Love this! Tuli is the queen of nemesis to lovers. The hatred was intricate and believable with a firm conflict that propelled the story forward. The FMCis a great representation of what its like to work in a male dominated field and I loved they way that was wrapped up at the end.

🏞️🌴🌺 Not Safe for Work - Nisha J. Tuli - REVIEW 🌺🌴🏞️

🌴 ARC and ALC review
🌴 First of all huge thanks to Hachette Audio for the ALC via NetGalley

🌺 When it comes to audiobooks, I always feel the need to talk about the narrator.
Soneela Nankani did such an amazing job that I was instantly enamored by the book.

🥥 It is not my first Nisha J. Tuli book, but this one was different, mainly because I've only read fantasy books by her before this one.
I did go into the book with high expectations but ALL OF THEM were met.

🌴 The book is an workplace slow burn romcom sprinkled with tropes like Enemies-to-lovers , Forced proximity, Only one bed and many more to name.
All in all it was the perfect combo to make me give it 4 stars!

🌺 What you should also know is that there are some not-so-savory themes present in the book, such as Racism, Nonconsensual touching or Blackmail...

🌴 Now let's talk about the best part of the book: Trishara and Rafe!
They were amazing and I lived that this is a slow burn romance and we get to know more about the two of them before they form a couple.

🥥 The banter is next level and more than once I had to stop the audiobook to have a laugh because they were bringing me to the brink of tears

🌺 Overall: 'Not Safe for Work' is an entertaining book with amazing characters that is perfect for the summer!

✨ Book Rating: 4 Stars
✨ Age Rating: 18+
✨ Genre & Tropes: Workplace Romance, Romcom, Slow Burn, Enemies-to-lovers , Forced proximity, Only one bed
✨ Spicy Chapters: 22, 23, 24, 25

📖 Book: 3.5 stars ⭐️
🎧 Audiobook: 4 stars ⭐️

Huge thanks to Hachette Audio for the ALC & Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for the audiobook ARC via NetGalley.

This was my very first ARC, and honestly, I feel so grateful to have received it through NetGalley. It was a great experience overall, and I’m glad this was the book that started my ARC journey!

Not Safe for Work is a quick, engaging read that mixes workplace problems, romance, and deeper emotional themes. The story follows Trisha, a young Indian woman working in a very male-dominated and toxic firm. Through her journey, the book explores the reality of sexism, racism, and being constantly underestimated — and what it means to stand up for yourself and reclaim your worth.

The romance was sweet and full of chemistry. Trisha and Rafe have a strong physical attraction, but there’s also emotional depth in how they support and believe in each other. I wouldn’t call this a super spicy book (maybe 2.5 to 3 out of 5 on the 🌶️ scale), but it has enough tension and angst to keep romance lovers invested. I especially appreciated how the emotional connection came first — there was space for the relationship to grow beyond the physical. I do wish we’d had dual POVs — the story focuses solely on Trisha’s perspective, which I understand given the themes, but it might’ve helped me feel more connected to both characters.

What stood out to me the most were the emotional themes. The way Trisha is treated at work is frustrating and real — and her character arc is one of strength and realization. I loved seeing a woman of color at the center of this story, and I appreciated the representation and honesty in how her challenges were portrayed. It’s a blend of romance and women’s fiction, and it leans into both sides really well.

Now the audiobook? Amazing. Soneela Nankani was phenomenal — her performance brought the story to life and made it so easy to stay hooked. Even though it’s a single POV, she did a fantastic job with all the voices, especially the male lead’s. Her voice and interpretation were enough to make everything feel real and engaging. I honestly don’t think I would’ve stayed as connected to the book without her performance — it really elevated the whole experience.

Overall, I’d say this is a great pick for readers who love:
🌺 Enemies to lovers
🌺 Workplace romance
🌺 STEM rep (engineering)
🌺 Woman of color as FMC
🌺 Only one bed
🌺 Forced proximity
🌺 Protective MMC
🌺 Banter & angst

It was a really solid debut ARC for me — not a life-changing favorite, but definitely a good read I’m glad I picked up.

And again, thank you NetGalley — I’m truly grateful for this ARC.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for sending me this audiobook.
Trishara and Rafe’s “hate” felt a little forced at times, and some parts leaned a bit immature but honestly, it was still a really fun listen. The Hawaii setting was amazing, and the author really knows how to bring that perfect holiday vibe to life.
And I have to say, the audio narrator was fantastic ! It felt like watching a romcom unfold in your ears, totally immersive and easy to get wrapped up in.
Perfect for a summer read!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Not Safe For Work by Nisha J. Tuli
5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley, Nisha J. Tuli and the publisher for this alc in exchange for my honest review.

First— let’s talk audio. The narrator did an awesome job. Her inflection was a best friend telling a story; I was enthralled the entire time. Sometimes a female narrator’s male voices bother me, but she wasn’t trying too hard to sound “manly,” and it really worked. She never pulled my focus from the story.

I devoured this book. It was perfect blend of Love on the Brain and The Hating Game, but set in a Hawaiian paradise— complete with forced proximity, only one bed, and enough tension to make you physically ache.

Trisara is one of two employees selected for a leadership retreat, and of course, the other one is Rafe—her workplace nemesis and the boss’s son. Everyone loves Rafe. Except Tris. And the feeling is mutual…right?

I loved Tris and Rafe’s dynamic: sharp, competitive, and full of sexual attention. It kept things spicy and exciting without being smutty, which is exactly what I’m looking for in a good romance.

Still, what really sets this book apart is how Tuli doesn’t shy away from the real-world challenges women—especially women of color—face in male dominated workplaces. Tris’s reflections on being a brown woman in a corporate setting felt honest and realistic, and I appreciate that the book didn’t gloss over the biases she endures.

And sigh…Rafe. I need one. Immediately. He’s the softest, most emotionally available marshmallow of a man, and he completely raised the bar for my real-life boyfriend. Despite Tris’s feelings for him— there was nothing I disliked about him….even when Tris started to annoy me. Rafe and Tris have great chemisty. I’m usually not the biggest fan of spice, but Tuli’s pacing was perfection. The tension builds perfectly, the release is satisfying, and I was blushing more than once.

Tuli’s writing is stunning—full of sensory details and vivid metaphors that you want to stop and underline so you can reread later. While the story’s setup is classic romcom, Tuli elevates it with voice, warmth, and dynamic characters who’d you love to party in Hawaii with.

This book was everything I wanted: smart, sexy, relevant, and so much fun.

Thank you so much for the opportunity to listen to this ALC!

This was a fun rom-com with great banter and diverse representation. I felt like the narrator captured this character quite well. There was a depth to the character that I think the narrator nailed, while still keeping the narrative fun and light hearted.

Pretty big Nisha J. Tuli fan, and this one didn’t disappoint!

✨Workplace Romance
✨Rivals to Lovers
✨Vacation Vibes
✨Forced Proximity
✨”It’s always been you”

This was such a fun listen 🎧
I really liked the narrator 💕

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. While it addresses some rather challenging or frustrating topics, the author effectively manages them, ensuring that the book remains engaging and entertaining throughout.

The witty banter and spicy content make it an enjoyable listen. For readers who are working in a corporate environment, feeling a sense of invisibility or perhaps weary of the “old boys club,” I highly recommend giving this audiobook a listen.

I loved this romance! I listened to the audiobook and really enjoyed it. It was witty, there was banter and tension and a wonderful slow burn.

This was a lot of fun. I think the proximity was a bit forced (ha, to forced proximity) but I adore the one bed trope. There are a few little things about flying in and out of Hawaii that I think would have made the book a bit more realistic (having to fill out the declaration form for fruits and nuts, and the extra scans etc leaving) and something about the proximity there didn't seem like they were in Hawaii. But as a beach dweller, it was enjoyable all together, especially as a beach dweller that doesn't like sand or swimming in non-pools, particularly.

5/5 Absolutely adored the tropes, banter romance, everything of this book

This was my first Nisha J. Tuli book and she blew me away, I look forward to reading more of her works. The slow burn... oh boy, the slow burn!!! The banter and lead up and tension was the perfect mixture with the cinnamon roll MMC slowly being revealed, the fun humor, the characters development to her standing up for herself, the sweets that made me crave them, the work conference resort single suite, and the spice all wrapped up into a wonderful, romantic story. I literally loved all the characters - Tris, the FMC for one was stellar, strong, hilarious, and beautiful inside and out. Rafe, our attractive, cinnamon roll MMC, was the perfect role for banter and lead up as well as well paced to reveal the different sides of him. And the side characters all had purpose, energy, and depth.

For every review I write, I do try to think about book flaws to be honest in them, but I struggled to think of much for this book. The only things I can come up with is - based off the books title you may expect more spice from the start, but know this book is a slow burn, but the spice is there and its good. Also, technically some may think there is a miscommunication trope towards the end of the book, which is not the most loved trope, but I think this one was done so well some may not even consider it as such.

Finally, the narrators of the audiobook did a wonderful job portraying these characters. Now, I'm on my way to get some sweets!

Book Tropes: One Bed, Women in STEM, Rivals to Lovers, Workplace Romance, Retreat Setting, Forced Proximity, Boss's son, slow burn
Spice Level: 3.5/5
Trigger Warnings: Sexism in the Workplace especially, sexual harassment, blackmail, leaked intimate image

This was an ARC read in exchange for my honest thoughts. Thank you NetGalley, Nisha J. Truli, the Grand Central Publishing with Hachette Book Group, and Hachette Audio for this audiobook ALC.

If you're in the mood for a steamy, slow-burn romance with delicious office tension, laugh-out-loud banter, and characters that practically jump off the page, Not Safe for Work is exactly what you need. Nisha J. Tuli brings her signature blend of sass, spice, and heart to this enemies-to-lovers workplace romance—and trust me, it’s anything but safe for your sleep schedule (or your TBR).
The chemistry between the MC's is electric, and their banter had me grinning and giggling the whole way through. I’m a sucker for a good workplace romance, and this one checks every box: sharp writing, emotional depth, and the kind of slow-burn tension that keeps you coming back for more.

I stayed up way too late listening and loved every second of it. Huge thanks to the author and NetGalley for the chance to experience this fun, fiery read!

Workplace romances can be hit or miss and I think the author did such a great job! This was the perfect book to start the summer with. Loved the chemistry and the banter. Felt like true enemies to lovers. Also had important commentary and memorable side characters. I did think the love interest felt a bit one dimensional and maybe that would have been helped by having a few chapters from his POV!

This makes me even more excited to try Tuli's romantasy and I hope she continues to write contemporary because this was fun and I read it in an afternoon.

Thank you for NetGalley and Hachette Audio for this ARC of Not Safe for Work by Nisha J. Tuli in exchange for my honest review.

Trishara Malik has been an engineer at WMC Purcell for five years, and she’s been passed over for promotions multiple times. She’s seen toxic men after toxic men get those promotions, and she’s starting to get burned out by all the male privilege, extreme sexism, and blatant nepotism. When she gets invited to the WMC’s leadership conference in Hawaii, she sees this as a chance to see if she has a future at WMC. But her work rival, Rafe, the boss’s son, also gets invited, and Trish plans to avoid Rafe the whole time she’s there. But things don’t go as planned, and she ends up spending more time with Rafe than she intended.

I was excited to start this book because it was advertised as an enemies-to-lovers story. But I was disappointed. Trish was infuriatingly immature, constantly arguing with herself without and without any perspective from Rafe, the supposed “enemies” part of the story seemed shallow making the characters feel underdeveloped. Rafe seemed to switch personalities page to page, and I spent most of the book rolling my eyes at Trish. I seriously considered DNFing this several times, and if it wasn’t an ARC, I would have.

You can save yourself a lot of trouble by skipping the beginning and middle and reading the last chapter and the epilogue. The last chapter was the only reason I bumped this up a star. Trish’s last moment was sheer badassery and the only redeeming part of the novel.

This was the perfect summer read. The perfect book to bring to the beach. I really enjoyed the narrator of this one!

I really enjoyed this book, the audiobook’s narration was great! I found myself really connecting to the characters and rooting for them throughout all the tension! This spicy book is a great summer read! Trishara and Rafe are picked to attend their companies leadership retreat in Hawaii. They are work rivals and are stuck sharing a hotel room for the duration of the trip, three whole weeks. Burning tension and undeniably chemistry!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advanced copy!

I love rivals to lovers! This book had all the good tension, pining and the perfect amount of spice. I liked that nobody was perfect. The FMC needed to find her voice and the MMC needed to let go of his past. Overall, I would definitely recommend this book. The perfect summer read.

Audiobook praise! The narrator was flawless. She did an incredible job with every character. The pacing was great and I felt engaged from the beginning.

Workplace Romance is not my favorite trope but when I heard Nisha J. Tuli was releasing one I knew she was going to be the one to change my mind. Tris and Rafe's chemistry pops off the page. I was giggling, kicking my feet, twirling my hair over their banter. Tris is just mean enough to Rafe and I like that in an FMC. The Burn is slow, the spice is spicing, the work trip one bed trope is one bed trope-ing. I have loved Nisha's fantasy novels (that I've read so far) and her first foray into the rom-com space does not disappoint!

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the e-ARC in exchange for my honest review. I just happened to be cruising the Read Now tab at the right time and feel so lucky to have gotten a copy of the ARC.

[Reread Edit: I just finished listening to the audiobook for NSFW (Thanks for the audio-arc from Hachette Audio, Forever, and Netgalley for hosting). Soneela Nankani narrates and I think she does a wonderful job. I may prefer her in the fantasy space over contemporary but her diction is clear, voice is engaging, and nothing gets lost when you speed it up to 1.75x. Listening to the audiobook is still a 5 star experience and I highly recommend it.]

Not safe for Work by Nisha J. Tuli 3.5⭐️! Trishara and Rafe are rival engineers on a work trip in Hawaii and have the opportunity to win a position in an executive training program. Trishara deals with the misogyny of working in a male dominated field and feels like her career isn’t going anywhere because of it. This executive training program would allow her to move up. Tris and Rafe end up sharing a hotel room due to an error and she has to fight the growing attraction she has for him. I didn’t really like this. Trishara was kind of insufferable. I liked that she was a strong female lead but her inner dialogue was kind of cringey. It wasn’t a terrible book but I found it hard to feel connected to the characters. The audiobook was very well done. The narrator did amazing. I appreciated her being able to give each character their own voice.
Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Audio for a copy of the book!

Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Review
Overall this was a fun, beachy, slow burn romance that I think a lot of readers will enjoy. Lots of diversity representation in this book which I will celebrate all day, but ultimately the slow burn and maturity level felt lacking to me.

Things I Liked
✨ Trishara (FMC) is a talented, strong, BIPOC woman engineer 💪🏼 Let’s go!
✨ Some of my favorites tropes including enemies to lovers, forced proximity and one bed.
✨ Some of the teasing and banter between the MCs was fun!
✨ How attentive Rafe (MMC) was of Tris, he was patient and allowed her space to work through her past traumas — ultimately allowing her to feel safe and open up again. He also didn’t tolerate any sexist BS — hooray men fighting misogyny and toxic bro culture.
✨ I thought the chronic pain rep was weaved in here nicely.

Meh Things
😏 While I appreciate that this was tackling sex discrimination and sexual harassment in a male dominated field, ugh… I think I just need a break from this topic in my romcoms. I know it’s a real thing, I’m in tech… but I’m just freaking over it.
😏 Overall I felt like the slow burn was unnecessarily slow, things were repetitive, a bit flat and immature. I just didn’t melt into the build up as much as a lot of people did with this one (I even wrote “oh, FFS!” in my notes at one point haha). Some of it was fun and there were definitely moments that were more promising!
😏 The obstacle with Hannah also felt immature and irritating.
😏 Eek, I didn’t love the narration. I’m sorry!

CW: Sexism, Non consensual touching, Racial microaggressions