I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood Narrator: Callie Dalton, Jason Clarke
Published by Berkley Publishing Group, Penguin Random House Audio on June 11, 2024
Genres: Fiction / Romance / Contemporary
Length: 11 hours 56 minutes
Pages: 400
Format: ARC, Audiobook
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
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An Indie Next and a Hall of Fame LibraryReads Pick!
A forbidden, secret affair proves that all’s fair in love and science—from New York Times bestselling author Ali Hazelwood.
Rue Siebert might not have it all, but she has enough: a few friends she can always count on, the financial stability she yearned for as a kid, and a successful career as a biotech engineer at Kline, one of the most promising start-ups in the field of food science. Her world is stable, pleasant, and hard-fought. Until a hostile takeover and its offensively attractive front man threatens to bring it all crumbling down.
Eli Killgore and his business partners want Kline, period. Eli has his own reasons for pushing this deal through—and he’s a man who gets what he wants. With one burning exception: Rue. The woman he can’t stop thinking about. The woman who's off-limits to him.
Torn between loyalty and an undeniable attraction, Rue and Eli throw caution out the lab and the boardroom windows. Their affair is secret, no-strings-attached, and has a built-in deadline: the day one of their companies will prevail. But the heart is risky business—one that plays for keeps.
I enjoyed this book! The spice level was a lot higher than I expected and the STEM focus was less than anticipated but I liked the book for what it was. Rue and Eli first encounter each other after finding each other on an app and plan to hook up. Things don’t go as expected that night and they don’t plan to run into each other again. Plans change the next morning when it turns out that Eli is part of the group taking over the company where Rue works.
The chemistry between this pair was undeniable. They can’t seem to stay away from each other even though they are on opposite sides of the takeover. Rue has never been with anyone more than once so the pull towards Eli is new to her. As they spend more time together, they get to know each other and grow closer. I felt there was more going on with the company and couldn’t wait to discover the real story.
I listened to the audiobook and thought that Callie Dalton and Jason Clarke did a great job with the narration. I thought both narrators did a great job of bringing these characters to life and I liked that their voices complimented each other. There is a lot of spice in this book and I felt both narrators were able to bring the right amount of emotion to those scenes. I found this to be a rather quick listen simply because I didn’t want to put the book down. I am certain that their performances heightened my enjoyment of this story.
I would recommend this book to others. This one is a bit spicier than what I remember of her other books but I think it worked. The characters were well-matched and I appreciated that we got to see the male point of view in this story. I look forward to reading more of this talented author’s work in the future.
I received a review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing Group and Penguin Random House Audio.
I’ve heard it’s A LOT spicier than her other books. Which I’m not super happy about. But I do usually really like her characters, so I might still read this one.
I liked it but thought the steamy scenes really slowed down the plot. I would have preferred more plot.
I’m glad you liked this one.
I have only read the one Hazelwood, but I do want to read more
This looks like a good read though I’m not the biggest fan of spice. I might try another book by the author to start with.