Reviews with content warning for Outing - Love, Theoretically

Reviews tagging 'Outing'

Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood

88 reviews

funshine3's review against another edition

Go to review page

funny inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Quick and easy read

Content Warnings

wilybooklover's review

Go to review page

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

This is my first Ali Hazelwood book, and I have very mixed feelings.

First of all, if I had to hear ONE MORE TIME about how gigantic Jack was, I might have screamed. It was so repetitive and unnecessary — I promise that I won’t forget between page 35 and page 40 that he’s built like a refrigerator. Combined with how naïve and oblivious Elsie was, and how overbearing Jack was, I didn’t really enjoy the actual romance much. I found Jack quite creepy to be honest

(he keeps a photo of her in his bedside table when they genuinely barely know each other? He wants her to move in when they've barely been together for one weekend?? He wants to lock her in his room for two weeks??? WHAT).

He also came across as condescending most of the time to me, and like he infantilised the heroine. The sex scenes were so awkward and not in a cute way (although I liked the emphasis on consent). And what kind of Swedish surname is Turner? Then the villain seemed so flat and cartoonish, rather than a fully-fleshed out character, especially during the conflict. Also, this is very petty but I hate cheese and had to suffer through so much talk about cheese in this book. Enough about cheese already!!

On the other hand, there were some things I really liked. I loved Elsie’s character arc about learning how not to be such a people pleaser all the time, and how she ended up going to therapy at the end. I liked the setup for how the MCs meet (she’s fake dating his brother, and he begins to suspect something is off). I enjoyed the very realistic depiction of being a woman in STEM and how very science-y the whole book was. I really liked how much Jack just wanted to take care of Elsie, gave her space when she asked for it, and how he didn’t mess with her career even when he was suspicious of her (look, it's a low bar, but it’s disappointing how often that happens in romance). It was great how he completely respected her academic intellect and was so emotionally open with her as well... even if that openness is completely lost on her lol. I also liked how Elsie actually calls Jack out on how patronising he’s being by acting like she can’t make her own decisions. Plus, all of the major side characters besides the villain were well-drawn and enjoyable to read; I particularly liked Cece and Millicent.

One final thought: the STEMinist appellation promptly needs to die in a fire, thank you.

Content Warnings

laura_wild's review against another edition

Go to review page

fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

there are too many typos and the Jack is really creepy sometimes

Content Warnings

greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

3.5

Content Warnings

abby_can_read's review against another edition

Go to review page

funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

📖
I enjoyed reading this book. I liked the STEM and university settings. The characters were good, I liked the relationships between characters, the writing style was engaging, and the plot was cute.

This was the first Ali Hazelwood book I read and I eager to read more.

Content Warnings

loveyoulike's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

i was this close to rating this higher solely for the reading experience but the last few chapters were way too frustrating. in the first place i couldn't buy jack as a character. he feels like a mary sue but with a few added issues to progress the plot. i also personally don't like romance stories where one side always knows the best for the other character to the point that they appear like a teacher-caretaker.

Content Warnings

one_more_chapter96's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny informative inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Thoroughly enjoyed, maybe the funniest / most witty book by Ali Hazelwood I’ve read so far which was really fun. Sad at times and makes you reflect on people pleasing and eldest daughter roles in a family. Great STEM rep and informative without being too much. The tension and slow build up of their relationship was good & I loved Jack overall as the MMC. Slightly disappointed by the ending but overall enjoyed the book.

Content Warnings

meggiemeggie52's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was so cute, but not a love for me. I loved Jack, the development of Elise and Jack's relationship, and how he helped her open up and be more honest with people... but Elsie not even knowing who *she* is or being able to tell her best friend she doesn't like the movies they watch together frustrated me on multiple occasions. It also annoyed me that Elsie refused to believe that Jack didn't actually hate her, even when he told her this (multiple times) to her face.

Content Warnings

memoirsofabooklover's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

this was by far my favourite ali hazelwood book that i’ve read. i loved jack with my whole entire heart. i saw a lot of myself in elsie and her struggles internally. jack’s patience and unwavering need to see the real her and learn to say how she truly feels and ask for what she wants is the what we all really want in a partner.
it brought up a lot (for me as well i’m sure it did for others too) who have been in relationships (romantic and otherwise) where they make themselves what they think others want them to be until we can’t tell who we are and what we want apart from who we pretend to be.
i hate insta love and miscommunication trope usually but jack’s unrequited love for elsie throughout the book had me in a choke hold, it didn’t feel cheesy it just felt right. the miscommunication was done well enough that it didn’t feel dumb as they usually are, there was some genuine reason behind it, that no one would have realised in that situation.
i also loved sole aroace rep, it’s the one of the most forgotten about members of the lgbtq+ community and even though there wasn’t much about it, because it wasn’t the main characters, i think it was handled really beautifully, not overly-dramatised or glossed over.

Content Warnings

underscoresyd's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional funny lighthearted medium-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? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

More...