TELL ME YOUR PLANS by Torres & Firsht starts out in full romance novel mode, with a standard romance trope: the Ice Queen who has her life completely planned out for herself meets the Chaos Lover whose spontaneity, passion, and vigor reignite her life and bring her new opportunities (both romantic and business). But it’s not long before Felix’s chaotic energy is revealed to be at least in part a childish selfishness that resents Veronica’s driven, goal-oriented focus. They spend a large part of the book in fruitless squabbling, breaking up, getting back together, and fighting some more until the reader is eager for them to either find some middle ground, any middle ground, or else split up for good.
The emotional relationship is complicated by the business they start together, using Felix’s game design talents and Veronica’s business acumen and planning ability. For a while they seem like the perfect business partnership, each having skills that complement the other’s, but even that starts to break down over time. The reader mostly sees things from Veronica’s point of view (and so is led to take her side in their regular disputes), though it’s possible to see Felix’s point about her tendency to control him and push him into a more businesslike adult life than he really wants. The push-and-pull between their fundamental differences drives the relationship and its passionate emotional intensity. The final twist comes a bit late in the book, and the subsequent actions and romance feel like almost an afterthought, though there is some foreshadowing (most notably in the prologue).
A little less time spent on Veronica and Felix’s arguments and a little more time spent developing the ending would help the latter feel more realistic and less like a last-minute rescue. The finale is still satisfying, but it could be extended. There is also another villain who is singled out in the earlier chapters as a rapist and sexual harasser, but he seems to be almost forgotten amidst the Veronica/Felix tempest of emotion (except for a token scare appearance midway through and a casual mention at the end). All in all, though, this book is an interesting exploration of what happens when two people with fundamentally different value systems end up passionately involved with each other—for better or for worse.
A torrid romance turned bitter-but-reasonably-satisfying revenge tale, TELL ME YOUR PLANS by Torres & Firsht will appeal to those who like to see hard-working women overcome.
~Catherine Langrehr for IndieReader