*About 1/2 way through Review, extended review ill be published later*

So far i'm in freaking love with the characters, time jump is done well (sometimes it blows so good on you!)

It's such a wild collection of events that throw our MCs into their current living and working relationship, I cannot wait to see what else this has to come!
--
Update!

Oh my, this was definitely one of my favorites!

Forced Proximity
'Enemies to Lovers'
Forbidden Love

UGGGGH I need more now

This was a really sweet and funny book! Liz is a postdoc and Tom is her former PhD assessor. The two have a less than friendly history together when they are suddenly forced to live their lives together, personally and professionally. I loved the banter back and forth between the two, and I adored their parents relationship. I also appreciated Liz’s actions to stand up for herself when all said and done. There is one chapter specifically where Liz calls out the bad behavior she’s had to put up with and I appreciated her voicing that.

I did not really click with the feuding between the two characters, nor Tom’s character much. Don’t get me wrong, there were times I really felt for Tom and the crap he was put through as well, but his whole idea that he had to be a “bastard” to Liz because they couldn’t be together romantically (all in the prologue) didn’t sit right with me. I also am not usually a fan of enemies-to-lovers tropes because I don’t like that kind of mindset (but I love the trope when that meanness isn’t used). The manipulation and rudeness didn’t sit right with me, which is why I loved it so much when Liz called it out.
Overall, this was still a really cute and steamy read that is perfect for those who really vibe with this trope :)

As a fan of The Love Hypothesis this story of women in STEM hit the spot for me. Just enough angst, enemies to lovers, pining, and banter for me. And the dual POV made it even better. Definitely recommend for a cute romance read.

4 stars

Thank you Netgalley and BooksGoSocial for this advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review!

Fans of The Love Hypothesis would most likely also enjoy The Unbalanced Equation. Following an enemies to lovers trope in a STEM academic setting, The Unbalanced Equation was a fun and easy romance read. Although the main characters Liz and Tom both make some questionable choices in regards to one another, I would argue what Tom does by invading Liz's privacy was worse than what Liz did by playing with his feelings. Indeed, were this not a book, I would have warned Liz to run far from Tom and never look back once his actions had come to life. But, as this was a romance book, I was willing to put it aside and root for their relationship regardless. All in all, I generally enjoyed the book and felt that it provided an excellent escape for me.

A huge Thank You to The author, The publisher and NetGalley for providing the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

What a delightful read! I absolutely loved the setting, the characters and every little incident. It all played out nicely, and I absolutely devoured it.
Hoping to read more of the author's work in the future!

#TheUnbalancedEquation #NetGalley

✨If you loved ‘ The Love Hypothesis’ then you will adore this! It’s sort of similar vibes but the characters actually act their age😉. I also actually preferred this to LH!

✨The banter and chemistry between Liz & Tom is written perfectly, and I loved the way they bounced off of each other! The flirting was realistically written and not too over the top.

✨The sex scenes were 🥵. For me, these were some of the best written scenes as they were sexy, but also realistic which is my favourite type!

✨I found it incredibly refreshing that the author wrote characters that didn’t want the ‘normal’ life. They didn’t want kids, marriage or holidays to Tenerife and that’s totally okay.

✨The only thing I didn’t like was the manipulation used by Tom to get Liz to like him, and also Liz using Tom to get back at him. SO unhealthy….. BUT I’m so glad they owned their mistakes and put things right between each other.

✨Overall this is a fab rom-com with added 🌶 and would be perfect for any Ali Hazelwood fans. I already can’t wait for the next instalment in the series!!

"The unbalanced equation" is a book by H.L. Macfarlane. This is a story about Tom and Lizzie. They both meet at a party that doesn't end up the way they both want. The next day, Tom learns that he is to become Lizzie's PhD supervisor. So he decides to be mean to her so that she doesn't fall in love with him. When Tom is no longer Lizzie supervisor the situation between them becomes more complicated.

It is a university romance between an employee and a doctoral student. I liked the book, but it annoyed me that some situations could be solved by the characters with a simple conversation. I rated this story three stars because it is so predictable.

Thank you Netgalley for this book.

I enjoyed this book but I had a feeling I would because I love books that have science in them. Also I LOVE when books have Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit references! They make me so happy because I am a HUGE LOTR fan.

Thank you to H.L. Macfarlane, NetGalley, and BooksGoSocial for allowing me to receive an ARC for The Unbalanced Equation. This book was such a wild ride. It was so fun to read, and you were really able to tell that the author is a scientist. There were definitely some moments where I was shaking my head over some of the decisions that a certain character made, but it was overall a great book! I enjoyed how fun the main characters were, as well as their parents. This book is filled with tropes galore! At one point I said, how many more tropes is she going to be able to fit in this book??? I had a great time reading it and finished it in a day. This is a great read if you love reading fun romcoms. The Unbalanced Equation makes you think about what you would do if you were put in Tom's situation. What would you do if you really hit it off with someone and then realized that you were going to be in a position of power over them? Awkward, but you can decide for yourself if Tom made the right decisions after she graduated. I really hope that H.L. Macfarlane continues to write romcoms because this was a really fun book!!

The Unbalanced Equation by Hayley Louise Macfarlane: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

If you are a fan of forced proximity and emeries to lovers, this is for you! I love that the story is told through the alternating points of view of the two main characters, Tom and Liz. And it’s set in Scotland!!!

This book has similar themes from Ali Hazelwood’s books, the Love Hypothesis and Love on the Brain, and I am not upset about it!

There were a few instances where I thought some scenes and characters were not necessary and that the author was trying to add too much in to the plot. Other than this, I really enjoyed this easy reading book!

This was a cute romance. I do enjoy the new STEM romance trend. This is perfect for readers who've enjoyed The Love Hypothesis series.

A quick fun read. Enemies to lovers in a STEM romance - was super eager to read it.

While there were some predictable scenes and I wasn't a big fan of the H, it was an enjoyable read.

I was hooked by the cover and in general I think there's more of a demand for this niche subcategory of books because of the Love Hypothesis. And really a lot of people's biggest problem with the Love Hypothesis was the the FMC was currently doing her PhD and the love interest is a professor. I get that, it made me uncomfortable. So, I liked that Macfarlane avoids that by hvaing our FMC be in her post-doc. BUT, I could not get over the fact that they were going to be step siblings. In these rom-coms there are inevitably these random situations where our MCs are forced into the same space where they can't avoid each other. And we have that here with the fire and working in the same lab. But then do we also need them to be step siblings? I feel like there were other ways to get them to share a house with having that happen.

2.5 stars
warning: possible mild spoilers below


Right. So.
This book was just painfully average.

Pros: I liked the world-building, I LOVED the fact that it was set in Scotland, I liked the STEM background, I liked Daichi a lot.

Cons: side characters weren't well developed and used mainly as a plot point. The main characters were step-siblings?????????????? I was confused as to what exactly the plot was lol.


NOTE: I received this book as an ARC from Netgallery, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

My MAIN problem with the book: The main characters were the worst, most painfully embarrassing people. I cannot believe the way they both acted given their ages and professions. I couldn't sympathise with either of them tbh, and the fact that I liked Tom more than Liz says it all considering how ridiculous he was.

Anyways, for those who enjoyed The Love Hypothesis, this is deffo an homage to that (whether that was intentional or not).

BUT tbh I would not recommend this book to my friends and I only finished it bc I am incapable of DNFing a book soz

“A women after my own heart”

The Unbalanced Equation // REVIEW
Pub Date: September 15th

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
🌶🌶🌶🌶

Read if you like:
* Age gaps
* Dual POVs
* STEM romance
* He falls first

There are so many things that I loved about this book! I am an absolute sucker for a he-falls-first romance, so I can say with great certainty that H.L Macfarlane delivered on this one! Starting from the beginning, I think that Tom and Liz’s meet-cute was so captivatingly nerdy and spicy, perfectly setting the tone for this slow-burn romance. As a STEM-romance, a large portion of this book centered around Liz and Tom’s respective work in the lab. While you can tell Macfarlane did an extensive amount of research to create accurate scenarios and interactions between characters, things were FAR from being overly-technical or boring. There were so many likable side characters in the lab that kept the conversations interesting, not to mention the banter between Liz and Tom. THE BANTER. Every word and glance between Tom and Liz was infused with impatient lust and attraction. I really enjoyed the genuinely romantic moments the couple shared with each other as well: Tom caring for Liz on her period and Liz buying Tom flowers. And last but not least, the open-door scenes were very Tessa Bailey-esc and I am here for it!

Macfarlane is very talented in creating/writing romantic gestures, but these moments were sadly far and few in between. And while I very much enjoyed this book, it was incredibly stressful. The author threw SO many obstacles at this couple that I became so anxious from reading! I think if the author focused on and developed one issue (anger from PhD discussions, love triangle, becoming “step siblings”) rather than problem after problem, the book would have had a better sense of direction (eliminating my anxiety!) In addition to this, I thought the couple’s relationship was fairly immature for their ages (27 and 38). I would have liked to see more complex motivations and emotions from both Liz and Tom. Needless to say, if you’re looking for a spicy STEM romance, this is most certainty the book for you!

Thank you Net Galley for the advanced reading copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you to Netgalley and Macfarlane lantern publishing for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.
Disclaimer: I was given access to this ARC for free in exchange for my honest review.
The unbalanced equation by H. l. Macfarlane is my first read by the author. Requested it because of the interesting cover. I read the blurb and I was sold.
The story follows Elizabeth “Liz” Maclean and DR Thomas Henderson.
Thomas was her PhD Assessor, and he was a nightmare or as Liz puts it several times. He was complete dick to her. after 4 years of them putting up with each other Liz is finally free. She will begin working on a new lab. Free from dr. Henderson. Or so she thought.
When Thomas lab burns down due to a Bunsen burner he must be relocated and he so happens to share a lab table with Liz, and if that was not enough, they find out that their parents are getting married.
They are also forced to live together when Liz’s landlord decided to evict, he and she has no place to go. The easiest solution seems to move into Thomas townhouse, that she will share not only with Thomas but also with his father, JIM, and Thomas’s mom Jenny.
To recap; our story features, age gap, office romance, forced proximity, enemies to lovers, forbidden romance; not only because of the office but also because they will be step siblings. and miscommunication trope. … not a trigger on itself but it’s important to know it has a place on the story.
I enjoyed the read. I’ve been on a mood since I read love on the brain and this story was the perfect follow up book. The story is a bit less focused on the steam part and more on the drama aspect of it. Not that is a bad thing but if you did not like how much scientific talk there was on love on the brain; maybe read this book.
The spice of it was something that I really liked. It was not too harsh or nearing the vulgar, but it was hot. It had me blushing at some point.
the book would be 4 stars for me. I liked it, it was enjoyable and funny at times. The one aspect I did not like and the reason I removed one start it’s because of Thomas behavior. While over all he is great. He acted like a child and the whole reason why the last 30% of the book dragged a bit.
****SPOILER warning****
The reason Thomas acted like a dick towards Liz is because he liked her. yeah, that’s it. So at the beginning of the book, they first and they pretty much agree without agreeing to have sex. Its heavily implied. Liz leaves and the next day is told he will now be her assessor. Because he wants to be professional, he can’t be having indecent thoughts about her he decided to be harsh. He is rude. He makes those 4 years a nightmare for her.
This man could not just be polite to her. he couldn’t be a decent human being to her. liz talks about how she held up tears after talking to him. He was a dick to her. also, that did not stop there. He messed up her chances to get a new place, to keep her at his house, and he went through her phone to block her matched-on tinder, so she didn’t go on more dates.
I feel like she forgave him to quick, but it made sense. They had long talked about it. We see how while it was wrong, they work through it.

Tom and Liz meet at a work social and have an instant attraction to each other. Events happen that keep them from meeting up again until Tom finds out he is her PHD assessor. Tom makes the decision that he has to hide his feelings for her by being extra hard on her during her time completing her PHD. The fun begins when they find out that there widowed parents are getting married to each other. The book started out strong, dragged a bit in the middle but kept my interest. There were miscommunications that could have been solved by actually communicating. The book did benefit from the supporting characters. The dialogue was strong.
For those who like rom-coms it is an enjoyable read. I would be interested in reading the next book from the author.
STEM
Enemies to lovers
Miscommunication

While I found the description of the book interesting along with much of the book, there were parts that were too abusive for me. Tom and Liz are both at a university in Glasgow in the Genetics department. Him as a PhD member of the department and her just entering the PhD program. After a fun first meeting, things take a turn for the worse along with the use of too many plot devices.

I received a free copy of this book to review through NetGalley.

The Unbalanced Equation
H. L. Macfarlane

Genre: Romance
Published: 2022
Recommended: TBD

I had to put this book down approx. 50% of the way through, but not because I didn't like it necessarily. I look forward to trying this book again in a different format, because I had trouble maintaining my attention on it with the digital copy.

4/5 ⭐
3/5 🌶️

I really, really enjoyed The Unbalanced Equation. I made the mistake of reading some reviews after getting it and was prepared for disappointment... Talks of a misogynistic creep MMC and an immature FMC almost had me running, but thankfully I didn't find them anywhere. What I found was a strong and smart FMC who decided to füçk with the guy who was an ășșhöłě to her and a morally grey MMC who was a bit of an ąrrogąnt ąšş, but had a lot of redeeming qualities. This is definitely an enemies to lovers story where the MMC has a lot of groveling to do and, in my opinion, he did it well.

I really loved the little fandom details scattered throughout this book. While I don't know anything about anime or Manga, I could just feel how giddy that would make fans of the genre reading them. Same with the science tidbits. Hayley didn't make you feel like being left on the outside of an inside joke when she included them either.

The plot was fantastic. I loved that Tom loved Liz for 4 years and attempted to keep his distance by being a dïćk, then sabotaged his way into a forced proximity situation. Would I have been okay with this in real life? Absolutely not. Do I love when my book boyfriends straddle the line between strong-willed and pathological? Hěłł yes. Tom wasn't perfect, but I loved him nonetheless. He was truly a good guy who made some mistakes... He was such an amazing son and friend, you knew his heart was truly in the right place.

I really loved this little friend group and I'm excited for more books in this world!