Sometimes it takes a lot of travel and a little chemistry to find love. For Down-timer Matthias Ehrenhardt this is certainly true. His life begins inauspiciously at the loss of his home and family but this plucky young man does not give up. Instead, he takes his chances at the new university to study engineering. Only one thing worries Matthias. He has loved the gentle Dora all his life and he suspects she loves him in return. But will her father let her wait for a penniless orphan who is dedicating himself to engineering? Up-timers may think highly of engineering but Dora's father is not so sure. The education Matthias gets in engineering is almost as astounding as the one he gets living and studying with the Up-timer students.Love and Chemistry is the story of one young man's education in chemistry, life and love.Parts of Love and Chemistry originally appeared in The Grantville Gazette as The Apprentice.