‘Problematic Summer Romance’ is a spinoff novel from the fourth book in Ali Hazelwood’s loosely-linked STEMinist series, ‘Not in Love’. Where each STEMinist novel can be read and appreciated without reading the others, ‘Problematic Summer Romance’ is best read by those who have already read ‘Not in Love’, to fully appreciate the backstory and characters. Whilst it contains tropes I wouldn’t usually look for in a romance, Ali Hazelwood works her usual magic to create a compulsively readable novel. I confess to finishing this one at 01:30am as I couldn’t put it down.
Maya Killgore is 23, and has just finished college with the sort of job offers other grads salivate over – but she has no idea what she wants to do with her life. What she does know is that she has a problematic crush on her brother’s best friend, 38-year-old Connor Harkness – which is an issue, because he’s made it clear he wants nothing to do with her. She’s successfully avoided him for the last ten months. Now, however, she has to attend her brother’s big destination wedding in Taormina, Sicily – which means a week in a romantic Sicilian villa with Connor. It’s Maya’s worst nightmare. However, the longer she spends there, the more it becomes clear that Connor’s been hiding something – and a Problematic Summer Romance might be on the cards after all.
I didn’t pay much attention to Connor when reading ‘Not in Love’, but it was impossible not to love Maya. She’s smart, outspoken, and great fun, but also deeply caring. Yes, she’s a little immature, but she’s a college kid working through some childhood trauma, so it’s completely understandable. Being inside her head only garners more sympathy and appreciation. Hazelwood cleverly uses flashbacks to fill in the context without breaking the flow of the story, and its easy to see why Maya’s feelings about Connor are so complex.
The highlight of this book is the sexual chemistry, something Hazelwood is growing increasingly comfortable with. Maya and Connor’s chemistry is off the charts. This is a single perspective novel – as opposed to Not in Love, Hazelwoods first foray into dual perspective – and this works in allowing the chemistry to build until it ignites. Of course, this is an age-gap romance of fifteen years – and the flashback scenes go three years earlier – so readers should be aware and avoid this if explicit scenes exploring age gap romance aren’t for them.
Of course, Eli and Rue feature heavily as well – primarily to serve a backdrop for Maya and Connor’s romance, but there are some lovely sibling scenes between Eli and Maya and also some nods to Maya and Rue’s friendship. It’s also satisfying to see how Eli and Rue’s rocky start in ‘Not in Love’ has blossomed into something as sweet as depicted here. Them being them, the wedding isn’t exactly plain sailing – but the hiccups add great humour (this being, of course, a rom-com).
Sicily is a special place to Ali Hazelwood, and her descriptions of the setting are beautiful. There are some lovely nods to Sicilian culture sprinkled in, especially around food.
This isn’t my favourite Hazelwood book, and there are flaws. The age gap is a significant focus, and mentioned a few too many times without quite enough interrogation of why it’s so problematic, or addressing that. Not getting Connor’s perspective means he can come across as a little flat – especially as he’s not the most talkative or expressive person. But as a fun summer read with sizzling chemistry and familiar characters, this ticks many boxes.
For fans of Ali Hazelwood who’ve read ‘Not in Love’ and don’t mind an age-gap romance, this is a recommended summer read.
Published by Sphere (Hachette)
Paperback: 27th May 2025
For more by Ali Hazelwood, her loosely connected STEMinist series includes The Love Hypothesis, Love on the Brain, Love, Theoretically, and Not in Love. She’s also written the colleage sport romance Deep End and the fantasy-romance Bride
