An Academic Affair: A Novel
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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.
From the Publisher
ASIN : B0DV6C8CSZ
Publisher : Atria Books
Accessibility : Learn more
Publication date : November 11, 2025
Language : English
File size : 3.0 MB
Screen Reader : Supported
Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
X-Ray : Not Enabled
Word Wise : Enabled
Print length : 384 pages
ISBN-13 : 978-1668092347
Page Flip : Enabled
Best Sellers Rank: #4,296 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store) #182 in Enemies to Lovers Romance eBooks #261 in Romantic Comedy (Books) #292 in Romantic Comedy (Kindle Store)
Customer Reviews: 4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars (256) var dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction; P.when(‘A’, ‘ready’).execute(function(A) { if (dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction !== true) { dpAcrHasRegisteredArcLinkClickAction = true; A.declarative( ‘acrLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault”: true }, function (event) { if (window.ue) { ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrLinkClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } } ); } }); P.when(‘A’, ‘cf’).execute(function(A) { A.declarative(‘acrStarsLink-click-metrics’, ‘click’, { “allowLinkDefault” : true }, function(event){ if(window.ue) { ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”, (ue.count(“acrStarsLinkWithPopoverClickCount”) || 0) + 1); } }); });
8 reviews for An Academic Affair: A Novel
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Original price was: $19.00.$10.99Current price is: $10.99.
Molly –
So Good!
4.5 ⭐️ I loved this book! Slow burn romance books are not a favorite of mine, but it was ok in this one. We meet Jonah and Sadie, two academic rivals, at the beginning of the book and get a review of their somewhat antagonistic relationship over the previous 15 years of their schooling and careers. I am not at all familiar with academia and the jobs they entail, so some of the details of the plot were lost on me, even with the author describing things. I understood the majority of the book and the challenges the main characters faced though and still enjoyed it.Sadie and Jonah both had difficult home lives growing up, but for different reasons. A job opens up that would allow Jonah to help his recently divorced sister, but they are both up for position. Sadie ends up being chosen for the it, but she feels terrible that Jonah will be unable to help his sister. She finds a clause in her contract that says the partner of the newly hired person can also have a job. So, Sadie proposes a marriage of convenience to Jonah.The hard part is Sadie’s sister pretty much hates Jonah and does not react well when Sadie tells her about the marriage. They get in a fight and don’t speak for months. I felt that was very unfair of Sadie’s sister, and selfish. She was unwilling to listen to Sadie when she explained that Jonah is not a terrible person who is riding on Sadie’s coattails. It crushed Sadie and that was so sad to see.I loved that Jonah did as much as he could to make Sadie feel better, despite his own guilt in feeling like he came between the sisters. They really do work well together though and make the best of their situation at the new university. Poor Jonah just falls even more in love with Sadie, but won’t burden her with that knowledge. Once he finally confesses it, I was so happy! I really loved that Sadie realized she too loved Jonah and didn’t drag out telling him.Continued in the comments…There is an external conflict in the third act, but I don’t want to give anything away. There were a few things that kept this from being a 5-star book for me. The subject matter of academia not always making sense, since I know nothing about it. I also wish we had gotten more time with Sadie and Jonah being a couple. They don’t get together until that last part of the book. Otherwise, this was a great book and I very much enjoyed it. I want to thank Atria Books and NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I voluntarily chose to leave a review.No third act breakup3/5 on the Spicy ScaleM/FContemporary Romance
KWaxy –
Footnotes that I love
This book was a wonderful surprise. I loved the passion of Sadie and Jonah had for their fields of study – I became so engrossed in their world of academia. The footnotes were perfection!! And the wine!! I only hope we return to this cast of characters again in the future.
Kristine E –
Another “New To Me” Author
3.75 Stars ⭐️This was a “new to me” author, that quite honestly, I’m not sure I would have read except for the fact that this book was one of the options of the Book of the Month Club (I just enrolled a couple of months ago). Anyway, through a series of eliminations…this was the winner.With that being said, I actually did enjoy this book. I am not usually a huge fan of the whole “fake dating” or “fake marriage” tropes, but this time, it was a unique enough situation that it just seemed to work.One of the unusual things that made this more interesting to me was the fact that the entire book takes place in Australia. I got to learn so much about the difficulty that exists in the fight for employment in the field of higher education – specifically the University settings. It was fun to learn about how even though things are similar to the US, there are still things that are so uniquely Australian. I especially loved learning about “share houses”. While it is something that I have not heard of before (which in no means suggests that they do not exist here) it was interesting for me to learn about.The strength of this book was in the two main characters – FMC Sadie Shaw and MMC Jonah Fisher – who have been arch nemesis’ for over a decade. The story is told in a dual POV (I alternated between listening to the audio version and reading my new book) but the manner in which everything unfolds lets us feel like we really get to know and understand the issues from both sides. There were also some frustrating moments that succeed in pulling me out of the tory at times, but for the most part the good outweighed the bad.While Sadie is a strong FMC and I did like her – I liked Jonah a LOT. A WHOLE lot. He was just the perfect blend of kind, smart yet also clueless at times that made him so easy to root for.This is a stand alone book that ends with a HEA.
Tracy Pearson –
couldn’t put it down
My favorite book this year. The slow burn. The tension. Loved. My only problem is that I wish there was more.
Jordan –
Okay story
Cute story but I think it’s so creepy when authors talk about children’s sexuality. It didn’t even add anything to the story line other than make me question why society keeps sexualizing children like it’s normal. Leave children out of it please
Dee –
Entertaining storyline catching your interest from first page. Loved the footnotesAudio narration adds to a great read. Best audio book of year IMO
Ella –
The story itself is quite beautiful, but it’s told in a long-winded manner, like in Adalbert Stifter’s novel. The ending is abrupt, though. The characters are vividly and sympathetically drawn.
Catherine Ryan –
Absolutely fantastic! My first of Jodi’s books to read, and it won’t be my last. Such a clever and engaging writer. The nuances that are woven through the book, bringing a beautiful story together over decades with rich character development.