This was an easy to read rom-com. Although, I thought the first quarter to a third of the book was a bit slow. But once I got passed that mark, I was binge reading till the end. I loved the moments when Matt and Cadence were together. While their personalities may seem to be on opposite ends of the spectrum (Matt is more outgoing; Cadence likes to keep to herself), they compliment each other.

Cadence’s family dynamic reminded me of my family and was relatable. It was interesting to see the contrast against Matt’s lively family and their direct form of communication.

Loved all the steamy moments between Cadence and Matt — wished there was more of it! ;)

Oohhh this is a cute office romance, it’s very light hearted and honestly so easy to read in one sitting, i was just minding my business wanting to read a few chapters and hello, it’s way past my bedtime and i’ve got 3 chapters left! that’s how you know it’s a good book, it was such a cozy read!

Overall this books was very cute. If you area fan of friends to lovers I am sure you would love this book, Friends to lovers is not one of my favorite tropes, which is just my own preference, so that's why this book isn't a 4 star for me.

Other than that, the two main characters are adorable and you cant help but to ship together. This is also a work place romance and it is done SO WELL! I adore Matt he is just so adorable and funny and he is a character I could see Bookstagram and Booktok being obsessed with. This book is a little slow in the beginning, but after about 5 chapters it is really easy to fly through this book.

I liked this book but I feel like it could have been better. It started off weird to me, I couldn’t tell if they were supposed to already be friends, or what. It seemed to jump in at a weird place, and pick up from there. I liked their chemistry and friendship but I was frustrated with Cadence and Matt both with some of the decisions they made. It was fun to meet both their families too but Matt’s family seemed to be too much at times.

3.5/5
I NEEDED A GOOD CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE HIT AND THIS WAS IT.

Pretend Relationship. I'm not sure why this is being sold as a pretend relationship because it really wasn't one in my opinion. Cadence and Matt are practically already dating and established from the night before the family event and Matt specifically only described her as someone special and a coworker. The girlfriend label was dismissed by him multiple times in my opinion so the family latching onto that title was more of their dreams then what Matt and Cadence were "pretending" to do. Regardless though, they did pretend to be more further along their relationship than they actually were considering they just hooked up the night before after years of banter it seems. So the resolution of a pretend relationship of "Omg do I actually like you more than I thought?" was still there which was very satisfying.

Cadence is written as an analytical, cold, only work first kinda character. I get what the author was trying to go for but sometimes it missed the mark and came off as dismissive. Especially since Matt is such a simp for her and totally outgoing. The two find themselves in L.A. together to close a deal and *gasp* find out they are sharing ONE hotel room?!?! but it had two beds :( Again, still hit the spot!

Chemistry. I LOVE the chemistry between the two and wish we got more of it. When the two inevitably get together (which there wasn't even an attempt to cast a doubt on that), it almost felt rushed to me but I knew it was in the context of them working years together with sexual tension and banter but again I wish we got to see more of them falling in love rather than just already being in love and needing to realize it. I love their teasing, Karl references, and much more. They have such a spark!

Family. I feel like I have been reading a lot of family emphasis books recently but this one made me feel so at home. Matt is constantly texting his cousin group chat about white elephant and Cadence is dealing with her tough love father and black sheep brother. When she meets Matt's family they emphasize the value of family and are shocked when she isn't close to her brother. This made Cadence question a lot of things in her life and honestly it turned out well in the end.

Hunter. Don't worry no spoilers. But hate that guy! :)

Warm regards,

Diana Banana

I really enjoyed this one! I started it at school as a filler book, and ended up bingeing the entire thing instead of studying (oops). Not my fault though, the characters hooked me immediately!

They were both so well developed, and so loveable. In so many romances, the male lead is a dick, and it's excused because he's hot. This book dodged that, and I loved it so much for that. He was genuinely a good person. And Cadence was just as loveable. Her struggles were relatable, and she really called to me as a character.

I also really enjoyed the dual POV structure. It helped develop both characters, and made both of them feel like friends, not just paper figures. It also helped keep the story interesting, as you never got tired of the character you were reading.

Finally, I really enjoyed the workplace dynamic in this one. In some ways, it reminded me of The Hating Game, but I enjoyed it so much more. The workplace setting helped throw in some romcom elements and I loved it.

After hitting a mini book slump, I'm super happy I picked this one up! It was adorable, and the perfect book to binge.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

This book is super cute and I really enjoyed it. It dealt with a bit heavier topics that I expected but it was good. I did feel as though the relationship moved kind of fast and did not give the reader a good enough look into exactly how they felt about each other and how those feelings developed.

I received an arc through netgalley.

This is a well-written coworkers-to-lovers romance. The MCs have some conflict at the beginning, but not enough to classify themselves as enemies (or anything more than crushes denying their feelings).

I liked it, but wasn’t blown away- the characters were easy to root for but not as complex as they could have been, the romance plot had some tension but I wasn’t convinced there was a chance they wouldn’t end up together, the writing was solid but not the best I’ve read.

The inclusion of a number of asian cultural aspects was a huge highlight, and perhaps one of the better components adding characterization.

Not super steamy, but overall a pretty healthy relationship (besides the classic communication errors of a romance, which I felt was handled better than in some books).

Did I read the main characters name as Candice until the last chapter? Yes. Did I appreciate the resolution, including the firing of some people who deserved it? Also yes.

Overall, this is a light and decent romance.

Circling back to you follows two colleagues who decide to take their relationship outside the office. This was the perfect friends to lovers, grumpy sunshine book and just what I needed to read this month. It wasn’t perfect in every way but it still felt like a breath of fresh air.

First of all, Cadence and Matt were so fun to read about and their relationship is so wholesome. Matt was such a simp for Cadence while she was a bit cold towards him, but only on the outside. Also, the fact that the book had a dual pov was great because we got to read about both of their feelings and thought’s.

Additionally their families were a big part of the book as well. In my opinion Cadence’s strained relationship with her father and brother was interesting to read about and I liked how it was kind of resolved.
Matt and Cadence were so different but also so perfect for each other.

The only part of this book I disliked is the middle part. Nothing much was happening at that point and I was kinda bored. Next, the smut was so underwhelming. I’m not some smut fanatic but when there is smut in a book I want it to at least be good. I felt like in this book it was rounded down to a few sentences ces and there was no chemistry to be completely honest.

To summarise, this was a pretty good read and it deserves the rating that i gave it.

Sweet workplace romance meets friends to lovers troupe from the author of Donut Trap!

The things highlighted in this journey
Multi cultural big families- care-giving subplot
Diversity
Sweet, feel good friends to lovers theme
Quiet adorable San Francisco background
Fake- dating troupe

The book started quick paced, introducing us the main characters: Matt and Cadence work at the high performing real estate company: Matt is a broker and Cadence is an analyst.

As they start working as a team, their blooming friendship’s direction turns into something unexpected during their business trip where it’s headed on Matt’s hometown. Cadence finds herself as Matt’s fake girlfriend, meeting with his family members.

When they realize how deeply they feel for each other work related issues, a competing promotion threats the couple end their newly formed relationship. They also have to deal with some familial struggles.

I loved the sweet premise of the book. But the beginning started so quickly without making enough introductions about the characters and in the middle the story started dragging. I lost my interest. The conclusion was good but I think some parts could be omitted at the middle parts and the beginning could get strengthened with additional background stories of the characters.

I had hard time to connect with Cadence. At first with her shy and sweet attitude she was more likable but then she turned into a bossy bitch! Matt was more likable but his character needed more development.

So I decided to give three stars. I liked this book less than Donut Trap. This was still an enjoyable read but I expected a little more. I’m still looking forward to read the next work of the author.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.

it's official. i'm a julie tieu stan.
i was a huge fan of 'the donut trap' and when i saw that she was releasing a new book with a FILIPINO-AMERICAN MALE LEAD i just about died. and this did not disappoint. it's not often that i see asian-american romances. and even rarer is it a filipino-lead. julie tieu, here is a heartfelt thank you for including all of this asian-american rep in your books. i'm a sucker for romances and seeing people like me fall in love makes me so happy.

dramatic intro aside, this book was definitely a five-star read for me.

first of all - i loved the characters. i loved cadence, i loved matt, and i loved them together. the two were fun to read. i think they were such a realistic couple and i enjoyed the book so much more because of this realism.

aside from the two main characters, the side characters were also amazing. i fell in love with both of their families and friends, especially cadence's dad! he brought a lot of humor to whatever scenes he was in. in fact, he reminded me a lot of my own dad. matt's family were also enjoyable to read and i definitely saw my extended family in them.

i'm also gonna put a spotlight on the filipino rep. i think it was really well-done and the filipino traditions incorporated were portrayed well. i do wish that matt used more filipino terms for his family though, such as 'tita' instead of auntie.

this book is a must-read if you enjoy romances. it's well-written, has the cutest couple, and is a nice light read. def would recommend!

thank you to netgalley and avon & harper voyager for an early copy of this book.

This checks a lot of my favorite things.

Workplace romance: check.
Snark meets sass: check.
Family meddling: check.
Strong female lead: check.
Adorable male counterpart: check.

There's so much more to like outside of the obvious. Asian representation in the form of a Filipino male - who happens to be a big soft goofball with a love for his his lola (grandma)– and a Chinese female - who epitomizes take no prisoner's energy with a soft center and a love for all things food. Both of which are hard workers who fight for what they deserve in their work lives. I believe there's so much potential within the pages and story that unfolds.

Where I feel the tale lacks somewhat is in its pacing and descriptions. I wished for more, especially when it came to cuisines and dishes that I know of, but didn't feel the warmth and sensory overload of them drift from the pages nearly as much as I would have liked. There were opportunities to really give the reader a complete feeling of surroundings, experiences, or locations through the narrative that I really missed or wished for. I also wished for a bit more depth of their friendship, as Cadence could come off as too cold towards someone she considered at most a best friend and at the very least, a good work colleague.

That aside, I felt like this was a fun, sweet read that shows a lot of heart and connection through family and community.

I loved Circling Back to You so much! The chemistry between Matt and Cadence was undeniable and was so well written. Matt’s jokes had me cracking up and Cadence was such a strong and fierce force to be reckon with. Overall, this is a hilarious and sweet romance novel with lovable characters.

3.5 stars

Delightful workplace romcom starring Asian MCs—YES to representation!—Cadence and Matt. They’ve sat next to each other at work for years, always found each other attractive but have never acted on it.

Cadence is the grump of the duo—analytical and reserved, preferring to keep her personal and professional lives separate. Matt is the charismatic commercial real estate broker who brings her coffee every morning, and is gunning for a promotion that will see him lead the new office in LA. When an important contract hangs in the balance with a particularly challenging client, they team up to try and seal the deal. This puts them spending two weeks together in close quarters, and you know what that means… 😉😉

I would rate <i>Circling Back to You</i> as low steam, but Cadence and Matt definitely have good chemistry. I found their flirty brand of teasing amusing and charming. The portrayal of stereotypical asian family dynamics—large unruly group of cousins, nosy aunties, meddling family matriarch, hard-nosed Chinese father etc.—felt immensely relatable to me, hilarious yet filled with so much love. This book is half set in San Francisco, where I live, so I really appreciated all the SF-specific jokes about “Karl” the Fog!

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I was super excited about this one when I read the summary so immediately wanted to get started. I flew through the first half but kind of lost interest in the last half because it sorta lost steam. Which just made me really sad because this was a book that normally would have been my thing. I still liked it but it just got slow.

This book was the perfect office romance! I loved how the female main character was the grumpier one and the male was the sunshine character!

First off, thank you NetGalley and Avon/ Harper Voyage for my very first ARC! Thanks for taking a chance on me to read and write.

I give this book 3.5 stars. This book was okay, but not great. There were things to like for sure, but I wouldn’t put this on my favorites list. I enjoyed the story enough to keep reading it, but the characters weren’t my absolute favorites and I didn’t fall in love with either of them. Matt and Cadence work together at a high performing real estate company based out of San Francisco. Matt is a broker and Cadence is an analyst. They work great together as colleagues and their attraction towards each other grows over time. As they try to figure out what they mean to each other, they are also presented with a few work and familial hurdles to overcome together.

Readers who enjoy the following should give this a chance:
- Colleagues turned romance storyline (this is more friends to lovers not nemesis to lovers)
- Diverse main characters (loved learning about family rituals and traditions)
- Low steam 🔥
- Large families / caregiving plot line
- Enjoy San Fran/ LA backdrop
- Male & female split narration

This book somehow felt long but also lacked the character development I craved at the same time. The story started off quite quick, almost feeling as though you missed the first couple chapters. While I ENJOY not having a super long preamble of cat and mouse, I actually think I needed a little bit more slow burn. Other reviews say this is a fake dating trope, however there isn’t really a huge fake dating storyline (which I liked!). There was a little ‘what are we to each other - people are going to assume we are dating’ situation, but that is a very realistic plot and a breath of fresh air for the genre.

Moving on to the characters, I had a hard time nailing Cadence down. At first I thought she reminded me of Stella from The Love Quotient (shy, hard worker, doesn’t enjoy being social), but then she became very blunt, bossy and cold. I honestly couldn’t tell if she was even attracted to the main male lead, Matt, at times which might have been what killed the romance a little. She didn’t ever seem to like what she saw in him for longer than a fleeting moment. Towards the end, this gets better and you understand Cadence more, but by then you’re nearly finished. Matt’s character was a little better, but he was written very fluffy. There wasn’t a ton of depth to him and I felt like something was missing the whole time. He seemed sweet and caring but that’s about it.

I did love getting to know the cultures of both families throughout! I hope more books continue to highlight different cultures. I also loved that there was a caregiving subplot. It didn’t detract from the over all story, but was a nod to hardworking caregivers and the struggles/sacrifices they make for loved ones.

I think in general, I could have used more descriptions throughout the book and less scenarios - aka more bringing the world/characters to life and less events Cadence and Matt attended. The characters were blurry in my head and I couldn’t get a crisp picture of them. I also wish there were more solid secondary characters to round out the more flat gaps.

3.5

pretty good. i slowed down and kind of lost interest during the back half, though.

#netgalley

I adored The Donut Trap. And this was just as good.

The writing for this book was refreshing and there were plenty of times that I had that stupid smile on my face because of how lovey the characters were.
Such an enjoyable light, funny, romance. 
I thought the pacing was good, and the characters were all well developed
Julie Tieu writing flows and shines and I highly recommend this heartwarming captivating characters and an enjoyable plot
Sparkling dialogue, engaging side characters, and amazing romance.
Super sweet, well written, clever, funny story that I'm most positive y'all will absolutely fall in love with this amazing story!

Avon, Thank You for this eARC!
I will post to platforms closer to pub date.

This book is a quick cute romance. I love the fake dating trope mixed with friends to lovers and this one does it well. Matt and Candice are very sweet together. I did find the beginning to be a little slow but that usually happens when the romance is being set up. Once it was established the pace picked up. I did enjoy the dual POV’s in this book. I especially enjoy dual POV’s for romance books because I love seeing both sides of the romance.

My one critique is that occasionally Candice would come off as a little too cold and uncaring. It was harder to connect to her character for me. I understand this was done because she was trying to hold Matt at arms length because they might move and be separated due to their promotions but it put a slight damper on some of the warm fuzzy feelings I look for in a romance book.

Overall I did enjoy this book. It’s a fun lighthearted romance and it was wonderful seeing a Filipino male main character. I haven’t read The Donut Trap but now I definitely want to check it out.

Thank you Avon / Harper Voyager and Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.