I really really wanted to love this, but I found it extremely slow and boring. It felt like the plot was so minimal, and it dragged on with nothing happening the majority of the time. The romance is giving more found family and great friendship than actual romance. There was no tension or angst or want in the sense of romance, more just companionship and friendship.

The writing is done well, and I really liked the premise or plot. It was just very, bland.

Thank you very much for the arc opportunity!

I Think I'm In Love With An Alien by Ann Aguirre offers a delightful blend of sci-fi and romance, with a premise that's both quirky and endearing. The characters are likeable, and their interactions bring a unique charm to the narrative.

I'm avoiding spoilers so excuse the vagueness.

However, a significant time jump near the story's climax felt abrupt, disrupting the narrative. Additionally, the protagonist's 'pivotal decision' seemed rushed, lacking the depth and deliberation you might expect. Despite these pacing issues, the novel showcases Aguirre's talent for creating engaging worlds and characters, hinting at even greater potential in future works.

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Oh man, I really did not vibe with this one. I was just so bored and none of the characters really stood out to me. Most of them were two dimensional. I love me a good monster romance but this just didn't hit the way I wanted it to. I was expecting something kind of like Ice Planet Barbarians but with more quirkiness, but I think the setting doesn't really allow for the kind of wonder and novelty that comes with monster romances. You're not really seeing the other world, you are seeing the human world. Unlike monster romances that take place on another planet or a more historical world. I think that's what I find good about them, and that just wasn't present here.

After reading and loving Ann Aguirre's Strange Love and the rest of that series, I had a feeling I was going to love this book also and I was not disappointed. SF romances in which the alien male is basically just a a human guy who is huge, blue, has a tail, horns, and large sized all over are a dime a dozen. It's much rarer to find an alien/human romance in which the author takes the time to create main characters that really are alien. Ann Aguirre excels in this and that's why I love her SF romances.

This book was like a warm, cozy hug, filled with found family themes and characters I'd love to spend time with. Tam and Jen were both lost, Tam literally stranded on Earth with no way to get home, and Jen because no one in her life took the time to understand her and love her for who she was, not who they wanted her to be. They first connect online, and when they finally meet in person, it's as if they've always known each other and have found their other half, even if they are two different species.

Readers who go into this book expecting the usual alien romance, complete with oversize parts or double appendages are not going to find what they are looking for here. Tam and Jen are strongly attracted to each other but there's very little conventional touching. This is partly due to Tam being truly alien and therefore experiencing pleasure differently than a human would, but also because Jen categorizes herself as gray ace on the sexuality scale, meaning she is fine with sex, but she doesn't think about it that often, and doesn't tend to feel sexual attraction to anyone. For her, it's all about the emotional connection. This of course, makes Tam the perfect partner for her.

I hope the author continues to write more of her brand of SF romance as I'll be happy to read it every time. My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

Give me an alien romance and I eat it up every time! I really loved the premise of this book! An alien trapped on earth, I mean what’s not to love. Unfortunately I didn’t love the characters and I felt that there was a lot of unnecessary fluff.

Will definitely be stoking in my store for all of the sci-fi cosplay nerds!

'I Think I’m in Love with an Alien' is silly and fun. It’s a book for nerds, and it could have come from the AO3 fan fiction universe (maybe it did?). The premise is delightful – and potentially hilarious but somehow not all the jokes land for me. It’s a tender romance set in the present (post-pandemic) in ordinary America with a friendship group of misfits who meet on an Aliens Among Us website.

Jen, our heroine has set up a group chat, a breakaway from the main website. The group agree to meet up in Rellows, to attend Outer Space Con. Rellows in Utah seems to be a thinly disguised Roswell, New Mexico as it’s a sleepy town that comes to life for all things alien-themed.

Jen has been talking online privately with Tam (full name Tamzir Jaarn) and is keen to meet him in real life. She is a loner, she’s always been considered weird and is bullied for her interest in the extra-terrestrial and the way that she hyperfocuses on things that interest her. She’s bi- and doesn’t experience visual attraction, and through their chats, she’s already half in love with Tam before they meet, so his ‘difference’ isn’t an issue for her at all.

Meantime Tam has been stranded on Earth for a year, after a holiday adventure went wrong when he travelled from his own universe and his pickup didn’t collect him. Tam’s observations about humans are very funny – his language is old-school and awkward (and a little clinical) – he describes humans as Terran mammals who have cranial fur :) The downside is that his speech patterns are a bit stilted and it is not easy to believe in his growing attachment to Jen.

Group and private chat texts thread through the novel and this was the most fun for me – there’s rhythm and banter in the texts that is absent in their real-life interactions.

There’s satire (‘Owen Lusk has designed a spaceship’), environmentalism (‘they should focus on fixing the planet they’ve poisoned instead of squandering resources to steal another’), human foibles (‘humans are impulsive and difficult to govern. I collect that’s why their society has so many laws’) – and plenty of internal dialogue from both Tam and Jen but none of these things have any real bite.

This has potential for romantic suspense, with an on-the-run plot, or even a thriller. There are identified baddies, a ticking clock, hostile relationships, plenty of scope for drama and intrigue, and yet, none of this happens. There’s not even a climactic moment at the end! I love the idea of it, and Ann tells a good story, but this could be so much more.

Full review coming soon on All About Romance.

Thank you Ann Aguirre, Sourcebooks Casablanca for the ARC. Opinions are my own.

3 stars - I liked it

Tamzir Jaarn, aka Seeker, has been paying the price for risking an illicit holiday on an forbidden planet. His ride off world never showed up and now he has been stranded on Earth for a year. But when he meets some cool humans online and is invited to the biggest space-themed convention, he decides to take the chance and go, especially since Jennette will be there.

This was a bit of a cozy, cute, and nerdy sci-fi romance. We have a group of online friends who are obsessed with aliens finally getting to meet for the first time at a convention. This was very relatable as a cosplayer myself who has met many online friends at conventions. I really enjoyed the friendship between these six friends and how supportive they were, especially after finding out aliens exist.

Tam was an alien who sought adventure to get away from disappointed parents and ended up on Earth. He is struggling but finds solace in the group chat, specifically with Jeneticist, aka Jennette. I really liked Tam. He was sweet, kind, and lonely. He really just wanted to be accepted for enjoying mechanical things, and he found that on Earth. His culture and alien differences were fascinating and I loved the brief glimpses we got of what an alien world looked like.

Jennette is a woman who dreamed of being an astronomer but settled for teaching it instead. She has really been accepted by friends or family until she finds this group of friends. I really liked that she didn’t really panic about finding out about aliens, and quickly jumped in to help Tam survive better. While I liked Jennette, I did think she gave her family way too much leeway in her life but was glad to see that she cut them out after their toxic words.

The romance between these two is very slow building. Its friends to lovers but with Jennette being grayace, it makes it a bit slower. I was glad to see grayace representation that actually focused more on the emotional side of the relationship instead of the physical. I enjoyed their relationship but it did make the story a bit slow, especially with everything else going on in this story.

White I enjoyed this story, the pacing is slow because it spends a lot of time on non-relationship things like getting to know all the friends, the convention, and on the daily life of the main characters. I enjoyed getting to know the other characters, but I could have done with less of the filler scenes that didn’t really add much to the story or romance.

Overall, while the pacing is slow I still enjoyed this. I would be interested in reading more if she writes about their friends.

TW: toxic family; sexual harassment; death of a parent from cancer mentioned; death of friend in car crash mentioned;

I loved the style of this book. I loved the characters, and I loved the plot. I WANT MORE.

The cast of characters was fun and interesting. The pacing was great and the story was wonderful. I enjoyed the read and want this to be a series. I see two other couples... I need to know what happens.

This takes place online and at a convention where these people meet for the first time. This group of 'weridos' are fun and interesting with secrets to share. It made me happy when they finally all met and when secrets started to be revealed.

I Think I'm in Love with an Alien is a great read that you should pick up!

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was a sweet book! I liked the found family aspect between the FMC, the MMC, and their online-turned-in person friends. As someone that has befriended many people online who eventually became in-person friends, that was a great addition to the story.

There were times the book felt rushed and then it would feel like I need more from the story. Overall, it was a fun read. I always like alien romances.

I've already read Ann Aguirre's Strange Love trilogy, so I was excited to see her return to sci-fi. Personally, I loved this take on the alien lover trope. Aguirre made this work unique from her previous books in the same genre while also bringing her characteristic quirkiness.
I was surprised by the lack of spice given the author's history in the sub-genre. Aguirre's last series got extremely creative in ways I feel Mass Effect fans appreciated (I see you fellow Garrus stans). I can see people who came to this book expecting the same amount of spice being disappointed.
However, this was not a deterrent for me.

I could not recommend this book more for lovers of science-fiction or monster romance. Aguirre is a talented author who knows her genres well.

“I’m so scared by how much I like him already”

“I find rare sanctuary in her company, and for a fleeting moment, I’m no longer a seeker - I’m found”

Love it !!! So cozy and sweet and romantic and funny. Alien romance. But without spice (if not a mild one). Jen and Seeker … I loved them so much!!! This book reminded me of what love should feel like even if it is between two different species !!! I loved the way it was written and the fact that it had entire chapters focused on online conversations between a group of people who became friends based on common interests and found their own family within the soul of the others. And the main couple … they were so sweet and so honest and caring for each other, they made me giggle and smile multiple times while reading the book. I honestly think this book is perfect for anyone who wants to experience a simple but oh so good romcom book with the addition of the monster trope in the form of an alien !!! So cute !!!

“And when she wraps her arms around me … a lifetime of inadequacy melts away”

I LOVE alien romance so I thought I would. Love this book. Overall the book felt a little long. There was a lot of conversation around consent with even the most simple ideas. I felt like it took away from the story on some part. I would still recommend to others as I feel like people who like cosplay would like this book!

This book surprised me. It had way more plot that I was anticipating for an alien romance, with a nice focus on found family and acceptance.

Just not for me as a book.

I was really excited for this one! Unfortunately it didn't quire work for me. The characters felt immature and this was more of a found family book than a romance. There was so much excessive wordiness, and the ending felt like it wrapped up very messily. I was a bit bummed I didn't love it!

A really sweet alien romance (with an ace main character!) set on earth with humans unaware of aliens. While I strongly prefer for my paranormal/alien romances to not have the paranormal aspect be the conflict, this was a fun set up for it. An alien who is stranded on earth, joins an online forum, gets added to a group chat, and the friend trip makes it out of the group chat. It was cute.

This was super cute!

If you like friends to lovers and nerds in love but also aliens this book is for you. Jen and Tam were adorable. I thought their online chats and SpaceCon was a unique take on alien romance. We are actually on Earth for once haha. I also liked the found family aspect of the book.

The romance here is very sweet and cute. The romance is focused on their friendship and connection. Because if that, this book is not steamy (there is one steamy scene at the very end).

I also love this cover! It's so pretty.

"He's stranded. He's desperate. He's not looking for love....She's nerdy. She's flirty. She's ready for romance."
***
When Tam (aka Seeker) get stranded on Earth during a vacation gone awry, he makes friends with an online group of alien enthusiasts. One such friend, Jen, catches his eye...will he chose to go home or stay on Earth with this budding relationship?
***
Was this book quirky? Yes. Was it cringy? Yes. But I think that was the point! The group of friends and found family are nerds. They are a socially awkward, but loving bunch. I really did enjoy the story from the friendship aspect as well as the message of learning to embrace your true self. Where the story fell apart for me, was the romance plot. Marketed as a romance, you would think there would ACTUALLY be romance. I can understand it not being smutty, but I expected more. (There's literally one very short sex scene), but I didn't feel any love or connection or intimacy between the two. Overall, it was a cute & fun read :)


Review posted to Goodreads & Tiktok.

I found the concept of this book quite interesting. Truth be told, it was an enjoyable read until nearly the end of the story. The pacing suddenly shifted, Jen's family issues were offputting, and overall, the ending felt hurried and didn't quite deliver the satisfaction I was hoping for. With a more fleshed out ending, this would have been much better.

I really loved this concept! Jennette is obsessed with all things aliens and Tam is an alien. I really enjoyed seeing them bond online and meet in person at the alien con! I liked how they supported each other in difficult situations and helped the other one realize their gifts.

I really enjoyed the first half of the book but then I felt like we did a bit too much time jumping and the detail about their relationship was lacking. It seems like this is intended to be a series but I didn't fully feel like Tam and Jennete's story was wrapped up. I was glad they were together but I didn't feel like some other storylines were resolved. I would be interested to continue the series but I wish this story had felt a bit more complete as a standalone.

Plot: Jennette is a nerd. A Sci FI nerd. She has a group of online friend she's found through an online discussion group about aliens being among us here on Earth. In getting to know each other virtually the group has decided they like each other and would like to meet in person. They plan a trip to a Space Con in Rellows, NM to meet up in person for the first time. Little do they know, they're about to run into some out of this world challenges.

Overall thoughts: This was a cute read. It's a dual POV and I really liked both of the MCs so it was an enjoyable read overall. Because one of the dual POVs is from an alien, we get a lot of descriptions of the world we live in. Which, obviously, makes perfect sense because they're new here. However, as a reader, who does live here, some of the descriptions were a little lengthy in my opinion. I found myself wanting to skip ahead a bit. Something that was a real delight for me, as a "weird girl" myself, it was nice to see another "weirdo" get attention and romantic attention at that. However, it was a little hard for me, personally, to see/feel the attraction between the two emotionally and physically. However, as I'm not ACE that's not necessarily bad, just a smidge harder for me to connect. But goo for me to read. I liked the friendship of the online group and how they blended when they finally got to meet in person. Reminded me of some of my online friend groups.
While I had fun overall I felt like the ending was a bit rushed and some of the logic in the created danger neat the end was a bit questionable. I wont say much so I don't spoil it but the logic of some people being where they are..... just... the odds are outrageous. Even in a book about real aliens. ;)
Overall this was cute and fun. Not something I would reread.


What made my weirdo heart happy:
"...it requires reserving a year in advance to stay in the Jupiter room; apparently it takes two years to stay in Uranus."
and cat names Scotty and Spock!

Will I read more books by this author?: Yes. Probably.

Would I recommend this book to a friend?: To specific friends who like/want to try Sci-Fi romance with a touch of spice and ACE representation.