Remedial Rocket Science: A Romantic Comedy

I had no pre-expectations of this book and it was one of the first books I have actually managed to finish this week. Melody Gage, super intelligent, IT geek has spent her time at MIT working hard to be the best in her class, the only anomaly - a one night stand with a super hotty visiting from LA. Three years later she lands an entry level job with an LA aerospace company and calls up her one night stand to meet for a coffee and ask advice about places to live. Said hotty, Jeremy, turns out to work for the same company, also in an entry level job, but as the CEO's son his life is a little different. This is nice twist on the billionaire bad boy meets poor geeky girl friends to lovers romance. Jeremy has a girlfriend, they break up, Melody becomes friends with his ex-girlfriend, Jeremy pretends to be Melody's boyfriend when her mom comes to stay, Melody returns the favour when Jeremy's ex-girlfriend gets engaged to his best friend and throw a lavish party. What stood out most for me, and raised it from a 3/3.5 to a 4 rating, was Melody's inner critic, her ability to critique the BS spouted by the guys she meets (eg Jeremy's best friend's new film idea which sounds like every cookie-cutter action film ever made) made me laugh out loud. I will definitely be looking out for more books by Susannah Nix.

This was actually quite a fun romance to read. The tale of the nerdy computer science major moving across the country for work and trying to stabilise her life and, more importantly for the story, her love life is actually quite sweet without ever slipping in to saccharine territory. The binary joke is a little overwrought and isn't actually accurate but it was close enough to make me snort a little (no mean feat that). The characters are actually pretty believable and grounded, for the genre, and you do actually find yourself caring a little about Melody. Not so much about her romance and the ups and downs in her love life but how she will cope with her cross country move to take up a low level job with a large company. The relationship between her and Jeremy is a little overworked and you can see where it is going from that first clandestine meeting in Boston. Despite this overworking and the clear flagging up of where things are going, getting to the end point is fun and unchallenging. The writing flows well and you do get drawn in to the little world Melody has wrapped around herself. This could be largely due to her relationship with her mother which is all too realistic. I also liked that when life threw lemons at her she didn't initially snap to and make lemonade. No, she did what most of us do she wallowed in self pity for a bit before reaching for her backbone - got to love the author's bravery in providing us with a heroine that does feel like a real person much of the time. I suppose this could be classed as a fluff book but it is genuinely enjoyable to read and should put a smile on your face - maybe even a grin and a snicker if you are so inclined.

I started this book unsure if I would like it. I was surprised. The author was able to keep the reader going continuously without the need for excessively steamy scenes. The author did tend to drag the story out but it kept my attention so I kept reading. This storyline continues over the course of a few months not including the prologue. The main characters go through a lot of emotional upsets, unusual mothers, and being unsure how to approach the one they truly love. I did enjoy this storyline.