Ginny Frost
The Love Hypothesis by
Ali Hazelwood fulfilled the category “Book
Randomly Chosen from Your TBR List” for the PopSugar 2021 Reading Challenge. I
had a whole pile lined up for this one. Then I read this title, and it was a no-brainer
which novel to blog about. (And I know, EVERYONE is blogging about it.)
The Love Hypothesis
chronicles a story of a Stanford Ph.D. student, Olive Smith, trying to get by.
She is overworked, confused by social interactions, and determined to get her
area of study out into the world. She’s
trying to forward research to catch early cancer signs—information that might
have saved her mother. So she’s invested.
She’s also socially challenged. The author does not come right
out and say Olive identifies on the spectrum of asexual. But from the
character’s actions and feelings, we understood where she fell on the spectrum.
Luckily, I have a great source of information at my house about all the
different types of genders and levels of sexuality. I had a long conversation
with my fifteen-year-old, and afterward, I understood Olive even better.
The story used two great
tropes—Enemies-to-Lovers and Fake Dating. The more I read, the deeper and
better the tropes worked. Olive’s
fake boyfriend, Professor Adam Carlsen, is distant, cold, and withdrawn until
we get to spend time with him. By the last quarter of the tale, I realized he’s
Darcy. Like Pride and Prejudice, the book is told from the heroine’s
point of view. I’d love to hear his side of the story.
The novel built tension with
perfection. As the reader, we saw what Olive couldn’t. When the villain reared his head, I was like, “I told
you to watch out for that one!” Nothing was overdone, over the top, or
shark-jumping. And the sex, when it happened (no spoiler because we knew it
would come), was spectacularly hot and satisfying.
The setting and background for
the story—college life and technical biology—were presented seamlessly. Even without a basic understanding of
biology, I still could have followed the science presented in the novel.
Nothing appeared dumbed-down or held over my head with condescension. The
author illustrated her experience with Ph.D. programs at large universities flawlessly.
She added humor and reality with her knowledge.
This story is what a romance
should be. Average (or above average) woman finding that just right
match—someone who fulfills her not just physically, but emotionally,
intellectually, and mentally. I loved this novel.
I give Love
Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood Five Bunsen Burners Burning Bright.