Ali Hazelwood

When a fake relationship between scientists meets the irresistible force of attraction, it throws one woman's carefully calculated theories on love into chaos. As a third-year Ph.D. candidate, Olive Smith doesn't believe in lasting romantic relationships--but her best friend does, and that's what got her into this situation. Convincing Anh that Olive is dating and well on her way to a happily ever after was always going to take more than hand-wavy Jedi mind tricks: Scientists require proof. So, like any self-respecting biologist, Olive panics and kisses the first man she sees. That man is none other than Adam Carlsen, a young hotshot professor--and well-known ass. Which is why Olive is positively floored when Stanford's reigning lab tyrant agrees to keep her charade a secret and be her fake boyfriend. But when a big science conference goes haywire, putting Olive's career on the Bunsen burner, Adam surprises her again with his unyielding support and even more unyielding...six-pack abs. Suddenly their little experiment feels dangerously close to combustion. And Olive discovers that the only thing more complicated than a hypothesis on love is putting her own heart under the microscope.

The Love Hypothesis

If my best friend tried to push me into kissing my boyfriend in public just cause he showed off his power, I think they wouldn't really be my best friend lol

jeeyu

Olive whirled around, abruptly reminded of Anh's existence. "What?" No. No. "I'm good. I just said goodbye to him a minute ago and-"

"Ol, why don't you want to go kiss your boyfriend?"

Ugh. "I...It's not that I don't want to. I just-"

"Dude, he just moved a truck. By himself. On uphill ground. He deserves a damn kiss." Anh shoved Olive and made a shooing motion.

'Contemporary romance's unicorn: the elusive marriage of deeply brainy and delightfully escapist.' Christina Lauren, New York Times bestselling author of The Unhoneymooners When a fake relationship between scientists meets the irresistible force of attraction, it throws one woman's carefully calculated theories on love into chaos. As a third-year Ph.D. candidate, Olive Smith doesn't believe in lasting romantic relationships but her best friend does, and that's what got her into this situation. Convincing Anh that Olive on her way to a happily ever after was always going to be tough, scientists require proof. So, like any self-respecting woman, Olive panics and kisses the first man she sees. That man is none other than Adam Carlsen, a young hotshot professor and well-known ass. Which is why Olive is positively floored when he agrees to keep her charade a secret and be her fake boyfriend. But when a big science conference goes haywire, their little experiment feels dangerously close to combustion. Olive soon discovers that the only thing more complicated than a hypothesis on love is putting her own heart under the microscope.

Tiktok made me buy it! The romcom of the year!

Alma 

“Hey," Holden asked from the passenger window. “What did Adam's fortune cookie say?" 

“Mmm." Olive made a show to look at the strip. “Not much. Just “Holden Rodrigues, Ph.D., is a loser.”"

 Malcolm sped up just as Holden flipped her off, making her burst into laughter. 

“What does it really say?" Adam asked when they were finally alone. 

Olive handed him the crumpled paper and remained silent as he angled it to read it in the lamplight

. She wasn't surprised when she saw a muscle jump in his jaw, or when he slid the for- tune into the pocket of his jeans. She knew what it said, after all.

 You can fall in love: someone will catch you.

 "It was him," Adam whispered. His voice was low, barely a whisper, deceptively calm. His eyes, unreadable.

 “It was Tom. The reason you were crying.”

 In the background, Tom's recorded voice droned on and on. Talking about how mediocre she was. How Adam would never believe her. Calling her names. 

"This is ridiculous." Tom was coming closer again, reattempting to take the phone away. “I'm not sure what this bitch's problem is, but she's clearly—“

 Adam exploded so fast, she didn't even see him move. One moment he stood in front of her, and the next he was pinning Tom against the wall. 

“I'm going to kill you," he gritted out, little more than a growl.

"If you say another word about the woman I love, if you look at her, if you even 

 "Olive. If you ever need anything, anything at all. 

His jaw worked, like there were other words, words he was keeping inside. “I 

It wasn't until a few minutes later, when she was sitting itting on her bed staring at the Boston skyline and chewing on her lunch, that Olive realized that the protein bar Adam had given her was covered in chocolate.

 He nodded calmly. But then, then he asked equally calmly, “why?”

 and she wanted to bang her head against the table.

  “The room is a double, of course," he offered, as if that piece of information could have possibly changed her mind.

“Because people will think that we..." She noticed Adam's look and immediately hushed. "Okay, fine. They already think that. But." 

 “Adam." She rubbed her forehead with her fingers. "There will be only one bed.”

 He frowned. "No, as I said it's a double—”

 "It's not. It won't be. There will be only one bed, for sure." 

He gave her a puzzled look. “I got the booking confirmation the other day. I can forward it to you if you want; it says that—“

He stared at her, perplexed, and she sighed and leaned helplessly against the back of her chair. He'd clearly never seen a rom-com or read a romance novel in his life. "Nothing. Ignore me."

Holden's gaze turned sharp. “Adam said you might be going to work with Tom next year. Is that true?”

He nodded, pensive. Then seemed to come to some sort of decision and added, "Watch your back while you're around him, okay?" 

"My back?" What? Why? Did this have anything to do with what Adam had mentioned Holden not liking Tom? “What do you mean?" 

"Adam's back, too. Especially Adam's back."

 The bottom of the image proudly stated “Pumpkin Pie Frappuccino," and below that, Adam's text: 

She didn't need to be told that she was grinning at her phone like an idiot.

Olive's smile stayed in place for a long time. 

He smiled in response, as if pleased to have made her laugh. 

Though it was certainly for some other reason.

The silence between them stretched, and Olive noticed that he was blushing faintly. 

Just a dusting of red, but he looked so… olive couldn’t stop staring.

The ghost of a smile appeared on his mouth, but he said nothing.

Here after “love, theoretically” where Elsie didnt think olive knew what fake dating even was😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

 “Yes. You know. What we are allowed and not allowed to do. What we can expect from this arrangement. I think that's pretty standard protocol, before embarking on a fake-dating relationship."

 He tilted his head. “Standard protocol?"

 "Zero. But I am familiar with the trope."

 “The... what?" He blinked at her, confused. 

As a third-year Ph.D. candidate, Olive Smith doesn't believe in lasting romantic relationships but her best friend does, and that's what got her into this situation. C onvincing Anh that Olive on her way to a happily ever after was always going to be tough, scientists require proof. So, like any self-respecting woman, Olive panics and kisses the first man she sees. That man is none other than Adam C arlsen, a young hotshot professor and well-known ass. Which is why Olive is positively floored when he agrees to keep her charade a secret and be her fake boyfriend. But when a big science conference goes haywire, their little experiment feels dangerously close to combustion. Olive discovers that the only thing more complicated than a hypothesis on love is putting her own heart under the microscope.

SJ Rowley

Adam exploded so fast, she didn't even see him move. One moment he stood in front of her, and the next he was pinning Tom against the wall.

"I'm going to kill you," he gritted out, little more than a growl. "If you say another word about the woman I love, if you look at her, if you even think about her--I'm going to fucking kill you."

"Adam." She rubbed her forehead with her fingers.

He frowned. "No, as I said it's a double.”

"It's not. It won't be. There will be only one bed, for sure."

Then again, she'd also rather not be in this room with Adam Carlsen, have the semester begin in a handful of days, have climate change be a thing. And yet.

foteini

Carry yourself with the confidence of a mediocre white man 

San fr is my resume for your kind reference to 

Barry cooper

Test the results on your computer to see what you 

“And I am drawn to you, even though I don’t know why.”

“Maybe you just pull out the best in me?”

Christina Farkona

“Olive.” He pulled her closer, pressing his lips against her forehead. “It doesn’t matter. Whatever it is that you’re crying about, I will fix it. I will make it right. I—”

I’m starting to wonder if this is what being in love is. Being okay with ripping yourself to shreds, so the other person can stay whole.

“Whatever this asshole said, it speaks nothing of you and a whole lot of them.”

 think. It’s that you think they’re right. Don’t you?”

He grinned, and —there they were. The heart-stopping dimples. “It will be fine, Olive.” His smile softened. “And if not, at least it will be over.”

Marz 

My view of this book can in short be summarized by this quote: 

This is a Hallmark movie. Or a poorly written young adult novel. 
I am someone who is very forgiving of media if I atleast enjoy consuming it even in a hateful way. However love hypothesis was such an unpleasant book I enjoyed no aspect of it. 

I did not care for any of characters main or side. Olive's thought process infuriated me 95% of the time. Why does she not just tell her friend the truth she is 26!!! not 16? Why did she hate Canada so much? How was she pursuing her PhD in the USA if she is struggling to eat? Why does she not just wear glasses if she cant afford new contacts???  Her friends seem to be there for diversity points, you know anh to represent poc and malcolm so this book can have a lgbtq+ tag. Their inclusion is almost insulting since they are put down as side characters in the story of a straight white couple. Adam is just boring I cant tell you a single thing about that man besides the fact he is tall and has black hair.

The writing is so bad it is a pain to get through. So many mundane things are described in excruciating detail for example just how tall Adam is. The book is set in academia yet everyone acts like they are a high school student. I didnt care for the romance at all it all felt typical and played out. The fake dating trope has been done many times and has been written better many times aswell. Getting through the sex scene also took years off my life. 

The pacing was also so slow. I felt like I was reading this book forever! 

I've heard rumours this story was originally reylo fanfiction if so it should have stayed on ao3 where it belongs.

this was a little cringey and predictable at times but a cute and interesting story

Carmen Malca

amira

I genuinely love this book. The buildup is amazing and I wish I could my memory erased so I can read it all over again.

Megan

I am so utterly obsessed with this book. Adam and Olive are adorable with their inside jokes and snarky comments. Be warned, you will spend a good portion of this book wanting to scream at both of them for how stupid they’re being. The end, makes everything worth it. 

Read my full review here: https://meglovescliches.substack.com/...

Jay Becerra

This was an easy, good-feel, cliché read and I loved it.

The fake dating was done exactly how you'd expect it. Cheesy. And I'm a fool for it. I was grinning, giggling and blushing. Adam and Olive are very much the grumpy x sunshine trope. It made my heart turn to mush. It was just so adorable, ugh! There was also a good few scenes that made me laugh out loud so add a point for humor. 

If you're a hopeless romantic, give it a read. It's not a life altering book but it might make you smile like a lovesick idiot.

buny

** spoiler alert **
           this book was.............. bad. it was painful to sit through. olive's definite stubbornness over adam not having feelings for her was so so painful i wanted to smash my head in a wall multiple times she sucked so bad and adam... my dude was SO bland but he was cool at some points (like in chapter twenty ★★★★★) so theres that. also, holden ♥️__♥️

the author relies too much on the miscommunication for the entirety of the book that it becomes clear at some point that they definitely couldn't have written this book without making the main character as stupid slash oblivious as olive just good old fashioned poor writing lolol

many more problems i had w this book: the fleeting comment abt olive's sexuality / the bad uncomfortably awkward sex / the sexual harassment scene just for the sake of some more miscommunication between olive and adam and how it's dealt with by ol / the childishness and clear issues olive needed to work out before getting into a real relationship / comments abt how big and large and strong adam is every single paragraph (i fucking get it the first few times. stop 🙏🙏) 

ok im done ranting. it was /not/ a terrible experience perse but i regret that i won't be getting all the time i wasted reading this book now so it's definitely leaning a bit towards it lol

Madelyne a⟢

Ok but this book is adorable. scientifically speaking, it’s not all accurate but what the hell. love doesn’t have to make sense, it just has to make me feel like i’m floating and never want to touch the ground. this book is just that.

Vicky  Nuñez 

this was so cute. can people make grumpy x sunshine pairing more common and cute like this.

Aparna

Reading this book that started with just a kiss that's unexpected and fleshing out of characters that seemed believable genuine and highly relevant to life makes it a wholesome delight.

kayla 

i feel like i should be embarrassed but i’m not even

Best things in this book are the friendships, personality dynamics, and of course, women in STEM! It had its moments, but in general it's a light romance read.

Krizzia

Isabella 

I expected so much for this book because of all the hype it got, so I was really disappointed when I finished reading it. I didn't hate it, but I also didn't love it. It was entertaining at times, but the characters were pretty unimpressive. I don't care about them at all, and I didn't even feel butterflies for Adam and Olive. I wasn't really impressed by it even though I really wanted to.

There’s just smth about a hot nerd 🤭

Valentina Williams

Sidney Schaffner

Ana Luiza

simplesmente um dos melhores romances da historia

graelihn

Could not get enough of Olive and Adam's relationship!! Especially how careful and attentive (in his own way) Adam was with Olive from the jump. Also what's not to love about a literal anxious ball of sunshine and their snarky, broody white knight of a teddy bear. Like I ate it up lol. 

It was the outside forces aka Olive's definitely well meaning yet HEAVY handed friends that brought the story down for me but they really do want the best for Olive so I can't fault them too much. But whew. 

Very enjoyable read and many congratulations for Ali Hazewood on this stellar debut! 🎉🙌🏾

Ana Isabel Sánchez Díez

La hipótesis del amor

manuel

perfección de libro, no tengo nada más que decir, amo a adam con todo mi corazón, el es perfecto. la historia engancha y siempre quieres leer mas, amo aquí.

everything about this book makes more sense now that i know it was initially star wars fanfiction.. the tropes and the typical ya writing style despite them being 26 and 34 years old and booktok being obsessed with it. i should have known. crying cause they weren't even subtle about it and now i can't unsee donkey adam driver in the cover. easy and kinda fun read bc i read it with a friend and we got to make fun of the characters together. the ending felt a bit too rushed.

Saffana Nuraulia

as a fomo slash romcom sucker, i definitely wouldn’t want to miss this one. i like it..? yeah it took a long time to kick in for me. but yeah, glad it did. but it didn’t.. it didn’t leave a big mark in my heart. it was pretty underwhelming.. but i like it! i like the.. the uhm.. mutual pinings! incredibly inlove <3 but the anticlimax part was, as i said, underwhelming. it doesn’t feel relieving nor like a puzzle piece in my heart being completed, you know? but yeah. pretty decent.

Riya

I got that zany and whimsical kind of vibes that you'd want in a good romcom from this book when I'd started reading it, but somewhere after first 80 pages those vanished into thin air, and I was left feeling so dissatisfied because the characters which felt so vibrant and endearing initially, turned out to be so paper thin as the book progressed. 

 For me in a romance book, there has to be chemistry between the protagonists till the end, the book should have a hold on me throughout its course, it should be able to make me want to root for the couple even after they have got together. But this one just lost me midway and I had to force myself to complete it like a bitter tonic. 
 I felt that the author was not able to carve out the depth that I'd would have like to see in their relationship and this book's world.

allison chen

i wrote a review for this book a while back that was honestly very strongly worded... i have returned with less frustration just to say that i still do not like it! instead of picking out all the details that i did not enjoy, i will simply say that it felt quite suffocating... i feel like everyone saying that it was super good also contributed to my disappointment with the story. no shame if you enjoyed this though! we all have our preferences i guess

alya adlina

I KNOW IT TOOK ME FOR AWHILE TO FINISH THIS BOOK BCS IM A LIL BIT BUSY. BUT FINALLY I FINISHED IT!!!! FIRST IM GONNA SAY THIS IS THE BEST DEBUT NOVEL EVER! ALI HAZELWOOD REALLY DID GREAT WITH THE WRITING AND THE PLOT! THE PACING IS SO FAST YUP. 

Olive and Adam will be my new comfort characters. Yup i gotta say that. The characters were compellingly written and the freaking story oh my god it just completely got at my heart 😩 the academia setting is just perfect ngl i really loved it! what i need right now is ✨Adam Carlsen✨.

No but i fully and absolutely 100% recommend this book! It will give you some butterflies and smiling nonstop. AND YES IT WILL MAKE YOU HAPPY ALL THE TIME. It’s enjoyable and memorable read and ofc fun.

If you like:

-fake dating
-grumpy/sunshine 
-“if you touch her, i will kill you” trope




12/12/2022

im editing my revie to say that i regret to give this book five stars bcs its just more to fanfic or wattpad story and ngl love on the brain is much better!!!

rhegan🧋

Kendall McClain

Adorable! Fun read, used all the classic romance tropes so wasn’t anything new really but you can’t go wrong with the classics

The Love Hypothesis

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