DNF @ 38%. For some reason I couldn’t stand the writing of this book. The narrator’s voice annoyed me enough that I had to put it down. The plot seemed like something that I would really enjoy, but the writing style really killed it for me. Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC.

Okay, this book was quite interesting. I did request this because the cover is stunning!

The book was in fact not disappointing. I liked the characters, the plot and how the romance aspect happened in this book. Even though I sometimes dislike when men pine after women for years and wait for them to realize one day that they have feelings, but in this one it worked because she did have secret feelings.

It was a great read!

I got an e-arc of this book on NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is a sweet, cute, easy to read romance.

Fans of Ali Hazelwood will probably enjoy this book as we focus on a female male character who works in STEM and is super clever, making her way in the world without a man.

Clara is very intelligent but kinda hap-hazard and all over the place when it comes to life in general. She finds herself in all of these situations and has to be rescued.

Henry is a sweet character, he's a bit more buttoned-up than I usually like from a male main character but I think he was a good mix for Clara.

I loved the whole unrequited love turned romance storyline and I've realised that isn't something I read a lot.

Clara wasn't focused on trying to be with a man and this does mean we get quite far into the book with little romance happening but the story is funny along the way so it didn't really bother me.

If you are in the mood for a cute, sweet romance this is probably the one for you

"Just know that you are enough, exactly as you are, and that I will always love you for being you, and not for any other reason."

Thank you NetGalley, HarperCollins UK, and One More Chapter for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Dr Clara Clancy always felt she was immune to 'The Hot Henry Effect', a genuine scientific phenomenon where anyone in the vicinity of Dr Henry Fraser fall head over heels for him.

Following a disaster of a presentation at work, seven years after her time at Oxford, the last person she expects to see is Dr Henry himself. Now working together, they're back to their old ways with easy conversations, endless banter, and tensions building as they both avoid what they really want to talk about.

Check triggers before reading!

Read this in one sitting. The book isn't ground-breaking by any means, but I liked the premise. I didn't feel massively connected to the characters and found a lot of the interactions in the book frustrating (not just between the couple), and I wish there had been a little more depth to them. They also didn't always read as their ages (I think Clara is 32?), which again added to the disconnect. Some of the interactions were oddly immature, which was quite jarring against some of the other moments in the book where it all felt very grown up.

The tone of the book was a little all over for me. The balance of the rom-com and heavier topics/incidents didn't feel balanced and humour was used to kind of push through it which provided a bit of an awkward reading experience for me personally.

I think a lot of people will enjoy this, but I also think it will be compared to a lot of really popular books and I'm not sure if that will be a good thing.

Thank you again NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK, One More Chapter for the chance to read this book.

It took me a little bit to get into this story because of the technical sort of jargon at the start. I also felt frustrated by Clara's insecurities and her inability to recognise Henry's feelings.

There was a bit of drama in the way of unrequited affections from other co-workers. There were plenty of funny moments throughout the story and some truly sweet ones when Clara and Henry finally got their emotions sorted.

In the end, I enjoyed the story after the initial struggle to get sucked in.

Thank you One More Chapter, Harper Collins UK for inviting me to review The Hot Henry Effect from Lucy Chalice. I enjoyed a lot of this book, it's a fun romance and I love the movement towards "steminist" themed romances, allowing the female main character to be smart, independent, and successful and with a romance that has a male character who is not intimidated by a smart, successful woman. Chalice lets this theme shine while also using humor and great secondary characters to develop the plot.

The book though is not 100% a win for me, I think I wanted just a little more depth, a little less moving from scene to scene and event to event and more time with letting chemistry really develop. I think some of the secondary plots were not needed to develop the story and perhaps this is what took away from the space to let the main characters stand out more.

3.5 stars

Clara and Henry met for the first time at university during their PhD programme. Back then Clara was immune to the swooning that happened every time Henry was around and the two of them became friends. Flash-forward to seven years later, Clara and Henry meet again at Clara's workplace. They are to work together at a project and this time around the Hot Henry Effect gets Clara every time she is near him.

I really liked the first half of this STEM romance. The two MCs have chemistry. The banter is funny and their re-ignited friendship is believable. Both seem to harbour romantic feelings for the other and, obviously, there is a lot of miscommunication until they get their Happily Ever After.

The second half or last third of the book didn't work for me. We all know there has to be a third act break-up in a romance novel, otherwise we won't believe the story (sarcasm), so the author had to invent a reason. It felt out of character for Clara, a reasonably grounded scientist who suddenly gives a rather irrational explanation as to why there can't be a relationship. It felt contrived.

2.5 stars rounded up

The Hot Henry Effect was pretty cute and the chemistry between Clara and Henry was fantastic, I just hated the unnecessary drama that was thrown in near the end.

oh this book. it literally has everything you want. its like the perfect rom com. steam scenes, the chemistry just flew off the page. i adored it. 10/10

Thank you to HarperCollins, NetGalley and Lucy Chalice for an opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Spoilers ahead!

Let's start with the nice stuff: I think there was a genuinely delightful banter between Clara and Henry. The two seemed to like each other as much as love each other, which I think is a refreshing change. This friends-to-lovers where you get the sense that the two parties really are friends. I liked the side characters, and I felt that there was a well-considered emotional arc, and sense of internal development between where Clara started, and where the two ended up. Similarly, I think there were some lovely rom-com moments that helped us see Henry not just as 'a man who says he is in love with Clara,' but as, 'a man who is actively in love with Clara,' which I also found very refreshing. I loved their inside jokes, the repetition of phrases, things friends say to one another. 'Do I have something on my face?' is, and remains, such a perfect line. They both know they're gazing lovingly at each other, it is at once a get out of jail free card, and acknowledgement that they noticed the other noticing them. Lastly, I don't like miscommunication as a trope, but I think Chalice pulled it off by going 0 to 100 on the communication front, and packing the resolution with good, honest, talking about feelings. Overall, a fun and funny romance.

Now onto the slightly less good. The Hot Henry Effect was an unusual read for me. This reminded me of books being published about 10 years ago, a very quirky narrator, a slightly sexist way of looking at other women, and a tendency for the MMC to be casually jealous and dominant. I did find Clara's repeated concern that she looked 'like a slut' / 'slutty' and the scary woman being heavily made-up with cosmetic surgery left a bad taste in my mouth, especially when Clara repeatedly expounded her own feminism. Similarly, I thought it was odd that she framed 'being in love with Henry / wanting to be around Henry / feeling things for Henry' as diametrically opposed to 'being independent.' On the casual jealousy and dominance front, Henry repeatedly threatened to enact physical violence on men who upset Clara, or men who seemed to want her attention. This isn't something I'm necessarily against, I mean we all say things, and a protective man can definitely be the vibe some people want, it just seemed so totally opposite to all of Henry's other personality traits that every time it came up it was jarring.

Another thing I found a little odd, and this was not actually anything to do with the book, but the marketing. Twice on the blurb page for this is it described as 'spicy,' to be blunt, it is not. This is not spicy, in the same way Cassandra Clare's Shadowhunter books are not spicy. By which I mean, there is a sense of sex taking place, and there are some details, and there is even some well-described pre-sex shenanigans, but during the deed, there is no real description. You don't need to worry about what words she's using to describe which parts, because the answer is none. There is a general sense of the mechanics of things, nothing much more. This is not a deal-breaker for me, I didn't request this because it claimed to have spice, and I have read and thoroughly enjoyed many a closed door romance, but this is purporting to be something it is not. Flagging this now, because I think some readers might be a little disappointed because to me '🌶️🌶️🌶️' in the themes section suggests quite a lot of on-page intimacy.

That being said! I really enjoyed that intimacy was on the page. There were a few details that threw me off, but largely I think there was a sense of emotional closeness, and of two people who truly found each other beautiful, and desirable, and utterly captivating.

As a side note, and something I just found a little odd, how, after knowing each other 7 years during which time they were twice very close friends, did Henry never mention his twin brother? I appreciate that this was a set up to the next book in this loose series, about said twin, but this is baffling to me! Like, Clara knows his mum is French, but is not aware that he shared a womb with someone? Possibly the most egregious, unlikely, rom-com-silly detail in the whole book.

In conclusion... the thing is...I liked it. Is it good? That's for you to decide, but I read it, and for the most part, I had fun.

A steamy workplace, romance. Medical scientists and a very attractive Henry. Clara and Henry first meet when Clara has almost finished her Doctorate at Oxford and Henry is working towards an Engineering Phd. Over a few weeks they develop a friendship as Clara teaches Henry the intricacies of working in a laboratory studying stem cells.

Clara loses contact with Henry when he goes back to the United States to complete his Phd.

Seven years later they meet again while working together for a pharmaceutical company.

I loved the interactions between Clara and her workplace friend Simmy. Lots of humorous situations and some serious workplace issues.

Clara and Henry have issues with trust, which isn’t helped by other interfering people. This was about friendships and the workplace.

Thank you NetGalley and One More Chapter for a chance to read this E-Book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

All I ever do is sing praise… but I can’t help it with this book.

I actually LOVED the fact that throughout the book bigger, smarter words were used to describe certain things as it gives the feel that some smart ass person is telling you their story.

The only thing I didn’t like was the miscommunication trope. It’s one trope I HATE with a passion. Clara jumped to conclusions without thinking it through logically, or even talking to Henry first. I can kinda accept it when it’s teenagers, early 20s. But this woman is in her 30s and a scientist. She should know logically she needs all the facts before deciding the outcome. I know! I know she’s been hurt before. To me, it doesn’t excuse not taking to someone. Jump to conclusions all you want, but after a bit of time you need to take a breath and talk to them. But when Henry turned up she was like “no no, go away. That’s it.”

I don’t like it.

But all in all I did loved the book and the story itself. Makes a change having a 30-something in the story rather than someone in their 20s.

No one is safe from the Hot Henry Effect!

Once upon a time Clara Clancy and Henry Fraser were mentor and mentee working in a research lab. Then they went their separate ways, and seven years later is reunited to work together once again on a special project. Clara and Henry easily falls back into their friendship, but maybe this time it'll be something more.

This was a cute, light-hearted, and fast read (read it within a few hours)! I love Clara and Henry's relationship. They have such an easy-going friendship that consist of teasing, friendly banter, and support. Clara may have thought she was immune to the Hot Henry Effect, but she was just in denial that they've got chemistry. And Henry may have been oblivious of his effect on others, but that is because he's got his eye on just one person.

What to expect:
> Mentor/ Mentee
> Second chance
> Workplace romance
> STEM romance
> He falls harder

If you're a fan of Ali Hazelwood's STEM romances, you might enjoy this read!

This book was super fun! It was light hearted and easy to follow. I read this book in one sitting. I started reading and the story just pulled me in. I highly highly recommend!

The Hot Henry Effect by Lucy Chalice was an adorable read. I really loved our main character Henry and Clara. I love reading anything with STEM and romance. It was everything I hoped it would be. If you love women in STEM with a slow build romance then this book is perfect for you. I am definitely a Lucy Chalice fan and I will continue to support her work. Thank you NetGalley, HarperCollins UK, for giving me this amazing opportunity. Can’t wait to have a physical copy in my collection.

Thank you netgalley, one more chapter and Lucy Chalice for allowing me a an e-arc ahead of release in exchange for my honest review.

The storyline was intriguing but not gripping enough to leave you wanting more. The relationship felt forced and I felt like Clara was oblivious to everything in life. I did enjoy Henry & Clara’s friendship at times but the British-ness felt over the top and unnecessary in parts.

I'd like to first thank NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

This book was definitely a fun and easy read. It was funny and just kinda enjoyable.

My only issue is that the FMC is so self deprecating. I really had to pause at moments to not have a rant about it. It felt at every moment we're reminded of Clara's insecurities which it's not bad that characters have flaws but to the extent that was portrayed makes it just feel very unnecessary.

My biggest thing was the lack of communication. At what point does it go from miscommunication to barely any communication. This for me is why the book became two stars.

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: yes
POV: single 1st person
spice: one open-door spicy scene
TWs: sexual assault (on page), divorce
standalone: yes
final thoughts: I loved the friendship between the MCs, the female friendships, and the settings in this book. It was a quick and easy read, but overall felt maybe a little too fast at some points. As a reader, we knew the FMC thought the MMC was “hot” because of his nickname throughout the first half of the book but there was never really any talk of her attraction to him, just everyone else’s attraction.
I love the “it’s always been you” trope and wish it was dug into more instead of being glossed over as I felt happened a lot with many of the storylines. HOWEVER, this was a cute, fun, very low spice read that is great as a standalone palate cleanser.

read this book if you love

😬 angst
💼 workplace romance
💞 friends-to-lovers
🤐 miscommunication
🏝️ forced proximity
💓 slowburn
🧠 “it’s always been you”
🍪cinnamon roll MMC
2️⃣ 2nd chance romance
🏫 college setting (partial)
😂 romcom

The second-chance STEM romance was soooo cute! I love a good workplace romance adn the reconnection with Henry was hysterical. I enjoyed the look back to when they first knew each other and how Clara was the only girl to not fall under his spell. When they find out they are working together again, they are able to pick right back up where their friendship left off. He falls first stories are always some of my favorites and the banter between Clara and Henry was great!

his book is an easy-to-read story about two scientists, Dr. Clara Clancy and Dr. Henry Fraser, who meet again after years and try to navigate their personal and professional lives. The book balances humour and seriousness and portrays love and personal growth in a realistic manner. Both Henry and Clara undergo significant character development, which makes them more endearing. Overall, it's a heartwarming read.

#TheHotHenryEffect #books #bookreview #romance #generalfiction
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