Ali Hazelwood is the New York Times bestselling author of The Love Hypothesis, as well as the writer of peer-reviewed articles about brain science, in which no one makes out and the ever after is not always happy. Originally from Italy, she lived in Germany and Japan before moving to the US to pursue a PhD in neuroscience. She recently became a professor, which absolutely terrifies her. When Ali is not at work, she can be found running, eating cake pops, or watching sci-fi movies with her two feline overlords (and her slightly-less-feline husband). You can find Ali online at AliHazelwood.com, or on Instagram @AliHazelwood. You can find more of my reviews of Ali's works here.
Logically, Sadie knows that civil engineers are supposed to build bridges. However, as a woman of STEM she also understands that variables can change, and when you are stuck for hours in a tiny New York elevator with the man who broke your heart, you earn the right to burn that brawny, blond bridge to the ground. Erik can apologize all he wants, but to quote her rebel leader—she'd just as soon kiss a Wookiee. Not even the most sophisticated of Sadie's superstitious rituals could have predicted such a disastrous reunion. But while she refuses to acknowledge the siren call of Erik's steely forearms or the way his voice softens when he offers her his sweater, Sadie can't help but wonder if there might be more layers to her cold-hearted nemesis than meet the eye. Maybe, possibly, even burned bridges can still be crossed...
What I adore about the STEMinist novellas is the female friendship! The scenes between Mara, Hannah, and Sadie are my favorite, because they do such a good job of packing in the self-growth that's required of the main character at the time, while also providing some much needed levity. My favorite (so far) of these interactions occurs in Stuck with You, and it's when Sadie realizes that maybe she was the one that was wrong all along, but also maybe that she's the one who can fix it. I believe that Hazelwood writes these scenes really well, and it's a testament to her writing of characters that interact believably and powerfully.
Sadie's story doesn't include my favorite trope, let's be honest—the miscommunication trope is the hardest to read, but quite honestly the most realistic to live. Maybe that's why it's so difficult to read, so difficult for it to be anyone's favorite trope. I digress—while miscommunication is certainly my least favorite of tropes, Hazelwood so masterfully implements it that I didn't even really realize it was miscommunication up until that scene with Sadie's friends. And at that point, I couldn't even be mad because I was so invested in how Sadie and Erik would get back together (as they always do). The way Hazelwood is able to pretty much slide under the radar from this is by using the alternating scenes from different points in time. They help deflect and distract enough from one another that by the time one realizes it's less of an enemies-to-lovers and more miscommunication, you're already too deep in to change your mind about Sadie's and Erik's characters.
There's just something about Ali Hazelwood's writing that brings me so much joy! Her female characters are hilarious, but all in different ways, and it's almost impossible not to laugh once or twice at each of their inner monologues. It's also impossible not to relate—or to have major second-hand embarrassment—when they do something a little less than ideal. All of this comes together to make me realize that I love Hazelwood's writing because it feels so real to me. The inner monologue feels like my own, even if the nature of it is the exact opposite, and the trials the heroines face and how they face them feel like how I or any one of my friends would try to face them.
The last of the STEMinist novellas comes out in July, titled Below Zero, and I can't wait to see how this trilogy ends. Thankfully, Hazelwood's sophomore novel, Love on the Brain, comes out soon after, so we won't be starved from Hazelwood's writing for long! You can find Ali online at AliHazelwood.com, or on Instagram @AliHazelwood. You can find more of my reviews of Ali's works here.
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
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