First of all, thank you very much for the ARC.
It was a very good book and a quick read.
I recommend it. Perfect for mood readers looking for something new! 3 stars.

Oooof one could say the pre-read thoughts had me nervous. Readers are told in the synopsis that this one’s for you if you like The Paradise Problem and The Love Hypothesis, so okay, I’m here for it but I’m going to be nervy as heck. Overall, this book was cute but I don’t know if I would have compared those books to this one.

Elizabeth McKenzie’s Bad Chemistry is set to release this December, just in time for readers to start putting down those holiday romances for something a little different. The book follows Ashleigh, a chemistry teacher who is a dedicated Bone It user, yup, you heard me. What is Bone It you may ask, haha, Tinder, so good for you girlie 👏🏻. But unfortunately due to one of her casual hookup interactions…briefly (it was an ass grab right before she was considered off property) on school grounds, she gets fired. Honestly? The principal is an ass and pretty much states she’s promiscuous, I mean…maybe she is, but she’s overall kept her home life separate from her work life. Smells like a lawsuit to me.

Desperate for cash due to having no money for rent, she turns to month-long sleep study…next to enter the villa…ex-friend/fling, Xander Miller. The only guy she’s ever contemplated saying the L word to. In order to stay in the study, they have to act as a couple. Cue the one-bed trope and the slow burny goodness. This book was definitely sex-positive and the banter between Ash and Sawyer was great! My biggest issue with the book was that it felt rushed and short, it was a really cute concept but I needed a bit more.

Thank you NetGalley and Alcove Press.
3.5 stars!

2.5 stars
Ashleigh is fired from her teaching job and she decides to enroll in a sleep study over the summer to pay the rent. The catch: the sleep study is only looking for couples, so when she runs into Xander, her college one-night-stand who also wants to enroll in the sleep study to cure his insomnia, they decide to enroll as a fake couple.

This skewed a little too much toward only emphasizing the sexual tension between Ash and Xander, it got a little repetitive with the off-the-charts sexual attraction backed up by nothing else shown in the relationship between the characters - until suddenly they were supposedly "completely in love all along". While the banter was sometimes fun, too often it veered too far into just being-an-asshole-to-each-other territory. I'm not a fan of the emotionally unavailable love interest trope, and Ashleigh was more emotionally unavailable than any other character I've ever read. Turns out I like it even less when the emotionally unavailable part of the "couple" is the only POV character in the book. If I don't believe the characters in a rom-com are both equally good for each other, I can't really get into it. And Ashleigh's character growth happened too little too late in the book for her to redeem herself to me. It didn't feel earned. And the HEA didn't feel believable, not without years of therapy before getting there. The writing wasn't bad, the pacing was fine, I finished the book quickly and was never bored by it, but I was exasperated with the main character the entire time. The reason she was fired was completely unfair and unacceptable, and I actually think she was a good teacher, so I was rooting for her to get her job back or find another way too keep being a teacher. But I just couldn't root for the relationship. And while with other genres that might not be a big deal, it is what makes or breaks a rom-com. It's not like a mystery or fantasy book where I can take or leave the romantic subplot if it isn't working for me. With a rom-com the relationship is the whole point of the book. And for me personally, this one missed the mark unfortunately.

I enjoyed Xander's smack-down "review" of Ashleigh's mom's bestselling book - that was the only scene in here that had me actually cheering.

Thank you to Alcove Press for providing a review copy via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

When chemistry teacher Ashleigh Hutchinson is unexpectedly fired from her job she joins a well paying sleep research study in order to pay the rent.

There she runs into insomniac Xander Miller, who she ditched after a memorable one night stand 11 years before.

When the pair find out the study only has room left for couples they pretend to be in a relationship to get onto the study.

But getting a good night's sleep might just be easier for Xander than getting past Ashleigh's no relationships rule.

*******

This book was funny, sexy and had a storyline that hit on all the right points.

I didn't get a good night's sleep while reading this because I couldn't put the book down.

Bed Chemistry is a perfect book for an emotional spicy lover.

Xander
✅ lawyer
✅ imsomniac

Ash
✅ chemistry teacher (got fired)
✅ in need of money
✅ broken family

✅ forced proximity (one bed - sleep study)
✅ second chance love
✅ high school friendship
✅ emotional (both of them shows each other their vurnerable sides)
✅ angst ( the storyline are giving a rollercoaster vibes)
✅ tear jerker ( sometimes I hates Ash’s mom)
✅ sweet ( Xander still helping Ash even tho Ash rejected him)
✅ plenty of spicy scenes: explicit and intense
🔥🔥🔥🔥
🔥 the heart monitor scene
🔥 the lift scene (my fav)
🔥 the criminal mind scene

Abso fucking lutely gonna read the next book from Elizabeth Mckenzie.

Ashleigh Hutchinson es una profesora de química que ama su trabajo, adora a sus estudiantes y su vida personal tiene una regla de oro: el sexo y el amor no se mezclan. Pero su mundo se derrumba cuando es despedida injustamente por su vida sexual fuera del trabajo. Sin empleo, sin dinero y con la renta por pagar, Ashleigh acepta participar en un estudio de sueño por el tentador sueldo de ocho mil dólares. El único problema: ahora solo buscan parejas.

Justo cuando parece que todo está perdido, reaparece Xander Miller, su antiguo “amigo con derechos” de la universidad con quien tuvo una noche inolvidable hace once años. Él también necesita entrar al estudio. La solución es obvia: fingir que son pareja. ¿Qué tan difícil puede ser dormir juntos sin realmente dormir juntos?


--

Ojalá Xander tuviera POVs, porque en el primer tercio cae mal por los comentarios que hace sobre la vida sexual de Ashleigh. Y aunque después se redimió, me quedé con la duda de si realmente pensaba eso o si solo intentaba mantener distancia por lo que pasó entre ellos en el pasado.


Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest

Okay first what I liked: the premise was super fun and unique. I also enjoyed *some* of the banter, and Xander was hot. What wasn’t my favorite: the main character was annoying AF. I think some people will really love her, but she wasn’t my cup of tea.

Five stars! This was such an easy read, i finished it in a day. It also had me laughing. It was such a cute romantic comedy and a great singer read. I will be looking out for more books by this author!

"There's oxytocin. That's the love drug. And then there's lust. That's the pure sex hormone. And they are polar opposites. I'm talking smokin' hot and frigit cold. Pleasure and pain in the ass. Soaking wet and very, very dry. Love and sex: never the two shall meet. You can fall in love, or you can have great sex. But love and chemistry can't coexist."

Bed Chemistry is a fun, flirty, and sizzling romance that puts a fresh twist on the classic "only-one-bed" trope. Ashleigh, a no nonsense chemistry teacher with a strict no relationships rule, ends up fake dating her ex crush, Xander, in a sleep study gone hilariously sideways.

The banter is sharp, the chemistry is undeniable (pun intended), and the awkward moments are just the right kind of cringe worthy.

Simple, steamy, and sweet. This debut delivers exactly what it promises.

Thank you to Alcove Press and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this advance copy in exchange for an honest review!