Review For THE KISS QUOTIENT By Helen Hoang-4*

Title: The Kiss Quotient

Series: The Kiss Quotient#1

Author: Helen Hoang

Genre: Romance, Graphic Sex

Rating: * * * *

Publishers:  Berkley

(June 5, 2018)

Paperback: 336 pages

ISBN:  978-0451490803

FTC Disclosure: Library Book

A heartwarming and refreshing debut novel that proves one thing: there's not enough data in the world to predict what will make your heart tick.

Stella Lane thinks math is the only thing that unites the universe. She comes up with algorithms to predict customer purchases — a job that has given her more money than she knows what to do with, and way less experience in the dating department than the average thirty-year-old.
It doesn't help that Stella has Asperger's and French kissing reminds her of a shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish. Her conclusion: she needs lots of practice — with a professional. Which is why she hires escort Michael Phan. The Vietnamese and Swedish stunner can't afford to turn down Stella's offer, and agrees to help her check off all the boxes on her lesson plan — from foreplay to more-than-missionary position...
Before long, Stella not only learns to appreciate his kisses, but to crave all the other things he's making her feel. Soon, their no-nonsense partnership starts making a strange kind of sense. And the pattern that emerges will convince Stella that love is the best kind of logic... 

Wow! After seeing how many reviews this book had I almost didn't bother. 
First, as a courtesy to those that don't enjoy reading about graphic sex acts, while this is not erotica, it's close enough that it may make you uncomfortable. You can just skip these sections and you really won't lose much of the storyline. 
I thoroughly enjoyed this story and though it wasn't bust out loud laughingly funny, it did have me smiling through a great deal of it. I don't think I've read a story where the main character has Aspergers and it was pretty fascinating seeing how the mind of someone who has Aspergers works. (Author was diagnosed with this disorder.) I also loved how the author wove Michael's Vietnamese heritage  into the story. A definite plus to the storyline.
Most of all though, I loved the meshing of Michael and Stella. I loved how brave Stella was with putting herself out there and trying to understand how a relationship "should" work. I loved how gentle Michael was with her and understanding of her syndrome, though she did not know that he knew.
It feels kind of weird to use the term "sweet" when speaking of the romance in this book after the graphic sex scenes but this really was a sweet romantic read.
If there was one flaw, it was (I felt) that Michael acted out of character by not being outraged that Stella had basically paid his mother's medical bills. I thought it would have been more in character for there to have been at least a mini spat over this. One other minor flaw, this book so deserved a better cover. Generally, I pay little attention to covers as I read mostly  on my Kindle but this sweet story deserved more. This was a great read that had me up most of the night and I didn't miss those couple of extra hours of sleep at all.

Kiss Quotient

1. The Kiss Quotient (2018)

2. The Bride Test (2019)

     Website

http://www.helenhoang.com/

Twitter

HHoangWrites

Genre

Romance, Chick Lit

Member Since

August 2017

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/helenhoang

Helen Hoang is that shy person who never talks. Until she does. And the worst things fly out of her mouth. She read her first romance novel in eighth grade and has been addicted ever since. In 2016, she was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder in line with what was previously known as Asperger’s Syndrome. Her journey inspired THE KISS QUOTIENT. She currently lives in San Diego, California with her husband, two kids, and pet fish.