Did Ali Hazelwood make me feel Love on the Brain for her sophomore novel?

Ali Hazelwood is arguably one of the most popular romance authors out there. Her debut: The Love Hypothesis was beloved by many and a great first introduction for some into romance books.

My confession about Ali Hazelwood? I didn't like The Love Hypothesis and it's something that has been a part of my reading journey for a while. While I did give her another chance with Love, Theoretically, I was always hesitant about picking up Love on the Brain.

However, upon doing some thinking, it was finally time to pick up the final full-length book from Ali Hazelwood that I haven't read. Without giving away my thoughts too early, this was a complete surprise to me.

While Hazelwood does get some flack for writing similar stories with the same characters, Love on the Brain felt like something different yet still familiar.

Was Love on the Brain worth the wait?

Let me start by saying that I read this via audiobook and that was a wonderful experience. The audiobook narrator did an amazing job and really made it feel like the story flew by. It's true that a good narrator can elevate your experience as that's exactly what Brooke Bloomingdale did. She was amazing and if you have the chance, be sure to listen to one of the books she's narrated.

Moving onto the actual story, it was a lot of fun. Love on the Brain follows Bee and Levi who have this animosity between them during grad school and the two end up meeting again while working on a project for NASA. From the very start, there are a few misunderstandings between the two but once they work those out, the story perfectly balances their work and romance, making it for a more believable romance.

While some knock Hazelwood for her small girl-big guy pairings, I didn't notice it as much in this book and the book didn't feel too science-heavy. Sometimes, it can be a bit much but this felt like just enough. The other thing I enjoyed was how Hazelwood added traits that most of us don't see in our normal romantic pairings. Bee had a fainting issue where she tends to faint during high-stress situations and it was something that happened but it wasn't a big deal. It was just a part of her character.

Ultimately, my only complaint was that at around 75%, there was a lack of focus. We got the mustache-twirling villain and we got the reveal about the hidden identities and all of it just felt very anticlimactic. Maybe it was just how things were paced but that was the only part of the story that didn't work for me.

Other than that, the characters, the storyline, and their romance were everything I wanted. I truly cannot believe that I waited this long to read Love on the Brain as it's such a fun one. If you're behind on your Ali Hazelwood reads, then you need to make sure to prioritize Love on the Brain.