Ren, aged 22, is finally attending college. She’s been sequestered on her family’s farm for as long as she can remember. She loves her life on the homestead, but she's eager to learn more about everything in the open world. Fritz is the jaded campus golden boy and Ren is warned by her roommate to stay far away from him.

Christina Lauren rank among my favorite romantic authors. This retelling of a beloved fairy tale is a departure from their usual novels. I truly enjoyed it. I am a fan of a road trip romance, and this was one of the best I've read. You won’t be disappointed with this captivating story of firsts. 4.5⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for this complimentary ARC. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

This is the Disney retelling of ALL retellings and has me reinvested in reading romances :’) This Tangled inspired story follows Ren, a 22 year old who grew up sheltered on a farm with no internet, phone, or friends, as she navigates going off to college. She meets Fitz, the wealthy school player, and quickly strikes up a deal with him to take her on a cross country road trip. This had the sweetest grumpy/sunshine romance I’ve ever read, some mystery, and family drama! Christina Lauren never fail to woo me with their writing but this one might just take the cake.
^ Thank you Hyperion Avenue Books via Netgalley for the ARC!

Well plotted story line, well developed characters, and a perfectly designed denouement for the story. That said, the first two-thirds or so of the story feels heavy with description and expansion of the characters' thinking processes. Towards the end, however, the action is tighter, additional details are revealed about the MCs and their attraction to each other, and the ending is action-packed and well-handled.

One exceptionally well done part: The book doesn't end with the heroine's rescue. Instead, the resolution of the crisis point with its attendant trauma is told with a slower extended ending, a nicely explained and realistic account of how the MCs continued on, how they received support to overcome the trauma, and how their immediate and long-range future concluded. All the threads tied up satisfactorily!

Another aspect that I found exceptionally apt: This is a story about new adults (college age), and while it's a romance, the authors wrote the developing relationship with delicacy and insight. I appreciated the authentic representation of both the naïve-sheltered heroine and the troubled-childhood, isolated male protagonist.

This book may not be typical of the Christina Lauren author duo, but it is unquestionably an excellent addition to their growing bibliography of much-loved fiction.

Scheduled to publish June 25, 2024, this is a must-read for both CL fans, and for those new to their writing. Thanks to NetGalley and Hyperion Avenue for the chance to read and broadcast the excellence of this novel.

📚✨Book Review✨📚

Tangled Up in You
Author: Christina Lauren

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Note: I received a copy of this book to review via NetGalley, but all opinions are my own.

What I Liked:
🎇 Ren is literally a modern day Rapunzel. I was astonished how they were able to give her the whimsy, naivety and innocence of Rapunzel
while living, presumably, in 2024. She is so full of life and happiness every time she is on the page. I want to be her friend!

🎇Fitz is just as suave and mysterious as our beloved Flynn Rider. I pictured him smoldering around campus constantly. All he needed was a horse named Maximus!

🎇Their road trip was actually so precious. I loved their stop at the Screaming Eagle Saloon which of course is their version of the Snuggly Duckling! I think that was my favorite scene in the entire book!

What I Didn’t Like:
🎇 This book was a little bit heavier than what I usually read. I thought it would be more of a straight rom-com, but it’s not at all. I think if you are a reader who likes some mystery or some more real-to-life stories then you would definitely enjoy this one!

Final Thoughts:
🎇 This retelling was surprisingly faithful to the Disney Tangled movie. It was clever how Christina Lauren was able to hit all the same story notes throughout in a modern setting!


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Road trip romance! Sign me up! Isolated by her parents on a homestead in Idaho, Ren has a brilliant mind and can't wait to go to college even though she's been kept from technology and her parents have given her crazy strict rules to follow if she's going to be educated. Fitz is Corona College's handsome rogue with a plan to get out and get on with his life. But when Ren discovers her life on the homestead might not be what she thought, she finds a way to hitch a ride with Fitz on his spring break road trip. There are first times, bold confessions, and high jinx on the way to their ultimate destination - true love.

FUN and all-out enjoyable, Christina Lauren's take on Disney's Tangled is perfection.

Once again Christina Lauren has written one of my favorite books! Everything they write is 5 stars for me. The story was great, the characters were written so well, it was just amazing. Nose deep into it, & couldn’t put it down! It was the perfect Disney movie read!

Ren was so charming, & fitz amazing! The grumpy sunshine trope was portrayed perfectly. In the end over the HEA, was perfect for this book!

This book was a refreshing modern take on a classic fairytale. 𝓣𝓪𝓷𝓰𝓵𝓮𝓭 𝓤𝓹 𝓲𝓷 𝓨𝓸𝓾 is for the Disney girlies. More specifically the ones that loved Tangled. It’s a total reimagining of Rapunzel, and it’s absolutely adorable. This is a very quick, easy, clean read. There is zero spice, my friends. It closely follows the plot of Tangled with a few twists. The authors did a great job keeping you engaged and guessing till the end. I do wish we could’ve gotten an epilogue or a bit more closure. Overall, I did enjoy it and I loved all the Disney tie-ins (Max, the fireworks, etc.) A very cute, and simple read ✨💜

Huge thank you to Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion!

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Contemporary romance retellings of Disney movies?! Sign me up! Although I haven’t seen Tangled so I can’t speak to how it compares to the movie, but I absolutely loved this book and will absolutely be watching Tangled soon! I will always read anything CLo writes. I loved Ren and Fitz so much and loved their connection and banter throughout the book. I also enjoyed their character development. There was also a touch of suspense which kept me on my toes but of course ended with a happily ever after which is of course my favorite. I have honestly no complaints whatsoever about this book and enjoyed every minute!

Thank you so much to Hyperion Avenue and NetGalley for my early digital copy for my honest thoughts and review!

Tangled Up in You is the third book in this series of modernized Disney adaptations. After Cinderella and The Little Mermaid we are now treated to a sweet and clever rewrite of Tangled, featuring a lovable pair of college kids on an epic road trip.

Ren Gylden grew up on her parents farm. They have everything they need, and what they can't produce themselves thy get in the nearby small town. Ren has never been to school or gone on a trip. All of her education has been through books and hands on experience. Her overprotective parents have kept her so isolated that she doesn't even have a real understanding of how strange her circumstances are. However, Ren is almost twenty now, and she's decided that she wants to go to college. Even more shocking, she has somehow persuaded her parents to let her try. Once she arrives on campus she quickly begins to realize how little she knows about the world, and a class assignment leads her to question everything she knows about herself. Obviously the only thing to do is blackmail fellow student Fitz into driving her across the country so that she can finally learn the truth.

If you've seen Tangled then you'll be delighted at the way that the various story beats are adapted to modern America. Christina Lauren manages to update the story while still having it feel somewhat plausible (really, being a sheltered homesteader is a perfect update to "trapped in a tower"). If you've enjoyed the previous Disney updates in this series then you'll be happy to know that this is another great addition. If you like Tangled, you're bound to enjoy this clever update, and even if you aren't familiar with the movie this is still a delightful romance.

Ren is an amazing character. Being raised off the grid was a new one for me. I thoroughly enjoyed it. Every time seen experienced something new to her but normal for me it was eye opening. Fitz was just as much fun. He’s a good mix of bad boy and good guy. Their adventure across country basically was entertaining. Fitz trying so hard to keep his distance and Ren trying so hard to stay true to her upbringing brought on lots of turmoil. The twist that I didn’t see coming had me not putting the book down until I finished the last word.

Tangled is one of my very favorite Disney movies, and certainly my favorite princess movie, so I was both incredibly excited and deeply cautious when time came to read Christina Lauren's retelling for the Meant to Be series. My excitement was justified; my fear was not. Though I had no idea how they would manage to transpose the original story to a more modern setting, it's clear to me that the writing duo knows and loves Tangled as much as I do.

They managed to mark all the major plot points beat for beat in a way that was both surprising and satisfying - even with a story I knew, I didn't quite know what would come next. Ren and Fitz's chemistry and banter is spot on, but more importantly, their emotional growth over the course of their time together is something to behold. I found myself cackling and tearing up in equal measure, gripping my seat as the book came to its inevitable climax.

While harder topics are absolutely discussed (cw: kidnapping, emotional abuse), it is done with a deft and gentle hand.

All in all, consider me impressed - will certainly be rushing to my indie and pushing friends to do the same.

Christina Lauren is an author whose books I go to regularly and enjoy very much. This story was no exception. At first, it appears to be a romance between a young woman, Ren and Fitz, the handsome college senior. But the characters and the story are much more complicated. Ren has lived all her life on a homestead, home-schooled and isolated from modern life. You can't help but enjoy her with every page that passes. Ren's character exhibits such joy with everything she encounters. She's what you want to feel as go thru new experiences (even if it's via a book). How she interacts with people should remind us of how we should interact with one another. Then there's Fitz, the handsome young man that she's warned about on her first day on campus. He assumes the persona of what everyone expects but is unable to maintain it around Ren.
There are several stories within this story. There is Ren finding the big world outside of her home where she's been secluded all her life. She and Fitz end up a road trip of first experiences (you'll have to read the book to find out the exact reasons each of them have for the road trip). They learn so much about each other which makes their growing fond of one another much more reasonable.
Then there's the issue with Ren's parents. Can't say more because it'll ruin the story. But these parents are something else. Fitz's dad is a "winner" too. Reading about them both was good background for the story.
Finally is the last part of the book, what a finale. I was very pleased with the way the book wrapped itself up. To sum it all up, the book was not the romance I expected but an interesting story nonetheless. Enjoy!

Charming, contemporary retelling of Rapunzel. If you liked DIsney's Tangled they you will very likely enjoy this.

It's funny with a great pace. I personally would put this more in YA territory but since the characters are college age it's New Adult. It's probably best to know that going in, especially my romance friends who might be expecting, or hoping for a little more spice than what's here.

That aside, it's a super quick, genuinely enjoyable read.

Thank you Netgalley and Hyperion for this e arc.

For me this was not a typical Christina Lauren booked. I would definitely consider this YA/NA which is not an issue for me at all, just something to keep in mind.

Ren is a girl from a secluded homestead who ventures off to college much to her parents chagrin. She has no knowledge of modern technologies etc. so college is a whirlwind for her - everyone wants to know about this girl.

I think Christina Lauren hit the nail on the head with a Tangled retelling - if you liked Tangled you will definitely like this.

This you will find in this book?
- cross country roadtrip adventure
- forced proximity
- a little bit of suspense
- a girl who can fix a car, feed animals and take every part of life in stride.
- grumpy x sunshine

Thank you Hyperion Avenue and Christina Lauren for the ARC in return for an honest review.

I did actually really like this book! I was very interested in reading this book because I am obsessed with Tangled. I thought the writing of the book was amazing. I thought the plot was very similar to tangled the movie! I love the ending as well. I felt like i could read and follow along and was very intrigued to finish this story! I will definitely be recommending this book to everyone. I cant wait till I am able to discuss with my book friends!!!

First off I want to thank the publisher, author, and netgalley for allowing me an early copy of this book!

I will say I did DNF this book around the 25% mark, while the plot line seemed interesting and I was interested to see where it was going, I just found myself not connecting with the characters. While Ren was naive due to the way she grew up, there was just a bit of unbelievability to how naive she was. Especially given just how much time she spent in books. Fits was a little better but still I just couldn’t connect.

I would say don’t let my inability to connect with this book sway you from getting though as Christina Lauren is an amazing author whose other work I have read and fallen in love with!

Short synopsis: After living her life secluded in rural Idaho, Ren convinced her parents to let her go to college. A DNA test for one of her classes shows she has an unknown relative living in Florida, so she takes a road trip with Fitz across country without telling her parents.

My thoughts: Ok, this was an adorable Disney’s Tangled retelling. I loved the movie nods ChLo peppered in throughout story, it made me want to rewatch the show soo badly!

Ren was so adorably naive, and watching her experience the world for the first time was hilarious and tender. I loved how Fitz at first tried scare her (just like in the movie) but ultimately fell head over heels for her.

The ending did get pretty dark really quick, but I did really like the final resolutions. This one did read quite YA in my opinion, but I was totally okay with that given it was a retelling of a kids movie.

Read if you love:
- Disneys Tangled
- Road trips
- Only one bed
- Experiencing the world
- Farm life

I love everything Christina Lauren and absolutely DEVOURED this book. I carved out a day to read it from cover to cover. I love Rapunzel and everything fairytales, so this book was right up my alley.

What a deliciously fun read! With echoes of Rapunzel and of Disney's Tangled, you can't help but fall in love with Ren and her naiveite as she discovers iPhones and all the other modern conveniences of the real world. Raised in seclusion with homesteading parents, Ren takes off to college, eager to grow and learn on her own, much to the dismay of her parents.
Complications ensue!
Take a leap of faith, suspend your disbelief and cynicism, and fall in love with this fun book.
Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!