Our Take
If Ali Hazelwood's STEMinist romances are your comfort read of choice, Give Me Butterflies belongs on your shelf immediately. Jillian Meadows' debut does everything the grumpy-sunshine trope promises and then quietly surpasses it ā because underneath the nerdy banter and slow-burn tension is a genuinely moving story about grief, anxiety, and two people learning to let someone in again. Finn is the rare romance hero who is gruff with the world but unmistakably tender where it counts, and the found family thread running through this book ā especially his relationship with his nieces ā gives it an emotional depth that lingers long after the final page. Publishers Weekly and Booklist both gave it starred reviews, with Publishers Weekly calling it "funny, sexy, sweet, and deliciously nerdy." Kirkus called it "a delectable blend of sugar and spice." It earned every word of that praise. Perfect for readers who loved Ali Hazelwood's The Love Hypothesis, Tessa Bailey's It Happened One Summer, or B.K. Borison's Lovelight Farms.
