I have never read a book by this author before, but was excited to get an early copy to read based off the description. I was a satisfied with the read but was somewhat disappointed with the dialogue in it. I would read something else from this author and would hope the dialogue is better.

Enemies to Lovers? Check!

Work place romance? Check! Check!

Sexy, flirtatious and fun? Check! Check! Check!

I literally read this book in one sitting. I started it at 10pm and finished around 3am. I just could not put it down. I had to know what was going to happen between Tara and Richard!

This story is everything i want in a romance. I thoroughly enjoyed every part of it. Katerina's writing is beautiful. My only negative, is I want more! More Tara and Richard. More for Katerina!

An unusual enemies-to-lovers romance, TCO features a in-depth view of the corporate world, and is told from the POV of Tara, a brilliant exec in her mid 30’s who sacrificed everything to her career. She’s about to get a coveted executive director position, but there’s a formidable douche standing in her way to the top, the flamboyant Richard, and she’s getting involved with one of her subordinates, the mysterious Aidan… Not everything is what it seems though, something Tara learns the hard way as her life unravels in and out of the office…
I was lucky enough to read a very early version of The Corner office, and back then, I fell in love with Tara, Aidan… and Richard! 🙂 This isn’t your usual enemies-to-lovers romance, as others have pointed. Katerina Baker give flesh and depth to the corporate world. It’s not just billionaires vaguely doing nondescript business: there’re stakes, characters are fully developed, and The Corner Office builds its suspense masterfully, as Tara spirals down and things get way out of control in and out of the office…
Easy 5 stars!

Refreshing and unexpected read! I thought this would just be some chick lit fun, but it really had a strong female vibe to it. Tara was kicking butt in the corporate world and was just a relatable character to read about.

The synopsis for this book sounded great and the chemistry between Tara and Richard was awesome, but the plot was really confusing and not at all what I was expecting. It ended up taking a pretty dark turn and I felt very unprepared for it. I came for an office romance and got a bit of fluff with a heavy amount of dark and twisty.

I liked the storyline but the book fell flat. Needed more depth, characterization.

A subtle piece of drama, this plot-driven novel is inclusionary of a layered, dimensional female protagonist. The Corner Office captures the female experience in corporate America through a sustained portrait of one fiercely independent woman. Strong and capable, though sensitive when appropriate, Tara has made choices in order to succeed into the upper echelon of Fortunate Start.

A great read with super characters you wont be able not to love these guys a super book that held my interest until the very last page.Looking forward to trying more from this author in the future.I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

This is a great book with a wonderful story and well developed characters. The story flowed very well and was very enjoyable. This book will keep you reading long into the night and you will not want to put this book down until you finish. This was such a great read and full of surprises. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced reader’s copy of this book. The free book held no determination on my personal review.

There is goodness somewhere in this book. However, a lot of it is drowned out with overwrought plotting. I appreciate the desire to show us a career woman doing the executive path, but the LeanIn propaganda got a little thick. Because of that, and some messy plotting elements, I never really gave any damns about the romance, which is what I'm primarily here for.

With some more aggressive editing, perhaps, and some greater focus, Ms. Baker could really shine. Sadly, I was frustrated through most of this particular work.

As a modern career woman, I dreamt of having a corner office. I finally got one. It's in my house, but it still counts. In The Corner Office by Katerina Baker chronicles Tara Johnson's journey on the corporate ladder. Tara's got one eye on the prize and the other on her rival Richard and still another on the looker underling. No, she doesn't have three eyes, but girlfriend could have used an active intuition as she makes the most mind boggling romantic choices.
She engages with two male coworkers, but it's no love triangle. In fact, love factors little into this story. The male character development tends to the misogynistic with permanent black marks that a late in the story redemption can't erase. Barker spends so much time painting Richard as the arrogant ass it is hard to buy his personality transformation in the third act. The villain is overdrawn so much that the storyline doesn't translate since Tara spends much of the second act swooning over him.
The narrative is simple, maybe too simple as what passes for character development is the lead protagonist lamenting on having a glass of wine, then "someone handed me another," and reoccurring "temple pounding." Tara Johnson loves complaining and her self-help books. I love a self-discovery journey, but the awkward lean in references do not blend well with the narrative. I liked the ideas of, career focus, female empowerment, and women networking, but Tara is not the character to pull it off. The addition of a third act turnover with the big clash seems incomplete especially since it quickly fades away with no lasting aftermath.
The author notes that Tara is an "imperfect character," which is an understatement, but she does not give the reader any reason to root for her. The insecure career woman story is relatable, but the execution and lead character are drawn too thin to be substantive. The Corner Office has a relatable concept, but the execution is too weak to stand out from the crowd.

***I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***

This was the first book I have read from Katerina Baker and it was alright. The biggest thing I would change would be the book blurb as I thought the book was going to be very different. When I say I expected the book to be different, I don't mean it in a bad way or good way. It was just misleading. I am that person who chooses which book I read by the cover and I have been trying to get over this so this was a book that was chosen not based on the cover but by the blurb. So when I can say I am personally disappointed in this book, I really am. I expected something much different and put my expectations somewhere else.

Even though this book was a disappointment to me, it wasn't a bad read. The story line was good and the characters were enjoyable. I felt that it was a little too cliche in areas, but overall the book was not bad.
With that being said, my rating is based on the story and characters not what I was expecting. Moving forward, I would make sure the blurb goes along with the actual book better.

This was a well written page turning book. I enjoyed seeing Tara, Aiden and Richard's stories play out with complications, drama and entertainment. I can't wait to read more books by Katerina Baker she is an amazing storyteller. I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book on NetGalley.

I started this book expecting something similar to The hating game (which I love) but unfortunately I was really disappointed.
I didn't feel connected to the characters so I wasn't committed to how the relationship would turn out.
Sorry, just not my thing.

Tara Johnson works hard. She’s a senior executive, expecting to be promoted to Managing Director, but her 15-year rival, the unscrupulous Richard Boyd, also wants the position. There’s plenty of suspense as Tara discovers who she can trust and who her friends and her enemies are. She eventually finds herself in a compromised situation where her promotion, and what’s more, her career, is at stake. There is plenty of romance, suspense, back-stabbing, and devious office politics, in this office romance with an unexpected albeit happy ending. Especially for lovers of romance and happy endings. A pleasant summer read.

Tara Johnson is a rare female executive in a male dominated career. At the cost of a personal life and friends, she has almost reached the pinnacle of her career. In addition, she takes care of her mom who has early dementia. Tara also speaks at a women’s forum to encourage women to reach their potential. When you’ve advanced in your career by not having any kind of personal life or marriage and kids, how can you speak to balancing both to a women’s group? Other than the way she takes care of her mom, I did not like Tara.

Richard Boyd has been her competition/rival for 15 years. They have not gotten along since they did their training together, he asked her out and she turned him down by humiliating him in front of their peers. The last 15 years have been spent trying to best each other. He is a smooth talker, charming, good looking and hard working.

Tara has an affair with a subordinate she personally hired. When it turns stalker/abusive rather quickly, Richard comes to her rescue. After 15 years of being a total jerk, he suddenly becomes her knight in shining armor, and the best thing to ever happen to her?

The book starts off slow then finishes too quickly. There are many inconsistencies. The story itself needs much more development.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC provided by NetGalley.

How far will one go to achieve the corner office in the fortune 500 company? For Tara that is sacrfice her personal life over everything in the name of work. One problem with getting her office of her dreams... Richard her arch nemsis. They rose up through the corporate ranks together and have been competing since day one. Author Baker takes a fear many women has and writes a compelling love story. Great twist and turns you will not see coming.

This book was an enjoyable contemporary romance and was more than a typical office romance. Tara is hard-working woman in the running for a upper level position in a fortune 500 company. She isn't the only one trying to get thr job. Richard is a playboy who wants the same promotion Tara wants.
This book is like a rollercoaster of emotions, but it was worth the read.

I was so excited to read The Corner Office because I am an absolute sucker for office romances! Unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations. I didn't hate it, but it never quite got off the ground for me. The premise is this: Tara is a hard working, ambitious woman aiming for the MD (Managing Director) position at her company FortunateStart. She's not the only one, though. Richard, a coworker who started at the company at around the same time, is also after the position. They spend 15 years gunning for the position (and each other) and we readers are treated to lots of witty, snarky banter between the two. I could feel the sexual tension between the two reaching out from my Kindle to strangle me with it. Unfortunately, Tara gets the wrong impression of Richard from the very start, so spends the rest of the book disliking (while at the same time being attracted to) Richard because of it. Richard comes across for most of the book, as a chauvinistic, womanizing playboy who riles Tara up just for the hell of it. Tara, as smart as she is in her work life, doesn't see what the reader can plainly see, that Richard is totally in love with her, and is just bugging her because he likes her. So, she responds in kind to his snark, and they take barbs at each other throughout. It got a little tiring, but it was truly the best part of the book. Sigh...

Then there's the side story of Tara's stupid (yes, stupid) fling with one of the coworkers she manages, Aidan. He comes across as sexy and sweet, at first, but soon turns into a true psycho. The fact that he has a tattoo seems to of some sort of fascination to Tara, and she constantly thinks about it (in her mind only). It's as if the tattoo is some sort of omen of what's to come with him. That's honestly a really ridiculous stereotype, and I'm pretty ashamed that Katerina Baker included this in The Corner Office.

I like the fact that Tara spends most of the book speaking to the Women's Network at her office about how women can empower themselves, find balance between their personal lives and their professional lives. And I like how inspiring she is to them. That Tara is a successful career woman is awesome, but she's a hot mess elsewhere in her life. I like her, even respect her, but for all her smarts, she is incredibly stupid to have a fling with someone who works under her. And when she doesn't come clean to HR about him when he starts harassing her, even more stupid of her. If only she had been as good with her love life as she was with her professional life.

I dislike how all the sexual encounters (until the end) are with Aidan, because I could tell from the very beginning that Richard was going to be her One. The One to capture her heart and give her the love she needed and deserved. I really don't like it when MCs spend significant amounts of time with other people in their lives when their true partner is present. It's obviously not cheating because Tara was never together with Richard until the end, but I think the whole Aidan thing could have been deleted entirely and it would have made The Corner Office that much tighter and more entertaining. I would have loved it if all the sexual tension between Tara and Richard had built and built and they finally gave in and spent the rest of the book running around trying to disguise that they were falling in love. Aidan would have been entirely unnecessary in this scenario, and it would have made The Corner Office much more palatable for me.

I guess I can just summarize this and say I like The Corner Office but I never quite connected with it. There were unnecessary plot points and details that added to the disconnect I felt and I just could not get on board completely with either the story or its lead characters.

The Corner Office is more than just your normal office romance!
First things first.... The blurb or as others call it the synopsis is misleading in regard with a few points when compared to the actual plot! This doesn't happen to me often and it irritates me a lot!

Tara, the lead female is a senior executive in her company who works putting her career first at the expense of a personal life, also speaks at the Women's Network seminars at her company. Her co-workers think she is cold-hearted as well as business oriented but there's that caring motherly side of her too of which you have glimpses. I had a rather difficult time bonding with her. At times I even wanted to shake her and tell her to get back to the normal world. 
However, when it came to Aiden I could definitely relate to how she was tempted for a forbidden relationship(one which could jeopardize her job). And also to how she tried to back away before she was put in an irreversible position.

Richard Boyd, a fellow senior executive, a rival of Tara’s since fifteen years is ready to give it all to become the MD (the position which Tara wants!) and he has worked hard for it. He is a playboy (let me clarify! Assumed to be a playboy by Tara and everyone else but is not!).

Aiden, the sexy co-worker / biker with a tattoo! Your image of a hero and everything else you want in a lead male but that's just for the beginning. As the story progresses you start seeing the different sides to him. He goes from being the swoon-worthy hero to a stalker to an abuser to someone you absolutely hate!



What I loved liked ?

The rivalry and the constant bickering between Tara and Richard.
Tara - I liked how even though she is focused on her job and doesn't have a personal life yet when it comes to her mother she leaves everything behind and attends to her needs, even the tiniest ones.
Also her speeches at Women’s Network.
Richard - He wasn't my favorite in the beginning but ah! I did fall for him soon actually too soon for my own liking and truth be told he was one of the major reasons I completed the book! 
Richard and Tara - The humorous banter between the two is one of the major highlight of this book and credits to Katerina Baker it could not have been written any better!
The Roller Coaster - So in a matter of a few page you  " absolutely hate Richard - like Aidan - like Richard - love Aidan - love Richard - hate Aiden - love Richard even more."
The book nicely portrays the workings in a multinational company.
 

Why 3 stars ?

The lead characters had no background and that made it harder to relate to them!
I would have given anything to know about Richard's background or even his family!
The Side Characters - There were a few lovely side characters like Martha (the secretary), Jon(the boss) and a few more but there was no background to them as well. There was no story related to them and that was a major disappointment!
The only bit-developed character was Tara's mother who had dementia but even there a lot of points were missing!
Aidan - The abusive side of him came a bit faster than necessary and it felt like the plot was being rushed.
Fast Story Line - After completion of half the book when the plot actually starts getting exciting there comes this RUSHHHH.... You suddenly feeling like the plot moving too fast and a lot of facts being thrown in and a lot of things happening at once.
It would have been really nice to know who gets the CORNER OFFICE!

The book definitely has a nice plot as well as story-line. So if you're in for a steamy ride, a roller-coaster of emotions as well as a quick read then this definitely is the book for you!
I loved the plot so I'll be looking forward to more books from the author!