The Love Hypothesis hooks readers from the first kiss
By PHOENIX CARLISLE | Cover courtesy of the book publisher
The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood is a romantic comedy that will have you experimenting with your emotions.
Olive Smith is a determined Ph.D. student who doesn’t have time for relationships, but that all changes when she accidentally kisses the grumpiest professor in the building — Adam Carlsen.
Olive thinks this is it for her, she’s ruined until Adam suggests something Olive would have never imagined. He wants to fake date Olive. It’s a win-win situation. Olive gets to avoid confrontation with her friend while Adam doesn’t get flirted with by other students. It’s perfect on paper until the hypothesis of love becomes the result. Olive must deal with a fake boyfriend and a major science conference leaving Adam to swoop in once again. Through this novel we get to see how Olive and Adam’s fake dating turns into a real relationship.
The Love Hypothesis had me racing to get to the next chapter to know what crazy situation our love birds were going to be thrown into. It made me laugh so hard at some parts while making me stress out at others.
One of my favorite things in the book was the representation of women in STEM. Olive is a hard-working and determined young woman. She has friends who are equally smart women. I got to see a representation of intelligent women who were praised and accomplished.
Along with a strong-willed female lead we got an equally strong-willed supporting male. Adam doesn’t drag Olive down or make her seem less worthy because she is a student. He encouraged her over and over, even helping her at the conference. Adam supports her like a real boyfriend, yet we are supposed to believe their relationship is fake? Yeah, right.
I thoroughly enjoyed the unveiling of Adam’s full character. We see beyond his hard exterior, starting with small conversations over coffee, as Adam slowly opens up to Olive. Olive and Adam work so well together, caring for and pushing each other to reach their full potential. Adam is a well-rounded character that continued to surprise me as the story unfolds.
While Adam is a good character, I wish his feelings were explained earlier in the book to add passion as the plot unfolds. This could have been achieved if the book was written as a dual narrative. But even though it follows Olive’s viewpoint more than Adam, it is still an amazing book. Starting each chapter with Olive’s fake dating “research” gives insight into her character. I love how nerdy, cute and adorable she is.
The Love Hypothesis is an exciting read that will have you hooked from the first kiss. Put on your safety goggles as this book explodes with love.
