Book number seven in my Goodreads Reading Challenge is Twisted Up by Erin Nicholas.

‘Avery Sparks is a master at controlling chaos—and she gets plenty of opportunities as fire chief and head of emergency management in her hometown of Chance, Nebraska. The only thing she can’t seem to control are her feelings when she’s around Jake Mitchell, the man who was her first everything the night of their high school graduation. But Jake was so quick to leave Chance—and Avery—behind that she swore she’d move on.

While Avery’s job is to minimize drama, Jake embraces the chaos of an emergency. After enlisting in the Army National Guard, Jake became a nationally recognized leader in disaster recovery. Yet a life on the road has left him restless. So when a class-four tornado wreaks havoc on Chance, he’s eager to return home—and to the woman never far from his mind.

Now, Avery and Jake must team up to help their hometown weather a siege of violent storms. But it’s clear to them both that nature isn’t the only force they’ll have to reckon with. Will Avery and Jake’s whirlwind love affair be an all-new disaster—or can they recover from their stormy past to build a future together?’ (Thanks Amazon)

So firstly I should explain that I have a slight obsession with disaster movies – Armageddon, 2012, Twister….you name it, I love it.  So a book about a deadly tornado with a love story thrown in for good measure is my idea of heaven.

My first thoughts when I read this novel was that it reminded me a little of Sarah Morgan’s writing – like Sarah Morgan, I enjoy the fact that Erin Nicholas has continued the story of linked characters with more novels as part of the Taking Chances series (see my next review of Tangled Up).  I really enjoyed Avery and Jake’s story – there was an emerging love story that had a good back story.  Avery’s life growing up explained her relationship flaws, and I found that these flaws did not irritate me (which is unusual – I often get irritated with the female characters in novels!)

This novel is a little saucy in places, so wouldn’t suit some people.  I however don’t mind a bit sauce! As I have already said, I also enjoy the emerging stories of related characters which will all be given novels in their own rights.  I’ve already read Tangled Up which is book 2 of the series, and I look forward to reading Turned Up when it is released in August.  The friendships between the three women and the three men come across as genuine rather than forced, which increased my enjoyment.

Twisted Up has definitely convinced me to read more of Erin Nicholas’ work, and I can see myself re-reading these novels for years to come which is always a good sign.  So if you’re looking for a light, slightly saucy romance with a natural disaster thrown in then this is the book for you.

Rating: 📖📖📖📖