Paperback: 343
Published: 2021
Rating: 4.5 / 5 stars
I don't make a habit of reading romance books. To be completely honest, I tend to avoid them at all costs because they're insanely predictable and more often than not, cheesier than all the Hallmark movies combined.
But Ana Huang is not just another romance writer. She seems to enjoy the dark side a little bit, as all her male characters dabble in threats, violence and willingness to burn the world down for the woman they love.
The last one was sort of what convinced me to start the series in the first place 🤭
However, Twisted Love was not what I expected at all.
I had higher expectations regarding the characters, but most of them let me down as they were built on cliches and nothing else.
Ava was borderline annoying and in the first half of the novel I was under the impression that she did not have a personality if she wasn't associated with another character, be that Alex, Josh or Jules.
Alex, on the other hand, was a tad more intriguing, but I blame that on my weakness for morally gray characters 👀 because at the end of the day he was but a younger version of Christian Grey, dark and brooding with no intention of falling in love.
Oh and let's not forget about the almost identical bedroom preferences.
And while we're on that - I recommend this book wholeheartedly, but not under the age of...20. Just to be safe 😅
The characters started to grow on me after page 100-ish though. Ava seemed to grow a backbone and Alex gained a soul. He might have stolen it...but at least he had one. It's all that matters...
Right? 😬
I'm joking, of course. Although there was that one scene... 🤔
"That's the taste of you signing your life away. Because from now on, I own you. Body, mind, and soul."
👀👀👀
I roasted this book so much up until this point that I'm sure you might be wondering why I gave it such a high rating or why I said I'm recommending it.
Well here's the thing: with so many new authors and recycled ideas, especially in the fantasy world, the search for originality becomes exhausting and in those moments all I want is an easy read that I can finish in one sitting.
And that is where romance comes into play.
Twisted Love was the break I needed after the craziest semester of my life.
While the characters took some adjusting to, the plot was catchy from the start. I found the tension between them quite entertaining and look, judge me all you want, but all the little things he did for her and how overprotective he got and especially the nickname - Sunshine?
I.
Melted.
And squealed all happy and giggled and blushed. It was damn right adorable and sweet and made me slightly jealous because now I want an Alex Volkov too 😭
In all seriousness though, this book taught me quite a few lessons that I don't think I was ready to learn before.
First would be that romance novels are not black or white, cheesy or dark. They can be grey, somewhere in the middle.
Second, they can have a good plot and an impressive character development without having to barge in on another genre.
Third, the story may be fictional, but this is the only type of fiction that can actually become reality. That is a huge "if", but you get my point.
Last, but certainly not least, the most important lesson comes from Alex himself: if you truly want something, fight for it. Fight until your last breath. Because as long as you're alive, nothing is out of reach. So don't give up.
We create our own reality and our own stories. We also create our love stories.
I'm happy Alex never gave up, because it showed me that hope never really dies. It may pass out, but it always comes back.
I'm very curious about your thoughts on the book, so leave a comment below and if you've read the whole series, who's your favourite Twisted man?
