This was such a wonderful read! Frances and Lewis had me hooked from the get-go, they were so easy to root for and had amazing chemistry. I didn't want to put the book down!

If I had a nickel for every time a PhD neuroscientist wrote a fantastic romance, I'd have two nickels, and I'm thrilled to have them.

This book had me hooked from the very first chapter. I loved Frances and Lewis’s banter; it was fun to see them shift from academic rivals to lovers while keeping their fiery spirit. Having the characters communicate and own up to their mistakes was so refreshing; the conflict between them was not brushed over with a simple apology. Lewis is a man who knows how to apologize, and we love him for that. This book does a fantastic job of showcasing the characters' introspection and how they work to improve.

I truly loved this book, and I can’t wait for it to hit the shelves.

My favorite quote from the book: "Love is accepting someone without reservations."

This was a cute read! I enjoyed the first meeting between Lewis and Frances, and enjoyed their relative slow burn dynamic. I thought that Frances came across as a bit self-absorbed, and I liked that her sister eventually called her out on it. There were several times where I found myself feeling like Frances was being overly dramatic or over the top just for the sake of creating conflict, but it didn’t take me out of the story. I am a huge fan of the fake-dating trope, especially practicing PDA and kissing to “be prepared.” Works every time! I am very much enjoying more STEM rom coms, keep them coming!

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review! All opinions are my own.

Dr. Frances Silberstein and Dr Theodore “Lewis” North are both post docs in the field of Neuroscience. They have a well-known sparring relationship in the field, in which Dr. North is known to “criticize” Dr. Silberstein’s work. The two happened to meet on a long flight to New York City, she has a fear of flying and he has a conference abstract due in two hours that needs some editing help. Their meet cute turns into a fake relationship when a colleague mistakes them as being romantically together. For two weeks they plan to pretend to be together, since they are scientists and can plan and execute experiments easily, nothing should go wrong. As with any experiment there are always variables not taken into consideration and these two will learn a lot about each other and themselves in the next two weeks.

This was a fun read for me. It was nice that this was an academic where it’s not a story with a professor and student imbalance, I hate those stories since I see it too often at work. As someone in academia, I so felt Frances frustration. This isn’t a light a fluffy romance but will take a little more brain power to use context clues about some of the jokes/problems that are part of these two characters. There is some spicy scenes and would rate it 2.5/5 level. This was well written and I felt like I was in the middle of an academic conference with the “more of a comment than a question” which had me laughing because there is always one in every session. I would like to see a story with Brady with her werewolf and scientist story, where she meets her own “werewolf.”

Love and Other Brain Experiments
By Hannah Brohm

Frances is a lifelong academic whose passion for neuroscience was born from tragedy—her sister’s skiing accident and subsequent amnesia left a lasting impact, fueling Frances’s career-long obsession with memory and the brain. Now, with her funding running dry and her research at risk, Frances boards a plane to New York, hoping the upcoming conference will offer both new networking opportunities and a potential postdoc position.

Flying is not Frances’s strong suit, and turbulence doesn’t help. But things take a sharp turn when a flight attendant asks her to help a fellow passenger with a document—only for Frances to realize the man in question is Lewis, a former colleague and one-time confidant who cut ties years ago by failing to credit her work.

Lewis has avoided New York for years, unwilling to confront the family he disappointed by choosing a different path. But with a major conference and his brother’s graduation pulling him back, he can’t escape forever. When fate throws Frances back into his life—along with a chance misunderstanding involving Frances’s ex’s fiancée—he finds himself agreeing to a fake relationship to help them both save face. What starts as a convenient lie begins to unravel the emotional walls they’ve built and forces them to confront the unresolved tension that’s simmered for years.

Fans of Ali Hazelwood and Christina Lauren will fall hard for Hannah Brohm’s debut. Love and Other Brain Experiments is a smart, heartfelt romance with layers of academic ambition, emotional vulnerability, and second-chance tension.

4 out of 5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Atria Books for the opportunity to read Love and Other Brain Experiments.

NASA should study my standards for romance novels because they are truly astronomically high, and this just skyrocketed them into a new galaxy, I fear.

✰ 5 stars, as a woman in STEM, I feel as though this story has the most accurate, nuanced portrayal of a woman in STEM in any romance novel I have ever read. and simply no one else but this hot nerdy man can appropriately intellectually stimulate her. I strongly recommend for fans of Ali Hazelwood's steminist romances who like Abby Jimenez and Tarah DeWitt-level emotion and character complexity.

thank you to Atria Books for the opportunity to read an advanced reader copy

2.5


Frances Silberstein, una neurocientífica que ha dedicado su vida a la investigación y cuyo futuro profesional pende de un hilo. Desesperada por oportunidades laborales, asiste a un prestigioso seminario de verano en Nueva York. Lo que no esperaba era reencontrarse con Lewis North, su rival académico… y el hombre que, años atrás, se apropió de parte de su trabajo sin darle el más mínimo crédito.

Una serie de malentendidos lleva a que los asistentes al evento crean que Frances y Lewis están saliendo, y en lugar de aclararlo, deciden fingir una relación por conveniencia. Sin embargo, lo que empieza como una estrategia profesional los lleva a una montaña rusa emocional, donde viejos rencores, heridas sin cerrar y una química imposible de ignorar complicarán más que nunca la vida y el corazón de Frances.



___


Lewis le robó parte de su trabajo a Frances, utilizó sus ideas, comentarios e investigación (una parte), lo publicó y ni siquiera la mencionó. Ese artículo fue clave para su reconocimiento académico. ¿Y cómo compensó semejante traición? Cuatro años después le permitió revisar un artículo que estaba escribiendo… qué generoso, ¿no? Según él, no podía esperar a incluirla como coautora porque el artículo debía publicarse ya mismo y en caso de tener coautores la revisión sería tardada, como si eso justificara apropiarse de la labor de otra persona.

Durante esos cuatro años nunca intentó arreglar lo que hizo. Al contrario, se dedicó a criticar cada artículo que Frances publicaba, supuestamente “para ayudarla a mejorar”. Encima, más adelante quiso presentarle a ciertos profesores para "ayudarla" en su carrera, cuando lo único que tenía que haber hecho era darle el crédito correspondiente desde el principio. Eso habría cambiado por completo su trayectoria.

Me molestó mucho que la autora hiciera que Frances lo perdonara tan fácilmente. ¿Dónde está la lógica en perdonar a alguien que te robó propiedad intelectual solo porque su excusa tenía “sentido” y, claro, porque estaba guapo?

Lewis es un mustio, un mosca muerta. Y para colmo, cuando llega el conflicto final, ni siquiera entiende por qué Frances no aceptaría cierto trabajo. Eso me dejó claro que, después de todo lo que pasaron, no aprendió nada.


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

What a fabulous debut!!

This book is for STEM lovers, but really anyone who loves a great slow-burn, fake-dating romance. Both characters were extremely likable and had tremendous growth throughout the book. I appreciated that they actually communicated with each other (most of the time) and were able to resolve most misunderstandings like adults. I can't wait to read more from Hannah in the future!

An absolutely adorable STEM rom com perfect for fans of Ali Hazelwood. I love fake-dating, and I love a progression from enemies to friends to lovers and this book did not disappoint.

I loved how Brohm integrated academia into the story. The portrayal of Lewis and Frances' problems, their goals and desires were all realistic and I learned a lot about academia as well.

Frances' relationship with her younger sister was really beautiful and I loved seeing their dynamic shift and grow throughout the story. I also loved Frances' own growth with her relationship with her job and her hopes for the future. A book that was simultaneously steamy, sweet and heart-warming. Highly recommend!

3/5 Stars

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

This was a more mature version of The Love Hypothesis and by mature I mean one where two academics act like academics in academic settings and dont sit on someones lap during a lecture (yeah still not over that). Anyway, overall a decent read the writing was good and not cringe which I appreciate. There were one too many love confessions in my opinion but Im just bitter so maybe its just me. Also we need to stop with the mis communication trope and the fake dating trope.

A rare thing where I liked the MMC more than the FMC, Frances pissed me off. Lewis is way to patient and rational.

This was my first ARC read and it did not disappoint! This was also my first Hannah Brohm book and it won’t be my last. This book is a super cute rom-com that is filled with cute and funny banter. The MMC and FMC find themselves at the center of a sticky situation and the only solution is fake dating. As you can imagine how that plays out in the best way possible. This book was a great read!

Neuroscientist Dr. Frances broke up with her bf and lost her job and relationship at the same time. She must network to save her career by pretending to be in a relationship with her rival Dr. Lewis. Sparks fly and lots of romance...

Love Lewis and Frances together. Terrific banter. Wonderful chemistry. A wonderful rom-com

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.