Twisted is a dark contemporary romance retelling of Aladdin. Forget everything you know about the original story or the Disney adaptation because this is nothing like it!

Yasmin, while spoiled and pampered, has a surprisingly level head on her shoulders. Her flaw is the desire to always please her father, and she does so at the expense of her own happiness. She also fails to see a snake, hiding in plain sight, because she relies on feelings that are forbidden.

Enter Julian Faraci. He is Ali's, Yasmin's father, right-hand man. He is not afraid to get his hands dirty in every sense, and he aspires to take over Ali's diamond business after he dies. Ali wants Yasmin to marry so she is taken care of, and Julian creates an offer that Yasmin can not refuse.

She sees Julian's dark side yet still falls for the man underneath. Julian is determined not to let Yasmin get under his skin. Yet they see each other more than they thought they would.

This book took me a while to get into. For me, the first dragged a bit. After about the halfway point, I was hooked and needed to see how it ended. Julian and Yasmin together was everything I didn't know I needed because they were imperfectly perfect. If you like twisted fairytales, this one's for you.

Because this is a dark romance, check trigger warnings.

Amaaazing. I just love her books sooo much and I did not expect that. It is so refreshing to see the villains as heroes. And the writing style is also great. I need to read all of them.

thank you to netgalley and sourcebooks bloom books for the advanced reading copy of twisted by emily mcintire. this new tale from the authors never after series is chilling and lovely as the rest. we follow a reimagined tale of jasmine and jafar renamed as yasmin and julian. he is her fathers right hand man and detests her. yasmin is her fathers only child and heir to a diamond company, her father is dying and wants her to marry someone deserving. julian wants to control the company and decides he will marry yasmin even if he doesnt care for her. their deal for this marriage is something neither of them wants but once julian set his mind on making yasmin his he does all her can to honor that. all he can. anything. this is a new must read and another book is set to release by the end of the year.

I really enjoy the other books in the series and was quite excited when I saw this book arrive at my store. I didn’t realize she was writing more in the series. Sadly this book did not do it for me. My biggest qualm about this book is Yasmin, she kept on saying she wants control of her life and don’t want anyone to tell her what to do anymore but she never stood up for herself with the three men in her life. I was hoping she would grow into stronger female lead but she did not and that is quite disappointing. I also didn’t feel any chemistry between the two main character and thought that it was to insta love.

The first part of this book was exactly why it's categorized as a dark romance : Julian is just awful and so despicable! I felt like there was no way I could like him... but I was wrong! Once his personal story was told and he begun to show some cute gestures towards Yasmin, my sick heart started to think he was maybe an interesting man... then I was turned on by the dark character he is and the depth of his need of power... I loved the story and especially the little hints to Aladdin, the fairytale it was inspired by which is my all time favorite fairytale. I'm definitely gonna read the other books of this serie (they can be read on any order as they are not related) because I love this concept and this author's writing!

Twisted is the 4th installment from the Never After series. I absolutely adored this one, and while "Hooked" still reigns supreme of the series, this one I enjoyed so much more than the 3rd book "Wretched", so this was such a win for me and plus I adore that this is a retelling of Aladdin. And for fans of Aladdin, I can't recommend this one as it has so many tiny details that connects it to the tale of Aladdin. I just adored how this story was implemented and it had some fun tropes that are delivered on this one.

Its definitely a dark romance though, so make sure you are aware of the content warning if you happen to get triggered, as it might be rough for some readers. I actually loved the darker aspects of this one and I really enjoyed the way that this author wrote out the love triangle. And I always love a forced marriage and boy this hero is such a badass haha but he is a dark one and such a anti hero. I do think he was well written though. I found the steam in this one to be really well done and balanced with the story. This author knows how to implement decent steam and still deliver a strong plot and storyline.

The story has so many elements that will appeal to dark romance readers especially. I do think that this is better than the previous book in the series, it just ticked off all the boxes for me. The romance was so well developed and I was on board with these two being together and loved the gradual build up that is developed.

Overall I found Twisted to be a addictive read that I couldn't put down and I just immersed myself so easily into this one. Definitely a keeper for dark romance lovers.

I adore fairytale retellings, but have avoided Emily McIntire’s to date because of the toxic relationships within them. I thought I’d give this one a go, because Aladdin is one of my favourites. I really liked the modernization of the story and the setting, the characters were relevant and current, and I appreciate, how it took on a whole new spin to the story. Great little Easter eggs dotted throughout the book made me really appreciate the subtlety of the author. I did however, dislike Julian immensely, and spent quite a lot of the story feeling uncomfortable with the relationship and interactions of the characters. There wasn’t any characters I really grew attached to. I can see why these stories are very popular and appeal to the romance market, however they aren’t for me. I’ve allocated 4 stars for the writing and character development, they were well developed no matter if I appreciated them or not. I’m glad I got the chance to finally delve into one of these books, but alas this is one of the few fairy story retelling series I’ll be taking a pass on. Thanks for the opportunity to provide a review in return for an advanced reading copy with NetGalley.

Thank you so much for the generous ARC opportunity. Reading Twisted seriously made my month!

Pace:
The story and the characters were so well planned and executed that I could not put Twisted down. The rising and falling actions are so well connected and flow together in a subtle way that speaks to the great planning, writing, and editing of this book. There’s no chunky blocks of exposition, no abrupt scene or tone changes to suit an ill-fitting plot formula; just a superbly crafted, fast-paced book.

Characters
I think Emily has written the most perfect MMC. I adore a complex character and Julian is equal parts fierce and vulnerable. It makes his internal struggle with Yasmin so deliciously tortured and emotional, I couldn’t help but to root for him. I mean, sure, in real life he would technically be considered a murderer but, eh … semantics. I am just so proud of his tremendous growth. He goes from one extreme to another and really batters himself along the way but I love where he ends up.
Yasmin (FMC) tries to cling to the person her dying father wants her to be, to make sure he passes with their relationship and his approval of her still intact. But she comes to realise that the two versions of her identity, what her father demands and who she wants to be, do not align.
Yasmin’s internal conflict, while not as extreme as Julian’s, is layered so beautifully; her love and devotion for her father is all consuming but is tinged with guilt, anger, and fear as she tries to find a way to get what (or rather, who) she wants. The complexity of her emotions make it easy to connect and relate to her character.

Even Ali, Yasmin’s father, is given a dynamic character profile and isn’t ‘stuck in his ways’ but makes concessions on his deathbed that incense Yasmin; a delightful detail that, once again, proves how well the story was planned.


Spice:
Dear lord, Emily McIntire can write some spice. It is a bit of a slow burn but it just feels like a natural growing attraction as two people realise that their assumptions about each other are wrong. We get some lovely spicy action about halfway through so you don’t have to wait too long until they get down to business. If you like sweet, vanilla love stories and tame spice, this is not the book for you. If you prefer intense, scorching romances with a bit of danger and heartbreak, you need to read Twisted.


My Thoughts:
If I could give Twisted infinite stars, I would. Emily perfected the balance between plot, spice, and emotional turmoil, adding just a hint of darkness without it being too confronting. The only negative is that it sent me into a deep, dark reading slump, every book I picked up after just couldn’t compete. The characters were perfectly imperfect, with layers and depth that made for exquisite emotional torture. I could not physically put the book down, which proved to be difficult when it came to eating, bathing, cleaning, or just general adulting. Luckily for my family, I sprinted through this read in a day and went back to being a present parent with a severe book hangover and struggled to find another read for a little while.

If you’re thinking about giving Twisted a shot, this your sign to pull the trigger. As a standalone in the Never After series, you don’t have to read Hooked, Scarred, or Wretched beforehand.

Forced Marriage, Enemies to lovers, Age Gap? I went Feral for this book, I could not put it down. Twisted is based loosely off of Aladdin, and is dark, sultry and super sexy. So worth the hype. The tension between these two characters…hot stuff, I loved how their relationship evolved, and the possession he had over her. Also, the chokehold Julian has me in….OMG!!!!! Yasmin was such a spitfire and not afraid to stand up to Julian and put him in his place. I really enjoyed this fourth installment in this series. I loved how Emily was able to knit the original tale into her fun ADULT way!!! I will forever be an Emily McEntire , she did it AGAIN y’all!!! . I cannot wait for more in this series.

OMG Julian and Yasmin have intense chemistry that I knew was coming, but it hit me hard. The writer did an excellent job of making her submit to him while also being a strong, confident woman. Not what I expected.

Twisted is a different take on the classic tale Aladdin. I am a disney nut and I find these books so fun to read!!! Although they do make you look at the characters a little differently in the classic movies...!!

I wasn't sure exactly how this book was going to play out which made it even more fun to read! There is lots of spice as you know if you have read any other books in this series!

If you like reading any kind of fantasy with some spice this book won't disappoint you!

I want to re read all the previous books now as well!

I just reviewed Twisted by Emily McIntire. #NetGalley

"Don’t you know yet, gattina? I would do anything for you. Burn this life down to the ground and build a whole new world if you demanded it."

I really thought nothing could top Scarred for me but Twisted just gave it some serious competition. Aladdin is one of my favorite movies (only second to The Princess and the Frog) so I had high expectations for this and it really paid off. Speaking of which, if Emily would be so kind to give us the Dr. Facilier we all want and deserve I would forever be indebted to her. Just, ya know, throwing that out there.

"My love for you is dangerous."

As expected, the romance is fantastic. The tension, the characters, the forced marriage, the verbal sparring, the manipulation all just comes together so perfectly! Julian Faraci is perfection and the fact that he has a 23 foot pet python makes me love him even more. Don't judge me, I love scaly babies. Yasmin was a great female lead and I loved watching her develop into the strong, confident, and independent woman I knew she could be.

"Men like me don’t get into heaven and we don’t get second chances."

One of my favorite things about this series, besides the sizzling romance of course, is all the nods to the original story. Finding these "easter eggs" and figuring out what character represents who is always so much fun for me! It's always the little details that make what would have been a good story, a great one.

"Death always wins, one way or another."

If this is your first time hearing about the Never After series, I highly recommend it! The books aren't connected to each other so feel free to jump in wherever your interest lies! They are all unique, and you really can't go wrong. Now onto the agonizing wait for Crossed, I wonder what it'll be based on?

This book had every think I look for in a dark romance. Tension, forced marriage, enemies to lovers! I couldn’t put it down.

The plot and the character development are well paced throughout the book. I do however wish that the change from enemies to lovers hadn’t felt quite so quick?

Julian and Yas are both incredibly different characters and the way that the author manages to show their similarities despite their many differences is wonderful.

Overall really enjoyed the book, just wish the pacing of the enemies to lovers was slightly slower

My enjoyment of this series has waxed and waned. Unfortunately, this is probably my least favorite so far. The story was straight forward and predictable. The wording identically matches the wording (especially of sex scenes) in the first three books.

I'm a huge fan of fractured fairy tales, so I will alway spick these stories up. Hopefully, the next one is a little more original and engaging.

Overall: 3 stars

I'll tell my students about: language, alcohol, trauma, blood/gore/physical abuse/murder, sexually explicit scenes

**Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for the free ARC prior to publication. All opinions expressed are my own.**

She's done it again! This series continues to be one of my favorites and I can't wait to see more from her.

TWISTED continues in the line of her previous book. I enjoyed Julian much more than Yasmin - I wish she had more attitude in the story. There were certainly em elements I enjoyed, but this wasn’t my favorite (especially after reading SCARRED).

A fun retelling of Aladdin where Jasmine and Jafar are into each other, making this essentially a mafia romance. A little spicy, but ultimately not for me. The large age gap plus the underdeveloped characters made this a bit of a slog. For McIntire's fans this will most likely work, but new readers looking for spice with heart should look elsewhere.

I have so much to say that I don't even know where or how to start.

Every book in this series has exceeded my expectations. I love the way Emily reimagine's these fairy tales into dark, dirty, heart wrenching, stories. I love that her villains remain villains. Not once has she tried to sell us on them turning over a new leaf and I love her for it.

Twisted is an Aladdin reimagining where our guy Julian Faraci is the right-hand man to Ali Karem the billionaire owner of Sultan's Diamonds. Julian's backstory hurt my heart. I wanted so much to put him in my pocket and keep him safe and let him know that he is loved. Emily's incorporation of Jafar's staff, snake, side kick, height, just everything was perfection.

While Yasmin failed to grow on me. I empathize with her on several issues specifically her struggle to overcome misogyny and helplessness, as well as her father's need to push her away as his health failed.

Overall the book was captivating. I binged it in less than 48 hours. It was very spicy and I loved every second of it.

Absolutely ate this book up. I already was interested in this author after her book Hooked. This one lived up to the hype. It delivers on spicy, chemistry, and plot. Such a fun read and I had to buy the physical copy.

5 Stars!!

I have read all books in the Never After series and have loved them all, so it was no surprise that I would enjoy this one as well . This book takes a spicy and modern day take on Aladdin; however, this time the love story is between "Jasmin" aka Yasmin and "Jafar" aka Julian. I really enjoyed the little bits of the original Aladdin sprinkled into this book such as the Arabic background and the quest to find a magic lamp.

This differed from the original Aladdin in several ways. The biggest way was that Yasmin's father was part of the Sultan and had a mob-like criminal background. Now this is not as "criminal" as other mob stories, but the underground diamond trade and Julian's nefarious dappling into the underground black market made it seem that way. Also, this book had a snake as the main villain's pet, which posted an interesting and creative way of disposing of enemy bodies.

Overall, the theme of lies and betrayals is a common thread in all of the Never After books and this book did not fall short. The relationship with Yasmin and her "Aladdin" created an interesting conflict when Julian stepped into the equation but it kept me on my toes and wanting to know how their relationship would progress (or not).