Book Review: Twisted Love by Ana Huang

Genres: Fiction, Adult, Romance, Dark Romance
Pages / Hours: 343 / 10h41 mins
Format: Audiobook
Rating:

Goodreads summary: He has a heart of ice…but for her, he’d burn the world

A diverse new adult steamy romance from Tiktok sensation and USA Today bestselling author Ana Huang.

Alex Volkov is a devil blessed with the face of an angel and cursed with a past he can’t escape.

Driven by a tragedy that has haunted him for most of his life, his ruthless pursuits for success and vengeance leave little room for matters of the heart.

But when he’s forced to look after his best friend’s sister, he starts to feel something in his chest:

A crack.

A melt.

A fire that could end his world as he knew it.

***

Ava Chen is a free spirit trapped by nightmares of a childhood she can’t remember.

But despite her broken past, she’s never stopped seeing the beauty in the world…including the heart beneath the icy exterior of a man she shouldn’t want.

Her brother’s best friend.

Her neighbor.

Her savior and her downfall.

Theirs is a love that was never supposed to happen-but when it does, it unleashes secrets that could destroy them both…and everything they hold dear.

Small spoilers ahead

Twisted Love by Ana Huang is one of those books I’ve seen all over TikTok, and I was finally curious enough to give it a try. I tend to listen to audiobooks while doing chores, and this weekend I had a lot to do, so it seemed like the perfect time to give it a listen. This was my first book by Huang, and I had heard a lot of hype around it, so I went in with medium-high expectations, and I would say they were met.

The story follows Ava Chen, an aspiring photographer with a positive outlook on life despite a traumatic childhood she can’t fully remember. She ends up falling for her brother’s best friend, Alex, and through their relationship, pieces of her past start to resurface. A lot happened, some expected, some unexpected, and as the title suggests, the love was indeed twisted. 

In terms of pacing, Twisted Love kept me hooked from the beginning. The chapters fly by, and before I knew it, I was finished. While it may have taken me two to three days to finish, because, you know, life, I think you can easily finish this in a day. The story is fast-paced, and while it does follow some common romance tropes like grumpy x sunshine and the brother’s best friend, there were still moments that felt original. I found myself getting Christian Grey vibes from Alex, who, like the iconic billionaire, has a dark past, is incredibly protective, and has a tendency to brood.

Ava, on the other hand, is a sunshine character through and through. She’s positive to the point of being naive, and while I liked her, it was clear that her overly optimistic nature sometimes led her into situations where she got taken advantage of. Still, I appreciated her growth, especially when it came to standing her ground after her breakup with Alex. She didn’t just spiral into sadness; she continued to push through with learning how to swim, and she continued to pursue her photography career and even moved to Europe! All by herself!

Alex is your typical billionaire MMC with a tragic backstory. Really tragic, actually. He’s not all bad, though; he has these sweet moments where he shows his softer side. One of my favorite moments was when he canceled plans to spend time with Ava watching cheesy rom-coms. It was such a small gesture, but it really spoke to the way their relationship deepened over time. 

I thought they had good chemistry, it’s kind of hard not to with a forbidden romance-type love. This is definitely a spicy book which I did not realize, lol.  I did find that it sometimes overshadowed the emotional connection they were building. That said, the spice was definitely enjoyable in the beginning, though by the end, I found it a bit repetitive.

As for the “brother’s best friend” trope, it didn’t play a huge role in the book. Ava’s brother Josh wasn’t really around for most of the story, so it didn’t create as much drama as I expected. It’s a common trope, but in this case, it didn’t feel like a central conflict.

While I did enjoy the book overall, I did feel like some aspects of the setting were a bit underdeveloped. I almost forgot that Ava and her friends were supposed to be in college. There weren’t many scenes set in class, and their lives seemed more focused on social events than anything academic. Ava’s career as a photographer was well-done, though. I loved how her passion for photography played a key role in the plot and it was followed through to the end.

By the end, both Ava and Alex had grown. Ava learned to be stronger and more independent, and Alex learned to express his emotions and trust those around him. The way their relationship developed felt real, and even though there was a lot of tension, I appreciated the way they both changed and evolved.

I’ll give Twisted Love 3.75 deer-stars. It’s a fun, quick read with a familiar romance plot, but it had just enough twists to keep me interested. I would recommend it to fans of books like Fifty Shades of Grey—if you like spice, a strong romantic plot, and characters with some emotional depth, this one’s for you. That said, I don’t think I’ll continue with the series. The other characters were fun, but not enough to make me pick up the next book. If a friend convinced me, I’d consider reading it, but I’m happy with this one for now.