"The Takeover" by Cara Tanamachi offers a blend of romance, rivalry, and redemption that keeps the reader engaged, but it falls short of reaching its full potential. The premise of a hate mate turning into a potential soulmate is intriguing, and Tanamachi skillfully develops the chemistry between Nami and Jae.

The characters are well-crafted, with Nami's frustration and Jae's charm adding depth to their dynamic. The supporting characters, especially those in the tech company, contribute to the story's charm. Incorporating tech elements adds a contemporary touch, though some readers may find certain technical aspects a bit overwhelming.

The pacing, however, is a noticeable flaw. The story's resolution feels rushed, especially towards the end, where significant conflicts are resolved too conveniently. The repetitive nature of Nami's internal reflections detracts from the overall narrative, making the emotional journey seem less authentic.

Despite these shortcomings, "The Takeover" has its merits. The banter between Nami and Jae is sharp and entertaining, providing moments of humor throughout the book. Tanamachi's exploration of rivalry turning into unexpected passion is a refreshing take on the enemies-to-lovers trope.

In conclusion, "The Takeover" is a light and enjoyable read, perfect for those seeking a quick romantic escape. While it falls short of being a standout in the genre, it offers a satisfying story with likable characters. With a more balanced pace and a deeper exploration of emotional conflicts, it could have been a four-star gem.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Well what a cute, easy read this was. Take two rivals,throw them head to head and watch love bloom. This author aims to show a lot of representation in the book and did it well. Lots of nerdy, cute romance and the chair drama...loved it! I quite liked this and would love to get the chance to read/listen to it in a audiobook form

I love a purple cartoon cover. It really made me think about what the book was going to be about and then the characters kept me reading from page one I loved it.

The Takeover is a quick and easy read. I found the plot to be enjoyable and entertaining. I really liked the tension and enemies-to-lovers vibe from Jae and Nami. If I had to make any complaints about this story it would be that I felt like it was a bit repetitive at times, especially when it came to Nami's job. My other issue with this story was the pacing at the end. Throughout the story, The Takeover maintained a good pace, but towards the end, it was like it hit hyper-speed and ended up feeling far too rushed.

Overall, I think this book will be a hit for some and a miss for others. For me, it was it was an ok read.

3.5 stars!!

This is a fun enemies-to-lovers story set in Chicago (the best city in the country tysm) following Nami, the co-founder of an Airbnb the holiday style tech company and Jae, her high school rival turned Amazon-esque go of acquisitions trying to buy her company!

This was so adorable, full of witty hate/love banter, nerdy references, a subplot about a 12,000 dollar chair, a diverse cast of characters, and ramen from hell!

Thanks to Cara Tanamachi and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Quick and easy true enemies to lovers workplace romance. Nami runs a high tech company named Toggle which is in financial trouble. Her high school nemesis Jae works for Rainforest which wants to buy Nami's company.
Told in two points of view this quick read is good for anyone looking for a book that's lighthearted with likeable characters.
Looking forward to reading more by the author.
Thank you to Cara Tanamachi, St-Martin's Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

love when books aren’t fast paced in the sense that the sequence of events are rushed and the things happening aren’t believable

I have read a lot of relatable books so far this year but I’d like to proudly say that this book so far has been the best out of all of them

Is it soulmates or is it magic? That’s the dilemma

In my opinion, soulmates exist. They come in many forms. They come as people who should’ve been in your life but it’s time for them to leave and it comes as people who should be in your life and they just stay

This book was the exact definition of that. The buildup throughout the chapters was great

I loved the way the author introduced each chapter with a little something cute at the beginning. I loved the way she phrased expressions and metaphors and just her style of writing is remarkable

Best part tho??? The women. The women in this book are boss ladies. Who wouldn’t love that? A woman who started and owned her own company? Feared yet respected by everyone? Funny yet strict? Competitive and challenging and relentless??? Yessssss 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 All in for it !!!!!

Very highly recommended🤍

If you liked Love Interest by Clare Gilmore, then The Takeover needs to be on your to-read list! Nami and Jae are high school rivals who reunite when Jae’s company Rainforest (read: Amazon) looks to acquire Toggle, Nami’s tech startup that is struggling. Jae represents big corporation and everything Nami doesn’t want for her family-like business, and while she’s determined to stop her partners from selling, she can’t help reengaging with Jae as their competitive streaks flare up.

Enemies-to-lovers is probably my favorite romance trope and this one is great. Both Nami and Jae toe the line of insults and flirting and they soon fall for each other. Nami was a strong, intelligent, woman with great convictions. Jae was a confident, smart man who had a humorous side that made me laugh. Together their chemistry was so fun to read.

I really don't like being mean or judgmental, but here we go. I was hopeful that this would be a fun romance.
Our main character makes that impossible with what I have read. The main character is thirty, however, she thinks and acts like someone who is twenty. The POV reads like a fresh out of college kid at their first job. The inner thoughts of the main character are so cringy. The dialogue between her and her collogues/employees are cringy, and they don't act the way adults do in real life. I was so looking forward to this, as the description and cover are promising, but I couldn't get into it.

I was a little nervous picking this up because I have been reading fantasy a lot lately, and I haven't been in a romcom mood, but I'm glad that I read this one. The Takeover was such a fun romcom!
When it first mentioned the pandemic, I almost DNFd it right then and there, but I decided to give it a chance. I'm so glad that I did! It ended up only mentioning that the pandemic happened to set up the premise of her company not doing so well as a consequence of the pandemic. It wasn't mentioned after that, which for me was a relief, because I don't  think I'm ever going to be in a place where I want to consume fiction that incorporates the pandemic. I lived it and don't want my escape from the world to remind me of that fever dream. 

I will say that at times, it felt a little cheesy, but I love cheese in my romance, so that didn't bother me at all. The real star of this book was the chemistry between the main character and the love interest. I cannot explain how giggly this book made me. The banter was witty, their transition from rivals to lovers was very believable, and it made me want what they had.

A fun little touch throughout the book was also the excerpt  from the "Toggle internal chat". It was so funny seeing the pranks her employees were pulling on Dell and I'm glad we got a resolution of that in the second epilogue.
I honestly forgot how fun reading romcoms is. I'm excited to pick up another as my next read!


[Disclaimer: I was given this eARC by St. Martin's Press via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!]

This has rivals to lovers, hate-love, great banter, and a diverse cast. So I wish that I liked it more. But a few things really irked me.

This has two points-of-view, Nami, a woman who is running a tech-app company that is going through financial difficulties, and Jae, her former high school nemesis who beat her out for valedictorian and who now works for "Rainforest" (LOL) the giant tech company that is gobbling up companies and spitting out people and parts for quick cash. Get it? Rainforest? Anyway. The two are reunited when Jae targets Nami's company for a takeover. But Nami genuinely loves her company, and the people who work there, and she knows that Rainforest would leave them out in the cold. So she vows to fight back, even as the two are back at each other's throats with their old competitiveness, and the hate-hate might be more like hate-love or more.

Things that are causing me to give it a lower rating (I am only providing a couple, but I probably could go on): (1) while complaining about the misogyny that she faces from one of the other male partners at her company, Nami's company is nevertheless resuced because of...you guessed it...Jae! Not her, nothing at all that she did. But she "encouraged" Jae to be better, instead of Jae idk coming to that on his own. Which brings me to number (2)...I'm supposed to root for the guy who at the beginning says things like "And before you get on me about being a wolf, there are just two kinds of people in this world: wolves and pigs. I'm not going to apologize for being higher on the food chain" (okay a-hole) and "I got his name wrong on purpose. It's my way of keeping him off balance. After all, wolves don't need to know piggy names." Honestly? Screw this guy. Nami deserves better. We all deserve better love interests!!!!!

Unfortunately this book was a DNF for me within the first few chapters. The MMC didn't treat people in a way I wanted to experience for a whole book. This is my second DNF from Cara Tanamachi so I think it's more my reading taste and her writing style just don't jive unfortunately.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC for an honest review.

Overall, this was a solid 4-stars for me. It was easy to read, the banter was fun between the main characters, and I love the geeky tech speak littered throughout as someone who works in corporate tech.

I thought the main characters could have used slightly more depth, and the end was a little too “wrap it up with a pretty bow,” but I still enjoyed it none the less. Would recommend if you’re looking for a quick, feel-good romcom.

I enjoyed Cara Tanamachi's previous novel, The Second You're Single, so I expected to like this follow-up. Starring its predecessor's perfectionist sister, Nami, this enemies-to-lovers workplace romance is a well-written, well-structured story, fun to read, with a little heat and a lot of heart.

The best thing about The Takeover is that it features actual enemies. So often the enemies-to-lovers trope is really rivals-to-lovers or standoffish-stranger-to-lovers. But here, the principals - Nami and her high-school enemy turned business predator - genuinely dislike each other, an enmity based in their personal histories and renewed by the events of the story. The dual narration lets us see how different - and yet how similar - they really are, and while their voices are a bit too similar, I enjoyed both points of view and never got confused about who was talking. And the relationship feels authentic; they have a lot in common and their mutual respect, friendship, and romantic chemistry are well-developed.

Basically, this was a perfect romance. Literally, the only nitpick I can come up with is that Nami's and her biz partner's name (Imani) are too similar.

The Takeover
By Cara Tanamachi
Publish Date: January 30, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 5

This quick, fun romance needs to be added to your TBR! Such an addictive book, I could not put it down!

FMC Nami has a great tech company named Toggle, but is in a bit of financial trouble. MMC Jae is an employee of a huge corporation called Rainforest. They are known for buying smaller companies and changing them from what they are. These two knew each other since high school where they were complete rivals and always competing against each other. When Jae comes to take over Toggle, the two connect even though Nami does not want her company to be taken over by Rainforest.

What is there to actually say about nemeses Nami and Jae? Their history, competitiveness, and banter was perfect. I was laughing from start to finish and just hoping for that happy ending from the beginning. The romance between the two was so sweet and I really liked how it came about. Also, the office setting and diverse array of other characters made this even more of a delightful read.

The Takeover was really everything and more you could love in a book. You need to check out this book!

Thank you @netgalley, @stmartinspress for this ARC in exchange an honest review.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for my ARC in exchange for an honest review. This was okay! Nothing bad but nothing I LOVED either.

this book was exactly what I needed. this was very easy to read. the characters were so likable. overall was a quick and easy read so I would give it a 3.5!

The Takeover by Cara Tanamachi

Swipe for synopsis! Publishes January 30 2024

My highlights:
⭐️Workplace romance: What initially drew me to this one was that it’s a corporate workplace romance (I thought the main character might be more relateable). This was definitely the case and something I really liked.

⭐️ enemies to lovers- though and I’m not always a huge fan of that trope unless it’s in fantasy, but I know some people are!

⭐️ main character has just broken up with the shitty guy to meet the right one. I don’t know if this is a trope but I eat it up everytime I see it 😂

Overall enjoyable- 3 stars from me! Thanks @netgalley @stmartinspress for the earc

A prime example of when a follow-up book is better than its predecessor! The Takeover is so much fun, so honest, sexy, moving, and silly. So FUN!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

When Nami wishes for a soulmate after watching everyone around her in a happy relationship, she's sure that her high school nemesis Jae isn't it. But as they spend more time together their love-to-hate relationship becomes more of a heat-to-love kind of thing, she may just be forced to change her mind. But only if they don't let business get in the way.

I really enjoy the enemies to lovers trope, and this has great witty banter and good family dynamics to go along with it. Nami and Jae have chemistry and it's enjoyable to read knowing exactly where it's leading. The climax and resolution were also well done, though that did feel a little rushed to me. And as far as the storyline goes, the inner chat for Toggle was quite entertaining.

A great read for fans of Emily Henry and Erin La Rosa.