Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood Published by Berkley on June 13, 2023
Pages: 400
Format: Audiobook
Narrator: Therese Plummer
Length: 12 hrs and 33 mins
Genres: Romance
Amazon Audible
Rival physicists collide in a vortex of academic feuds and fake dating shenanigans in this delightfully STEMinist romcom from the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis and Love on the Brain.
The many lives of theoretical physicist Elsie Hannaway have finally caught up with her. By day, she’s an adjunct professor, toiling away at grading labs and teaching thermodynamics in the hopes of landing tenure. By other day, Elsie makes up for her non-existent paycheck by offering her services as a fake girlfriend, tapping into her expertly honed people-pleasing skills to embody whichever version of herself the client needs.
Honestly, it’s a pretty sweet gig—until her carefully constructed Elsie-verse comes crashing down. Because Jack Smith, the annoyingly attractive and arrogant older brother of her favorite client, turns out to be the cold-hearted experimental physicist who ruined her mentor’s career and undermined the reputation of theorists everywhere. And he’s the same Jack Smith who rules over the physics department at MIT, standing right between Elsie and her dream job.
Elsie is prepared for an all-out war of scholarly sabotage but…those long, penetrating looks? Not having to be anything other than her true self when she’s with him? Will falling into an experimentalist’s orbit finally tempt her to put her most guarded theories on love into practice?
I thought I’d had my fill of Ali Hazelwood’s women in STEM romances, but apparently I was wrong because Love, Theoretically knocked me off my feet.
Elsie is an adjunct theoretical physics professor who is overworked and grossly underpaid. To make ends meet, she has a side hustle working for a fake dating service. She’s smart, charismatic,and a people-pleaser to a fault. Instinctively knowing what makes people happy and adjusting her behavior accordingly is second nature to Elsie. The problem is she no longer knows what makes her happy.
Jack is the golden boy of the experimental physics world whom Elsie blames for destroying the credibility of all theoretical physicists. Elsie is vehement in her dislike of him, and the tension between them is intense. He thinks Elsie is fascinating, is attracted to her mind, and accepts her as she is–flaws and all.
As for Elsie, I loved her tenacity and brilliant mind. It’s so much fun when she geeks out and then to watch her shine in her interview process. Her ability to adapt to any situation is impressive.
I relished the push and pull throughout this slow burn romance. Beneath that scholarly exterior, Jack is one dirty birdie. Hazelwood puts the steam in STEM when Elsie and Jack finally get together.
I enjoyed Love, Theoretically from beginning to end—far more than I anticipated. The audiobook is outstanding, with superb narration from Thérèse Plummer.
Recommended for fans of:
Fake dating
Women in STEM
Enemies to lovers
Hedgehogs
About Ali Hazelwood
My favorite thing in the world is to explore traditional romance tropes—and to picture how they’ll play out in academic settings.
Rival scientists falling in love despite their better judgement?
There’s only one cot in the lab?
Fake dating during faculty meeting?
Sign me up!
I’m originally from Italy, lived in Japan and Germany, and eventually moved to the US to pursue a Ph.D. in Neuroscience. I recently became a professor, which absolutely terrifies me. Oh, the sheer dread of being entrusted with the care of young minds!
When I’m not at work you can find me binge-watching shows with my feline overlords (and my slightly less feline husband), running, or eating candy.
Oh, and I’m a New York Times Bestselling Author.
I’m represented by the amazing Thao Le of the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency.
I was a little worried that I was done with Hazelwood’s STEM romances before reading this one, too. She proved me wrong as well. Her next two books after this one are really good as well. Great review!