Tangled by Emma Chase

Three out of Five Stars

One sentence summary: Drew's met his match at his at his father's investment banking firm- she's hot, smart, and off limits; is this constant competition with Kate, Drew's end game?

First thought: This book was different from any other romance I've read. Drew was an intrusive narrator and his running commentary on his own story was interesting. I really enjoyed it, but like in the way you enjoy a really heavy beer. The first one's amazing, but you probably won't be drinking them all night. 

Why I read it: This book popped up a lot at the top of Rom Com lists. I'd read a few books already by Emma Chase and really enjoyed them, so I gave Tangled a try.  

POV: Male, Intrusive Narrator, Present Tense 

Setting: NYC 

Tropes: Office Romance, Play Boy 

Our Heroine: Kate. Since we don't experience her POV, I could only see her from Drew's eyes. She's a driven workaholic and thrives among competition. What I liked most about her is that when Drew screws up, since it's a play boy romance- you know he will, she doesn't just accept the first apology he throws at her. I like that she constantly makes Drew work for it, in their work like and personal life.

Our Hero: Drew. He certainly grows up, but he doesn't totally get rid of his hot shit attitude. I know some people love that in an MC, but it's not always my jam. I thought he could have shown a bit of modesty in the end, but it really didn't take away much from me. Maybe that's what the first chapter was all about and I've missed the boat entirely. Because of the order choice, that part of the story was the furtherest from my mind when I actually wanted it to be the closest. 

Overall thoughts: Drew has a lot of growing up to do and I like that it takes time. I originally picked up this book because I wanted a Rom Com, but I didn't find myself laughing at all. That doesn't make the story bad by any means. I thought it was well done and I really liked Drew's growth pattern. It seemed like he's take a step forward, then two steps back. I mean a few times he was quite the ass whole. 

This book's got a bit of childish back and forth, but I didn't mind that- honestly some people get under your skin. We also get some classic inability to communicate and I don't usually like this manufactured drama, but I can see how these MCs really get in their own way. 

Also, this book is a bit older that my normal reads (I just went back to check the publication date and it's 2013-- so not that much older!) But there were a few things that didn't hold up for me:

1. Drew calls his sister 'The Bitch,' I was not a fan. I mean calling a woman a bitch has to be done right, particularly if it's a nickname. Honestly, I didn't think anything she did was bitchy and it made me feel like Drew didn't even like her, but I could figure out why. 

2. Referring to the movie "The Notebook" as gay. I mean, no. Movies don't have a sexual orientation and I'm pretty sure we learned that we shouldn't be using gay in a derogatory way before 2013-- that's partly why I had to double check the publication date.  

3. Drew's family member visits Trump's golf course. This one just made me lol, like the kind of lol when you remember that Trump was in Home Alone 2. But, you know lol like that straight smile face emoji. 

The sexy scenes: Meh. I mean, I laughed earlier when I saw a post about a virgin giving the perfect BJ, but them BAM! Kate's literally never done it before and Drew's saying she's basically a porn star! I'm not buying it. 

The best part of the book: The narration style. I haven't read a book like this in a long time and I liked how Drew played with us as readers. 

Worst part of the book: There were some unrealistic parts that pulled me from the story. Like the porn star BJ and the grand gesture scene. It just didn't always feel authentic, but that's okay-- it's a story!

TLDR: This book had an interesting narration technique that I don't often find in romance novels. While I really enjoyed that part, I wasn't always in love with parts of the story. Also, this book wasn't funny to me. But it was a fine way to spend a snow day. 

How I read it: I bought the paperback of this book from Amazon's used section.    

Links: Tangled on GoodReads & Tangled on Amazon

Enjoy my blog? Follow me on Twitter or add me on Goodreads!