Join me and guest Paige Woodrow as we do a deep dive on Ali Hazelwood's novel Love Theoretically. Warning - this episode contains spoilers of several Hazelwood books.
More from Paige @lostinthepaigeofabook:
Novels discussed - Ali Hazelwood:
Books from Paige:
Books from Kristen:
For links to the books discussed in this episode, click the link here to take you to the Google Doc to view the list.
For episode feedback, future reading and author recommendations, you can text the podcast by clicking the "Send us a message button" above.
For more, follow along on Instagram @whereileftoffpod.
Join me and guest Paige Woodrow as we do a deep dive on Ali Hazelwood's novel Love Theoretically. Warning - this episode contains spoilers of several Hazelwood books.
More from Paige @lostinthepaigeofabook:
Novels discussed - Ali Hazelwood:
Books from Paige:
Books from Kristen:
For links to the books discussed in this episode, click the link here to take you to the Google Doc to view the list.
For episode feedback, future reading and author recommendations, you can text the podcast by clicking the "Send us a message button" above.
For more, follow along on Instagram @whereileftoffpod.
Welcome back. I'm Kristen Bahls and you're listening to Where I Left Off a Bookish Podcast, and today I am joined by Paige Woodrow, who you probably know as Lost in the Paige of a Book on Instagram, and we are actually going to do a deep dive on the book Love Theoretically, which is in her background right now, if you can see it. Yep, such a cute cover and it's by Ali Hazelwood, but before we get into that, I wanted to you know, let you get to know Paige, and a little bit about her Book Besties program that she started.
Paige Woodrow:So hey, Paige glad to have you on. Hey, I'm so glad to be here. I'm so excited. I love talking about books and, yeah, I'm happy to be here.
Kristen Bahls:Me too. I know I'm kind of new to the whole like book podcast space and you've been so welcoming so I just really appreciate that and so positive all the time.
Paige Woodrow:Yay, thank you so much. I've never done a podcast before, so I'm excited that I love talking books and I'm excited to talk about this book so.
Kristen Bahls:Can you tell us a little bit about you and your account, and then also about Book Besties?
Paige Woodrow:Oh, yeah, sure. So I started my account because I really just got into reading this past year and I'd always loved reading, but I just was so busy with life and everything. And then another big issue of mine was once I started a book, I was determined to finish that book, me yes, I do that, right. And so I, but I don't remember who told me I was slugging through a book, and it was like one of my good friends, I think, in book club, and she was like why are you reading it then?
Paige Woodrow:And I was like but no one had ever asked me is like I don't know, like I think we're just taught in school like you finish it. Like you're assigned a book for class, you have to read it, like, and then it's like wait, I'm just reading this book for myself, for enjoyment. If I'm not enjoying it, like, what's the point? So, that has been so freeing to me because instead of like slugging through, spending like a month trying to finish a book I don't like, if I'm not into it, like I move on, and so it helped me to read a lot more. And then I actually started my Instagram. I used to teach with this company called VIP Kid and I made an Instagram to connect with other VIP Kid teachers and VIP Kid like imploded on itself and like went to kaput. I don't know as a teacher, if you know about VIP Kid.
Kristen Bahls:Yes, I've heard about VIP Kid, but yeah, I was at the secondary level of a public school, so completely different environment. But yes, I did hear a little bit about VIP Kid.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, I mean I can tell you more about that later. I'm sure people don't care about that, yeah that's a whole another episode, just like went kaput.
Paige Woodrow:I was like I have this Instagram, like I don't know what to do with it, and so I was thinking about it, you know, and I was like I think I want to start a bookstagram, like I think that that would be just so much fun, and so I started it, I think in March or April, and I just started posting and sharing about, you know, the different books that I am reading.
Paige Woodrow:And then I got into making reels because I found that they were so like I have such a fun time making them, I enjoy a laugh, I love making other people laugh and a good friend of mine, she and I really got into read like buddy reading, like reading books together, and we discovered that we have like a specific genre that we really we read romantasy together, like sometimes we'll read something else together, but for the most part we're romantasy, see readers and we read a lot of that.
Paige Woodrow:So I started posting a lot of reels about my book bestie and how she and I are doing buddy reads and what it's like to have one, and one of them went viral and it's got like five something million views like wow, it's insane. It's pinned at the top of my profile. But so many of the comments are like I want a book bestie, I wish I had a book bestie. Where's my book bestie? And I was like, I there's all these people that want like a book friend, what if I help them meet each other right? And so I made a like a Google doc form and it's got like a slew of questions and over time I've added additional questions and so if anybody ever comments on one of my reels saying like where's my book bestie, I wish I had one, I send them a message and let them know about the form in my bio and so then they fill it out.
Paige Woodrow:And then about once a month, I sit down and I look and it takes a long time but it's fun, like it's exciting cause, like when I see the two that it's like they both love this book.
Paige Woodrow:Because the questions are like tell me the top five books in your TBR list. Tell me your top five favorite books of all time. Tell me, like some of the books that you've recently read, the, what are your favorite genres? Just to kind of get an idea, because you know you want a book bestie, that you're going to want to read the same things with right yeah, and so I go through and read all the stuff and then I reach out to them on Instagram and message them together and let them know like, hey, these are some of the things that you had in common. And then I give them like a list of kind of get to know you questions to help them break the ice. And then I've had quite a few successful pairings. I think I've got like 10 happy book besties. Wow, it's like I feel like a matchmaker, like it makes me so happy. A book matchmaker.
Paige Woodrow:Yes, and then, and then I do. I have had some that have reached out and been like you know, this match isn't for me and like that's totally fine. Like, please tell me, because I want you to be happy with, I want you to find someone that you can just go on and on for days talking about books, and so then I just go back to my form and, you know, un pair them and put them back at the top and you know, eventually, hopefully I'll find somebody for you. Like I feel like there's somebody out there for everybody, and you know, the more people that fill it out, the more likelihood that I can find them a match.
Paige Woodrow:So I love it. It's fun.
Kristen Bahls:I love that. And okay, you said that it takes you a little bit. How many hours would you say that you spend trying to read through the Google form? Like, do you just get a massive amount of submissions? I mean, I can't even imagine trying to take them and match them based on the Google form answers.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, so I've sat down, I think, now, and I've done three different like matching sessions, I guess we'll call them and each one has taken a little bit longer than the last because there's been more. My last one, I spent probably like two or three hours on. I didn't really pay attention to the time because it was fun, like yay, that's good. Like I really don't mind, it's not, like oh my gosh, how much longer am I gonna have to be looking
Paige Woodrow:for this. Because I enjoyed like finding their pairs. It's a little bit deflating, though, when I get to the end and there's people left over, like I hate that because I really want to try to get everybody together, but there's always some. So far that's like they're there. Other half just hasn't signed up yet but.
Kristen Bahls:I was gonna say they're just a book bestie and waiting. They're there, yes.
Paige Woodrow:I told my husband I was like I should, I wish I was like an app like I should make, like an app, you should. Like you know it's like like Tinder. Is that the one where you like swipe, to find like swipe, left or right?
Kristen Bahls:Oh gosh, I don't know, but I think it is. I'm
Paige Woodrow:There should be like a bookster. Like you like swipe if you like the book. the app can just do it, I don't know, but it's, it's been fun, I enjoy it.
Kristen Bahls:That's amazing. Yeah, you really should put that into an app. I think that could be like a million dollar idea.
Paige Woodrow:Right, but yeah, I don't know anything about apps or coding or.
Kristen Bahls:Oh, I have some like techie former students, so don't even give me started. I could connect you, who knows. In the new year in 2025, there will be a Book Book app, Book Bestie app, yes. Next thing, but oh my gosh, I love that, and you know, I mean especially now, or at least in my age range. So I'm like a little bit closer to 30, I'm 28. And it seems like anywhere I go, it's like either people kind of in their 40s or like teenagers that are in high school. So it's hard to find, you know, people that are like roughly around my age, and so having something like Book Besties is really great. And you did match me with my book besties. So, oh, did I really? Thank you for that. We've actually been reading a fantasy. Oh, yeah, we've been reading a fantasy together. So who is it? So her name is Elena and she's awesome. Okay, that's so great.
Paige Woodrow:Oh, I love it. That's so great. What are y'all reading?
Kristen Bahls:So we're reading the Trial of the Sun Queen. And when I said like I don't really get into fantasy, so I guess I should preface this this is like a story in itself. But whenever I was in like middle school and high school, I mean I've read like Harry Potter, Divergent, you know the standards, like Charlie Bone, you know that kind of stuff, but not like real fantasy. Like I mean, it's technically fantasy but I would not really classify that as like real fantasy and any way. It's not like I think yeah, no, no, no, definitely not like high fantasy, like it's still somewhat believable kind of thing. And so whenever she suggested reading a fantasy, I was like okay.
Kristen Bahls:So I went to At Novel Nia on Instagram. She's where I tend to get like fantasy recommendations and so I found one of hers and she said that Trial of the Sun Queen was great. So I went with that and we both started reading it and we're really liking it so far.'s t's. It is a little bit more like dystopian. It's not, I would say it's not high fantasy either. So I feel like we're kind of like dipping our toes into the water of fantasy. So who knows where we'll go next.
Paige Woodrow:Oh I, it's already ony mwant want t w wo o t list In fact. Oh really that's funny, it's good.
Kristen Bahls:I mean it's a quick read so far. Like it, the chapters just kind of melt away, so that's always nice.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, that's good. Is there love though?
Kristen Bahls:So I haven't got to that part, but I think there is going to be. I feel like it's setting up for that. I mean, it's kind of like um, it's kind of like the Bachelor meets the Hunger Games a little bit, and even though they kind of just got into the situation, I think there's going to be some love in there. Okay, maybe they're kind of forced to compete in this, okay. So it's like there's this king, okay, and he's the sun king, and so they're forced to take like tributes from each one of the kingdoms and put them all together and to compete for marrying this, to marry the sun king.
Kristen Bahls:And so the one, yeah, the one that's the tribute, the main character, Lor. She's been in this prison and so no one knows that she was in the prison and she found herself in the middle of the trial of the sun queen without really knowing it. But she's fighting to get her brother and sister back from prison and get them into a better life, so but I think she, she is kind of falling in love with the sun king. So I think that it'll be ultimately some romance in there, but it's definitely very like dystopian intense. You know it's dark, I mean it's pretty dark. But what fantasy doesn't start out with a little bit of grit, you know.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, fantasies are gritty for sure.
Kristen Bahls:It's really good. I would recommend it so far. But I mean, I'm only about 30 something percent of the way done. So you know there's still time. There's still time for chaos to ensue, I'm sure. What book are you reading right now?
Paige Woodrow:I am reading Crescent City 2. Nice. I've heard a lot about it. My Book Bestie and I we started what started our buddy reading saga was A Court of Thorns and Roses. Okay, and so we read all of those. And then we read Throne of Glass, which is my favorite series of all time. I decided that even trumps Harry Potter, which is like really saying something. I felt a little bit guilty about that, but it is so good, it is just so good. That's where my shirt is from. And then and then we started Crescent City, because the third one comes out the 30th of January and so we wanted to be done with the whole mass verse by the time that one came out. So far it's okay. I'm not liking it as much as I liked Throne of Glass, but I don't think anything, I mean it's going to be hard to beat that, even though it's the same author, but yeah.
Kristen Bahls:Is Throne of Glass, the one that no one could decide what order to read it in. Yes, okay, okay, I have the right one, I'm thinking of the right one. Okay good and then the author just released, like, what order you should actually read it in. Right, yeah, she did. Yes, she did yeah.
Kristen Bahls:Which is so funny. Oh man, that's just crazy to me. I just can't even imagine like picking up a book and having no idea what order it is or if it's right, and then trying to figure it out, especially in, like the fantasy genre. I feel like that would just be so difficult.
Paige Woodrow:I actually posted a reel about my preferred reading order for that series and I had to stop reading the comments. I was like you guys are crazy, Like y'all. Just there's like 400 something comments on it. I'm like, first of all, I can't even keep up, because they're like these giant paragraphs too. I'm like I can't, like I'm done. I usually try to read all my comments or like write back or whatever, and I got to remember because we will be like this is wrong, you're not right.
Kristen Bahls:This is the right way, or they will be like I can read however, I want to read.
Paige Woodrow:I don't care how you read it, which just to be funny.
Kristen Bahls:Oh my gosh.
Paige Woodrow:People get really passionate about it, so funny.
Paige Woodrow:So I love that she released her recommended order, which, interestingly enough, we did not do. We thought we did because she said publication order, which we thought was book one, book two, book three, what's the word for the book that goes before everything else? Prequel? Yes, then you know on. But she said book one, book two, prequel, and then on, and so we had the prequel like one book later. But it really doesn't matter, it's at the end of the day, it really doesn't matter, like just read the books.
Kristen Bahls:It's a preferred reading order. It's not a required meeting order.
Paige Woodrow:And then there's people who like done it, you know all the different ways and like I think I really want my husband to read them. I think that he will hate them, but I'm like I really want you to read these books because I care about them so much and so I'm going to reread them when he reads them. So maybe we'll do it her recommended way this time instead. Is he a reader? Yes, he is, and he's really kind of what got me back into reading in the first place, because I loved reading in middle school. Like elementary school and middle school I was reading, but then in high school you have to read. I know you taught high school. Did you teach English?
Kristen Bahls:No, I taught audio video production.
Paige Woodrow:Oh well, this is perfect.
Kristen Bahls:So I got to do yeah, I got to do the fun stuff. Yeah, we wrote like screenplays and did like, you know. I mean we did the hero's journey and all that kind of stuff, so it has like a lot of Englishy elements in it. But no, no, I wasn't even an English teacher, but yes. I remember reading like Lord of the Flies and oh my gosh, Fahrenheit 451 and all of those novels that just kind of put you to sleep a little bit.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah. And so it's like, by the time you're done reading all the stuff you have to read for class, like I don't want to read anything else, you know, and so. But then when we got married, he read every night before he went to sleep. So it's like, well, if you're reading, what am I going to do? So then I started reading and it just kind of grew from there.
Kristen Bahls:So, yeah, I love that. That's adorable. You can write it into a novel there's your debut novel and make it like a little book
Paige Woodrow:Oh that's cute, yeah, no, I don't think I'm a writer. I did have a dream. I had this, like most of the dream, and it was like this would be such a cool book. And so I like sat down at the computer and like typed it all out and I was like this is so stupid, never mind. I'm not a writer at all. He is. He should write a book. He's so funny. I think he would write a great book. He writes our Christmas card every year and everyone is, oh, we loved your Christmas card, it was so great. Blah, blah, blah.
Kristen Bahls:That's amazing, but you know you need someone to do all the fun memes and reels anyways. You could hype up his book. You could make a book trailer for the book that he writes.
Paige Woodrow:Yes, yeah, I can be the publicity person. Exactly, he does not. We do not have similar tastes. I like romance. And he texted me oh my gosh, okay, so he's reading this series. And I asked him if I might like it and he said I don't know, maybe. And I said, well, is there romance? And he was like, well, I mean like they kind of like each other, but not really. And he said 505 pages into book eight. They kissed, I think I'll stop reading now. It's getting too romantic, oh my gosh. And I'm like, if there's not romance, like I'm going somewhere else. Yeah, which is true. I mean, I love plenty of books that don't have any romance, but I just I've just really grown fond of there being a romantic plotline in a book, me too. I don't know why.
Paige Woodrow:It just makes me happy. It gives me warm fuzzy feelings inside. I love it.
Kristen Bahls:Well, Katherine Center, I think, said it best. So she was like describing I think it was on her website like why she wrote romance novels and she said there's just this element of hope and romance and basically that the two main characters can meet each other and they can make each other better, and there's just like a feeling of hope that you're just not going to get from a thriller.
Paige Woodrow:Yes, exactly, I love that, I love. I read a few of her books, The Bodyguard.
Kristen Bahls:My favorite yeah.
Paige Woodrow:Oh, Hello Stranger. That one the ending got on my nerves, though.
Kristen Bahls:I wasn't in love with Hello Stranger and a lot of people loved it, but it wasn't my favorite yeah.
Paige Woodrow:I really liked it up until the end, like it was like she just kept going on and on explaining and it was like, yes, we understand, you don't have to keep explaining, and then Things You Save in a Fire, oh, I love that one. Yep, that was so good. I loved that one. I have never done this before or since. I listened to the audio book of that and I had my headphones on and there was like an hour left and I got in bed and my husband is asleep and I stayed awake in bed just listening until it was over because I had to hear the ending.
Kristen Bahls:Oh man, I love that one. Is the narrator like is the voice actor good for Things You Save in a Fire? Does she sound realistic?
Paige Woodrow:I think, so that's good.
Paige Woodrow:I've listened to a lot of audiobooks since then, so I really don't remember, but I will say this. So I used to think that I hated audiobooks. Number one reason is because my husband listens to them at three times speed. Oh wow, and it hurt my brain and they're like I'm just like, oh my gosh. And so like anytime he was listening to his audiobook I'd be like please stop, like don't do that. Then if any time I would try to start one, I would be like I can't listen to this, I'm, my mind is wandering, I'm not interested, I, you know. Then, I discovered it was have you read The Couple Next Door?
Paige Woodrow:Yes, yeah, I read it paperback, but yes, Okay, so that's the very first ever audiobook that I listened to and I actually liked, and I discovered that if it is a thriller or a mystery I will hang on, because my brain wants to know, like, what's going to happen next? What's going to happen next? I still cannot listen to a historical fiction. It's one of my favorite genres and I read a lot of them, but I can't listen to it Like I, just my brain cannot hold on to the plot it won't. My brain wanders. And then another big thing. So I was like, oh, I love thrillers. I can listen to any thriller book, immediate, no, if the narrator's voice is annoying, yep, I can't do it. Like I just can't.
Kristen Bahls:And that's so personal, but so personal, so it's hard to find the right narrator.
Paige Woodrow:It is. It is so. So I feel like the trick to getting into audiobooks is being willing to try different ones until you find the genre and the type of voice reader I can't do a monotone man, like where it's the deep I will fall asleep. Like I can't do it. My favorite is when there's a full cast and like the chapters are different, whereas like different chapters are different points of view. The One is one of my favorites for that. What was another one? The Guest List?
Kristen Bahls:I'm adding it to my sticky note list.
Paige Woodrow:They made a Netflix show I think about it which I haven't watched, and then there's a sequel. It's not really a sequel, but you appreciate the story more because so the premise of the one is that they make a. Have you read The Soulmate Equation?
Kristen Bahls:No, I haven't. It's on my TBR though.
Paige Woodrow:Okay, so read both of those because they're like this. It's like the same thing, but it's like, You're making my TBR too long, Paige, I'm sorry. So the one is like a twisted version and The Soulmate Equation is like a happy version. So it's like they discover there's like a gene in your DNA to find like your soulmate, like your perfect match, and so you can go, you know, get tested and find your perfect match. So the that technology is in the other book by him, the what's it called? The Marriage Act.
Paige Woodrow:I didn't like that one as much and so you just appreciate it a little bit more because it's the, it's similar technology and stuff like that. But you could read without reading the one first, but the one was definitely better, whereas The Soulmate Equation was okay, and then The True Love Experiment was fantastic. I loved it so much. But you have to read The Soulmate Equation first for sure, because there's a lot like the girl in The Soulmate Equation is best friends with the girl in The True Love Experiment and like they talk a lot in The True Love Experiment, and so I mean it wouldn't necessarily like spoil anything, because with the rom-com, like you know, they're going to end up together. It's like spoiler. Of course they're going to be together at the end.
Kristen Bahls:True, and you know it's going to be their friend or their sister or their neighbor who's in the next sequel, who falls in love. Yeah, yeah.
Paige Woodrow:Exactly, yeah. So you can just spoil anything, but you just appreciate it more having read the first one first. So, anyway, yeah. So my advice for if you want to start, if you want to try to start audiobooks, use your library, because you can. If you don't like it, no harm, no foul, like you didn't spend any money on it, who cares? So I'll just check them out. I use the Libby app on my phone with my library and if I don't like the narrator, I return it. And even though it might be on my TBR, just because I didn't like the audiobook doesn't mean I'm going to take it off my TBR. Like there are a lot of books that I've thought this sounds so good. And then I open the audiobook and the girl starts talking and I'm like immediately no, immediately no, I can't do that.
Paige Woodrow:Like I'll have to read that with my eyes. I cannot handle the audio. And then also now I listen to them so much faster. I used to make fun of my husband because he listened to them so fast, but the one that I just finished listening to, I finished it off at three times speed.
Kristen Bahls:Wow, that is an accomplishment. Can you believe that I?
Paige Woodrow:know I was like what? Because what happens is, as you're listening, you get used to their cadence and their rhythm and stuff like that, and you're kind of able to gradually bump up the speed. And now, if something goes awry and my audiobook opens up at one time speed, it sounds like this I'm like okay, let's speed it up here. But I usually start off at like two times speed now. But a trick is start your audiobook.
Paige Woodrow:If you want to try to train your brain to listen faster, start it at like three times speed or 2.5 or something that you think this is unreal. I can't even keep up and listen to like two-ish minutes at that speed. Maybe you can't even keep up with what they're saying, whatever. Then drop it down, so like, if you want to do it, if you want to try to listen to your book at two times speed, bump it up to three, listen for a couple minutes, then back it up, switch it to two, and it sounds like they're speaking at a normal pace, because you had just heard it so fast and like, finally it's slow again, and so that's how I train my brain to listen to it fast. Man, that's impressive.
Kristen Bahls:I never would have thought of that. I'm just really impressed right now, so I'm going to have to try that.
Paige Woodrow:You should try it. And so now I feel like I can listen to so many more books now because I can listen to them so much faster.
Kristen Bahls:True, I need that because okay. So I tried to listen to audiobooks I'm just starting to get into it a little bit and I grabbed one from my library and, oh man, it was a romance. So at first I was thinking a thriller I can't handle on audiobook, because then I'm not going to catch like the nuances and the foreshadowing that's going on and I'm not going to get something crucial and then I won't be able to guess the end. Because I love to be able to try to guess the end and I throw out all these like random, weird theories in my head and see if I'm right. And so I was like, okay, I'm going to start with the romance, that's the way to go. His voice sounded like Kronk on Emperors New Groove, and I couldn't. And it's the scene where they're on this boat and he's seeing her for the first time and he's talking about how attractive she is. And it was just Kronk and I just I couldn't do it and it was like maybe these just aren't my thing.
Paige Woodrow:What book was it?
Kristen Bahls:Oh my gosh, it was a Sarah Adams book. Hold on, it was either oh gosh, I think it was like The Enemy or The Match. Here, let me see my Goodreads, I think I can.
Paige Woodrow:Those are the books I'm borrowing from a friend. Those are two that I'm borrowing that I still haven't read.
Kristen Bahls:Oh, nice Practice Makes Perfect. Read it, read it, read it. I love it, I love it, I love it. I feel like I got so loud, but that is one of my favorites. I've listened to it, listen to it and read it. That's a huge one, oh man, yeah, I definitely recommend that. When in Rome is okay. A lot of people love it though. I gave it four stars so it wasn't bad. It just Practice Makes Perfect is literally perfection in a book. I could reread it five times, so savor that one.
Paige Woodrow:Oh, okay, I'm excited.
Kristen Bahls:Oh crap, now I can't remember which one it was because I read them all in succession. I think it was The Off Limits Rule by Sarah Adams and yeah, it was just pure Kronk, because they're on this boat and he's talking about it and I just couldn't take it seriously and I was like this makes it so much more awkward, so I cut that out. And then I had heard your things on audiobooks and I thought you know, I need to give it a chance. Maybe it's just that specific narrator. I'll keep trying and I actually found Final Girls by Riley Sager was the first one that I liked the narrator and then Love Theoretically, I thought they did a really good job on the narration. She sounded like what I thought Elsie should sound like.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, I really liked the narration because I listened to it as well this time. And, yeah, I liked the narration for sure.
Kristen Bahls:Because, especially whenever some of the characters try to start doing voices like if it's not a full cast, that also bugs me because, you know, whenever the guys start putting their pitch up, it can just sound awkward, depending on how they do it. I don't know, I mean, it's an art. Yeah, obviously narration is an art for sure.
Paige Woodrow:I thought her man voice was really good.
Kristen Bahls:It was good, it wasn't annoying at all. So we can officially put our stamp of approval on the Love Theoretically audio version and, of course, the paperback version as well. We have both. Yes, yes, definitely. So actually getting into you know the book we're talking about today. This is Love Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood and my first question and I think we're gonna have slightly differing opinions throughout, so this will be perfect and Ali Hazelwood. So I've read, actually read all of her books. Yeah, I've read all of them. So me too! Good.
Kristen Bahls:So we both have, you know, we have a background, we have a history. So, in general, what kind of books do you tend to like and what kind of like subplots or tropes do you lean towards, so we can kind of get a feel of your preferences for reading?
Paige Woodrow:Yeah. So I actually, when I read that question I was like, oh, I have the perfect thing to show. So on my Instagram I have a post that I did with like me and my husband and like our tropes, I guess, and then I put like my favorite tropes, which one is The Love Hypothesis, which I, when I made this that was the first one by her that I'd ever read and I hadn't read the rest yet. But they're the guy falls first forbidden romance enemies to lovers. Fake relationship like fake dating. It's cute. That's like my number one favorite. If you know of any good fake dating books, please tell me about them because I want to read them all. And then for forced proximity, like you know, there's one bed or whatever.
Kristen Bahls:I love that we have a lot in common. I'm definitely enemies to lovers and friends to lovers because I like I like the banter, I like the punch, I like a punchy writing style with like a lot of banter and wit in there, and so I feel like with either enemies I've read a lot lately where they like went to high school together, so they already kind of have that shared past or, of course, if they're friends, they already know each other. So there's not the awkwardness of I like you, do you like me, and it's just like they start kind of in it. So I think that's why I really like friends lovers and enemies to lovers. So of course this was like a perfect, perfect book for that and I love The Bodyguard. I would say probably my favorites are like romance wise would be T he Bodyguard by Katherine Center. Practice Makes Perfect by Sarah Adams, The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams. I would say it's a favorite, an absolute favorite.
Paige Woodrow:Okay, okay, I'll read it. I want to start it today.
Kristen Bahls:Yes, it's book two, but I read it before and Sarah Adams herself I think she recommended yeah, she recommended The Cheat sheet, or Practice Makes Perfect for one of her novels to start if you've never read her. So even though it's technically out of order, you're not missing much if you read When in Rome after, at least according to her and according to me any other fake dating recs mmm, let me look. Let me look at my good reads. I did.
Paige Woodrow:I did a post, a story like a long time ago, where I did like a question box and asked for, you know, recommendations and no one recommended anything. Well, I was like what? Because I had a bunch that I like had listed out. Like I've read these, you know, give me another.
Kristen Bahls:And I guess people didn't know of one, or oh, I have one, I have one. Um okay, Love Like Farms is another fake dating one that's on my list.
Paige Woodrow:I almost bought it at the bookstore the other day.
Kristen Bahls:Oh, I'll just send it to you and then you don't have to buy it. Thank you, it's marked up with page flags, but that's fine. It's still in perfect, perfect condition. Yeah, I'm trying to see, I don't. Wow, have I really not read that much with fake dating?
Paige Woodrow:Like I feel like it's so hard. I don't know that I have. So have you read the Unhoney Mooners?
Kristen Bahls:No, it's on my TBR. That's fake dating, it's great I love it.
Paige Woodrow:It was on that, it was on my little thing I'm trying to. Oh, The Duke and I is a big one have you read the Bridgertons books?
Kristen Bahls:mm-hmm, I have not. I love them, they're so good. I've been stuck in thriller land and I'm just crossing over into romance territory, so I'm yeah trying to get all of the classic like good romance novels in there. Yeah, so this kind of helps with our discussion for Love Theoretically. So we like, we like a punch, we like enemies to lovers, we like the forbidden romance, so that really kind of helped. I mean, I would say that man, I would say that with Love Theoretically it hit a lot of the tropes that I tend to like, so I was already gonna like it from the jump yeah before, really like getting into the actual story.
Kristen Bahls:So what? What did you rate this book overall? From one to five stars five stars, of course so I rated it four stars and I have.
Kristen Bahls:I have my reasons. I have my reasons for why. So I would say that it was close, like I dare to say it could have been four point five, but it just I. Five stars is a feeling. Five stars is just like a feeling in your heart that you know it's gonna be a five star book. And I was almost there, I was probably like 90% there with this, but I just couldn't fully get to five stars. And I really think that what took me out of the book was a the third act breakup. That was, yeah, that was a big thing. It just bugged me.
Paige Woodrow:Yes, I hate a third act breakup. I just in fact I have a reel sitting in my drafts folder about third act breakups, because I have to, because I hate them so much. Yes, they made me mad.
Kristen Bahls:I think that we should petition to take away third act breakups because I mean, you can just you can create suspense and you can create intrigue and you don't have to have a third act breakup.
Kristen Bahls:And I guess this is probably late for me to say but spoilers this book, this discussion, is going to be full of spoilers, but with this I really feel like in the novel, so at least the female main character and Theo, the male main character, I feel like they could have just had like a really good chat in their apartment and it might have gotten intense to where you thought, oh, are they going to break up?
Kristen Bahls:But then they reeled it back in and they eventually like basically made each other stronger and understood each other, like after, instead of prolonging their blow up time apart and then getting back together. It just seemed like pointless to me. Yeah, yeah, yeah, only because I mean you already have like in the book, so Elsie, and Theo, Theo think there's miscommunication from the beginning, because Theo thinks that Elsie is lying and it's not who she says she is. So I feel like that alone could have been your like, your intrigue, and the thing that they kind of had to get over to get to the romance and you didn't even need that third act break up, because you already had the suspense rolling or the intrigue rolling from that.
Paige Woodrow:In my opinion, but, but isn't his name? Not his name is.
Kristen Bahls:Jack did. Why did I say I don't know?
Paige Woodrow:oh my gosh why did I just catch on Theo?
Kristen Bahls:Jack, sorry with Elsie and Jack. Oh my gosh. Why did I write Theo? See, that's just, I mixed them up. Well, so this is. This is her. You're right, it's Jack. Oh my gosh. Well, that tells you how much I know.
Paige Woodrow:Matthew was like before, before the thing. He was like do you want me to quiz you for the thing today? And I was like sure. He was like, okay, what were their names?
Kristen Bahls:Jack and Elsie. Jack and Elsie. Well, okay, there you go.
Paige Woodrow:So I think that automatically now I have to give it five stars because I messed up the male main character's name. But I know but I think that, but I think that reiterates the fact that it means to have just four, because if it wasn't good enough to settle in your soul to remember that his name was Jack, like true, like my favorite of hers is Love on the Brain I don't understand why it has the lowest rating of all her books. And I don't understand why, because I think it's the best of all of them and that is with Bee and Levi, and I will never, ever forget Bee and Levi. Like they live in my brain, rent free. I love them, they're the best. And but yeah, before we read this book, even though I gave it five stars, I could not. I could tell you that her name was Elsie, but I couldn't have told you his name.
Kristen Bahls:I think I block out the male main character's names every time because it's going to be the female lead that I'm going to remember. I know I can never remember his name yeah, she, she was def.
Paige Woodrow:Well, no, I don't know that she was my favorite. I think he was my favorite. I just love how he brought out the best in her and he saw her for who she was and he didn't take any like I don't know. I feel like whatever she threw at him, he took it and roll ran he was ready to call her out for sure yeah, I don't know, I just love and I did love as much as I hate third act breakups.
Paige Woodrow:I love that it was her choice, because I hate it when it's the guy that runs away, because then I'm just like I hate you, like why would you want him because he left, like you know, mm-hmm, that's a really interesting point. Yeah, so I I feel like for me, the third act breakup is forgivable when the girl runs away instead of the guy running away, which seems so wrong.
Kristen Bahls:I don't know, and I mean in this Jack, like, even though she ran away from him, he said he was gonna give her space and he's still communicated with her, but never, like pushed her boundaries. Because it bugs me whenever you know, they'll just continually push the boundaries and they're like why don't you love me, why don't you love me? It's like, hold on.
Paige Woodrow:Okay, she said she needed space, so I did appreciate, yeah, the maturity of that. And he gave it to her and like just the gesture of him writing the article and everything was just so great. I don't know so, as, as third act breakups go it, it wasn't the worst ever, like you know. I my my. What I don't like is when the third act breakup is because of a misunderstanding.
Paige Woodrow:I agree. Like the misunderstanding trope is like a huge turnoff for me. A lot of times it will knock away a star because I just hate it so much, because I'm like if you would just talk to each other then you agree, but you're talking the whole book, just not about that yeah.
Paige Woodrow:So I feel like, as third up, third act breakups go, it was, I don't like them, but I will for I'll forgive it because I felt like it was within her character to make the choices that she did, and it all worked out in the end, of course.
Kristen Bahls:So but it's just so ironic that she was mad at him for lying when she's the liar like t hat just kind of threw me a little bit. I was like wait. And even whenever Cece was like, are you serious, right now you're mad at him, for I would say that she's a favorite character for sure yes, oh, my gosh.
Paige Woodrow:And I love it when she finally comes clean to her in the end and Cece is like gosh, I don't remember what she says, but she's like I'm gonna love you no matter, like you, where she's. Like you think you thought that I wouldn't love you if you didn't like the same things that I do like you're crazy. Like I'm gonna love you no matter how you are.
Kristen Bahls:I don't know, she was just such a great friend. I agree, and that's not something that authors, like tend to really explore. I mean, you know, the the best friends are kind of there, you'll see a sequel with them and their love story, but it's not really exploring like the friendship between between them. And so, yeah, I thought that that was really different and I think that it's probably cathartic for a lot of people to be able to hear that in a book that feel like they've had to hide things or like even with books maybe they don't want to say that they read books all the time and they feel like they don't have a book bestie and everyone in their life just kind of, you know, acts like they're reading silly romance books. Because you know that whole whatever they used to call it, chick lit and all that stuff it, yeah, it can get a bad rap. So I think that it's cathartic just to be able to hear that you know that that situation happen in a fictional world, and it could totally happen in real life too.
Paige Woodrow:Have you read Happy Place by Emily Henry Uh.
Kristen Bahls:I, I DNF'd it. What.
Paige Woodrow:It's so good, so that book has so much great friendship stuff in it. It really centers a lot around like her friendships, even more so, I think, than the romantic relationship. All of her books I've read all of them and they all start so slow, like they take a long time to get good. But once they get good, they get really good.
Kristen Bahls:I think I quit about 30 pages in, 50 pages in, and I bought that book too. I bought it in my idea. I hate that. Well, I hate that for you.
Paige Woodrow:I'm holding out for the paperback because it's supposed to come out in March and I own the other three. But I can't have, like the three paperbacks and then this obnoxious hard back that's bigger. So I'm waiting for my paperback.
Kristen Bahls:That's what I did with with Katherine Center. I have all her others and they're all paperbacks, but Hello Stranger is like the only hard back and it just drives me crazy every time I look at it on my bookshelf. But you know, it's the small things, yeah yeah, they all have to be the same. Yes, yes, so authors take note, take note.
Kristen Bahls:And Happy Place better be cut the same height, like if it's a paperback and it's like taller or shorter I'm gonna be mad Because when it's right next to it on the bookshelf, it just it looks off and then you can't see anything but that. Our favorite character is Cece. She's clearly the best. I love their love for cheese. I wonder how Ali decided to put cheese in the mix and just decided you know what I am gonna make cheese, oh my god. I wonder if she did cheese research for this. Or, like, ate a bunch of different cheeses. Whenever she's telling
Paige Woodrow:Jack about how like she'll look at just like pictures of cheese on her phone. I was like snort laughing. It was so funny, I loved it so much.
Kristen Bahls:Oh my gosh, and I think that, just with Ali Hazelwood books in general, like there's wit in there and there's banter, but it's so unique, like all the characters are just so uniquely themselves. Yes, that you're always gonna get like I mean it is bantery, but it's really interesting banter. That is not like really any of the other novels that I tend to read, because they're just so different. It's banter about cheese or banter about science or banter about you know whatever random hobby that they have, which is really fun. Yeah, I love it too.
Kristen Bahls:Okay, so imagine this. Let's say that in her next book I've noticed like a trend through all three of the books The Love Hypothesis, Love on the Brain and Love Theoretically that it's always that the guy is the one who's a little bit more established, who's older, who's like the actual professor or staff member, and then the female main character is always like the TA or the grad student. Do you think it would work out if they flipped those roles and the female main character in the next novel was, you know, older and a little bit more established, and then the male main character was the one that you know was kind of like the grad student or the TA? Is it like a power dynamic, like why do you think she does that?
Paige Woodrow:I don't know, I've never even thought about it. I mean, I think it would work, I think that that would be really awesome, and to show a woman that's in like a leadership position. I would really enjoy reading. I love books with a strong female lead, and so, yeah, I think that would be awesome. But, honestly, whatever she writes, I'm gonna read it. If she does the same thing, again, I'm gonna read it.
Kristen Bahls:She's an autobiographer of mine, for sure, yeah.
Paige Woodrow:I was telling my husband about the book and he was like, didn't you just read? This was back when I first read them. And he was like, because I read them back to back to back. And he was like, didn't you just read that? I was like, no, that was this one. And he was like, but it's the same thing. And I was like you know what? It is the same. Like they're all the same. They all have enemies to lovers, they all have, like the same premise, like they all have all these things. And it's like do I care? No, I don't. And I told him I was like you know what these books are?
Paige Woodrow:Chocolate cake. If someone gave me a piece of chocolate cake and I ate it and it was delicious. And someone gave me another piece of chocolate cake, I would still eat it and it would still be delicious. Like I'm gonna eat all the pieces of chocolate cake every time because it's still gonna be good every time. And even though they have a lot of the same tropes and situations and things, I think they are still different in their you know, special way because, like you said, all the characters are so unique and she writes them so vividly and and so they are. You know there's little things about them that are different. He would never see that.
Kristen Bahls:Yeah, he doesn't get it though he doesn't the kiss scene, and he stopped, wanted to stop reading the books, so he doesn't get it. But I mean, if they're okay, so if they're all chocolate cake, I feel like it's. It's more like it's not like you're eating chocolate cake every time. You're eating like chocolate cake with raspberry icing, and then you're eating chocolate cake with vanilla icing and then chocolate cake with chocolate icing to where, like, you know what you're getting, you know that you're getting roughly the same story, but it doesn't feel like you're rereading the same novel five times because you know they're like slightly, slightly different. Yeah and yes, for some reason, I think a lot of people found Bee annoying. I think Bee is the one that gets the worst rap for being just super annoying. So I mean, I think that they changed. She's my favorite one really.
Paige Woodrow:Yes, she's my favorite one, I don't know. I mean, I'm on hold at the library for um for them. So, hopefully, because I loved doing the audiobook this time and Love Theoretically was a two week wait, but it was really like three days. It went by really fast. The other two, oh my word. So the Love Hypothesis said, will be eight weeks and Love on the Brain says it's going to be 12 weeks, like what. Like I was so excited that this one was available so quickly, since we were doing our podcast for it. Um, but yeah, I don't know why the others are such a long wait, but hopefully people will read them fast and return them before they're, you know, as soon as they finish, and so then I can get it faster. Exactly like whenever
Kristen Bahls:so whenever we decided that we're going to do Love Theoretically, I actually had lent it out to a friend. Oh no, and so I was like, no, I don't have the copy to reread. And so, um, I went with the audiobook version, because I don't know if you know this, but if you have a Spotify membership, then now, if you pay for premium, you get the 15 hours of audiobook listening, and I put in for the physical copy at the library. It wasn't going to be ready for a while, like yours, and then I was just going I don't want to rebuy this book, I don't want to rebuy this book, and so I found it on Spotify and ended up listening to the audiobook version. So, and ended up working out but yeah, these are just consistently checked out at the library. They're really hard to find physical copies on. So put this on your TBR list, forget about it for a little bit, put yourself in the queue and then come back to this book if you want to read it.
Paige Woodrow:For sure, but in my opinion, worth every penny. If you don't want to wait, I agree, I would buy this.
Kristen Bahls:I mean, I didn't want to buy it because I already had a copy, but if I didn't already own a physical copy then I would buy it again. At this book I feel like The Love Hypothesis is my favorite, and then Love Theoretically is kind of like right underneath, and then I'm sorry, but my third is Love on the Brain and I don't dislike it. I just I gave it, I think, four stars instead of five stars. So Love Hypothesis is my the one to beat.
Paige Woodrow:I think for me, I think one of the things with Love on the Brain. I know I'm supposed to be talking about Love Theoretically, but I feel like with Love Theoretically and The Love Hypothesis, it's a long time before the man and the girl actually interact with one another. That's true, and the Love on the Brain is immediate, like chapter two. They're like having this huge cataclysmic, like interaction, and I'm just like, oh my gosh, like I love this so much and so it just had me right from the start and there's just something about that like initial hook that just grabbed me and I just couldn't let go.
Paige Woodrow:I loved it every minute.
Kristen Bahls:Well, now I'm gonna have to reread a Love on the Brain, because it's been a while since I've checked it out.
Paige Woodrow:So I'll let you know when I get it from the library, and then we can talk about it.
Kristen Bahls:Exactly exactly. So this is turning into the Ali Hazelwood podcast oh yeah, but I haven't you've read her little novellas yes, yes, I read them. Yeah, I read them.
Paige Woodrow:I mean I gave them, I think, like three stars, like they're not bad, but they they felt more like just chocolate cake, like it's reading, kind of the same thing they were over for me they were a little bit spicy, like she has some pretty explicit scenes in her books and I'm not a huge fan of like super explicit content. And those to me, had way more than the other books and I don't know if it's because they were so short, if it was like the same amount, but it seemed like more because it was a bigger percentage. The one I don't remember which one it was, but it's where, like they live in the same house and under one roof.
Paige Woodrow:Yes, I did not like that one at all because it just felt like it was all about that and it's like I don't care about that, like I want to read about like your relationship and like your, like you know how, how do you get to know one another and like that kind of thing. Like I don't really care about that and I felt like that was the point of the story, was them like cooking up, and so that is probably the only one of her books that I truly did not like and I won't ever read again.
Kristen Bahls:I agree with that. Um, I'm trying to think so. Under One Roof, oh wait, okay. So if you did not know how this works, is that she has like three novellas that are kind of smushed into one one book. So if you were to buy the paperback copy you would get all three like mini little novellas. So Under One Roof is one of those novellas and in Under One Roof I had actually been warned. Someone said like they could not get that scene out of their head in the worst way possible, so I skipped pages on purpose because I knew that it was coming. So I'm glad that I had been warned.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, I wish I had known that I would have skipped them too, but Below Zero loved that one.
Kristen Bahls:That was my favorite. Yeah, that was my favorite of the three Mm. Hmm.
Paige Woodrow:That was my favorite too. Yes, I think I. So I I rated like the whole book, I think three stars or something, but then in my like review I rated them each individually and I think Under One Roof probably got two. B elow Zero, got five. I don't remember what I gave Stuck With You four or five. I really liked that one. Actually I liked that one a lot when they get stuck in the elevator. That was fun.
Kristen Bahls:And I like how it goes.
Paige Woodrow:So that story goes back and forth between like the past and then like them being stuck in the elevator together, and so it was just kind of fun, the back and forth time jump. Have you read Check and Mate? Yes, I gave that one four, so I gave it five. I'm not a big young adult fan. I loved it. I don't.
Kristen Bahls:Yeah.
Paige Woodrow:I'm really picky with my young adult and it irritated me because I didn't feel like it was young adult still like. In my opinion, a young adult book should be like pretty clean and there was an awful lot of language in it and there was to me still an awful lot of talk about. Even though there weren't explicit scenes given, I feel like there was still an awful lot of talk about it and so it didn't read as young as I kind of thought maybe it should, with it being branded as a young adult book. But that's just my more conservative upbringing talking most likely, so I don't know. It was fine.
Kristen Bahls:And also the ending frustrated me because I was going to say can we agree that the ending was horrible? That that's the only thing that really made me mad. Yeah.
Paige Woodrow:I think that's really what took a star away. Yeah, it was just so. It was just like over, I don't know. I wanted to see them. I didn't. I didn't like reading all the little like articles or whatever at the end. It was just I don't know. It just kind of fell flat.
Kristen Bahls:I mean I understand, like the only reason why I didn't take a star away, because I felt like I understood why she did it. Because the whole point was, I guess, kind of like their love story instead of their true like ever after kind of thing, like after the world chess match, and they had like built up the world chess match, the whole book. And so you know, I mean I get why she probably like didn't want to write that because it wouldn't live up to the hype of what she built it to be. So that's the only reason I didn't take away a star. But yeah, I agree that the ending was, it was pretty bad. It just didn't fit the rest of the book, yeah, yeah.
Kristen Bahls:So in our Love Theoretically chat we just turned this into a full like Ali Hazelwood episode, which is fine because you know, I mean now you get a sense of all the books, you know which one you're going to pick up. So we're all going to reread Love on the Brain, or read it for the first time, if you haven't already, and then tell us what your preferred or like what your preferred ranking is out of Love Hypothesis, Love Theoretically and um, oh, my gosh and Love on the Brain because you know ours. So now, now we need to hear yours, because I could be swayed. I feel like my opinion could be swayed really easily because I liked all three yeah.
Paige Woodrow:I think mine is Love on the Brain, Love Hypothesis, and then Love Theoretically, which is funny because I feel like most people Love Theoretically is their favorite. But when I put that order, like y'all got to understand is like fair, like yeah, it's ranking your favorites. I rated them all five stars, like they're all fantastic. So they're neck and neck they are.
Kristen Bahls:And I I'm just really like Ali Hazelwood's writing like that. I don't know, I just think that it's something about the way that she writes that I can't describe it, but it's just she has that it factor, whatever it is, that makes me always pick up her books and just enjoy it. Like you know you're going to enjoy it, whatever star rating you end up rating it. Like you just know, whatever you're going in that you're going to enjoy it, yes for sure. So, because we're talking about a book that is Ali Hazelwood, I've actually heard a lot of comments just saying that Ali Hazelwood herself is like overrated, and a lot of kind of, I guess, trash talking. And I feel like, in a way, authors can't win because if they're too popular then they're going to be overrated, you know, and a lot of people aren't going to like something about their books. I mean, everyone can find something to complain about. But generally there are a lot of frustrations that seem to be the same in her books and so I thought that we could talk about those and kind of prove or disprove them. So that way, if you're a little bit nervous about starting Ali Hazelwood, because maybe you've heard a little bit about her and you're just not sure if it's going to be something that you like, then this can kind of help you gauge, you know, whether you'll actually pick up one of her books.
Kristen Bahls:So we already talked about how we felt that all of her books yes, they're the same, but in the best possible way that you can get. I'm going to use that chocolate cake analogy forever. So thank you for that Paige. That was perfect. But one thing that really drives me crazy, kind of in all of her books and I'll admit it. It is just they constantly refer to the male main characters stature and obviously we know why they're doing that, like we know what the point of it is, but it just makes me want to close the book and just chunk it across the room because I feel like I hear it just every other sentence he was mistaken for a refrigerator. They are the Mount Rushmore of STEM academia, any other like just stature description that you can make. I feel like they get it. Does that bug you, or can you kind of just let it fly?
Paige Woodrow:No, like I read, I read. You know you sent me the questions ahead of time. When I read that one and I was like not really. And then listening to it sitting in the back of my head, I was like she really does talk about like how big he is all the time. Like I mean, I just I never noticed how often she did it and so, yeah, no, it does, and even though you pointed it out, it didn't bother me.
Kristen Bahls:I don't know. That's hilarious. It is one thing that just grinds my gears every time I'm reading it. Like it just drives me crazy.
Paige Woodrow:Sometimes books are like that and like even books that I love. Like right now I'm reading, like I said, Crescent City 2 by Sarah J Maas and I realized that there's something that she does and it drives me insane. Can you please just stop? She'll list two things and then she'll be like and the former did blah, blah, blah, and the latter did blah, blah, blah. I'm like, can you stop saying former and latter? Like stop.
Paige Woodrow:Like there she has to say that like 200 times in this book and I realized, like I think she does it in like all the other ones too, and it was like just now after reading I've read how many of her books now and I'm just now starting to realize and like it's like every time I see it I roll my eyes. And like stop former and lattering things, like there's other ways to do it. But I think every author is going to have like a little thing that they do and I feel like you know, if you love the basic main story enough, then it doesn't at the end of the day, like it doesn't matter, like if there, if the author is doing something that's so annoying to you that you can't even appreciate the story, then I guess that that author is not going to be for you. But I kind of like. I kind of like a big, a big tall, like a big tall man. You know
Kristen Bahls:I kind of wonder if, like their editors, are reading through these books, like both Sarah and Ali's, and if they go, oh my gosh, am I going to cut it out? Am I not going to cut it out now, just leave it in it, just go past it and they just go with it. I don't know.
Paige Woodrow:Oh, that's so funny, so does she also in in the other two.
Kristen Bahls:They're all all three, all three, Yep.
Paige Woodrow:He was what he was really big too, in the best way.
Kristen Bahls:It's constant.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, you're right. Wow, I just never thought about it. What if in her new one he's like really short and tiny?
Kristen Bahls:That she'll just never mention it ever. You'll never hear anything about his stature and you just won't know. I didn't even think about that. Yeah, I guess she could totally switch it up if she's heard that feedback, because I've heard a lot of people say that, so I don't know. But she's probably like you know what, I don't care, I'm gonna write what I'm gonna write because at a certain point you know, if you stop writing what you're good at, then no one's going to buy your book, because you tried to please everyone and it's not going to be good, no matter what.
Paige Woodrow:Well, and I feel like at this point, you know people love their chocolate cake and if you all of a sudden put out there, like you know, a vanilla cake, people might be like what is this. Because you know you pick it up expecting one thing and then, if they just totally change it up, I am curious what Bride is going to be like.
Kristen Bahls:I don't know if I'm gonna read Bride or not. I'm undecided.
Paige Woodrow:I love romantasy so much but I'm worried. I'm like you have a good thing going, girl, like don't mess it up. So I am excited for it. I'm definitely going.
Kristen Bahls:I've heard good reviews of it so far. Yeah, so far. Everyone said yeah that it's good, so I one can hope. And same with her other new like stem novel. I'm a little bit nervous about that one after reading the description.
Kristen Bahls:It sounds a little intense, yeah, yeah, a lot, and I'm like I don't know how much more you can get. So normally I have a spice scale and Sarah Adams is on the left at like the lowest, because she's normally a closed door romance author anyway, and then Ali Hazelwood is on the other side. So I literally rate it between Sarah Adams and Ali Hazelwood. So if Ali Hazelwood goes a little bit more, I don't know what that yeah, that might be a little bit too intense.
Paige Woodrow:What I? What I do appreciate, though, about Ali's books is that if you wanted to skip the spice, you easily could.
Kristen Bahls:Yeah, it's because it's always in like one section where you can just skip it.
Paige Woodrow:There's never there's never any like big important plot thing that you're gonna miss.
Kristen Bahls:Nope, you could easily make her books like if you don't like the spice, you could totally cut it out, and so I do like that. I agree, and yeah, that makes it perfect because it's hard, I'm sure I mean I'm I just am more looking at like the characters, the banter, all that stuff, because you know, if you're trying to use the filter of, I'm only going to read closed door romance and that would just be so hard and I feel like you'd be missing out on so many really good books. So it's nice to know that there are those authors like Ali, where you can, like you said, just skip the pages so you can basically make it your own closed door romance.
Paige Woodrow:If you like a good closed door romance, you should read The Second Chance Year. That was really good and it was so sweet. Like I've never had a book get me like so hot and bothered with like a hug, like like the most they do in this book is like hug and kiss each other. I think they kiss each other like three times. Like it is, and I mean it's not, it's not even closed door, it is like they don't even do it ever, like it's not like fade to black, it's like they never do and I it was so good, like it's just so good. Well, good to know.
Kristen Bahls:Good to know Because, yeah, I mean, I feel like everyone just has so just has their own preferences. So you know, you never know what everyone's looking for in a romance. Some people really want a lot of spice and some people do not want any spice. You just never know.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, I can. I can take it or leave it, it doesn't matter, I just want the guy to like bring her flowers and tell her she's beautiful. Like that is what I'm like.
Kristen Bahls:Because I'm just in it for the banter. So as long as they have good banter, I don't know. Good, I can skip pages if I need to. I cannot skip pages, I'm fine either way, whatever.
Paige Woodrow:So I just, I just read the book. It's called The Takeover. It comes out. It comes out January 30. I only gave it three stars, but I could see you giving it more, just based on you talking about the things that you really like in a book. It had some of the best banter I've ever read, though. Like it has some really good back and forth between the guy and the girl.
Kristen Bahls:Good to know.
Paige Woodrow:It's. It's one of those like their enemies since like high school or whatever, and now they're thrown back together at work.
Kristen Bahls:Well, I have two recommendations. So, You With a View by Jessica Joyce, that's a really good one that I would always recommend, and that one that's her debut novel, good banter. It is enemies to lovers. They take a road trip together, so it is adorable. That one's incredible. And then Next Door Nemesis by Alexa Martin is also amazing if you're looking for good banter, and they're both yeah, they're both enemies to lovers.
Paige Woodrow:I'll add it to my TBR.
Kristen Bahls:Okay, this just makes me laugh.
Kristen Bahls:There are so many people that basically say that on Ali Hazelwood's books it's unrealistic, on the stem side of things, like they feel that some of the things that are in the book are unrealistic and it seems like they're meaning more, kind of like trying to describe this well, so not necessarily like the physics itself or the rocket science itself, like the facts are the facts, but kind of just how things go in STEM academia, which cracks me up because she literally has a PhD in neuroscience and she is a professor.
Kristen Bahls:So I feel like if anyone knows how it actually goes, and I also feel like people are just projecting like their experiences on her because they're saying, like why are you so pessimistic? And you know, not every guy hates women and STEM. But I mean, if you think about it based on her age, probably about the time that she was going through, it was when a lot of this wasn't out now and she was going through these struggles. And for every person that doesn't have a struggle, I'm sure that there is someone that has a struggle. I mean I can even say like in video production I've had like AV terms mansplained to me 50 million times and that's just an AV. I can't even imagine something like STEM, like neuroscience or physics or, you know, rocket science or any of those things. But anyway, I just think it's hilarious that they say that her stuff is not realistic in in STEM, when she is literally in STEM.
Paige Woodrow:Yeah, have you heard that? I haven't, and but that makes me sad because it's like and this kind of also goes along with the other questions that you are, the other things that we were talking about. She is writing like such a strong female character. She's trying to break the mold of, you know, this tough world that girls unfortunately live in, and it's like we should not be tearing each other down, like we need to be building each other up. Like here is this woman that's writing these amazing books. Yes, it's like a romance, but it's also giving like a great commentary towards like look, this is the way that it is in the world and this is not okay, and like we need to change things. And so, like you shouldn't be tearing that down.
Paige Woodrow:You know, like I feel like she's doing such a great thing here and we need to support each other and that is not a way to be supportive. And, like you said, everyone is going to have a different experience. Just because you know your experience was good doesn't mean everyone's is going to be, and just because her experience is bad doesn't mean everyone's is going to be, and we have to acknowledge each other's struggles and support one another. Not, you know, say like my way is the only way.
Kristen Bahls:And this is not a text book. It's not like a physics textbook. If she were actually to give you a physics lecture and make everything perfect and not build in the like intrigue of a romance and a romcom that you would be bored with it anyway and you wouldn't have even picked it up to start with.
Paige Woodrow:Yes, and like if someone was to tell me like you should read this book, it also has, like you know, physics, and I'd be like I don't want to read about that, but I feel like she does it in such a way that is interesting and fun. And so even when she is talking about the boring, like work side of things, I found it fascinating because she does it in such an interesting way. And I think you do have to like simplify stuff to make it, to make it accessible to the masses that know nothing about what you're talking about you know, because otherwise they are going to be confused or bored or whatever, I agree.
Paige Woodrow:And that's not the point.
Kristen Bahls:That's not the point of the book Like no, it's a romance that takes place in academia. It's not academia, with the romance on the side. Yes, I agree, and I think that like honestly, just from like teaching and stuff, a lot of this was realistic for me, especially the emails that she wove in between her students. Those were so fun. Yeah, those were realistic. I have gotten emails like that. I have had so many emails like that. I went, oh my gosh, this is realistic. I can definitely relate. And it actually kind of reminded me why I'm not going for my PhD and trying to be a professor, because I was like, oh yeah, I've taught high school seniors, so I don't think they get better magically from senior year of high school to freshman year of college. Yeah, no, probably, probably not. So she actually kind of saved me a lot of money. So I'm not getting my PhD to be a professor. So, thank you.
Kristen Bahls:Ali, so your book is invaluable.
Paige Woodrow:That's great.
Kristen Bahls:Yeah, but anyway, I love the book, you love the book. We both agree that you should check it out. Love Theoretically is a really good read. Ali Hazelwood is an auto- by author for both of us and, at the end of the day, if you're looking for just a punchy great romance, then any one of her books will do, except for the novellas. I would not suggest starting with that, but any one of her other books are are definitely worth it. That's it for today, on Where I Left Off, and thanks for listening, and stay tuned for our next episode, where we are going to talk about a new indie romance called Ghosted.