Like an avenging, purple-haired Jedi bringing balance to the mansplained universe, Bee Königswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? If NASA offered Marie her dream neuroengineering project, she would accept without hesitating. Duh. But the mother of modern physics never had to co-lead with Levi Ward. Sure, Levi has soul-piercing eyes. And sure, he caught her in his powerfully corded arms like a romance novel hero when she accidentally damseled in distress on her first day in the lab. But Levi made his feelings towards Bee clear in grad school—archenemies work best when employed in their own galaxies far, far away. Now her equipment is missing, the staff ignores her, and Bee finds her floundering career in somewhat of a pickle. Perhaps it's her occipital cortex playing tricks on her, but Bee could swear she can see Levi softening into an ally, backing her plays...devouring her with those eyes. And the possibilities have all her neurons firing. But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there's only one question that matters: What will Bee Königswasser do?
The Love Hypothesis was written in third person, and told by a narrator who doesn't give too much of herself away. In Love on the Brain, Hazelwood completely flips the script—we get Bee's voice from a first person point of view, and we get to know so much about her, that she almost starts to feel like one of your own best friends. This narrative style worked so well, especially since Bee isn't just falling in love with Levi (that's obviously important though! It's a romance, after all!)—she's also figuring out where she belongs in academia, overcoming her past traumas related to love, and overall wanting to create a better space for female scientists. A close first person narrative was the perfect selection for this, and really drew me into the story.
What stuck with me was the amount of detail in this book. It is clear that while this is a hate letter to standardized testing, Love on the Brain also feels like a love letter to life—from all the good, and to all the bad, for it teaches us to appreciate the good. Bee loves Star Wars and cats and talking to her sister on the phone and dying her hair—which means, to me, she felt like a real person. I felt really grounded in all of these concrete, small details, in a way that helped me better understand the bigger themes of the story itself (re: loneliness and belonging in the world, and how neuroscience and science in general helped Bee figure that all out). This book had really important messages, especially related to academia and STEM academia in particular, but it did not sacrifice the bigger picture of those usual romance themes that most contemporary rom-com readers love.
One of my favorite parts of Love on the Brain were all the fun references! Levi is "unsociable and taciturn" just like our favorite Mr. Darcy. Bee and Levi love The Empire Strikes Back. TikTok and Twitter and Marie Curie fun facts all make an appearance. The homage to You've Got Mail, which is simply one of the best rom-coms of the 90s, and maybe ever. It is in all of these references and details that made me think about how much this book is truly a love letter to life. While the heavier themes of academia don't pull punches on what it's really like out there, Hazelwood doesn't forget to include all of what we love about living, and love about love stories. It's all in here. It's wonderful.
Lastly, I think this book is going to get some pushback on the story itself. It's not like The Love Hypothesis—sorry guys, if it was like The Love Hypothesis, it would just be The Love Hypothesis, and Hazelwood is allowed to try new things and see how they fit! Hate the haters. I actually really loved how everything fell into place in this novel. Yes, I guessed who the bad guy would be (I figured there may be a bad guy) in the second scene he appeared in. Yes, I tried to guess how many steamy scenes there would be before it all fell apart, and then how Levi and Bee would get back together. And still, despite all of that (correct) guesswork, I was still pleasantly surprised by other twists, and immensely gratified in how Hazelwood crafted the moments I knew were coming. More than anything, that speaks to me as a strong storyteller, and I just can't wait for what Hazelwood writes next.
Hazelwood has a third novel in the works, for publication in fall 2023, titled Love Theoretically, and I literally could not be more excited. Until then, you can find Ali online at AliHazelwood.com, or on Instagram @AliHazelwood. You can find more of my reviews of her works here.
*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*
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