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A review by madtheimpaler
Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I enjoyed this Hazelwood book, and it may be my favorite of the three that I have red, because I thought that these are her best written characters to date. I found both Elsie and Jack likable, and I was interested in the cast of characters around them as well. I especially liked that not all characters were necessarily "good" or "bad". In fact, many of the side characters are good people that happen to do frustrating things at one point or another, and Hazelwood writes that in a way that is true to life; normal people can do selfish things, and we can find a way to move on. That's something rare in most lighthearted rom-com books.
What I love most about her books, is the academic setting and the workplace drama that ensues around it. I found the plot of this book in particular entertaining, because it brought me into a world that I am unfamiliar with and introduced me issues to which I would otherwise be blind. I often found myself thinking over my adjunct professors in college, and how I may have interacted with them. Hazelwood has done an excellent job drawing me into a world I know nothing about, and pulling at anger and frustration in the reader as Elsie is feeling them too.
However, this leads me to my only two problems I found in this book.
Love, Theoretically, as many of Hazelwood's book is full of lessons on how women are treated in STEM, academic, and other professional settings, but sometimes I get the feeling through Hazelwoods writing that her version of feminism doesn't always extend to non-academic women; it doesn't always feel like Hazelwood thinks very highly of women who have not completed post-graduate work, women who work at everyday desk jobs, or women who choose to get married and become mothers. I find it admirable that she wants to encourage women to pursue STEM, a field that is the opposite of welcoming toward women. That being said, I also feel she attaches self-worth to the level of degree one as completed through certain quips her characters make that are ultimately meant to be funny. To a women who chose lower level teaching and motherhood, that sort of humor comes off as elitist. Admittedly, these statements are sparse and scattered throughout the book, so it's not a constant bother, but still off-putting whenever it comes up.
My only other problem comes from the pacing of the book.The characters united a bit early for me, and the "honeymoon phase" was a bit too needlessly drawn out for my taste. Jack's sticking point about not having sex because it might not be good felt unnecessary and anti-climatic. Mainly it felt like a way to add to the word count.
Lastly, I just wanted to add that Elsie gets bonus points forher unironic love of Twilight. I too have written about the prose of Stephenie Meyer as a net positive in an academic setting and there is nothing more fun (and shocking to professors). I could not stop smiling whenever it was brought up in the book.
What I love most about her books, is the academic setting and the workplace drama that ensues around it. I found the plot of this book in particular entertaining, because it brought me into a world that I am unfamiliar with and introduced me issues to which I would otherwise be blind. I often found myself thinking over my adjunct professors in college, and how I may have interacted with them. Hazelwood has done an excellent job drawing me into a world I know nothing about, and pulling at anger and frustration in the reader as Elsie is feeling them too.
However, this leads me to my only two problems I found in this book.
Love, Theoretically, as many of Hazelwood's book is full of lessons on how women are treated in STEM, academic, and other professional settings, but sometimes I get the feeling through Hazelwoods writing that her version of feminism doesn't always extend to non-academic women; it doesn't always feel like Hazelwood thinks very highly of women who have not completed post-graduate work, women who work at everyday desk jobs, or women who choose to get married and become mothers. I find it admirable that she wants to encourage women to pursue STEM, a field that is the opposite of welcoming toward women. That being said, I also feel she attaches self-worth to the level of degree one as completed through certain quips her characters make that are ultimately meant to be funny. To a women who chose lower level teaching and motherhood, that sort of humor comes off as elitist. Admittedly, these statements are sparse and scattered throughout the book, so it's not a constant bother, but still off-putting whenever it comes up.
My only other problem comes from the pacing of the book.
Lastly, I just wanted to add that Elsie gets bonus points for
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing and Sexual content
Moderate: Outing