I don’t usually LOVE fairytale retelling because it just feels so boring to me. THIS WAS NOT THAT! I loved this retelling! Also, if you’re familiar with the middle grade novel The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise, Ren reminds me a lot of a grown up Coyote if they’d stayed on the bus!

I've been obsessed with the "Meant to Be" series since the very beginning and Christina Lauren's attachment just grew that exponentially. Yes, it is based on Rapunzel (and a fairly accurate adaptation with a modern-day setting) but it is also such a delightful and fun romance with tropes including opposites attract, grumpy/sunshine and forced proximity. It's told in dual points of view and has such witty banter. Like, omg I couldn't help but literally laugh in parts. Super cute, fits right in with the rest of "Meant to Be."

This was a fun adaptation to Tangled. At first, I wasn't sure how the fairy tale would transfer to a contemporary romance novel, even after the first few chapters (which gave me Educated by Tara Westover vibes, and I wasn't sure I wanted to see her in a leading romantic role). However, once I adjusted my focus to this unique fairy tale, the adaptation began to make sense, and I enjoyed it so much. I did find the ending a bit unmatched in tone and style to the fluffy sort of plot throughout most of the book, yet I'll admit I was very invested and couldn't put the book down! I think many readers will love this adaptation, especially my high school students. There aren't any graphic or inappropriate scenes for YA readers, and they'll love the familiarity and suspenseful ending. On a personal level, it wasn't my favorite of all contemporary romance novels, but I did enjoy it, and I think it's a fun, creative idea.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the arc of this book. All opinions are my own.

Incredible! I absolutely loved this one. Such a great book to curl up with. It was hard to pull myself away to do things, but I always looked forward to diving back in. Highly recommend!

Christina Lauren did it again!!! I love all their books. When I started reading this book I didn't realize it was based on the movie Tangled. I thought it was a sweet romance between two college-aged students. There were many times I was trying to guess what would happen next. I highly recommend this book, especially if you enjoy a happily ever after.

Thank you to ARC And NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. I love Christina Lauren books and this one was no exception! I don't even normally like "modern retellings" but this one was great! The references to Tangled are subtle, but very cute when you spot them. The pace was great, the characters were likable, and the plot was decent as well. I especially liked that there were only clean scenes in this story. I would definitely recommend this to anyone who likes romcoms that still have plots!

This was a really sweet read. I have a particular fondness for Tangled so I went in expecting I would, at the very least, enjoy the plot. I wasn't wrong! But the writing was lovely, too, and the characters handled very well. There is something very soul warming about a young woman moving beyond the expectations on her life and living the life she wants for herself.

Definitely my favorite of the "Meant to Be" series so far! I just love Christina Lauren and I was afraid the writing was going to be limited by the restrictions of this type of Disney-branded series but as always these characters sparkled. I was grinning so hard reading about this unlikely duo taking on a cross-country road trip and the parallels to Tangled were done so well.

Babe in the woods, Ren Glyden, has grown up in rural Idaho off the gird with near Luddite parents who only allowed her to learn subsistence farming as well as what it takes to keep all the farm equipment running. Ren’s few saving graces involved inhaling books and painting wildly colorful pictures, not just barns. At age 22, Ren has finally convinced her parents to let her go to college in Spokane if she dutifully comes home each weekend and stays out of the rest of college life. Golden boy and senior, Fitz, is assigned to give Ren a tour of the school. He is surprised by this beautiful young woman, who on one hand, has zero skills with any kind of modern tech, but on the other seems to be very intelligent.

Ren’s thirst for knowledge outside of book learning and memory for seemingly minute details are off putting to Fitz at first, and then intimidating because he needs to retain stellar grades to overcome some bad choices as a juvenile to achieve his goal of becoming a lawyer and exacting revenge on his foster father. While working on a class assignment, Ren discovers some information that is possibly life changing. She essentially blackmails Fitz into taking her on a Spring Break road trip to find out whether what she suspects is true.

While visiting some of the sights along the way giving Ren more new experiences of life away from the seclusion of the farm, their relationship begins to change from competitors to something more. Ren has never had a boyfriend and Fitz only has casual hookups so neither knows how to trust someone with their vulnerable places. This book is the retelling of Disney’s Tangled which is the re-imagined version of the fairy tale, Rapunzel, and is part of the Meant to Be collection. It is much more YA in nature than the other stories from the writing team of Christina Lauren. Whether readers have seen the Disney movie or not will probably affect their enjoyment of this tale.

Received an eArc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Christina Lauren has always been a guaranteed good time and this book was no exception. I have to admit that I didn’t even bother reading the synopsis for this book before requesting an ARC as I have never not enjoyed a book by Christina Lauren and the story that followed surprised and delighted me. Tangled is a great movie and the adaptation was fun as well. There were several direct nods to the movie (while Vladimir does not sing about collecting ceramic unicorns, the Snuggly Duckling does make an appearance as the Screaming Eagle instead), which I greatly enjoyed seeing.

My one issue with the book was Fitz’s backstory. I just didn’t buy it at all and didn’t think it made sense within the story as well. Unfortunately, that brought down the rating for me to a 3.5 (rounded up to 4 on websites where I need to). Overall still an enjoyable book that I would recommend for a fun read.

Per usual these authors nailed it.

A modern retelling of Tangled. It was a sweet story with fun, witty banter. Quick, easy read.

Oh CLo you have done it again! For those of you who are Disney fans, this remix of Tangled is sure to be one you will love! This adorable rom-com felt a little YAish to me, but it sure was delightful and fun to read.

Read this if you enjoy:
Grumpy to sunshine
Modern fairytale
Fast-paced
College vibes
Adventure in love

The perfect summer beach read!

Many thanks to Hyperion Avenue, authors Christina Lauren, and NetGalley for providing me the ARC in exchange for my honest review. This title will be released on June 25, 2024.

4 STARS

If you want to read a feel-good book that will make you smile, Tangled Up in You is that book. FMC Ren has lived an extremely sheltered life with only her parents and the farm animals for company. Now, she’s starting college and runs into Fitz, campus golden boy. Some unusual events wind up with them taking a road trip together. As Ren explores America and all the good things that life has to offer, she also learns there’s more to Fitz than his reputation suggests.

The Characters are the highlight of the story. It took some time for them to grow on me. Although the book is dual POV, Ren dominates the story. She’s an extreme, vivid, almost cartoonish character. (If you’ve seen The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, then you’ve got the idea.) She initially overshadows Fitz, who comes off as a kid trying to get by. He has some walls up, and this certainly includes grumpy behavior toward his unwanted travel companion tagalong. I eventually loved Ren for how she appreciates life and the world around. She brings out the best in Fitz, so I love him most!

The Romance: Very sweet. Slow burn. This is a first love for both and the first romantic interactions fmc Ren has ever had. There’s a building attraction and kisses—no sex. Between the ages of the characters, the naïveté of the female protagonist, and the “clean” romance, TUIY feels kind of like a YA contemporary.

Genre: Although there is romance, the story even more heavily focuses on the individual characters’ and their personal journeys. It’s more general fiction than typical genre romance.

The plot gives you laugh-out-loud moments, warm feelings, sweet romance, and a little crazy drama. The roadtrip even made me nostalgic for all the family roadtrips I’ve taken in my life. Even if the characters aren’t for you, I think there’s something in this book any reader might enjoy.

A very cute re-telling of Rapunzel via Tangled. This was a fun, quick read for taking me out of my reading slump and definitely drew me in from the first chapter. Set in Idaho with travel to the Pacific Northwest, readers follow Ren as she prepares to start college as a senior freshman. She is quickly introduced to Fitz who is charming, handsome, and her first-day tour guide. When, in class, Ren makes a surprising discovery, she embarks on a cross-country journey...but with no money or means, she relies on the unsuspecting (and definitely not interested) Fitz for help. Bonus points because it's filled with 90s references and Ren's introduction to all things pop-culture. Double Bonus in the way Christina Lauren explained Ren's parents.

This was such a cute and fun read! I'm a sucker for disney movies so this retelling was an obvious choice for me. This read like YA, which was cute and did not bother me at all. If you loved Tangled, you'll love this!

When I first saw that this was a Tangled-inspired book, I was sold. When I then saw it was written by Christina Lauren, I requested an ARC as quick as I possibly could.

This book did not let me down! Christina Lauren so cleverly crafted a plausible plot based on a not-so-plausible source material. Ren and Fitz are a perfect couple with my favorite tropes: forced proximity, grumpy/sunshine, one bed, etc.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital copy in exchange for my honest opinion.

“Tangled Up In You” is a really interesting take on the Disney animated movie. Christina Lauren does a really good job of taking the highlights of the movie and boiling them down into a story that feels fresh and unique but still reminiscent of the adventure we all know and love. I would caution those diehard Tangled fans that this novel is not derivative of the movie - it really is an original story with noticeable differences. The vibes of the original story remain the same, though.

Christina Lauren weave an incredulous story about a girl off the grid with no digital and a somewhat reformed bad boy who is dead set on setting his world on fire, and somehow sticks them together so they must rely on the other. With that reliance comes understanding, appreciation and care. That’s the basis of good relationships, too. What a coincidence.

A must read if you love Rapunzel. I’m a Disney adult so I absolutely loved it.

I loved all the main characters. The writing is so bingable & such a good plot. I mean the plot was plotting a modern take on the movie tangled, which I love. Such a cute and fun book!

This was just okay?

I was really excited for a Tangled retelling, but this just felt flat to me. Now, i'm not sure if it's because I'm in an awful reading slump but this did nothing for me.

The story was cute but the beginning was so long and boring. The end went by quick and that's all.

I think I'll just stick to watching Tangled for now...

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion for the e-ARC

This was a very quick read and easy to get through. These authors are always a hit or a miss with me and this book was kind of a miss. I honestly feel a little letdown. I like many others loved the Tangled movie as the romance between Eugene and Rapunzel was so pure and adorable. I feel like they tried so hard to make the romance “pure” that the romance felt very surface level and the magical feeling that you get when watching a Disney movie wasn’t present. I also was very surprised to see that this was an adult book because it gave me very much YA vibes.

I did however find myself enjoying the creative ways the authors left little easter eggs throughout the story in reference to the original movie while also adding their own modern twist.