Double Review: Stuck With You & Below Zero

When you pick pick up an Ali Hazelwood STEM novella you know what you're going to get. An entertaining, fluffy, science-focused romance. 

Do the characters, themes and plots kind of blend together? Yes. Are they quick, fun reads? Yeah, they are but I probably won't remember much about them two weeks from now. I listened to both of these novellas and Meg Sylvan's narration was wonderful.

Stuck With You - This was an entertaining, steamy novella listen despite the fact that it has two of my most hated romance tropes - Insta-Love (argh) and miscommunication (gahhhh!!). But I did love the forced proximity and the chemistry between Sadie and Erik (even though we're repeatedly reminded that Erik looks a lot like a Viking god/Chris Hemsworth). I'm not usually one for short stories but I felt that this novella wrapped all the feelings, tension and spice into a nice little package for romance lovers.

Below Zero - This novella was ... fine. There's the requisite miscommunication (sigh), science and main characters that are very similar to her characters in other books. The spicy talk was ... weird. It's just strange when you compare lady bits to locations on Mars. 

I think I'm done with the STEM series. They're a fun read but they're all too similar to each other with their tropes, issues and characters. And I grow tired of Hazelwood's obsession with using brawny, stoic science dudes and a teeny tiny science gals as her lead characters.  

My Ratings: 4 stars / 3 stars

Author: Ali Hazelwood

Genre: Romance

Type and Source: eAudio from public library

Narrator: Meg Sylvan

Run Times: 3.5 hours / 

Publisher: Penguin Audio

First Published: March 8, 2022 / 

Book Descriptions from GoodReads: 

Stuck With You -- Nothing like a little rivalry between scientists to take love to the next level.

Mara, Sadie, and Hannah are friends first, scientists always. Though their fields of study might take them to different corners of the world, they can all agree on this universal truth: when it comes to love and science, opposites attract and rivals make you burn…

Logically, Sadie knows that civil engineers are supposed to build bridges. However, as a woman of STEM she also understands that variables can change, and when you are stuck for hours in a tiny New York elevator with the man who broke your heart, you earn the right to burn that brawny, blond bridge to the ground. Erik can apologize all he wants, but to quote her rebel leader—she’d just as soon kiss a Wookiee.

Not even the most sophisticated of Sadie’s superstitious rituals could have predicted such a disastrous reunion. But while she refuses to acknowledge the siren call of Erik’s steely forearms or the way his voice softens when he offers her his sweater, Sadie can’t help but wonder if there might be more layers to her cold-hearted nemesis than meet the eye. Maybe, possibly, even burned bridges can still be crossed….

Below Zero -- It will take the frosty terrain of the Arctic to show these rival scientists that their chemistry burns hot.

Mara, Sadie, and Hannah are friends first, scientists always. Though their fields of study might take them to different corners of the world, they can all agree on this universal truth: when it comes to love and science, opposites attract and rivals make you burn…

Hannah’s got a bad feeling about this. Not only has the NASA aerospace engineer found herself injured and stranded at a remote Arctic research station—but the one person willing to undertake the hazardous rescue mission is her longtime rival.

Ian has been many things to Hannah: the villain who tried to veto her expedition and ruin her career, the man who stars in her most deliciously lurid dreams…but he’s never played the hero. So why is he risking everything to be here? And why does his presence seem just as dangerous to her heart as the coming snowstorm?