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 cliché, 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 clichés sometimes become plot twists.
When Maya’s brother decides to get married in Taormina, she and Conor end up stuck together in a romantic Sicilian villa for over a week. There, on the beautiful Ionian coast, between ancient ruins, delicious foods, and natural caves, Maya realizes that Conor might be hiding something from her. And as the destination wedding begins to erupt out of control, she decides that a summer fling might be just what she needs—even if it’s a problematic one.
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Not in Love
10 books in catalog
Romantic comedies centered on women in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics gained widespread popularity through the breakout publication of The Love Hypothesis. Author Ali Hazelwood became a #1 New York Times bestselling writer by weaving genuine academic realities and peer-reviewed research settings into contemporary romance narratives.
Beyond contemporary academic romances, Hazelwood has expanded her bibliography into young adult fiction and paranormal romance, while also having published peer-reviewed scientific articles on brain science.
Originally from Italy, Hazelwood lived in Germany and Japan before moving to the United States to pursue a Ph.D. in neuroscience. Alongside her academic training, she conducted research and authored peer-reviewed papers on brain science where, as she noted, no one makes out and happy endings are not guaranteed. She served as a university professor for about three years before quitting in 2022 to write fiction full-time.
Hazelwood published her debut novel, The Love Hypothesis, in September 2021. It became a New York Times bestseller and entered development for a feature film adaptation. Outside of writing, her interests include running, crocheting, eating candy and cake pops, browsing AO3, and spending time with her husband and three cats.
Hazelwood's work frequently highlights women working in male-dominated STEM fields and higher education. Her narratives combine realistic academic competition and career stress with romantic comedy tropes such as fake dating, enemies-to-lovers, and workplace rivalries.
Her bibliography spans multiple subgenres, including contemporary adult romance, young adult literature, and supernatural fiction. Her characterization emphasizes witty banter, intellectual passion, emotional vulnerability, and high-stakes personal dilemmas.
