This book was honestly so much fun, and while workplace rivals doesn't always interest me I couldn't help requesting this one! There is really nothing like a good enemies to lovers (especially when he's been falling the whole time). The other plots in here were a huge help too - especially the weight of helping your family. Definitely a great read!

As someone in the academic field, I knew this was a must read.
Enemies to lovers AND they are professors?! I'm so in.

Also. NO THIRD ACT BREAK UP. I really appreciate that there was more to the story than just the romance, even though the romance was realllll nice. Jonah's thoughts are so pure <3

4 out of 5 wine bottles!

I received a copy of this book courtesy of the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
I’ll start off with “An Academic Affair” is not my typical read. It is the first heterosexual romance I’ve read in over a year. Outside of that the tropes were some of my favorites, enemies to lovers, one bed, forced proximity, etc. Sadie and Jonah both acknowledging how closely their relationship was following those tropes was quite funny as well. The amount of introspection on both of their parts was a relief. I will say my main complaint was that the ending felt abrupt. I was confused when I turned the page only for it to be over. Sure, the major plot points were wrapped up, but some of the minor ones felt glossed over. My favorite little tidbit was Jonah’s POV containing footnotes. Even in his head he couldn’t help being a scholar.

Thank you to Atria Books via NetGalley for this ARC!

As someone who is beginning to fall in love with the romance genre, I always enjoy finding stories that are housed in narratives that I could hear about in my everyday life. This time it was in the world in early career academia. As someone who’s actively working on their PhD, I knew I was hook line and sinker when Jonah’s first footnote appeared. I loved every second of Sadie and Jonah’s story and honestly think that footnotes and marginalia should be talked and utilized way more as declarations of love.

I loved Sadie and Jonah as characters and as a couple. Their personalities along with their witty banter was entertaining. I thought they were great. Their story was also great, but I feel like the pacing was a little off for me. And the end felt a little incomplete and sudden. It didn't wrap up as nicely as I wanted it to. Overall though this was a good read. Perfect for academic, enemies to lovers, and forced proximity fans.

Once again, Jodi McAlister delivers a professionally annoying (misogyny always gets my goat and she is SO good at detailing its horrors) and emotionally engaging novel whose romance makes it near impossible to put the book down! Her characters are so well fleshed out that even tertiary ones are memorable and the lovable ones have you hoping that there is a novel of their own in the future.
This time she tackles the world of academia and is inspired in how she creates the drama that spurs the story along. The slow burn/pining romance bursts into great passion just before making the reader’s heart drop at approaching problems. As mentioned before, unputdownable! Enjoy!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for the free ARC. All opinions are wholly my own.

I really enjoyed this! The pacing was well done, making the academic rivals-to-friends-to-lovers pipeline feel completely believable. My only complaint is how the conflict with her sister was handled, it felt a bit unresolved, and the epilogue didn’t quite feel like a true epilogue. Nonetheless, I highly recommend this book!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

McAlister's writing absolutely shines in An Academic Affair! I absolutely adored this book and especially loved both Sadie and Jonah perspectives. Their story is fun, emotional, tender, and most of all real. Readers will love love Sadie and Jonah as they navigate the ever harrowing academic landscape, complicated familial relationships, and find themselves and each other in these pages.

this was fun and i enjoyed the characters and their growth but it just wasn’t anything to write home about for me, i needed a little more for that, and i couldn’t get over how stupid the sister miscommunication felt, that drove me insane

thank you to netgalley for an arc of this title in exchange for my honest feedback!

Amazing book loved the characters and plot. I couldn't stop reading I stayed up all night. I loved the book so much thank you for the arc.

I absolutely adored this swoony, academic, literary enemies/rivals-to-lovers story. Think Ali Hazelwood but instead of science nerd romance it’s literature nerd romance. I am the exact target audience for this book (hello MA in English Literature) but I think it is charming and has enough universal appeal to recommend it to anyone.

Jonah and Sadie have long been academic rivals but after competing in the brutal university job market, they decide to get married in order to get both of them hired under a “partner hire” clause. I generally hate a marriage of convenience/fake relationship trope but I enjoyed this one anyway. Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This was good! I think this book would really hit home for academics, but I didn’t find myself connecting to that portion of the story so it was a little lost on me. The romance was cute, but the pining for me was a little too stretched out, and I found myself getting a bit bored in the middle. Also, the conflict between the FMC and her sister felt incomplete to me, and I wish there was more of a solid ending there.

Ironically, my favorite characters are Fiona and the Tsukamoto brothers. I really hope the hint in the acknowledgements is true and maybe the next book will be about them?!?!? I would read that in a heartbeat. Overall though I did enjoy the writing style and will consider reading this authors’ other books, this one just wasn’t my all time favorite.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was my fist book by Jodi McAlister but it will not be my last. An Academic Affair was SO CUTE. I could not put it down. THE FOOTNOTES, OMG!!! I loved the dynamic between Sadie and Jonah. I adore a novel where he falls first. And I thought the storyline about academia was super interesting and compelling. Definitely enough to keep me reading and a fun play on marriage of convenience. I loved this book.

This was an unexpected surprise how much I loved this book considering I know next to nothing about Australia or their academics. Their love story spanned years and got started in an unconventional way but boy was the journey getting there soooo good!

"Eucatastrope is joy poignant as grief. The joy cannot be truly felt in a world where the grief isn't possible"


this is one of the most realistic marriage of convenience stories i have ever read to date. I loved the academic to rivals storyline. The only thing I would change would be the overuse of strong language. I was able to look past it because I was genuinely interested in the story. This book is a slow burn but it's not just the MC pining for each other. It is about family and how deep our bond is with siblings; in this case, sisters. There is one open door scene between a married couple which takes place at 83% in chapter 20 and contains explicit details.

I honestly wish it didn't have that much strong language. I loved the storytelling.

content: strong language sprinkled throughout, spice: one open door scene ( chapter 20) , toxic family

Thank you so much Netgalley for the arc, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this fun academic rom-com! The standout for me was the main male character—total book boyfriend material. I loved the nemesis-to-lovers dynamic between him and the heroine, which was done with great chemistry and charm.

As an American reader, I found some of the academic details (particularly those tied to the Australian university system) a bit unfamiliar, but I still appreciated the behind-the-scenes look at university employment and office politics—it gave the story a unique and grounded setting.

The subplot involving the main female character’s sister felt a little forced at times, but I did appreciate how both protagonists had deep, meaningful relationships with their sisters. It added emotional depth to their characters.

One of my favorite aspects was how Jonah had always loved Sadie, while it took Sadie a bit longer to catch up—such a sweet and satisfying dynamic to watch unfold. The book also leaves the door open for sequels, and I’d love to read more stories featuring side characters like Chess, Fiona, or Julia.

Overall, this was a light, engaging read with heart, humor, and a swoony romance. I’d definitely recommend it to fans of academic settings, slow-burn romance, and well-developed side characters.

Thanks to Net Galley and Atria books for the ARC!

Rating: 3.75

An Academic Affair is a comfy and charming read.

This cute marriage of convenience romance between two dueling academics Sadie and Jonah is full of plot put unfortunately no real conclusion.

We start out with Jonah's POV and the multiple ceasefires between himself and Sadie. His academic rival who he is secretly in love with. Then we jump to the present where they are both vying for a permanent teaching job at Lyons University. One succeeds and when a stipulation is noticed for a partner hire they decided to get married. Of course over the course of the academic year they realize their true feelings for each other.

Unfortunately for me this books ending left nothing to be desired. It was rushed and open ended and could have had a better conclusion with a few more chapters. Also the slow burn was almost two slow and I wish it happened a bit sooner because i think the ending could have had more time to wrap up things if it did.

I did love the foot notes in Jonah's POV. I thought that was a fun and unique addition.

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS I'VE READ ALL YEAR!!! I absolutely devoured this book in one day--it was so fucking good. I loved the academic rivalry in the beginning that morphed into a deeply obsessed and yearning man. Chef's kiss.

Academic rivals to lovers and marrige of convenience? I knew I was going to like this book. But I didn't expect to fall in love with the couple the way I did!

Sadie and Jonah are actually the cutest 😭 The way they care for each other was so beautifully swoon worthy! Jonah is just so sweet under all the snarky banter these two have got going on. The way Jonah loves Sadie!!! (This man is obsessed, and it had me kicking my feet.)

This had a great plot that had me turning pages until 4 am, and really fun characters. I loved this so much, I'll be reading Jodi McAlister's backlist posthaste.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Australia for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! All opinions are my own.

⭐️⭐️⭐️ So I just finished An Academic Affair and... honestly, mixed feelings. I was super into the whole campus setting and the academic politics were kind of juicy, not gonna lie. Jodi McAllister definitely knows how to write tension and banter—some of the scenes had me flipping pages just to see how it would all blow up.
Butttt… the romance didn’t completely hit for me. I wanted to root for the characters, I really did, but sometimes their choices were kinda frustrating? Like, girl, you’re smart—why are you doing that? 😭 I also felt like the pacing dragged in parts, especially toward the middle, and I found myself skimming just to get back to the good stuff.
Overall, it wasn’t bad! Just not amazing. I’d recommend it if you’re into academia drama and morally messy situations, but maybe not if you're craving a satisfying love story with all the feels.