ARC Review: "Tied Up in Riches" by Tisa Matthews (Finding Home #4) ★★★★★
ARC Review: Tied Up in Riches by Tisa Matthews
Tisa Matthews has concluded her Finding Home series excellently! This boss/employee fake dating insta love yet slowburn is a delightful and spicy read, and a healthier 50 Shades of Grey that is less about sex and money and more about love and hope. 💙“Sometimes, when I look into the night sky, at the swirls of stars and the planets, I feel so small and insignificant. But other times, I think that if I exist in a place where I get to witness something so extraordinary and powerful, there’s meaning in that. That I'm a part of what makes life spin on its axis. Marcus makes me feel like that.”
[Contains some spoilers]
PLOT SUMMARY
24-year-old Brooke Fields moved to Thailand for 3 years to escape her forced engagement to Beau, a lawyer who is a nasty piece of work. Her horrid mother had set her up with him because she wants a rich man to support both Brooke and herself (mostly herself).
She takes a break in Oregon to visit her friend Maci and avoid returning to Connecticut where her mum will match-make all over again. She stays with bar owner Marcus Cole. Envious of his friends all in relationships, too busy to find the right woman for him, and usually the one for casual relationships, Marcus finds himself strangely and instantly drawn to Brooke.
At first, she helps out at the bar and provides ideas on how to attract more customers. Her intelligence makes Marcus hire her as his personal assistant. Beau, desiring to get back together with Brooke, buys her ticket back to Connecticut, leaving Brooke faced with a dilemma. She decides that with Marcus’ help, she can pretend that Marcus is her boyfriend and it will get her mother and ex-fiancé off her back.
A strong desire for each other begins to blossom, the line between real and fake blurs and things get very heated fast. But Brooke’s trauma with Beau has left her with a permanent hate of rich men. And little does she know Marcus is secretly a millionaire but is scared to reveal his secret because of this hatred. When Beau threatens to spill all, Marcus must tell Brooke before it is too late. But will she accept him for who he is?
This is told from a first-person present-tense dual POV of Brooke and Marcus.
“Your life only becomes what you want when you set requirements rather than expectations. If someone can’t meet those requirements, you don’t lower your expectations. You leave.”
OVERALL OPINIONS
Tisa Matthews has mentioned both on her social media and in her Author’s Note section that this story was never meant to be written. Marcus and Brooke were side characters created for And Then There’s You: Marcus serves as a wingman for Dean; Brooke provides comfort and support for Maci. I have to say I am very glad they both got their own story!
Their relationship is described as “somewhat unconventional”. Arguably, I would say there are all the usual elements of a romance in this story: boss/employee relationship, secret feelings, only one bed, forced proximity, disapproving family and found family. The only difference is there is a touch of bondage but this is only used as a means of exploring control, the issues of it and the better side of it: Brooke has been with a red flag of a man who constantly controlled her and had her do chores for him, Marcus shows her a healthier side where there is consent, trust and a selfless motive:
“There’s a difference between someone not letting you be in control so they have power over you and someone being in control so they can take care of you.”
This whole aspect of the book was so well done, and I feel like this quote above is something everyone needs to hear. I am glad Brooke sees her worth and grows more confident thanks to Marcus.
Matthews says that this story was the easiest to write and I feel this reflects in the story: the plot is straightforward, everything flows well, all characters serve a purpose. There are plenty of beautiful descriptions too, I am greedy for more. One example is “the warmth of his hand in mine soothes my entire body like a cup of tea” – isn’t that just so sweet but stunning?
While I have not read all of the books from this series, I was fortunate enough to read the previous story Can We Just Be Happy Now? about Sophie and Cooper. I have to say I love this one the most, I really do. I think a lot of it has to do with the ages of the characters: Sophie and Cooper are in their late teens/early twenties and there is a lot of immaturity to match, Brooke and Marcus here are far more mature and tons better at communicating.
There were maybe a few things I would have liked added or done differently but overall, this is a masterpiece of a conclusion to Matthew’s series that I am rather sad to leave. I love everything about this and will be sure to read it again!
<< Positives >>
🠚The cover is gorgeous merging blue and purple (Brooke’s favourite colour) and it directly depicts a scene in the book, the balcony scene, something I always love!
🠚The paragraph dividers are Thai tea, which is a very sweet touch because the moment he makes her Thai tea is essentially where they both fall in love with each other. 🠚All the characters from the previous books in the series are either here or are mentioned. Even Cooper and Sophie which, truth be told, it would have been nice to have had them in more scenes than just the epilogue.
🠚Marcus’ nickname “love” for Brooke is such a big thing because of their conversation where Brooke reveals she thinks the word is overrated and meaningless after a while and Marcus disagrees. Therefore he is constantly reminding her of his love for her, though he has not said it yet:
“Love is such a simple word that *should* hold so much power. But it's overused and abused to the point where it feels like it’s lost all meaning. Things you do embody love far better than the word ever could, anyway.” She shrugs.🠚Brooke’s character development is so great to see.
“But ignoring the word doesn’t make the feeling cease to exist,” I argue.
🠚The spice and the consent! Exquisite! As it should.
🠚The realistic element that not everyone can reach an orgasm, as some people cannot relax or clear their self-conscious thoughts. I like that Marcus looks up things so he can try to help Brooke find a way. Bless him!
<< Negatives >>
🠚It was rather anticlimactic with Beau: he threatens to reveal Marcus’ secret, nearly manages to and then doesn’t get the chance – and that’s the last we see of him? The next thing we hear is he is under investigation for disbarment. I think it would have been better if he had revealed it somehow, as there could have been more done with the controlling concept where we see Brooke holding her own against Beau to the extent he is shocked into silence.
🠚It was also anticlimactic when the reveal actually happened. There is no real conflict between Marcus and Brooke, because Marcus gets ready to go onto TV and Brooke talks it through with Maci instead before deciding it’s all goods. I like that Maci and her do this because it parallels nicely with Brooke helping Maci in Book 1, so I think this could have still been done but more conflict beforehand.
🠚Marcus was going to figure out why Cam is in “the category of rich but not hated for Brooke” – what happened to this discussion? Why was this never addressed? 🠚Brooke is Marcus’ assistant throughout the whole story and then isn’t by the epilogue. I was hoping they would be working together. The selling custom boxes idea is nice, but I don’t think there was enough of this explored earlier that it felt random. For example, if she had said it was her dream to do that, that would have worked. 🠚I was hoping Brooke’s mother would find out about Marcus being rich, changing her tune with him, then Marcus and Brooke being like “yeahhh you’re not getting a single penny” or something haha. It would have been such poetic justice; it is a shame this opportunity did not present itself!
🠚The ending felt a little unsatisfactory. Of course, the choice of getting married and/or having kids is personal and different for every person: not all women want to have children and that’s fine. But it seems a waste to have that scene where they are both good with children if it wasn’t going anywhere plot-wise. It had the opposite effect on me: I actually thought they were going to have children.
🠚The epilogue should indicate explicitly how many months later it has been since the previous chapter, under the epilogue title.
CHARACTERS
-ˋˏ ꒰ Brooke꒱ ˎˊ-
↳ She is such a strong beautiful person. She is, as Marcus says, “so effortlessly kind and thoughtful in a way that makes me want to be the same”. I like that her confidence boosts thanks to Marcus. And finds a support system in her new friend group.
🠚When she said Beau has a “Warner Huntington III” smirk (love Legally Blonde, by the way), I knew honey had dodged a bullet. I am glad the problem of toxic and manipulative partners is addressed in this book.
🠚I relate to how Brooke trusts her guts about situations, because same. Also, facts when she said about Australia being where “arguably the hottest men on the planet live”.
🠚Only reading romance is also relatable to me haha. And agreed, “a man who reads is hot”.
“I’ll happily be tied up in riches if it means I’m tied to you.”
-ˋˏ ꒰ Marcus꒱ ˎˊ-
↳ This man is so fine, y’all! So dang fine! Also, his nickname for Brooke being “love” ahhh! In the words of Lexy “How fucking cute. Please keep him” – or I will haha! I loved him the moment he brought her the tea.
🠚The way he calms Brooke down by covering her knee, it reminded me of the film Anastasia.
🠚I relate to Marcus flicking through the TV channels “Junk. Click. Trash. Click. Stupid. This is why I hardly watch TV. Click”. I also related to when he is jealous of the couples around him, because same. I just want to know when it’s my turn!
“No matter where we are, I want this to be real. This *is* real.”
FAV QUOTES
• Money makes people deranged–lie, cheat, steal, manipulate, create misconceptions. They’re less likely to do those things when they don’t know about your wealth. • Reading and maturity are paired together at the top of my qualities I want in a man wish list.
• After another good once-over of the planet, I step back. “Sorry, you can have a turn now.” | “I already got a good view,” he says, not taking his eyes off me. • The way she looks at the stars–like they are what makes life worth living–makes me want to slow down for the first time. I swear she’s looked at me a few times like that–when she thought I wouldn’t notice.
• “Adversity is subjective. We’re all entitled to our triggers and challenges based on our experiences. It’s more about how we overcome them that defines us.” • “I want to wake up next to the woman I love because I *want* to, not because I’m *supposed* to.”
• I pressed a kiss to her neck. “Let me break the rule,” I say against her skin. | “Marcus.” The sound of my name on her desperate lips makes me never want to hear it said by anyone else again. “Yes. Please, yes.”
• She’s standing at the edge of the balcony, her wine glass on the edge she’s leaned against, her hands pressed on the white marble. My drink is in its place next to hers. I join her but stay a step back so I can observe. I might not trust a lot of people, but I want to trust her. I don’t let a lot of people into my life, but I want her to be all-consuming. I want her ingrained in every aspect of my life.
• I’m lost in her. Present. She makes me not want to be anywhere else or care about anything else except this moment with her.
• I want Brooke Fields. And not for fake. Because this one kill will never be enough.
• There’s something about it that makes me feel undeniably connected not only to him but to myself. The way he touches me–like I’m precious–it makes me love myself more than I’ve ever felt. He makes me feel grounded, safe, ecstasy–physically and mentally.
• “So we’re on the same page?” she clarifies again. | “Same page, love. Same book. Right place. Right time. The one we’ve been looking for.”
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I received an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review and I’d like to thank Tisa Matthews for the opportunity. This has not affected my opinion in any way.
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