A review by katiecoconut21
Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I really enjoyed Love on the Brain, perhaps even more than The Love Hypothesis, which was introduced me to the contemporary romance genre and the amazing author Ali Hazelwood.

I just want to start by saying that the characters are so entirely lovable, and have complex relationships that I feel better mirror real life. After all, the whole driving force behind Levi working on the Sullivan helmets is because
of his friend who passed away, and he wants to honor his family by finishing the helmets
. Coincidentally, these complex relationships led Guy to
threaten Bee's life
, but more on that later.

Additionally, I enjoy Bee's narration, letting the readers in on various inside jokes that STEM women often relate to. As a female mathematician, I definitely do. It can get a little confusing, as there are random switches from first to third person, but I was able to get over that with a little re-reading here and there.

This book was a series of misunderstandings (as most romances are), but after we get over the initial hurtle that
Levi does not hate Bee, but is in fact, madly in love with her
and that
Bee did not marry the shit-stain, cheating Tim
, the misunderstandings become less central to the plot as focus shifts to
Bee learning to trust and accept love again
.

I feel like a huge critique some might have of Love on the Brain is how Bee did not realize that
her Twitter friend Schmac is Levi
before the end of the book. While I figured this out pretty much instantly (why else would the author introduce the madly in-love male character Schmac that Bee gets along with exceptionally well, unlike her Camel Dick nemesis Levi), I would like to point out that in Bee's situation, it is unlikely I would have made that discovery until later. The Internet is huge, and any coincidences could be exactly that, coincidences. So, keep that in mind before judging Bee for not figuring it out sooner.

Now, onto the scenario when
Guy pulled a gun, and threatened Bee into killing herself
. I get that we need a climatic moment, but this was way overboard for me. The jump to
Guy going to kill Bee
was a lot for me to process, partially because I felt it was really extreme, especially for his reasons.

Anyway, I loved this book, and found myself so immersed that I couldn't stop reading. I really recommend it!
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