Tangled Up In You by Christin Lauren
Publisher: Hyperion Avenue
Pub Date: 6/25/2024

Thank you to Hyperion Avenue for the free copy on NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Tangled Up In You is the fourth installment in the A Meant To Be series and it can be read as a standalone. This is a modern day retelling of the classic Rapunzel and draws inspiration from the Disney film, Tangled. The novel is about Ren, a self-taught, off-the-grid woman attending college for the first time, and Fitz, a student with a meticulously planned future. Their lives intertwine through an immunology seminar assignment, leading them on an unexpected road trip where they discover that the answers to their dreams might lie in their unlikely partnership.

I had mixed feelings about this book. I loved the backdrop and was captivated by all the intriguing characters. Yet, I couldn’t help noticing striking similarities to Kiss the Girl, the third book in the A Meant To Be series, especially in the road trip scenes. The pacing of the book seemed to be a bit off to me. The beginning of the book was really intriguing, but once we got to the road trip part, it was pretty slow. The last quarter of the book felt rushed and packed with events with little to no explanations which led to an abrupt ending. I was also surprised to find this book to be more young adult versus adult. Contrary to the previous books in the series which featured mid-20s adults, this book felt more like a young adult novel, with Ren and Fitz behaving more like teenagers despite being in their early 20s. Fitz’s character was well-developed and was fascinated by his backstory, but Ren’s golden retriever energy and naivety were so excessive that it was off-putting for me. Unfortunately, this was my least favorite in the series, but it was entertaining to read so I rated it 3 stars.