An Academic Affair
A Novel
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4.4 • 5 Ratings
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- $13.99
Publisher Description
From the “masterly” (The New York Times) Jodi McAlister, a charming new romance about two English professors who embark on a fake relationship…only to discover that it may be harder to pretend than they realized.
Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher have been academic rivals since they first crossed paths as undergraduates in the literature department thirteen years ago. Now that a highly coveted teaching opportunity has come up, their rivalry hits epic proportions. Jonah needs the job to move closer to his recently divorced sister and her children, while Sadie needs the financial security and freedom of a full-time teaching position.
When Sadie notices that the job offers partner hire, however, she hatches a plot to get them both the job. All they must do is get legally married. It’s a simple win-win solution but when sparks begin to fly, it becomes clear that despite their education, these two may not have thought this whole thing through.
Perfect for fans of Ali Hazelwood and Abby Jimenez, An Academic Affair pairs Jodi McAlister’s “smart, scorching, and emotionally resonant” (Freya Marske, author of A Restless Truth) writing and academic background to prove that she’s one of the smartest rom-com writers working today.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
This campus rom-com perfectly balances wit and warmth. Sadie and Jonah have been sparring over literature since their first undergrad seminar. Now they’re English professors vying for the same plum tenure-track job, until Sadie spots a loophole. The university offers partner hire, so if they marry, they both get a post. It seems like the perfect plan, except pretending eventually starts to feel a lot like the real thing. Jodi McAlister turns the good old fake-marriage trope into something sly and tender. An English professor herself, she creates an academic setting that feels lived-in, full of faculty politics, grant anxiety, and the semester’s small rituals. She alternates between the two character POVs—complete with Jonah’s charmingly self-conscious footnotes—and they feel equally matched in their ambition, intellect, and slow-burn attraction. An Academic Affair is fun and emotionally intelligent, proving that even in love, extra credit never hurts.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This cute contemporary from McAlister (Here for the Right Reasons) follows Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher, who have been academic rivals for 15 years. Multiple attempts to reach a truce have failed, despite Jonah's one-sided crush. After graduating with their PhDs in literature, both struggle to find stable employment. So their latest "ceasefire" goes out the window when a professorship opens up that seems perfect for both of them. It would enable Sadie to use her academic specialty in popular fiction, and Jonah to be closer to his sister, who recently became a single mom. After a hard-fought battle, Sadie gets the job. She's proud, but she also feels bad for Jonah. Then she notices a partner-hire clause in her contract that offers any employee's "suitably qualified" partner a position at the same university. So the pair hatch a plan to get married. Though this scheme puts strain on Sadie's relationship with her lawyer sister, Chess, who has always hated the fake dating trope in fiction, the couple tie the knot and move across the country to start their new positions. Living and working in close proximity reignites Jonah's crush and has Sadie wondering if she has deeper feelings for her rival. Though the romance is slow to develop, the couple's chemistry is well worth the wait. Readers will be pleased.
Customer Reviews
Over all great book
Liked the characters. I liked that the male character wasn’t the typical broody, uncommunicative academic that I expected to when I started this book. It was a great balance to see his soft edges contrast Sadie’s “fists and teeth”
My only complaint is that the ending felt rushed and thin. Fi also probably deserved some more character exploration at the end (I haven’t checked out the authors other books yet so maybe we get some more of her story someplace else. If nothing else I hope the author lets us know that Fi’s ex-husband accidentally wanders into oncoming traffic one day because that would be some well deserved Karma)
Would definitely recommend this as a satisfying read. The character development is a slow, deep build that makes them (and their situation) believable and sympathetic.