Book Review: Love, Theoretically
Have you considered that maybe you’re already the way I want you to be? That maybe there are no signals because nothing needs to be changed
Well, after the shit show that was ‘The Changeling’ I needed to read something happy. And books by Ali Hazelwood are just a big ooey-gooey ball of sunshine. And I needed it.
Do I understand sciencey terms? No. Is it actually interesting when you read up about it? Yes. Does it add to the plot? Eeeeeeeh. Debatable. I mean sure our lead character is a theoretical physicist and her arch-nemesis is an experimental physicist. And I had no idea there was any animosity between them, but I have a music degree. I went to art school – the heck do I know about the nitty-gritty drama in the world of STEM? I mean, sure liquid crystals and how they work in the grand scheme of quantum mechanics – even that sentence hurts my head. The math isn’t mathing in my brain. But I like the texture the science brings to this book – well all of Ali Hazelwood’s books. It is not just your run-of-the-mill ‘boy meets girl in a bookshop etc etc etc’. Yawn. Over it.
This book is more: academia-pays-terribly-so-you-become-a-fake-girlfriend-to-make-up-your-terrible-paycheck-but-you-end-up-fake-dating-the-brother-of-the-man-who-stands-between-you-and-your-dream-job-but-he-didn’t-know-you’re-a-physicist-after-you-told-his-whole-family-that-you’re-a-librarian-so-he-thinks-you’re-lying-to-his-brother kinda romance. ^insert gleeful cackling here^. I forgot to mention, the nemesis experimentalist physicist is a SNACK.
There is a reason why I devour Ali Hazelwood’s books in a matter of days/hours. They’re a delight – there is also something kinda hot about a ‘he falls first’ trope and being ever so slightly jealous of his brother whom you’re pretending to date. It warms the cockles of my ice-cold heart. Sure, I think in this particular book the science went way over my head (more than usual) but it was super enjoyable. We also got a small cameo of Olive and Adam from ‘The Love Hypothesis’ which made me super happy and was good to know that they get their happily ever after too!
If I were to criticise, I could have done with an index – not everyone works in STEM so understanding some of the technical terminology like ‘Bekenstein formula’ or ‘the segregation of crystals into Chitral domains’ (lord help me) –would’ve been handy. Maybe it would’ve added an unseen depth to the book, or maybe there are some STEM in-jokes that I’m missing out on and would really like to not miss out on.
Either way, it was still a good fun read – and by the look of Ali Hazelwood’s website she has more books on the way. Bring ‘em on!