The Love Simulation
by Etta Easton
Publisher: Berkley
Release Date: March 4, 2025
Reviewed by PJ
A passionate vice principal and a guarded science teacher compete for a grand prize, only to realize their budding relationship might be the real jackpot.
Brianna Rogers has been told a time (or six) she needs to stop jumping into things head first. But when the principal rescinds his approval for a library upgrade, deciding to spend the money on a football field instead, she sees red. Literally. Brianna throws her hat in the ring and joins a team of teachers who will spend their summer in a Mars simulation. As the sister of an astronaut, this should be easy, right? What she didn’t count on was the last-minute addition to the team—Roman Major: science teacher, son of the principal, and too handsome for his own good.
Roman and Brianna have been hot and cold all year, and living in close quarters intensifies their animosity and attraction. Brianna is sure he’s been sent by his father to sabotage them, foiling their chance at prize money that will cover all of the school’s actual needs. But each day, Roman proves himself to be a dedicated teammate—and Brianna finds herself falling harder and harder. While it’s clear the feeling is mutual, she can’t shake the sense that he’s hiding something. As the simulation nears its end, Brianna realizes she may have to make an impossible choice, between the school she’s dedicated herself to, and the man who has won his way into her heart.
PJ's Thoughts:
Taking forced proximity in a fresh new direction. As a huge fan of the movie, The Martian, I found myself immediately drawn to this new Etta Easton novel set primarily during a six-week Mars simulation. In the movie, Matt Damon's character is alone on the Red Planet but I couldn't help but imagine the dynamics of that journey if his entire crew had been with him. Transfer that into a six-week simulation on Earth with four teachers and a vice-principal, including two who are secretly crushing on but not fully trusting one another and I couldn't wait to dive in.
I enjoyed Easton's debut, The Kiss Countdown but I liked this new book even more. The set-up is relatable. The setting is immersive. I found myself laughing, cringing, and on the edge of my seat multiple times as the simulator created tasks, events, and obstacles that had me forgetting these characters were in a covered stadium in the middle of Texas and not stranded on Mars.
The characters, both primary and secondary, are well developed and vibrantly depicted. The story is told solely from Brianna's point of view, something I'm not typically fond of in romance, but in this case it works. It was fascinating to watch the ebb and flow of the group dynamics through Brianna's lens. Even more, not knowing Roman's internal thoughts forced me to view his words and actions through Brianna's lens and my own. Because of that, I was even more emotionally invested in Brianna and her feelings, suspicions, hopes, and fears. I also found myself experiencing the same push and pull she felt as Roman's character was slowly revealed. We both fell for Roman without fully knowing where his loyalties lay, a shaky proposition for a woman with so much on the line.
The Love Simulation is a slow-burn, adversaries-to-lovers journey bubbling over with humor, family dynamics, nerdy science rep, adventure, swoony romance, self-discovery, friendship, and one well-earned happily ever after. It has my enthusiastic recommendation.
Characters from The Kiss Countdown (read my review) are present in this book (Vincent, hero of TKC is Brianna's brother) but you do not have to read the books in order.
Have you read The Kiss Countdown?
Would you participate in this type of simulation?
What about the real thing? Any wanna-be astronauts in the house?
One randomly chosen person who posts a comment before 11:00 PM, April 20 will receive a print copy of The Love Simulation.
*U.S. only
*Must be 18
