Two career academics who meet in college, mature into their profession as adversaries, only to enter into a marriage of convenience to secure full time teaching employment. Jonah has always been in love with Sadie and Sadie falls in love with Jonah as he demonstrates just how good a person he is, in this slow burn, enemies to lovers, adversaries to co-conspirators romance. Family dynamics are central to both pulling them apart and bringing them together- revealing what it is to have people on your side and what truly defines what a family can be when you lean into loving people.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The Yearning!!!
This book was so lovely and their love was so beautiful! Jonah is the perfect book boyfriend, or shall I say husband?
The romance in this book is so real and beautiful that it kept me hooked. I will say the end felt rushed and left some plot holes as to where Chess had been. I just wanted to know more. Also I NEED to find out more about Julia and Elias. I need their love story ASAP. Overall a beautiful read that I would definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book and will for sure buy a copy when it hits the shelves!! I thought the writing and storytelling were spectacular, and I was hooked from the very first chapter. I never thought I'd love STEM romance books outside of Ali Hazelwood, but McAlister does a superb job. Part of me felt like I was reading an academic paper given the footnotes. Additonally, there was no third act break up which is always a bonus..

Read if you like:
- He falls first
-Marriage of convenience
- Academic rivals to lovers
- Black cat x Golden retriever
- Dual POV
- Only one bed

An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister is a well-written, heartfelt story about two longtime academic rivals who’ve spent over a decade competing—and maybe something more. A complicated mix of a family situation, a professional dilemma, and a fake marriage brings Jonah and Sadie closer than ever, and what unfolds is more than just rivalry.

You can’t spend 13+ years entangled with someone without developing a bond, and theirs is as genuine as it gets. Jonah's quiet, caring nature is exactly what romance heroes are made of, and Sadie is the perfect match—fiery, determined, and just sweet enough to balance him out. The chemistry between them is palpable and flows effortlessly throughout the entire story.

I’ve always loved academic settings for romance novels—there’s just something about the intellectual tension and close quarters that makes the trope work so well. This one is no exception.

Thank you to Atria Books, Jodi McAlister, and NetGalley for the ARC. I thoroughly enjoyed this read.

This was my first Jodi McAlister book and it won’t be my last! I think I just found a new auto buy author! This book is about two rivals who use a marriage of convenience to get a job offer, they’ve been rivals for years but the lines quickly begin to blur. What an incredible book. It was so quick witted and well researched. The characters are all so smart but can also be so soft with each other and the people they love. My god Jonah is everything, if you’re looking for a man who yearns, here he is!! I mean 15 years! And Sadie is such a force I loved her from the start. She’s so strong and intelligent, what a phenomenal main character. I loved everything about this book, the growth of the characters not only with themselves and each other but also with their families! Fiona and the girls are so precious and I love how Jonah shows up for them and Chess is such a force of nature, I want her to be my lawyer! All the side characters were truly amazing and added so much depth to the story. This was such a beautiful enemies to lovers, slow burn, forced proximity, it literally has it all! Automatic 5 stars! Thank you for writing this book, I absolutely loved it!

Overall, I liked this! The relationship was sweet. I was kicking my little feet. I thought the literary/academic references were well done and not overbearing.

The pacing in the beginning (until about 25%) was strange and it almost put me off. Once it finally hit the marriage, though, things picked up.

I liked the dual POV and I thought the footnotes in Jonah’s POV was a novel way to distinguish them and add more color.

I didn’t particularly care about Sadie’s storyline with her sister, but it also didn’t detract too much for me. I can imagine this having interconnected standalone potential for future side characters, which would be

In this book we have Sadie and Jonah who are competing for an extremely limited amount of academic faculty positions in the english/fine arts field, and they absolutely cannot stop fighting no matter the situation. They keep crossing paths throughout 15 years... and then we get a marriage of convinience??

Also I absolutely loved the use of footnotes in this book- I read it on my kindle and I stg everytime I saw the little number I got so excited.

Honestly at this point I feel that there's a specific formulas that create an easy five stars for me. This book fell into the category of 1) teaching me something about a field/situation I don't know anything about; 2) making me laugh; 3) this --> 🥲

Most of the time when giving a book five stars I have to do one of two things: audibly giggle (bonus if I kick my feet) or cry (bonus if it's repeatedly). This book had me giggling right off the bat! It was so well-written and the characters were so well-rounded and 3D. I loved the setting and the academic rivals to lovers is always a trope I love to see. Especially with the addition of a marriage of convenience, which is one of my guilty pleasures, even when it's completely unbelievable (in this case it was, because from what I've heard and seen, academia is awful). I love love loved it and I will need to please see the love stories for every other secondary character from this book STAT! Would prefer to see Julia and Elias next please and thank you.

This book was really interesting! I enjoyed the plot and the characters, and I would absolutely recommend it to others!

This was such a lovely read! Jonah and Sadie were such fun protagonists and never more so than when they were arguing. I enjoyed the marriage of convenience and absolutely loved watching their grow into their new life in Hobart. Chess and Fiona were also great characters and I loved the setting! I will forever be looking for a wine bar as wonderful as Tsundoku.

An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister

What’s in it?
💘enemies/rivals-to-lovers
💍fake marriage
❤️‍🔥semi-slow burn romance
📖bookish references throughout
📝academic setting
🌵prickly FMC
👓doting MMC
🌶️lower on the spice meter
🏠family dynamics
🍷Tsundoku (a wine bar w used books) + Bibliophile (wine label)

For over a decade, Sadie and Jonah have been at each other’s throats in the academic field. When a job posting for a single permanent position pops up, they’re once again in competition. Not only are they each qualified, but they have their own personal reasons for needing the job. When they discover an obscure contract provision allowing “partner hire,” they decide to get married and stay together for 3 years until tenure. Will sparks fly before then? 🤭

☁️I think it’s a little low on the spice meter and didn’t have as much funny banter that i typically see in romcom novels, but it’s still a fun read overall. The first 58% was mostly setup (their relationship over the years, family dynamics, partner hire, etc.), and the latter portion is the falling-in-love-but-I-always-crushed-on-you part.

I was invited by the publisher to review this book. Sadie and Jonah are academic rivals; they met over a decade ago in the literature department during their undergraduate years. A teaching position opens up, and their rivalry meets new levels. Each has their own personal reasons for why they are seeking out the job; that is when Sadie notices the job also offers partner hire, and in order to get them both hired, all they need to do is be married. They both agree to this winning idea, but then develop an attraction to one another.

I personally loved the academic setting of this book. Both characters are also strongly written and have good chemistry with moments that are legitimately funny. There was also good depth written for each character when it came to their personal aspects and family dynamics. As an aside, the addition of the footnote section was a total win for me!

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

I really enjoyed this book, but I do feel like I ended up with unanswered questions at the end. Who was Chess staying with, the mystery man? What happened with Elias and Julia? That being said, this academic rivals to lovers story was juicy and fun. I loved the lack of a third act breakup. Jonah was a cinnamon roll, and his caring for Sadie was so touching. Charming!

4.5 Stars. I am not typically a marriage of convienience girl but as someone that is in academia themselves, this just hit for me. It is a very competitve industry even for academic librarians. The romace/slow burn was wonderfully done but the realistic feel of the academic life coupled with the pressures of succeeded in one of the most burn out heavy fileds just did it for me. Well done.

Sadie and Jonah were the definition of enemies to lovers and it was so fun to read. The fake dating dynamic worked well and made you root for them even though the situation "forced their hand". Tasmania was such a unique and beautiful setting for their love story to take place. A witty, quick-read romance that will have you wanting to rooting for professors in your life and wanting to dive into the world of academia.

Thank you to Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

Sadie and Jonah have been academic rivals for years: college, grad school, and into their PhDs. They’ve shared classrooms, housing, and a long-standing animosity that has even drawn in their families. When both compete for the same academic post in Tasmania, Sadie proposes a truce: fake a relationship to take advantage of a partner-hiring clause, securing positions for them both. But as the charade unfolds, the line between rivalry and romance begins to blur.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. The unique setting in Tasmania and the competitive academic backdrop brought freshness to the enemies-to-lovers trope. Sadie and Jonah’s chemistry was authentic and compelling, and their emotional evolution felt earned. The family dynamics added warmth and humor, and the glimpse into the world of tenure-track academia was both fascinating and believable.

A sharp, well-paced romance with depth and heart - I’ll be recommending this widely.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I don’t usually enjoy this tropes in this book but the way they were handled in this case just worked. We have enemies to lovers meets fake dating in an absolutely delightful read that dives into the challenges of adulthood from securing jobs to family dynamics and yes, romantic relationships too. It’s just a good read and I found myself incredibly disappointed to turn the last page and realize it was over!

✨📚 AN ACADEMIC AFFAIR – Jodi McAlister 📚✨

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sadie + Jonah = academic rivals to fake married lovers? THE BOOK OF MY DREAMS.

This was such a fun and surprisingly emotional read! Sadie and Jonah have been circling each other for over a decade: pushing, competing, and secretly not hating each other as much as they pretended to. Jonah has been burying a crush for years (be still my pining loving heart 🧡), and Sadie? Okay, she was rough to like in the beginning, but once her walls started cracking, she absolutely grew on me. Watching her slowly let Jonah in was SO satisfying.

The marriage of convenience angle actually worked perfectly in this academic setting. Yes, it’s a little far fetched, but you know what? I was too busy enjoying their banter, the quiet moments, and Jonah being a total sweetheart to care. His toxic dad backstory broke me, and Sadie’s fallout with her sister was gutting. This book isn’t just fluff; there’s real emotional weight here.

The slow burn was SLOW (think academic rivals crockpotting in pining juice for 10 hours before finally giving in 😂), but the payoff was so worth it. My only real complaint? I wanted a longer glimpse into their happily ever after! After all that buildup, I needed to bask in their post rivals bliss just a bit more.

Tropes I LOVED:
✔️ Academic rivals to lovers
✔️ Marriage of convenience
✔️ Slow burn with real yearning
✔️ Sweet, cinnamon roll MMC + emotionally guarded FMC
✔️ Family drama that adds depth

If you love Ali Hazelwood or Emily Henry’s nerdy banter mixed with a little more heartache, definitely give this a try.

Thank you to NetGalley, Jodi McAlister, and Atria Books for the eARC of this book.

Sadie and Jonah have been rivals since the beginning. So much so that Jonah had to bury his crush for a over a decade. They've pretty much always been in each other's orbit and keeping each other on their toes. Sadie wins out on a job they were both vying for and after learning of a clause that could help Jonah too, she proposes a marriage of convenience. This was an interesting trip. There was so much emotional baggage, it was heartbreaking at times. He has a toxic dad. She has a falling out with her sister that absolutely wrecks her. Jonah is a sweetheart. Sadie is hard to like in the very beginning, but she really grows on you. I really did enjoy this one. I wouldn't have minded more of a glimpse into their happily ever after.

Clip Clop. Clip Clop. Clip Clop.

What’s that, you say? It’s the steady rhythmic sound of a horse’s hooves on a pavement. The pacing is almost mindless for the rider astride the horse. That’s what this reader felt as to the pacing of this book.

Steady. Surefooted. No sudden jostling; that is, not towards the last quarter of the book when the MMC confesses how he really feels for the FMC. It’s only then that the plot seemed to move into a ‘canter’.
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This ARC was provided by the publisher, Atria Books, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.