sparks, science and slow burn romance — a conversation with @authorkristenbcole
A certain pressure comes with choosing your first read of a new year. With reading goals to meet and post-Christmas blues to combat, picking the right book is crucial. Luckily for me, I started this reading year as I mean to go on — with a five-star, slow burn, forced proximity romance between a music composer and a neurobiologist.
Inspired by a late-night viewing of The Big Bang Theory, The Scientist is Kristen Cole’s debut novel. It follows Hadley, a renowned music composer who has just uprooted her life from New York to California after someone close to her receives a life-threatening diagnosis that can be best treated on the West Coast. As she is finding her feet, Hadley meets Lex — a world-famous scientist, a man of few words and conveniently, her new neighbour. From the get-go, the chemistry between them is electric, but given Lex’s dedication to his work and Hadley’s family situation, the path to happiness is not a straight road. The Scientist is a masterclass in authentic love, unbearable tension and witty banter, and I had the privilege of speaking to the brain behind it all — Kristen Cole —this week.
The Scientist is a romance book written by a romance reader, and it shows. The attention to detail and emphasis on forging a genuine connection between the protagonists are just two aspects that give this away. In fact, when writing this book, Kristen actually started with the scenes involving Hadley and Lex getting together first, as these piqued her interest the most. While these scenes had me kicking my feet and giggling, the moments showing Lex and Hadley separately are equally as captivating thanks to their portrayal as fully fleshed individuals, not just one half of a couple — a hallmark of great writing.
Lex is a softer male main character compared to other romances I have read. He is thoughtful and attentive, not just personally but professionally, too, and I found this to be intrinsically refreshing in a world of alpha male leads and stereotypical relationship roles. When speaking about the inspiration behind Lex, Kristen pointed out how, through watching science-related podcasts and interviews, she noticed not just the intellectuality of these scientists (including the namesake, Lex Fridman) but their demeanours, too. She told me, ‘They all seem to have a softer speaking style that is still incredibly demanding. The way they articulate complex ideas feels powerful and assured when you listen to them discuss their areas of expertise, and I tried to emulate that with Lex.’
And the reserved confidence we see in Lex is perfectly balanced by the outgoing nature of Hadley. Her unfathomable musical talent and quick-witted conversational skills make her one of my favourite FMCs to date; I looked forward to seeing her on every page. Kristen culminated this clever relationship dynamic by drawing inspiration from Penny and Leonard in The Big Bang Theory and imagining how ‘comical’ it would be to feature a book around someone with an unprecedented level of genius being flustered by a beautiful woman. And it worked. I laughed countless times at Lex’s blatant — but in his mind, hidden — fascination with Hadley.
However, the relationship dynamic isn’t the only perfectly balanced aspect of this book. Throughout, Kristen expertly intertwines laugh-out-loud love with, oftentimes, heartbreaking sadness. The book touches on serious topics such as illness and addiction but does so in a way that is true to life. Kristen put it perfectly when she said, ‘It was important to me to show some of these moments because without the struggles, the triumphs wouldn’t shine as brightly, and without the joy, the pain would feel unbearable.’ I think that for many people, reading The Scientist will feel like a hug and a love letter to being okay in the end. I appreciate writing like this so greatly and hope that everyone who can resonate with it, in whatever way that may be, finds their way to this book.
And finally, I couldn’t write about The Scientist without mentioning Sarah and Stuart! As Lex and Hadley’s respective best friends, these supporting characters provide comic relief, emotional support and such a beautiful sense of found family to the story. Stuart — who Kristen found to be the easiest character to write — drives the narrative forward and is a pillar of stability for all. Similarly, Sarah is the type of best friend any girl would be lucky to have, and maybe the best part of all is that Kristen has a real-life Sarah who while being less sassy than fictional Sarah, is ‘definitely just as loyal, kind and supportive,’ and was actually the beta-reader for this book! I don’t think I could love this more if I tried.
The Scientist will be released on the 21st of January 2025 and will be available on Amazon, both in Paperback and on Kindle Unlimited. Trust me when I say that this is not one you want to miss. I could not have imagined a better way to start my year and now I face the dreaded challenge of choosing a book to read next!
You can keep up to date with Kristen Cole and her work by following her here — https://www.instagram.com/authorkristenbcole/
This article was written by Jess, who you can follow on Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/thatromancebook for more bookish content