Ali Hazelwood is one of the most well-known authors in romance right now, but if you're new to her work, it's hard to know where to start. There are so many titles to choose from!
Hazelwood shot to fame with love stories for women in STEM, but she's branched out more and more into sports romances, escapist holiday romance and even the paranormal. So to help you decide which Hazelwood to pick up first, here's a handy guide to the genre trope at the heart of each book (pun intended).
If you want to start at The Start
The Love Hypothesis
The book that started it all, a TikTok sensation, The Love Hypothesis put Hazelwood's name on the map! And for good reason – you are going to absolutely love this book!
Third-year Ph.D. candidate Olive Smith doesn't believe in love, not after her ex destroyed her emotionally. But her best friend Anh won't stop hassling her to date. So when she's about to be caught out for lying about being on a date, Olive panics and kisses a random man in the office … who just so happens to be Adam Carlsen, a professor and an asshole. But for some reason, he agrees to be her pretend boyfriend …
The Love Hypothesis is full of miscommunication, fake dating and all the complications that come with it! And if you're a reader who's already fallen in love with Hazelwood's debut, there's now a beautiful collector's edition with sprayed edges, exclusive endpapers and a brand new bonus chapter!
For the Grumpy/Sunshine lovers
Love on the Brain
If you love cats, this ones for you!
Bee Konigswasser lives by a simple code: What would Marie Curie do? When Bee is offered the lead on a neuroengineering project at NASA, AKA her dream job, she knows she has to take it. Even if it means co-leading with the handsome but cold Levi Ward, her archenemy from grad school.
Now her equipment keeps going missing and colleagues ignore her. She can't help but think Levi is behind it all … So why is he acting like he's on her side? And why does he keep devouring her with his eyes? The possibilities have all her neurons firing. But when it comes time to actually make a move and put her heart on the line, there’s only one question that matters: What will Bee Konigswasser do?
For the fake dating fiends
Love Theoretically
If you love a bit of fake dating and enemies-to-lovers then you need to read this one!
Theoretical physicist Elsie Hannaway is barely scraping by on an adjunct professor's salary. So to keep the lights on, she offers her services as a fake girlfriend. That's how she meets Jack Smith, annoyingly attractive experimental physicist (aka the enemy) and older brother of her favourite client. Jack rules the physics department at MIT and could be the one person to grant Elsie her dream job, or crush her dreams forever.
Elsie will go to war for the job that she's worked so hard for, but she will also have to fight against the feelings she's starting to develop for Jack.
For the sports romance fans
Deep End
Get ready to swoon and squeal while you read Deep End! Competitive swimming and a whole lot of romantic chemistry the characters refuse to acknowledge …
Scarlett Vandermeer is swimming upstream. A junior at Stanford and a student athlete who specializes in platform diving, Scarlett prefers to keep her head down, concentrating on getting into med school and on recovering from the injury that almost ended her career.
Swim captain, world champion, all-around aquatics golden boy Lukas Blomqvist thrives on discipline. It's how he wins gold medals and breaks records: complete focus with every stroke.
On the surface, Lukas and Scarlett have nothing in common. Until a well-guarded secret slips out, and everything changes. But when staying away from Lukas becomes impossible, Scarlett realizes that her heart might be treading into dangerous water...
For those who love a secret affair
Not in Love
Is there anything sexier than an illicit affair? I really don't think so! Get ready for a love affair between two characters, fighting between company loyalty and an undeniable attraction.
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…
For the forbidden romance addicts
Problematic Summer Romance
It's set in Italy... need I say more? Okay, how about a destination wedding and forced proximity?
Maya Killgore is twenty-three and still in the process of figuring out her life. Conor Harkness is thirty-eight, and Maya cannot stop thinking about him. It's such a cliche, it almost makes her heart implode: older man and younger woman; successful biotech guy and struggling grad student; brother's best friend and the girl he never even knew existed. As Conor loves to remind her, the power dynamic is too imbalanced. Any relationship between them would be problematic in too many ways to count, and Maya should just get over him. After all, he has made it clear that he wants her gone from his life.
But not everything is as it seems – and cliches sometimes become plot twists.
For the paranormal addicts
Bride
Hazelwood's gone in a different direction with this one! Bride is her first book that isn't contemporary, but don't worry, there's still lots of romance!
An arranged-marriage story, Bride follows Misery Lark, daughter of the powerful Vampyre councilman of the Southwest who, in order to uphold the peaceful alliance between Vampyres and Weres, is required to marry her mortal enemy, the Alpha Lowe Moreland. But Misery gladly accepts the arrangement as she has plans of her own that have nothing to do with politics or alliances. And she is willing to do whatever it takes to get back what's hers, even if it means a life alone in Were territory … alone with the wolf.
But will Lowe see through her plans?
For werewolf lovers
Mate
For those who would much rather fall in love with a werewolf than a vampire, Hazelwood has you covered with this fresh-off-the-press new release!
In this exciting follow-up to Bride, the story follows Serena: orphaned, pack-less, and one of a kind. Coming forward as the first Human-Were hybrid was supposed to heal a centuries-long rift between species. Instead, it made her a target, prey to the ruthless political machinations between Weres, Vampyres and Humans. With her enemies closing in on her, she has only one option left – if he'll have her.
As Alpha of the Northwest pack, Koen Alexander commands obedience. His authority is so absolute, only a fool would threaten his mate. It doesn’t matter if Serena doesn’t reciprocate his feelings, nothing will stop him from keeping her safe.
For the young adult readers
Check & Mate
Personally, this is my favourite of Hazelwood's catalogue (so far!). Check & Mate is Hazelwood's first book for a young adult audience but don't worry, older readers will still love it!
Mallory Greenleaf had sworn she would never play chess again. Not after how it had destroyed her family. But where her best friend convinces her to play in a tournament, she somehow beats the current world chess champion, Nolan 'Kingkiller' Sawyer. Her victory opens the door to sorely needed cash-prizes that will help keep her family afloat. Although Mallory swears she's only doing it for the money, she can't help but feel the love for the game slowly come creeping back. And then there's Nolan...
For the short story buffs
Loathe to Love You
If you're a short story fan or just wanting to dip your toe in to the world of Ali Hazelwood, then this collection of three short stories by Hazelwood is the best way to go.
'Under One Roof' is an enemies to lovers story about Mara, an environmental engineer who moves into a sharehouse with the enemy – a.k.a. Liam, a glowering, grumpy big-oil lawyer.
'Stuck with You' is a forced proximity story about civil engineer Sadie who gets stuck for hours in a tiny New York elevator with the man who broke her heart.
'Below Zero' is a villain-turned-hero story about Hannah, a NASA aerospace engineer who ends up stranded at a remote Artic research station and the only person who can save her is her longtime rival.
