Ali Hazelwood’s new book accurately represents women in STEM.
There is nothing better than an engineer and a neuroscientist who hated each other in graduate school being forced to work on a revolutionary project together at NASA where they slowly realize they do not actually hate each other. For her second novel, “Love on the Brain,” this enemies-to-lovers theme is what Ali Hazelwood focused on, the most unlikely research team that turned into a lot more than what they started as by the end of the summer.
As a woman in STEM, I absolutely love Ali Hazelwood’s books. I came across “The Love Hypothesis” in a Book of the Month club box, and I was obsessed with every second of it. The creative weaving of science into a romantic comedy novel was so tastefully done. It made me feel so intelligent while reading it because I was privy to every engineering fact or geeky reference, while still incorporating the lightheartedness of a romance novel that should not be taken too seriously.
More than that, Hazelwood writes books that women in STEM, unfortunately, relate all too well to. Seen in the dialogue between characters or in the way her protagonists are treated by their coworkers, it brings to light the reality of what the STEM world is like for too many.
That is what makes Hazelwood such a terrific novelist. She understands where we all came from. She understands the highs and lows of graduate school and of being a woman in STEM. Her books are fun and light while still being emotional and hitting home when they need to.
What also needs to be said, though, about Hazelwood’s books is that they started as Reylo fanfictions. Reylo is the ship name for Rey and Kylo Ren from the latest “Star Wars” trilogy. Like a number of authors becoming popular lately, Hazelwood started in fanfiction, publishing stories online that she wrote about characters in universes already created, sort of as a “what if” scenario.
I think it’s incredible that so many authors are coming into the spotlight from their fanfiction experiences. These are people with experience self-publishing, self-marketing and writing what they enjoy as opposed to writing for a paycheck. Fanfiction brings back the excitement and passion of writing, of creating characters and scenarios to just see what happens after the plot is penned. If someone has not seen “Star Wars,” though, they will not be missing anything. The novel is understood well enough to stand on its own.
“Love on the Brain” puts Dr. Bee Königswasser front and center, a neuroscientist who has spent her entire life moving around the world after the death of her parents. While her sister continues to travel the world, going on a new adventure every day, Bee wants roots, and she is actively seeking somewhere to settle down. After a failed engagement, this seems more hopeless than ever to achieve, until she gets her dream offer. Finally, it seems like she can settle her roots in a lab all her own; if only she did not have to share that lab with Dr. Levi Ward, the engineer who jaded her graduate school experience. It seems like there is no possible way they will work things out for the sake of their project, but with every other roadblock they run into, they realize that working together may not be the worst thing.
While I did enjoy “Love on the Brain,” there were some parts that I thought were done better in her debut as opposed to this novel. Near the end, the plot felt rushed, which certainly did not make up for how slow the beginning was and how long it took me to get into it. Maybe it is because of the scenery change, this novel focusing on a professional lab as opposed to a graduate program, but I was more enthralled with the pacing of her first novel.
At least the characters are charming, such as Bee’s assistant Rocio, or the astronaut Bee is working on the project with, Guy. The side plots are incredibly amusing, like watching Bee train for a 5K, and as someone who has been to the Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX, I was easily able to envision the entire setting.
Nevertheless, “Love on the Brain” was a very fun read, and once it got going, it really went, and I was unable to put it down. It can certainly hold its own against Hazelwood’s debut novel, and it can be found at any bookstore near you. Also, keep an eye out for her steminist novellas that are currently electronically published, but will be physically published in 2023.
