The Love Hypothesis follows the romantic comedy that has become the life of the young female scientist and protagonist Olive Smith as she ventures through being 26 as a third-year Ph.D. candidate. After a harmless lie consequently has her kissing the first man she sees, her plan for fake dating with the tall, withdrawn and broody professor Adam Carlsen begins. Scientifically, it’s improbable to fall for someone so emotionally stunted, right? Olive isn’t so sure after learning that Dr. Carlsen is a secret biology ninja who plays frisbee and likes salt and vinegar chips.
This bestselling book centers on the trope of fake dating and women in STEM. Ali Hazelwood found a small category of romance type little written about, thus setting quite a high bar for her successors. It was a pleasure to read, from funny interactions between friends to heartwarming developments with pumpkin spice lattes. With entertaining notes at the beginning of every chapter, it would be difficult not to be hooked by the end.
The book also includes a perfect cast of characters, with the science-loving protagonist Olive, kind-hearted #1 best friend Anh, the comedic relief roommate Malcolm and cranky biology tyrant/love interest Adam. This band of four with very different personalities will make any reader desperate for more.
Not only that, but it touches on controversial topics that will inspire readers to think conceptually and practically about the social hierarchy in professional settings. As someone of similar interests, I recommend this book to any reader interested in romance and science fiction, prepared to learn something new and expect a happy ending. I also recommend this book for readers who have read books by Christina Lauren (such as The Un-Honeymooners or Love And Other Words) or Elena Armas (author of The Spanish Love Deception and The American Roommate Experiment).
I thoroughly enjoyed the book, and those who like a science love story will too.
Lastly, I think it’s important to note that the spectacularity of this novel came from an exceptional author who recently earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience, thus making any scientific information learned in the book accurate! For any biology nerds at heart, there will be scattered moments throughout the book that talk about real-life medical issues on a molecular level. Overall, The Love Hypothesis is a unique book that is one of the best reads for any romance reader.