The Love Hypothesis
2021
- american literature
- romantic fiction
- rom-com
- romance
- college life
- women authors
- women in stem
- contemporary romance
- contemporary
- fiction
The story
The Instant New York Times Best Seller and TikTok Sensation! As seen on The View! A BuzzFeed Best Summer Read of 2021 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 PhD 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.
What it’s like
Quick, bantering dialogue and close third-person narration give this book a bright, self-aware voice, with the chatter of group chats, lab jokes, and running scientific metaphors threaded through every scene. The setting is a Stanford campus in its busy academic season: fluorescent lab benches, crowded conference halls, late nights over coffee and takeout. The vibe is playful, warm, and a little giddy, the kind of read that suits a long weekend, a beach trip, or a commute where you want to smile every few pages. Pacing is brisk, with short chapters and frequent escalations of tension between the two leads, and the emotional register swings from teasing to tender, following a guarded woman who has written off romance slowly discovering that she wants it. Intensity is low on violence and frightening content, with some stress around a professional setback, but there are steamy, sensual scenes that are fairly explicit and central to the romance. It is for readers who enjoy enemies-to-lovers banter, STEM-world settings, and a romance that is funny first and swoony after.
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