Review: Twisted Love
By Ana Huang
Book One of the ‘Twisted Love’ Series
Caution: This blog may contain spoilers!
This blog is for adults, 18+ only. Please be aware of the trigger warnings listed at the bottom of the article.
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Twisted Love. by Ana Huang
Good Reads Score: 3.74
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Adult, Dark, College
Spice Level: 5/5
Jill’s Overall Rating: 3.75/5
new category: ‘Dark’ spectrum: 3/10
Synopsis:
“He has a heart of ice...but for her, he'd burn the world.
Alex Volkov is a devil blessed with the face of an angel and cursed with a past he can’t escape.
Driven by a tragedy that has haunted him for most of his life, his ruthless pursuits for success and vengeance leave little room for matters of the heart. But when he’s forced to look after his best friend’s sister, he starts to feel something in his chest:
A crack.
A melt.
A fire that could end his world as he knew it.
***
Ava Chen is a free spirit trapped by nightmares of a childhood she can’t remember. But despite her broken past, she’s never stopped seeing the beauty in the world…including the heart beneath the icy exterior of a man she shouldn’t want.
Her brother’s best friend.
Her neighbor.
Her savior and her downfall.
Theirs is a love that was never supposed to happen—but when it does, it unleashes secrets that could destroy them both…and everything they hold dear.”
Review:
Ok so my first question I found myself asking when finishing this book:
“what qualifies as a dark romance vs just romance in book description/genre?” Is there an actual qualification you have to meet with the editor/publisher in order to promote the book this way? Are certain themes necessary to be present in order to lean into the ‘dark’ genre of romance? Is it more abstract than that; more of a— vibe?
The Dark Genre Spectrum
So, NO- this book is not your Nicholas Sparks type of Romance, but it’s also not your HD Carlton type either. Like, yes, you’re going to open the book and there are going to be some trigger warnings but there’s going to be like one line of them. So, when I’m reviewing a book and I’m asking myself how to describe it I sometimes don’t know where to place that book in these genres. Maybe we should just create a spectrum for dark? Because, let me tell ya, this book was definitely NOT dark, in my opinion. Yes, there is murder, yes there is the ‘morally grey alphahole’, yes there is some rough-er sex, yes there are themes of childhood trauma, PTSD and phobias, and there is a little bit of ‘power exchange dynamic’** going on here but, even with all of that, my twisted little heart felt a bit unfulfilled at getting all of it’s ‘dark’ needs met.
So, on a scale of 1-10 I think I would place it at a ‘3’ on the dark spectrum specifically. However, this book is very spicy! It’s just my personal opinion that a lot of spice and graphic descriptions of sex don’t qualify as also making it dark.
The Plot
Welcome to another ROUGH summarization of the plot. Ava, a college student (although I’m not quite she is actually in school?), falls for her brother’s best friend, Alex Volkov- the ‘morally grey alphahole’, billionaire, tall-dark-and-handsome, bad boy. Ava loves photography and Alex loves … revenge? This dynamic is classic grumpy-sunshine (his nickname for her is literally Sunshine). Really, as soon as the book starts, and Alex ‘saves’ Ava by picking her up in his fancy black sportscar and spots her “peaked nipples” through her shirt -LOL, they have a thing for each other. Ok but here’s the thing, what I want to know is why now? The book begins and the attraction just starts to really manifest tenfold even though they’ve been in each other’s lives for many years now. Alex is literally bff with Ava’s brother… he joins them at Thanksgiving every year for gods sake.
Alex, at first, is hesitant to allow himself to have feelings for Ava because “he doesn’t deserve love” and “it’s better for her if she stays away”. But literally as soon as they start having sex he is 100% committed. If not in love in … life? Like, he makes her promise to never have sex with anyone ever again and he promises to do the same. I got a little whip-lash from that.
Eventually, Ava confesses her love and, even though Alex knows he loves her too, he holds himself back from confessing his feelings because of his.. you guessed it… REVENGE PLOT!
Without getting too bogged down in the details, some serious betrayal happens on Alex’s side and it really destroys Ava. I really like Ava; she is a complex MC and I found myself relating to her line of thinking more than I realized I would. She is the sunshine trope without being too sweet. It takes her a really long time to forgive Alex for his betrayal and I really appreciated that as the reader. Obvs it depends on the betrayal that happens but, far too often the female MC forgives the male love interest too quickly, IMO. I feel like Ana Huang really got it right in showing what someone would need for a relationship to repair realistically.
To Finish
I would definitely recommend this book- especially for people who are wanting a more gentle start into dark romance or spicy romance books. I am going to be immediately starting on book #2 with Rhys Larsen and Bridget- Twisted Games. I would love to hear what y’all thought about this book in the comments!
-Your friend,
Jill
Caution:
This book contains a possessive, morally gray alphahole; explicit sexual content, and profanity. No cheating or menage, but if you're looking for a traditionally sweet, loveable hero, this is not the book for you. Recommended for 18+.
** Power exchange dynamic: Power exchange, or D/s (dominance and submission), is a consensual relationship structure where individuals take on roles that involve exchanging power. In a power exchange, one person holds authority and the other obeys. Power exchanges can involve communication and decision-making in a relationship. For example, couples may decide on issues such as income, division of labor, parenting, and sexual expression. Power exchanges are based on mutual respect and trust. Power exchanges can also be part of kink play.
“No kissing or face-to-face contact during sex,” she murmured. “I thought those were your rules.”
…”You’re right, sweetheart,” I said, dropping my forehead to hers with a resigned sigh. So. Fucked.. “But the rules don’t apply to you.”
