just so happy to have shared this slice of their life with them.

This is theeee perfect read for anyone who's found a home in literature, who loves a soft romance, who loves sisters and family, who finds a sort of thrill in arguing, and those who love a happy ending. Right away I could tell how close to the heart this had to have been for the author, and there's so much love poured into every page - and I know you will love this, too.

Tropes & Tags:
📖rivals-to-lovers
💖fake-dating / marriage of convenience
📖 he falls first
💖doctor & doctor
📖 only one bed
💖 grumpy x grumpier
📖 fighting (arguing) as foreplay
💖 soft academia
📖 slow burn

[I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review, thank you so much NetGalley, Jodi McAlister and Atria Books! 📖]

Book of the year! Book of the year! Book of the year!!!

An Academic Affair follows two academics on their quest for stable jobs in academia who find themselves in a marriage of convenience. Jonah Fisher is a yearner, from the very beginning of meeting Sadie Shaw, he was hooked but she had no idea he felt this way. Sadie Shaw is a wildfire, smart, brash, and with a soft spot for sisters.
I don't always love marriage of convenience since they always feel a little too far fetched to me. However, this one was written out and played in such a wonderful way. The enemies to lovers to marriage of convenience pipeline worked perfectly for the pair. Each POV was beautifully crafted to let you in to the characters heads. I also was really intrigued by the other characters in this story and hope to see more of them in the future, (the wine shop owners, Fiona, Jonah's brother and his own version of Sadie).

i absolutely flew through this book! such a fun read with a lot of emotional depth revolving family issues. This book follows Sadie and Jonah, who have been rivals since undergrad. They are both PhD professors at each other’s throats competing for the right job. After one gets their dream job, they end up in a marriage of convenience situation for overwhelming reasons. This books was so fun and I absolutely loved the dynamic between the two main characters. The characters felt so realistic as they dealt with real life issues. Great for fall with a light academia setting! The footnotes were so fun too!

This book was so fun! I’m a big fan of a romance that has a plot and conflict separate from the relationship, and this book does that really well. I found that the “banter” was stilted and a little unbelievable at times, but that didn’t stop me from falling in love with these characters. Sadie and Jonah both need so much therapy and I love them.

First off - I love a good enemies to lovers romance and the "forced" proximity storyline. I would like to rate this book as a 3.5 but I am rounding down to a 3 because of 2 main flaws that could so easily be remedied. The book was a little slow to start for me, giving the background of the 2 mains "hate" for each other. I really enjoyed both of the characters (an many of the supporting characters in the book as well), BUT I think this story was ruined with the really awkwardly written sex scene. A closed door fade to black would have been much more appropriate for the flow of the book and the storyline. Also, the use of the F-word over and over and over was way too much and completely unnecessary. I have a hard time with the intelligence of the two mains and then the over use of one single swear word in almost every conversation. It just didn't fit. There is a big demand now for clean romance fiction and this book will miss that audience.
Thank you Net Galley for an advanced copy of this book.

I have plenty of friends in academia, and even though Jodi McAlister lives in Australia, I think many of the circumstances are the same in the U.S.—the precarious nature of the career, the wild competition for the handful of available full-time tenure-track positions, etc. That situation is at the heart of "An Academic Affair," where longtime rivals Jonah and Sadie wind up going after the same job, and through a series of escalating circumstances, wind up in a marriage of convenience.
The novel features alternating points of view; Jonah's are heavily footnoted, which is kind of hilarious and appropriate. Jonah's been pining for Sadie for years, while she sees him as a privileged nepo baby (his dad is a big-deal professor in the same field). I grew to love them both so much that I DREADED the traditional third-act misunderstanding/revelation that would inevitably cause them to break up, but I shouldn't have worried—McAlister really surprised and delighted me at every turn!
Both Jonah and Sadie grow and change a lot during the course of the book; Jonah develops a close relationship with his sister, who has gone through a nasty divorce, and learns to be less mansplain-y and recognize his privilege. Sadie, an orphan, learns to stand on her own two feet after a lifetime relying on HER sister, who essentially raised her. This is the kind of book that has happy endings not just for the couple, but for their friends and families. Swoon!!
McAlister's previous "Bachelor"-inspired romances were good, but "An Academic Affair" represents a tremendous leap forward. I adored this book.

I liked the enemies to lovers romance, with its supporting characters that helped round out the cast. I could see this being a series and the next book focusing on one of the sisters.

3.5 rounded up! This book was so fun and easy to read. I loved the academic rivals theme, and thought the family ties revolving around sister relationships was so sweet. Definitely recommend for a quick, fun read with some heart.

I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book! I love a good academic rivals to lovers story, and this one delivered. The relationship between Sadie and Jonah felt real and authentic, and there was so much yearning! I thought the themes of family dynamics, academia, and sisters were handled well, and I enjoyed the literary references and fun footnotes. The build up and pacing worked well for me, although I lost some interest towards the end (last 30 pages or so). Overall a well-crafted and enjoyable rom-com!

Read this in one day! Following the story about two english lit students go through undergrad, grad school, and their early careers as eachother's nemesis was so so so cute. Then when a marriage of convenience is on their horizon?! I could not put this book down.

What an excellent and well written romance. I will be recommending this one for my book club!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7841847277



For formatting, the footnotes catapulted you all the way to the end of the book, which was quite painful. The footnotes were very fun and added to the story, but having to go back to (and remember) what page you were on really limited the enjoyability of reading this.

Such a fun rom-com work romance. You have enemies to lovers, forced proximity, and fake dating all wrapped up into this nerdy lovers novel. Perfect for a ‘going back to school’ seasonal read imo!

Thank you Atria Books for my eARC!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you @NetGalley for this ARC!

I devoured An Academic Affair in just two days. A quarter of the way through, I already knew this was going to be a 5-star read—and it absolutely delivered.

It’s cute and funny, sentimental and sweet, but also full of grit and emotional highs and lows. At its heart, it’s the best kind of love story: a (sort of) enemies-to-lovers, us-against-the-world romance, layered with rich family dynamics.

What makes it so special is that it’s not only about romantic love, but love in all its forms. I absolutely adored Jonah and Sadie—and I know you will too.

As always Jodi gives us another perfect read! the romance in this was unmatched and absolutely gorgeous. I couldnt put it down at all. finished in one solid sitting. I cant wait for the next read.