The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang is a delightful and heartwarming debut novel. Here, we review the novel centred around the romance between Stella Lane and Michael Phan. Pick up a copy here.
The Kiss Quotient is a delightful light, witty and sexy romance that is largely devoid of cliche. The novel centres around Stella Lane, who believes that maths is the only thing to unite the universe. Although she is excelling in her job, she has inexperienced in the dating department. Stella has Asperger’s and French kissing reminds her of a ‘shark getting its teeth cleaned by pilot fish’. In order to get some dating experience, she hires an escort – Michael Phan. Following a lesson plan – from foreplay to missionary – she wants Michael to teach her to be good at sex and ultimately to date. Before long though, Stella doesn’t just appreciate Michael in bed, but begins to crave his company too.
More than anything else, the novel shines a spotlight on the experience of those with autism. It’s a sweet novel that normalises the experience, rather than sidelining those with autism to background characters, as is so often done in novels and films. The result is a wonderful, sweet novel worthy of attention.
