Cute story but overall just okay. I found myself having a hard time connecting with both main characters. While this story included my fav. trope I didn't like the execution. However, I think others will still love this one.

Jae Lee is Nami’s old high school nemesis and academic rival, down to beating her out of valedictorian by .25 points (.245 Nami would correct). And just like in the past he renters her life now as a rival trying to do a hostile takeover of her work baby - her company, Toggle.

Their witty banter and childish rivalry was certainly amusing to read - especially the Hell Ramen scene. Love the casual diversity and the anecdotes at the start of the chapter about Dell’s chair especially! Referencing Amazon as Rainforest in the books was a fun little nugget.

This was a really fun and easy read and I felt pretty captivated throughout the book. Didn’t leave me in want of anything, had it all.

Thank you #NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

First of all, I love that this started with “I hate my birthday” cause I also hate my birthday😂

The first chapter was overwhelming because it introduced about 20 people at the same time…. And I just never got into it.

I’m also 30 years old and I cannot imagine being so bent out of shape about someone from high school😅 it’s just so childish.

I really wanted to like this, but I just couldn’t get in with it. I do have another of the author’s books and I am excited for that one!

First, let me say that Cara Tanamachi’s voice is amazing. But voice isn’t enough to carry a novel. This ended up being a DNF for me at 50%. Here’s why:

- This is a rival-to-lovers book, not enemies-to-lovers. The main characters don’t actually dislike each other. They were rivals in high school for valedictorian, and they’re both competitive by nature. Personally, I love enemies-to-lovers, but rivals-to-lovers is not my thing. So maybe this is a matter of taste. Still, the rivalry angle was superficial IMO.
- The plot seemed more like a series of vignettes with no cause-and-effect driving the story. The FMC isn’t really doing anything to save her company. It’s mostly people talking, with an occasional tennis match or something thrown in that has nothing to do with moving the plot forward.
- I don’t really have a reason to care that the MMC’s company may take over the FMC’s company and sell it for parts. Yes, it’s sad when people lose their jobs, but it happens every day. If the company isn’t financially sound, they’re going to lose their jobs anyway. Give me a character whose sister is in long-term care, which they won’t be able to afford if they lose their job. Something, anything, to create stakes. Not just the FMC worrying that “this company isn’t just my baby, it’s my life.” If that’s the case, she needs better work/life balance.

This is essentially a slice-of-life novel, which appeals to some people. I’m not one of them.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an eARC of this book via NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rating: 4/5 Stars
Publishing: January 30, 2024
Pages: 304

This is the first time I have read novels by Cara Tanamachi. So, when I started to read this novel, it was a bit slow for me. I requested the audiobook version to review and was surprised to find that I loved this story. I love a good trope that incorporates enemies-to-lovers, forced proximity and office romance. This was absolutely that kind of rom-com that I enjoyed. The characters were perfect for one another.

Nami has a tech company in desperate need of cash and in walks Jae, her high school nemesis offering to bail her out of her bind. You can see the chemistry coming from a mile away. There are funny characters, awkward moments, and steamy. Well-written story that had a natural pace to the end. Narration performed by Donald Chang and Chieko Hidaka was good. It left me smiling upon finishing this quick listen. This author is hereby added to my list, and this is definitely a winner. Recommend the read/audiobook.

Being 30 is not what Nami thought it would be and she feels like she is failing at everything when all she has ever done is excelled - so who can blame her for making a birthday wish to find her soulmate? Except fate has a sense of humor and instead send Nami's highschool archnemesis, Jae Lee, bulldozing back into her life. But what if the universe knows something that neither Nami or Jae do? As the old adage goes, there is a fine line between love and hate.

I love myself a good enemies to lovers romance, and Cara Tanamachi really delivers with "The Takeover". Seeing the growth of the characters and watching the love grow between them was so fun and a bit spicy. There is a perfect amount of comedy, romance, angst and levity on hard topics found within these pages. Cara's writing style is very reminiscent of Jesse Q. Sutanto, but with a bit more spice and romance!

There was so much diversity and I was so glad to see the Korean-American perspective, as well as mention of the interment camps back in WWII. It wasn't a direct focal point of the book, but the subjects were still given the proper respect that I think they deserve.

You may not like this book is if you want more or less from the tough subjects referred to above, I thought it was the perfect balance though. I did struggle with how prejudiced these two were against each other and how close-minded they were in the beginning.. A lot of their original gripes about one another come down to them making assumptions.

Overall, I highly enjoyed this book. I have liked everything I have read by Cara Tanamachi and love how she brings funny moments into a romance and really pays attention to developing a great plot. I am going to be recommending this one to my romance loving friends!

My absolute favorite troupe is enemies to lovers, bonus points for childhood enemies to lovers, and this book delivered. I was not the biggest fan of The Second You’re Single (and Sora did not redeem herself in this book either) so I went in with low expectations, and this book well exceeded them. The witty banter between Jae and Nami, especially over text, were funny and also very hot. The sexual tension was through the roof and i guess that’ll happen when it’s been simmering for 12 years. Jae’s POV *swoon* obvi that he has been in love with Nami FOREVER and the fact that she’s mean to him and he likes her more?! *double swoon* Loved the brief touch on Grandma’s time at a Japanese internment camp which lead me to research that. All in all, this was a quick, fun read that had me laughing and kicking my feet. WAIT I forgot to touch on my favorite part, the chair stealing. While barely anything to do with the plot, I was on the edge of my seat to know who had it.
Thank you SMP and Netgalley for the free copy in exchange for my honest review.

I have to say that my seriously favorite thing about this book was the beginning of each chapter with the emails about the chair or the inspiration. The emails had me dyyyying! They were hilarious. I really loved Jae’s character but Nami left something to be desired. I can’t explain what it was. She just felt so stiff compared to Jae. There was some good chemistry but nothing felt super swoon worthy to me. The plot was fun and I enjoyed that. I loved how much passion she had for her company but I enjoyed their banter far more than their cutesy scenes. She kinda whined a bit in the beginning too. Not too spicy. Even the spicy scenes weren’t graphic. I think there was only one. Still a fun read though. Would definitely recommend.

The book starts on Nami's 30th birthday. She's not a fan of birthdays, and this one is proving to be a challenge since her tech company Toggle is trying to get funding and it's not looking good. To make matters worse, she gets a text from her high school enemy #1, Jae Lee who tells her he'll be seeing her soon. Turns out, Jae works for a BIG company (so much like one we all know) that plans to buy her company. It was good to see Soro and Jack again. Jae has his own family issues, mostly with his Dad and Jae being the firstborn son. Jae really grew as a person through the story. I liked the Toggle tidbits at the beginning of each chapter...Dell and his chair. I enjoyed this story.

Adult | Contemporary Romance | Workplace setting |

I DNFed the book around 9%. I was not in the mood to read about a tech bro who thought of his clients and really competition as "little piggies" while thinking of himself as a wolf.

This book was so much fun to read! The hate-love between Nami and Jae Lee was so entertaining, their banter lighting up all their interactions. This is a smart and witty rom-com, while also being spicy and heartwarming.

As one of my favorite troupes, this enemies-to-lovers book was enjoyable. I think our culture tells us we have to have done X, Y, and Z before a certain age or we are doomed. When we have friends and family that have completed these tasks, we begin to feel even more defeated. I can understand why Nami wishes for a soulmate. However, sometimes the right person is right there. I think Nami was too focused on the wrong things.

It was funny "watching" her discover how perfect Jae is for her. I love the competition added in. Overall, I enjoyed this one

Thank you to St. Martin's Griffin and NetGalley for the ARC of this novel. I was not enthralled as I started the book but do feel it got better as I kept reading. Nami and Jae were quite competitive and could definitely see the hate-flirt that was happening though I did find it a bit unbelievable that Jae was able to see her company was looking for buyers and swopped in. However, since this is a romance novel, you do have to forgive some of the forced proximity and unexpected coincidence that arises. Pretty cute ending and I did enjoy how the saga of the office chair ended. 3.5 stars.

i’m submitting the reviews for books by you that I already have, but I will never request another one. In October one of your employees made a horribly racist statement and you have chosen to do nothing about it. People have continuously asked you to say that you don’t stand with what the employee said, and you refuse to. This is not someone who I want to promote ever because you are sending the wrong message. These reviews will not be posted on social media because you don’t deserve the promotion. By not speaking out you are also not preventing your followers from stalking and harassing people who are participating in the boycott. Your silence speaks volumes. I hope that all of your authors move to other publishers because you are standing with a genocide. Watch this video for more information https://www.tiktok.com/@vivafalastinleen/video/7288407369313307947?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7211704101519296042

I really enjoyed this book. It was cute to see them realize that they actually did like each other.

High school rivals to lovers is one of my all time favorite tropes, and this certainly didn’t disappoint! Nami and Jae haven’t seen each other in 10 years but their chemistry is still aflame. I loved the dual perspectives, showing us that Jae has always found Nami attractive and intriguing, whereas Nami has to work through her “hatred” of Jae in order to see how well suited they are.

I thought the conflict was very believable, both between the main characters and with their families. I liked getting to know their coworkers, friends, and families. There’s is really nothing about this book I didn’t enjoy!

It's hard to identify with the main character when she keeps detailing her most annoying habits. 5 pages in how jealous she is of someone she doesn't know's life? Also, her company sounds terribly run, of course they can't make it financially if they blow through money like that. Literally the little-good-guy-tech-startup's slogan is "We're Fun, Not Evil." No one with half a brain would be even remotely surprised the business is failing.

Is this a hallmark movie disguised as a new tech story? Dude literally refers to his company as "the big bad one". I could lay you out the whole story right now, the clichéd meet cutes, half-hearted arguments, and *gasp* the change of hearts because "you've taught me the meaning of love/Christmas" only this time it will be " taught me that a rich tech company can be the good guys".

This is my second book by this author and I won't be coming back for more. Her characters are flat and unlikable and unimaginative stereotypes. The "bad guy" is a token misogynist, not even a character just a banner to rail against. And the "big bad company" is constant not-even-thinly-veiled jabs at Amazon.

The Takeover by Cara Tanamachi is a witty enemy to lovers book featuring Nami, a tech startup owner, and Jae a tech giant VP. Nami and Jae have been long rivals going all the way back to high school when Jae beat Nami to be valedictorian by .25 points. Jae hasn’t let Nami forget his success, and is looking for more as his tech company tries to acquire Nami’s startup that is dear to her heart.

Throughout this book, there are brilliant parallels to real tech giant’s that exist today. Cara does a great job of exposing the sometimes unethical realities behind some of these companies seamlessly, I thoroughly enjoyed this aspect.

Loved loved loved! I loved the Asian representation. I loved the banter between Nami and Jae. I couldn't put this one down - I was hooked from the first page! This a perfect book for any one that loves the enemies to lovers trope and hilarious banter.

Enemies to Lovers. Real enemies. The writing is superb. I really hated Jae.

Nami works for a start-up company called Toggle, a vacation app. The company is not doing so well. Investors don't want to invest anymore. They either need to go public or sell. Dell, one of the other owners wants to sell. Rainforest is a big evil corp and they want to buy Toggle. Jae is Nami's high school nemesis, he works for Rainforest. He is the one initiating the buy. In a weird turn of events they end up at a ramen place. They dare each other to eat the hottest item on the menu. Things get spicy.

I really enjoyed this book. I had a hard time putting the book down. I was hooked. I enjoyed the banter between Jae & Nami. It was hilarious. Overall, a very good fun enemies to lovers romance.

This is my second Tanamachi romance book, and I liked it about the same as the first one. It's your classic enemies to lovers troupe with tech as a backdrop. Nami and Jae have been nemesis since high school, and even though they haven't seen each other in years, there is still a "hate" harboring between them. When they met again as adults, it's like they picked up where they left off. No awkward meet agains. Their banter definitely has a flirtation undertone. It reminds me of the saying "the more you hate, the more you love." Nami is in denial he's interested in the guy , while Jae is that guy who has a funny way of showing he's interested in a girl. They a=may act as enemies but they also challenge each other.

Other notes:
> The missing chair bit was comical
> Enjoyed the positive company climate they had and the "nerd" culture references
> Definitely highlights Asian family expectations