(Spoiler-Free)
Author Ali Hazelwood is a well-known romance writer with a PhD in neuroscience. Hazelwood is most known for her debut novel Love Hypothesis and her bestselling novel Love, Theoretically. These books were popular on BookTok and gained the reputation of being published fanfiction.
Naturally, I was curious if the books measured up to the hype. I started with Bride, Hazelwood’s first, and for now, only paranormal romance. This book is essentially the omegaverse for beginners. In the past, Hazelwood has expressed her love for Twilight, and the character Elsie (Love Theoretically) mentions how she believes that Twilight is a literary genius. Bride is an enemies-to-lovers, with some miscommunication trope. It’s like reading what would have happened if Bella Swan had chosen Jacob.
I had to get my hands on the next Hazelwood book, so I picked up Check and Mate and Love, Theoretically. When I thought I had read her best book, the next proved to be just, if not more, addicting. Each book has an agonizingly slow burn with a grumpy-x-sunshine dynamic – and trust me, it lives up to the hype. What initially drew me to Hazelwood’s book was the fact that her debut novel was originally a Kylo Ren fanfiction. Fanfiction creates some of the most addicting romance stories. Look at the Shadowhunters series, After, and even Fifty Shades of Grey. Though these books are not literary geniuses, they have garnered a large fan base, and their respective films are icons in pop culture.
Romance readers face a lot of criticism online and in a genre that is majority female readers, this always rubbed me the wrong way. I enjoy reading a variety of genres: romance, fantasy, and the combination of both – romantasy – basically. I am one of the cringe romance readers that the internet makes fun of.
I recently had the opportunity to go to the Game of the Gods book release party, where authors Hazelwood and Tracy Wolf would be guest speakers. I met Hazelwood and Abigail Owens at the release party, and both authors were so appreciative of all the love their books were receiving. What I loved most about the book release party was that every person in attendance was so excited and passionate about reading. I had never experienced that. The audience would all gasp in the same places and laugh at other niche bookish references only readers would understand. I just needed to ask Hazelwood one question…
“What do you think will be different in your newest release Deep End?”
The characters in Deep End will be in their early twenties, college students. Hazelwood has never had a college romance before, so this will be an exciting new dynamic for readers, especially college students, like me, who love to be delusional. She began writing YA romances that were cute rom-com types, and with each publication she’s become steamier and spicier, which is to the reader’s enjoyment.
All that Hazelwood could tell me is that it would be slightly similar to Love, Theoretically in the aspect that both female main characters are getting their PhD. Of course, Elsie (Love, Theoretically) already earned her degree and is seeking a job in the field, but the newest main character (Deep End) will be applying to med school. One of the most unique things about Hazelwood’s writing is that all of her characters are women in STEM or women in male-dominated fields. This is inspiring to many readers, including myself. It is refreshing to read about independent, smart women dominating in otherwise male-centric career fields.
Prior to the event, I knew very little about Abigail Owens or her newest release, Game of the Gods. After listening to the author’s panel, I think that this novel has the potential to be my new favorite romantasy. Simply put, it is a mixture of the Hunger Games and Percy Jackson. Hades, the god of the underworld, falls in love with a mortal who is cursed to be unlovable. It has enemies to lovers, Greek gods, spice – what more could a girl want?
In my experience, attending a book release can be empowering. To hear successful authors share their writing/editing process is encouraging to aspiring authors. I encourage anyone who likes to read to find an event near them. It will fill you with a newfound excitement. For readers who enjoy fanfiction or “cringy” romance books, please pick up one of Hazelwood’s books and I promise you will not regret it.