Circling Back to You by Julie Tieu
Published: 12 Jul 2022
Genre: Adult Fiction
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Summary:
Julie Tieu, an exciting new and diverse voice in contemporary romance, returns with a hilarious and sexy new novel about colleagues who decide to take their relationship outside the office.
Cadence Lim has transformed from behind-the-scenes number cruncher to an integral part of the sales team at Prism Realty. But despite moving up the corporate ladder, her complicated relationship with her estranged elderly father weighs heavily and she can’t seem to shake the desire for a new beginning.
At least Cadence can always lean on her favorite co-worker and co-conspirator, Matt Escanilla. A top broker with an unsuccessful love life, the forever single Matt is constantly being nagged by his loving Filipino family to settle down.
Their relationship takes a turn when a business trip lands them both in their hometown and Matt enlists Cadence as a pretend girlfriend for a family gathering. The new after-hours setting forces the two friends to see each other in a new light, and their previously buried feelings rise quickly to the surface. When competing promotions threaten to separate Cadence and Matt, these office besties must work together to round up their ambitions and families to pursue their overdue romance.
Review:
I NEEDED A GOOD CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE HIT AND THIS WAS IT. This cover?!?!?! BEAUTIFUL #RepresentationMatters
Pretend Relationship. I'm not sure why this is being sold as a pretend relationship because it really wasn't one in my opinion. Cadence and Matt are practically already dating and established from the night before the family event and Matt specifically only described her as someone special and a coworker. The girlfriend label was dismissed by him multiple times in my opinion so the family latching onto that title was more of their dreams then what Matt and Cadence were "pretending" to do. Regardless though, they did pretend to be more further along their relationship than they actually were considering they just hooked up the night before after years of banter it seems. So the resolution of a pretend relationship of "Omg do I actually like you more than I thought?" was still there which was very satisfying.
Cadence is written as an analytical, cold, only work first kinda character. I get what the author was trying to go for but sometimes it missed the mark and came off as dismissive. Especially since Matt is such a simp for her and totally outgoing. The two find themselves in L.A. together to close a deal and *gasp* find out they are sharing ONE hotel room?!?! but it had two beds :( Again, still hit the spot!
It was like she was allergic to small talk. It took multiple attempts until Matt figured out that somewhere underneath her unsmiling exterior, Cadence had a wry sense of humor. He would never go as far as to tell her to smile more, but he wished that she would because when she did, it was nice.
Chemistry. I LOVE the chemistry between the two and wish we got more of it. When the two inevitably get together (which there wasn't even an attempt to cast a doubt on that), it almost felt rushed to me but I knew it was in the context of them working years together with sexual tension and banter but again I wish we got to see more of them falling in love rather than just already being in love and needing to realize it. I love their teasing, Karl references, and much more. They have such a spark!
While he was tossing and turning last night, he thought about all the ways Cadence could have analyzed the prospect of their dating. He wouldn't be shocked if there was a spreadsheet on her laptop about him listing the pros and cons.
Family. I feel like I have been reading a lot of family emphasis books recently but this one made me feel so at home. Matt is constantly texting his cousin group chat about white elephant and Cadence is dealing with her tough love father and black sheep brother. When she meets Matt's family they emphasize the value of family and are shocked when she isn't close to her brother. This made Cadence question a lot of things in her life and honestly it turned out well in the end.
Hunter. Don't worry no spoilers. But hate that guy! :)
Thank you NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Warm regards,
Diana Banana
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