Name: Kate's review of Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood
Item: Love on the Brain
Rating: 2
Author: Kate

Ali Hazelwood

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis comes a new STEMinist rom-com in which a scientist is forced to work on a project with her nemesis—with explosive results.

Like an avenging, purple-haired Jedi bringing balance to the mansplained universe, Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project—a literal dream come true after years scraping by on the crumbs of academia—Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward.
 
Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. And sure, he caught her in his powerfully corded arms like a romance novel hero when she accidentally damseled in distress on her first day in the lab. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school—archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away.
 
Now, her equipment is missing, the staff is ignoring her, and Bee finds her floundering career in somewhat of a pickle. Perhaps it’s her occipital cortex playing tricks on her, but Bee could swear she can see Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas…devouring her with those eyes. And the possibilities have all her neurons firing. But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there’s only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?

Love on the Brain

Fatiema 

"remember: if academia ever makes you feel like you’re not good or smart enough . . . it’s not you, it’s academia."

"When forced to work on a project with your nemesis, it's best to stick to the science. Further research could trigger explosive results. Like an avenging, purple-haired Jedi bringing balance to the mansplained universe, Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project-a literal dream come true after years scraping by on the crumbs of academia-Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to colead with Levi Ward. Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. And sure, he caught her in his powerfully corded arms like a romance novel hero when she accidentally damseled in distress on her first day in the science lab. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school-archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away. Now, her equipment is missing, the staff is ignoring her, and Bee finds her floundering career in somewhat of a pickle. Perhaps it's her occipital cortex playing tricks on her, but Bee could swear she can see Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas...devouring her with those eyes. And the possibilities have all her neurons firing. But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there's only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?"--

this dude has a whole database in his head for her and i love that

Fireless

Yall I would not recommend, this is some cringy book😭

Cola

Alma 

“You were supposed to hate him! When NIH selected you, Levi told me you had issues in the past. And I thought—perfect!" He sighs like he's deeply tired. "And then you fell in love. Who 

   "I told you: your lungs are not      shrinking because you're       training for a 5K— "

“My lungs are totally shrinking, but that's not it."

 I take a deep breath, still staring out the window. "I really, really, 

He doesn't reply for a long moment. Then: "I'm pretty sure I like you more." 

"I doubt it. I just want you to know, not everyone is like your family. you can be…you can be 

 with me. You can talk, say, do however, you want. And I’ll never hurt you like they did.” I make myself smile at him. It’s easy now. “I promise I don’t bite.”

He reaches over to take my hand, his skin warm and rough against mine. He smiles back. Just a little.

"That was so cool! Levi, I love your girlfriend soooo much!”

Levi's smile stays on, and when Tim leans in for a bro hug,  he accepts it. Which has me scowling.

 What the hell? I thought Levi was on my side. Which sounds stupid when said out loud, and unfair of me to expect, because Levi and I are barely friends and my battles are not his and he has every right to man-hug whoever...

 My train of thought fades as I notice Levi is not just 

 Tim. He's also gripping his shoulders tightly, fingers digging painfully into Tim's flesh as he murmurs something in his ear.

 I can't make out the words, but by the time Levi straightens back up, Tim's mouth is pulled in a thin, straight line, his face is milk white in a way I dont remember ever seeing before, and his expression looks almost .. scared. Is Tim scared?

 "I—You—I didn't mean to," he stammers, but Levi interrupts.

   “Nice to see you again," he says in a commanding, dismissive tone. 

Tim must take it as what it is: an order to scurry away.

“If tomorrow you see Annie and Tim and feel...like you felt today. Just take my hand, okay?"

I stare at him. And stare at him. And stare a little more open-mouthed.

 I stare at this man who is six four and two hundred pounds of muscle and just vented to me for five minutes about the fact that space is a scary place. 

“There is one single format in which space is tolerable,” he says.

"Can you stay? Please? I know you'd probably rather be—" 

  "Nowhere else," he says, without skipping a beat. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be." 

“I had more social interactions in the past twenty minutes than in the last ten months," he mumbles. 

  “I saw you smile at least four times." I pat his arm comfortingly.   "That can't have been easy." 

"It's okay. I'm fne. I'm emotionally stable." 

: I know what she loves to eat, what shows she watches, what makes her laugh, her opinions on pets. I know her dislikes (aside from me). I've been cataloging a million little quirks of hers in my head, and they are enchanting. She is enchanting. Smart, funny, an incredible scientist. And. there are things. Things I think about. But l'm drunk, and this is inappropriate.

“Either you let me walk you home, or i follow ten feet behind you. Your choice"

He briefly closes his eyes in exasperation, which worries me. He driving, after all. "Is there any nonimnaginary reason you don't want to stay at my place, Bee?" he asks with a sigh. 

 "I...It's very nice of you to offer, but I don't feel comfortable."

 That gets through to him. His hands tighten on the wheel and he says calmly, "If you don't feel safe around me, I absolutely respect that. I'll drive you back to your place. But I'm not going to leave until I'm sure that you have a secure place to—“

As I say it, I realize how true it is, and how rare for me.

The truck starts. A familiar voice fills the cabin, but Levi quickly switches to NPR. I blink. The anchor is talking about mail-in ballots. 

Humph. Pearl Jam's not my favorite, but it's good, and I hate that Levi likes good music.

 He is just a boy, standing in front of a girl, asking her to do twice as much work as he ever did in order to prove that she's worthy of becoming a scientist.

Ivory Flores

“Can you stay? Please? I know you’d rather be-.”

“Nowhere else,” he says without skipping a beat. “There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”

Alesha Clifford

"...Anyway-to what do I owe the pleasure of being brutally awakened?"

Emily braeckman 

 She taught me the importance of letting go of what I cannot control (others) and focusing on what I can (my reactions). 

"Are you still hungry? Should I make you food?" I shake my head. "You sure? I don't mind making—" He falls silent as I fall to my knees. His eyes widen as my smile does. "Bee," he says. Though he doesn't quite say it. He mouths it breathlessy, like he often does when I touch him. And now my fingers are on his belt, which qualifies as touching. Right?

 "Bee," he repeats, a little guttural this time. "I said I'd do stuff" I tell him with a smile. The clink of his belt buckle bounces off the kitchen appliances. His fingers weave into my hair. 

“I figured you meant...watching sports with me. Or another of your burnt—ah—stir-fries."

The way he knew she’s gonna pass out even before she did.😫😫

I take my phone out to call 911, but there is a string of loud noises behind me. Shit, has he shot me? No, not a gunshot. I turn around, expecting to see himn come at me, but Levi. Levi? Levi. He and Guy are tussling on the floor, grunting and struggling and rolling around in a vicious, violent embrace. I stare at them for several seconds, open-mouthed, paralyzed. Levi's bigger, but Guy has a fucking gun, and when he adjusts his grip to aim at Levi I Levi! I don't even think about it -I run back to where the fight is hap- pening and kick Guy in the ribs so forcefully, I feel a zing of pain travel from my toes up my spinal cord. I blink, and by the time my eyes are open again Levi's pinning Guy to the floor, holding his arms behind his back. The gun has skit- tered several fect away. It is, in fact, very close to me. I look at it. Consider picking it up. Decide not to.

 "You okay, Bee?" He sounds winded. I nod. "He... he.." Guy is struggling. Demanding to be let go. Swearing. Insulting Levi, me, the world. My legs feel like Jell-O—the off-brand one, which doesn't bounce very well. I could use a puke bucket. 

"Can you do something for me, sweetheart?"

"I want you to take a step to your right. Another. Another." My knee hits the edge of onc of the lobby couches. Levi smiles, like he's incredibly proud of me. "Perfect. Now sit down."

I do it, confused. There's something wet on my hand. I look down: Félicette is licking my fingers. "I...Why?" 

“Because I’ll need to restrain Guy until security gets here. And I won't be able to catch you when you pass out." 

“But I…” My eyelids flutter closed, and…

Tim. Tim. I see Tim, but only for a second. Then my vision blurs, large black dots swallowing the world. I'm hot. I'm cold. I'm sweaty. I'm shaking like a leaf and my heart is pounding and I'm flying away. 

“Bee." Levi's voice grounds me for a second, warm and deep and worried and solid and thank God he's here, or I'd be scattered all over, debris in the wind.

 "Bee, are you okay?" I'm not. I'm dying. I'm fainting. I'm having a panic attack. My UDAR heart and my head are exploding. "Bee?" OMS Levi is holding me now. Holding me again and I'm in his arms and it feels like I'mn safe, how is it possible that when he's around, only when he's around, I really feel sa bo—

Francesca 

Kate

This book made my STEM girly self very happy :) The Love Hypothesis is still my favorite, but Love on the Brain made my love for Ali Hazelwood grow even more <3

Alyssa Derr

La química del amor

It was a nice book, la misma formula de the love hyphotesis y le funciona muy bien.

Liam al principio me pareció bien comemierda, la verdad, pero no estaba mal.

Scarlett

It was a nice book, la misma formula de the love hyphotesis y le funciona muy bien.

Liam al principio me pareció bien comemierda, la verdad, pero no estaba mal.

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis comes a new STEMinist rom-com in which a scientist is forced to work on a project with her nemesis - with explosive results.


Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project - a literal dream come true - Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward.

Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school - archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away.

But when her equipment starts to go missing and the staff ignore her, Bee could swear she sees Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas... devouring her with those eyes. The possibilities have all her neurons firing.

But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there's only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?

Madii

It's good. Nothing I would nitpick. I enjoyed it in a sense that I found it a relaxing read. No dramas or anything, just.. plain peaceful. 5/5 😌

nany

WHAT A BEAUTIFUL COUPLE, I LOVE THEM SO MUCH

Sarah

Ali Hazelwood does it again I just love her STEM women even though I have no knowledge of science or anything, her witty writing never seems to bore in any of the pages loved every page in the book. Can’t wait for the next one in June

"When forced to work on a project with your nemesis, it's best to stick to the science. Further research could trigger explosive results. Like an avenging, purple-haired Jedi bringing balance to the mansplained universe, Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered her the lead on a neuroengineering project--a literal dream come true after years scraping by on the crumbs of academia--Marie would accept without hesitation. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward. Sure, Levi is attractive in a tall, dark, and piercing-eyes kind of way. And sure, he caught her in his powerfully corded arms like a romance novel hero when she accidentally damseled in distress on her first day in the science lab. But Levi made his feelings toward Bee very clear in grad school--archenemies work best employed in their own galaxies far, far away. Now, her equipment is missing, the staff is ignoring her, and Bee finds her floundering career in somewhat of a pickle. Perhaps it's her occipital cortex playing tricks on her, but Bee could swear she can see Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays, seconding her ideas... devouring her with those eyes. And the possibilities have all her neurons firing. But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there's only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?"--

Rebecca Hurd

Such a cute scientific romance!! Ali did it again!! Bee and Levi are the perfect mismatch couple for everything that they disagree on they have equally the same amount of things in common!! Loved it!!

If I had not read some of Hazelwood's followup works, I would have been seriously worried that she was only a one-hit wonder because this was bad. Its biggest sins were definitely Bee's character (1), the absolute uneven plotting (2) and the absolute insanity happening at the end of the novel (3).

(1) If other novels remind you that Hazelwood - and her characters - are Millennials(tm - haha), this one reminds you that she was also (likely) on Tumblr. To this day I do not know why authors do this beyond trying to remain within their communities (a mostly not calculated way to sell books to a built-in audience) and I am on my knees, begging, for them to stop embarrassing us all. The first person POV only managed to make this worse.

(2) + (3) Her other novels felt somewhat grounded in reality, even if it was a little eye-roll-worthy to constantly hear about how ingenious the MC's were, even if they could not see it themselves ("What Makes You Beautiful" for STEMinists) but the LI can see it. This novel tries to be a little tongue-in-cheek about it but mostly seems to fail because a lot of the events just seem too big to be in a novel like this. As I mentioned, without spoilers, this is particularly true for the ending.

It also irked me how they are developing this BLINK project and are trying to beat a commercial competitor as the scientists are terrified that they might sell it as military tech to evil governments (I guess)... unlike NASA and USA? Did we leave our thinking hats home that day?

This really is the kind of novel that could tank a career, saved only by Hazelwood having moved enough units to be allowed to write more books and move on.

If I had not read some of Hazelwood's followup works, I would have been seriously worried that she was only a one-hit wonder because this was bad. Its biggest sins were definitely Bee's character (1), the absolute uneven plotting (2) and the absolute insanity happening at the end of the novel (3).

(1) If other novels remind you that Hazelwood - and her characters - are Millennials(tm - haha), this one reminds you that she was also (likely) on Tumblr. To this day I do not know why authors do this beyond trying to remain within their communities (a mostly not calculated way to sell books to a built-in audience) and I am on my knees, begging, for them to stop embarrassing us all. The first person POV only managed to make this worse.

(2) + (3) Her other novels felt somewhat grounded in reality, even if it was a little eye-roll-worthy to constantly hear about how ingenious the MC's were, even if they could not see it themselves ("What Makes You Beautiful" for STEMinists) but the LI can see it. This novel tries to be a little tongue-in-cheek about it but mostly seems to fail because a lot of the events just seem too big to be in a novel like this. As I mentioned, without spoilers, this is particularly true for the ending.

It also irked me how they are developing this BLINK project and are trying to beat a commercial competitor as the scientists are terrified that they might sell it as military tech to evil governments (I guess)... unlike NASA and USA? Did we leave our thinking hats home that day?

This really is the kind of novel that could tank a career, saved only by Hazelwood having moved enough units to be allowed to write more books and move on.

cute but I liked Love, Theoretically more

Julia Ye

Loved both main characters their banter, and the unique workplace setting! Will definitely check out more by Ali Hazelwood. 

Megan Murray 

So so so good! She did her big one with this :))) 

Maria T.

i liked this one better then the first because well her first book was lightskined fanfciton and this one isnt that i think

i liked this one better then the first because well her first book was lightskined fanfciton and this one isnt that i think

it was very good even if it was 

sarah

was enjoyable enough to finish and to pass time, but was just not a big fan of the characters. I didn't really like the miscommunication between the two characters, and I felt like the miscommunication arcs were unnecessarily dragged out. though i know that the male love interest had a "reason" for treating the female main character in a shitty way, but I didn't feel like it was justified ( even after finding out the reasoning!) , and his "mean" comments just didn't sit right with me either way. so .... was a quick read for passing time and ignoring my responsibilities .. but other than that it kind of fell flat for me

Hannah Bauer

When will it be MY turn to have a man be nonsensically and unwaveringly obsessed with me ??!? WHEN

Selin Igten

aleksandra

“You were always in my head. And I could never get you out.”

"I can give you nice. I can give you better than nice. I can give you everything.” He smiles at me, full of hope “You don’t even have to admit to yourself that you love me, Bee. God knows I love you enough for the both of us."

I was kinda scared when people were writing in their reviews that it will be similar to The Love Hypothesis, because 3 novels from this author have really similar vibes to TLH and I really wanted this book to be slightly different. Also it was one of my most anticipated books of the year.

Let’s star from the positive things in this book, our main characters Bee and Levi, well I LOVE them. Smut scenes are soo good and I’m so happy there was more than one scene like in TLH. Subplot from Rocío and Kaylee was really cute and Rocío is probably my second favorite character from this book. Most importantly, even though Levi was kinda getting on my nerves at first, from the things he was doing to Bee, I feel in love with him. I mean, he owns A CAT, that’s the biggest green flag😌. Plus this man was crazy about our main character, so it’s really hard not to fall for him. 

Now from the annoying things, firstly Levi is basically Adam. I love that in her novellas characters were let’s say slightly more diverse, even though all her characters all white people in ✨STEM✨. Maybe small spoiler ( skip if you want ), but the miscommunication about her marriage was really annoying me (and I was damn relieved when he found out about it in 50% of the book🥲👍). Also I find it really weird that they shared A LOT favorite things, like I get it two people can share favorite stuff, but suddenly Levi likes everything she likes, idk maybe it’s only weird for me.

If you like books about women in STEM with great plot and writing, you should definitely read it. I can’t wait for more books from Ali Hazelwood!😩

Sidney Schaffner

A little too much feminism/science about Marie Curie for me. Could tell a spoiler on page 7 but there was a twist-ish ending. Basically the same story as her other book

Lauren Piper

Bella Koch

Love on the Brain managed to be both a light-hearted, fun read while also tackling some heavier topics. The primary storyline is the enemies-to-lovers romance between Bee and Levi, which was sweet, endearing, and sexy. Their romance truly made it hard for me to put this book down; I generally read before bed and found myself up hours too late when I started this book. The romance was not without fault, but I would have to reveal some plot spoilers to explain my criticism of it. 

Along with the romance plot, Hazelwood takes the opportunity throughout the book to make some humorous (and some not-so-humorous) jabs at what it’s like to be a woman in STEM. She deals with issues like standardized testing, the struggles of being the only woman in a meeting full of men, old white guys who wield too much power, and of course, the concept of “Sausage Referencing” (as she calls it): that men will take women more seriously if their ideas have been endorsed by another man. Hazelwood handles these topics in a way that made me feel seen and validated my experiences. Reading this book felt like I was having a conversation with someone who just gets it. At the same time, there’s always a twinge of anger or disappointment that us women are stealing dealing with this ish! Hazelwood handles this topic extremely well, in my opinion. 

In addition to my hinted at criticisms of the romance, another thing I didn’t love about this book was the predictability. It felt too predictable too early on. Also, this was the type of predictability where I wanted to yell through the pages at the characters about what they were doing, rather than the type where I just suspect what’s going to happen. If I had to choose a type of predictability, I would choose the latter. 

Overall, I would highly recommend this book! Especially if you are a woman in STEM!

Honestly loved this book more than I loved the Love Hypothesis. Bee and Levi are amazing together. Ali Hazelwood knows how to write women in STEM and men who you can’t help but love.

Murphy-Ann Craig

Elspeth calcraft

3.5 nice light read to cleanse the palate

faye

3.5 ★

Okay…I’m gonna rate this book based on how much I enjoyed it and yes, I found it more enjoyable than THL even though plot-wise they’re similar (I’m a sucker for cheesy romances!) Also, I love love love Rocio and Kaylee, my goth gf x soft gf core <3

so good and omg the ending was crazy didn’t expect it

haewon

alya adlina

rate: 3.5 stars!!

“𝐼 𝑙𝑜𝑣𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢, 𝑖 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑘, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑚𝑦 ℎ𝑜𝑚𝑒.“


okay first of all i’m just going to say, love on the brain > the love hypothesis. there i said it. ngl but this is my impression after i finished reading it. i just feel that the characters are too similar with the previous book and yup basically it revolves around this HUGE misunderstanding…but despite everything i still enjoyed reading this book so much. this plot is much better because of the plot twist wow i didn’t expect that at all….

ali hazelwood is a great writer she literally can write anything about science even tho i didn’t understand anything but she really did that. she literally did a great job with all the entertaining and humor lines like i love all the dialogues in this book. ALSO SHE CREATED THE BEST TENSION BETWENN LEVI AND BEE IM LIKE HOLDING MY BREATH EVERYTIME BOTH OF THE MCs TALKING TO EACH OTHER. everything in this book such as life as women in STEM, some infos about madam curie, the twitter DMs and THE CATS. EVERYTHING ABOUT IT ARE PERFECT. i think that’s the reason why i enjoyed this book so much. yup i understand the romance took so long bcs of the misunderstanding and miscommunication but yea it was okay and much better i guess for me. the smut scene is just too similar with the love hypothesis….and the ending really disappointed me a lil bit oh how i wish it is more better than because i will totally give 4 stars if it’s ended well…

let me talk a bit about levi and bee. bee, she was relatable but i think i will adore her in every way if she’s not a bit too naive i mean sometimes i couldn’t stand her sometimes i was okay with her like i couldn’t connect with her. BUT LEVI WARD OH GOD THAT MAN…he’s hot. i loved him so much ngl. nah i don’t even know how to describe anymore i’m out of words….

overall i felt like this was the love hypothesis but in a different font???? BUT still i do recommend this book if you love science and romance. and i don’t recommend this book if you hate miscommunication trope and the love hypothesis.

Francesca &
Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood

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Francesca &Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood

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Francesca &
Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood