Cover Image: What a Tangled Web

What a Tangled Web

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This author just keeps knocking them out of the park. This is the second book in this series and I can't wait to read the third.

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Goodness this book is HOT! I think out of all the Brayden books I have read this by far has the heat that others don't have. What I noticed about most romances is they follow this 2-3 sex scene where they are never really complete. This romance does it different and I loved it. The formula was broken and I wish others would mix it up. So I guess you all see where I am going. This book has a really good love story, some hot sex scenes, some really good angst and a lovely ending. I really enjoyed book 1 and felt that book 2 wasn't as good, but Brayden brought it back with book 3. I can't wait to listen to this one. Loved it. 5 stars.

This arc was provided by netgalley and the publisher for an honest review.

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Makes Me Want to Drink Pinot
“What a Tangled Web” by Melissa Braydon is the third installment of her Tangled series. While Ms. Braydon is one of my favorite authors, I have not read the previous installments. I was happy to find that did not hinder my enjoyment at all- instead it made me want to read the others.
Madison LeGrande is the winemaker at Tangle Wines and is responsible for everything grape-related. She depends on science and math with a touch of magic to make her wines some of the most popular in Oregon. She is also a highly sought-after consultant and is reaping the benefits of her rising star. Her accountant tells her that she should diversify her investments and luckily the town’s favorite breakfast place suddenly comes up for sale and she impulsively buys it.
Clementine Monroe is the manager of ‘Bacon and Biscuits’ and she brings a good morning cheer to all her customers. She has been quietly saving her money and plans to make an offer to buy the restaurant one day. She has spent her life in the background- the poor, quiet kid that never fit in. Now her dream is being snatched away by her high school crush. It is just one more disappointment in a life already full of them.
Clem is understandably upset but she does her best to be professional and to help the new owner make the restaurant even better. Besides being mad at Madison helps her stomp down her attraction to her. Madison on the other hand never really thought about Clem much at all. As she works with Clem, she comes to see her- and she very much likes what she sees.
The supporting characters are interesting, and I am sure the previous books told Madison’s friends’ backstories. But there is enough about them that we get an understanding of their personalities. I am particularly fond of the ‘Biddies’, a group of four elderly women who hang out at the ‘Biscuit’ gossiping. Clem has the cook Frankie and his girlfriend Jun as her surrogate family since she doesn’t even know where her parents are.
I love Clem. I like Madison, but I am 100 percent team Clementine. Ms. Braydon allows us to feel Clem’s disappointments (both past and current) but never makes the reader pity her. The writing is stellar as expected from this author and I highly recommend this moderately-angsty book.

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Solid romance novel! Melissa Brayden is so good at making you feel with her novels. I just adored MC Clementine, she is so lovable and imperfectly perfect!

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I feel a little bit lost if I'm being honest, I wanted the story to carry on... that's a good indication that I enjoyed it!

I love the whole town feel of the story, I come from a small town village and I can say without a doubt that everyone knows everyone's business and I certainly had the vision of what the four biddies looked like. But I'm certainly glad that they were fewer of them and focused on only one of them this time around!

The romance was there. The chemistry between Madison and Clementine but it wasn't rushed, there was a bit of a build-up which I loved, as of lately I'm reading too many rushed 'let's jump into bed' too quickly books, glad to say this isn't one of them.
This is the third series in the Tangle Valley books.. I've read the second book, but never have managed to get around to the first in the series.. i think i may need to change that

Madison Legrange relies on science and logic to make her vineyard run as best as possible. But it's also how she manages her life. Her career is the most important thing in her life and it's also in its prime, her accountant thinks it's time she diversifies her income. Her favorite cafe, the Bacon and Biscuit are up for sale, so she invests money into the small business. She differently didn't plan on the time she would need to spend with Clementine Monroe which leaves her feeling anything but logical. Clementine loved her job managing the Bacon and Biscuit cafe. After escaping a difficult childhood it's all she has. When Clementine is given the opportunity to step out from behind the counter and buy the place, her dreams have come true. Until she finds out that it's been snatched away from her by the same girl she had a crush on in high school Clementine has no plans to forgive Madison but Clementine's feelings are growing by the day.

I've given the 'What a Tangled Web' a 4*

I was given a copy for an honest review.

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Five stars.
The closing of a series. Sigh. I will miss the Tangle Valley folks, so all the somewhat fluffy time-skipping at the end was not at all too sweet for my tastes. Still, before we get there...
Madison and Clementine. I think this might be my favourite of the three pairings, and it was done so well. Madison's great, I don't know if she's my favourite of the crew, but then there's Clementine. Gosh, she's so adorable! Clementine has that genuine underdog feel that dares you not to root for her. She's been a constant in the previous instalments, and so we've already mentally characterised her as such a sweet person. Seeing her perspective does not disappoint. Having her most tangible dream snatched right out of her hands at the beginning was a gripping way to start. It stayed in the back of my mind throughout their budding relationship, so there was that slight feeling of power(/financial?) imbalance, yet it wasn't a problem. Clementine was clearly the expert on everything food-related, and the way that Madison deferred to her was perfect.
The chemistry! They sizzled. (Speaking of which, the food description was great too. I would love to drop by Bacon and Biscuit.) They were combustible, maybe more than the other two Tangle Valley couples. That isn't to say there wasn't enough build-up before they jumped into bed. Once they reached that point, well... I had to stop trying to read in public.
The conflict point. So Clementine's rationale was a little confusing, but it fit the thoughts and beliefs of her character, which is most important. The couple in the midst of the break up were individually still impressive. Madison had some major character development, and it was at this point that I really started liking her. I didn't love the catalyst for their reunion, but it made sense, and there was plenty of warning. I liked that the Biddies had their own growing to do, although really, we should have seen that one of them was trying to hold the others back earlier on. It got pretty out of hand at some points in previous books. Clementine winning Madison back made up for every word of angst.
That brings us back to the end. Madison has had some pretty sweet gestures so far, but Clementine's birthday gift brought it all back together. It was adorable that she kept earnestly mentioning that it was only a matter of time.
So yes! The book wasn't without its meaningful moments, but there was also such sweetness that you can only look on the characters fondly. The ball really wasn't dropped with this one, and it surely isn't easy to return for an equally engrossing third book in the same universe. Kudos to Melissa Brayden. I'll be re-reading this series.

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This is the third book in a series. I haven't (yet) read the first two in the series but, although I'm sure they would be fun to read, you don't need to have read them to enjoy this one! Madison is a winemaker at a local vineyard, where she works with her 2 best friends. Clementine is the manager of the local breakfast spot. She is more of a loner, still working through her family's poor and troubled background. When business interests throw the two together, sparks fly. Of course, there are obstacles related to communication and past difficulties, but I cheered along with Madison's best friends for the couple's potential success.

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A nice ending for the solid Tangle Valley series. I loved Joey's story, but Gabriella's left me feeling like it would be hard to give Madison the book she deserves. She came off rather badly in the Gabriella/Ryan/Madison love triangle, but she definitely met her match with Clementine. I could completely sympathize with Clem always wondering when the bubble would burst and her "real life" would come back around, and there were a few tears shed. This is definitely a series that's been worth reading, and I'm looking forward to whatever comes next.

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3.5 stars

Madison LeGrange likes logic and order in all things, which is what makes her such a good winemaker; she's a pro with numbers and equations. Unfortunately, she's yet to find a formula for love. An uncharacteristically spur-of-the-moment decision leads her to purchase The Biscuit, a popular breakfast spot in town. It also leads to spending more time with Clementine Monroe, The Biscuit's manager and Madison's secret admirer in high school. A hesitant friendship turns into the potential for more, but the differences between the two women sometimes seem like too much to overcome. Through the ups and downs, Madison will learn that there is nothing logical or orderly about love. But maybe she can live with that.

cw: mentions of child abuse (non-sexual), child abandonment, side character death

This started out really good and then it got kind of weird? The romance was pretty good, but I was not a fan of how some sensitive topics got handled.

The Characters: As a math person, I totally related to Madison. I was excited to read her love story after her role in the second book of the series. She's a little awkward when talking about her feelings, but for the most part, she's self-assured and charismatic. At times though, it seems that she doesn't recognize her own privilege (at least at first), especially when it comes to understanding Clementine's adolescent experience. Clementine is super sweet, but also resilient. She also has a really sad backstory (see content warnings) which has resulted in low self-confidence. I liked Madison and Clementine's interactions, and I thought they were really cute together. We get the side characters from the previous books (Joey & Becca, Gabriela & Ryan, etc.) plus a few new ones. It was nice hearing from characters that I already felt like I knew well.

The Romance: I liked the lead up to Madison and Clementine getting together. There was a lot of sexual tension paired with personal hangups. After they got together, I wasn't a big fan of the types of conflicts that came up. <spoiler> A lot of stuff with Clementine feeling like she didn't deserve to be with someone like Madison? Yes, I get that this is something that actually happens, but writing it into Clementine's character can send implicit messaging that victims of child abuse or people who grew up in poverty should feel bad about it. </spoiler>

The Plot: The plot actually didn't revolve solely around the romance. There was a lot of stuff happening in the background with Madison getting a hang of running the Biscuit, Loretta and Bobby's wedding, plus a surprise visit from someone from Clementine's past. [Insert rant about how the plot got super weird and kinda problematic.] <spoiler> It was Clementine's abusive father. I honestly don't know how to feel about this storyline. I felt like Clementine let her father back in way too quickly? I get that sometimes victims of child abuse might still seek approval from their abusers/there might be other factors why Clementine did that. But when everyone else is like, "I think it's great that you've repaired your relationship with your father!" it's a lot. I don't think something like child abuse can be easily forgiven, or forgiven at all. Maybe the intention was a message of redemption, i.e. people can change. I would have preferred if Brayden had stuck to that, but instead, Clementine's dad ended up running out on her. So... people can't change? </spoiler> This book just sent so many mixed messages, and I don't think they were good messages. Regarding pacing, the beginning was super engaging. Then there was a lull and I took a break from reading. Then things went downhill and I skimmed through the dumpster fire :/

The Writing: Brayden's writing is consistent, and this was no exception with regards to snappy dialogue and flowing narration.

All in all: I wish Brayden hadn't chosen to tackle a subject like child abuse in this book. A lot of it rubbed me the wrong way, and it felt out of place next to how sweet and soft the rest of the series was. It's still a well-written and interesting story, but the child abuse plot took me out of it and made the experience a lot less enjoyable for me.

*I received an ARC via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

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Clementine Monroe has lived in Whisper Wall since she was born. Her younger life revolved around school and the local library where she could lose herself. Her home life was rough. Never enough food, clothing or a hug once in a while. Her dad was a drunk grifter and her mother left when Clem was just a young girl. She has made a good life for herself working at the Bacon and Biscuit diner. She practically ran the business seeing as her employer didn’t want to. Her dream was to save enough money so one day she could make an offer to buy the Bacon and Biscuit. Now the time has come. When the owner decides to sell the business she makes an offer but it seems that she wasn’t fast enough.
Buying and owning a small business wasn’t something Madison LeGrange ever thought of doing. She was working her dream job as the head winemaker at Tangle Valley Vineyard. Working alongside her best friend, Joey Wilder, the owner of the vineyard and having her other best friend, (you can have two BF’s) Gabriella Russo close by managing the restaurant that had recently become part of the vineyard. Life was good although being single was that great. Joey and Gabriella have met their other halves with Becca and Ryan. When her account suggested it was time to invest some of her hard earned cash in buying a business, what kind of business she didn’t know. But upon hearing about the Bacon and Biscuit was for sale she quickly bought it never thinking she’d be stepping on the toes of one Clementine Monroe. Now here they are, one owning, the other managing the same diner.
With lots of interesting characters populating the small town Ms Brayden has done a wonderful job closing the Tangle Valley series. Now we’ll just have to wait for her next book to be published. This one, a very, very enjoyable read.
ARC via NetGalley/ Bold Stroke Books

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It’s hard to say that the author saved the best for last. I’ve liked all the books in this vineyard series very much. What I liked most about this book is how the quiet, “unseen” girl gets the biggest break the universe can hand her and how she chooses to deal with it. The difficulties Clementine faces in deciding how to manage tremendous changes to her largely quiet life when Madison swoons had me glued to the pages from beginning to end. This is classic Melissa Brayden - a sweet-tart love story with a few left turns to tug at your heart and then the happily ever after. I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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I LOVED this book. It was a book that I was thinking about reading when I wasn’t reading it and picked it up every spare minute I had. I am so sad that the Tangled Valley stories are finished because I absolutely loved immersing myself in the lives of all of the characters

In this book I could see so many traits of my own and my friends and how we each looked to each other!. I loved meeting old friends and catching up on where they were over coffee

I honestly could not rate this book more highly

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Such a nice ending to an engaging series. I found both Clementine and Madison to be engaging characters with interesting personalities. The story itself was fun and had some great emotional moments that worked out well. For those who worried about the chemistry between Gabriella and Ryan in the last book don't have to worry about that here. Clem and Madison have lovely chemistry, which helps since Clementine harbored a crush on Madison since their high school days.

I think one of the strengths of the book is how it examines two competent women and their personalities. Clementine is so good at her job managing the small town's number one breakfast spot that she really should get paid more, but is constantly under appreciated by the café's owner. She also was raised in a situation that made her expect the worst for her at every turn. So when ultra confident Madison buys the café, Clementine can't help but believe that it was because she isn't good enough to own the business. Madison is one of those ultra confident people that seems to have it all, but she has problems expressing herself. Its not that she can't do it, but because feelings come from an area of the unquantifiable, Madison just doesn't like to say it without double checking and rechecking. So when these two women finally start getting on the same page, it becomes a love story for the ages.

That said, I do wish that we got to see a little more of Madison's struggles with emoting to help balance out Clementine's perpetual battle with her perception of her own self worth. Because while Madison has no problem expressing her feelings in her actions, like deferring to Clem's expertise in the business, listening to her worries about her father, trying to protect her from any emotional fallout, and being physically present for Clem, Madison still couldn't spit out what she was feeling. So when she finally realizes that's what Clem needed the most, her attempts to do so were adorable and very sweet. But I just wish we could get a little more build up to that.

Overall, I loved this series and enjoyed all three of the ladies of Tangle Valley and their eventual Significant Others. The town was a character on its own, and the side characters were delightful. I had a massive problem with the resident gossips -four retired ladies named the Biddies - who, in the last book felt pretty cruel, but they got their sweet send off here, too. If you love Brayden's work, this will be right up your alley, but I would suggest for new readers to her to check out Entangled, to help get you up to speed on some of the smaller plots that are tied up in this last book. It will also help get a reading on the bond Gabriella, Madison, and Jessie share that adds an extra layer to all the books in the series, but especially in this one.

*I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.

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When Madison is advised to invest some of her money, she buys a cafe in town much to the dismay of the current manager Clementine, who had her eye on purchasing the place as well. Clementine once harboured a crush on Madison in high school, but that is forgotten when she lets Madison know her displeasure at the current situation. As the two women are thrown into each other's orbit, they can't deny the chemistry. But is there a place for their relationship when it starts in betrayal?

Gosh I am sad to see the end of this series, and what a way to end it. I think this may be my favourite of the three, the chemistry was just off the charts in this one. Both characters were very interesting on their own. I loved getting to know Madison especially on a deeper level in this book after only getting to know her from the POV of her friends. Clementine as well we've only seen her in the background, so I liked getting to know her better, she was really interesting and a really lovely character. Their love story was very natural and it was beautiful the way they really grew together throughout the story, with Madison learning to share her feelings and Clementine not feeling so insecure with Madison's support and love. And did I mention the chemistry? Wow. As always, looking forward to what comes next.

I received an ARC vi NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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What a Tangled Web is the third book in the Tangle Valley trio.
In my opinion, Melissa Brayden always delivers on lesbian romance, and this book was no exception.

I love the back and forth that Melissa provides between the two love interest in this story, and how we get to alternate between POVs.

I appreciate that I can always look forward to a great story from Melissa, and this one gave me all the feels! :) I gave it four stars because it was a solid read!

I received this ARC from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books, Inc. in exchange for my honest review.

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What an enjoyable series with three fantastic women. The final book in the series features Madison LeGrange, talented winemaker, logical thinker, and appears content with her life. Clementine Monroe, Bacon and Biscuit Cafe manager, struggles with self-esteem related to her messed up family, and kinda looking for someone to be her special someone. What makes this read so interesting is the interaction among the three friends and their supportive network: Frankie, Jun, Brenda Ann, Loretta, Bobby, and of course the Biddies. The Tangle Valley Vineyard along with the town provide a charming backdrop to a wonderful story of wine, food, friendship, family and love.

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ARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is the third in the Tangled Valley series, and is probably my favourite. I enjoyed book 1, thought book 2 had a few issues, but this one is mostly a very sweet, cute romance with lots of ‘feels’.

The main issue I had with book 2 was the weird character assassination of Madison’s character, everything she did in book 2 seemed out of character from book 1, and she was quite unlikable, which made me worry about this book. No fear though, Madison is back to her lovely self here.

The other MC is Clementine, who featured as a minor town character in the other books. She works at ‘The Biscuit’, a cafe in town. She’s worked their for years and has always wanted to buy it, but when it comes up for sale, Madison beats her to the punch, not knowing how much Clementine wanted it. Clem’s also dealing with the unexpected appearance of her father.

Clem has also always had a thing for Madison, but she was from the wrong side of town, so never felt worthy. She’s also ticked at being beaten to the punch for the cafe and doesn’t mind showing it. Madison is such a sweetie though that Clem can’t help but get past it and the two embark on their relationship. The whole thing is going along swimmingly, with lots of Braydenesque banter, but then the other shoe then drops. I admit I saw thi ‘drama’ coming from miles away, but did appreciate that it felt fairly organic, and I liked how Madison handled it.

I probably liked Madison a bit more than Clem, and Clem’s ‘I’m not worthy’ stuff was just as repetitive as Ryan’s in book 2. I did like how one of the biddies helped with this though, and how they were in general in this book, they were annoying in the other books. We also spend ample time with the other two couples, lots of movie nights and dinners, etc, which felt more like book 1 and was missing in book 2.

I also liked that the epilogue tied everything up nicely. It’s sad that this is the last we’ll see of Tangled Valley, but this was a nice way to end the series. 4 stars

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The Tange Valley series returns this time with Madison's story. Any Melissa Brayden is a must-read in my opinion. I know it's going to be good.

When Madison buys the Biscuit Cafe she unwittingly steals Clementine's dream. The two of them must learn to work together. Slowly they start to really get to know each other, Madison even needing her friends to tell her what's right in front of her.
Meanwhile, Clementine must deal with her father showing up after disappearing years ago. Triggering her unsecurities.

I really felt for Clementine and kept hoping with her. I kept reading to find out what would happen.

Another excellent book by Brayden.

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It was lovely to return to Tangle Valley for Madison’s story. I enjoyed this just as much as the previous two instalments, but in a very different way. This instalment felt quieter than the previous two books in the series, perhaps because the characters themselves are quieter than the previous couples, but perhaps also because it was written during the pandemic.

Madison is the head vintner at Tangle Valley. she’s the only single one amongst her group of friends, but isn’t particularly looking for love. Madison is more concerned with her grapes, the wine, data, logic and the opportunity to use her savings for a worthwhile local investment.

Clementine is the manager at the Biscuit, known throughout the town for her cooking and her pleasant ways behind the counter. An avid book lover she’s constantly aware of her past in the town, for the most part keeping herself to herself outside of work.

I really enjoyed the premise of the plot in this one. I could easily see this happening in real life and felt it fitted with both characters really well. I really liked both of them, I’ve enjoyed Madison in past books, some of her previous behaviour in Two to Tangle aside, but it was really nice getting to know Clementine more. I also liked that Madison doesn’t shy away from her actions in Two to Tangle.

I was a little disappointed with the conflict, in that it involves lack of communication, however it doesn’t stem from miscommunication, rather from outside influences and whilst I felt that I could have predicted them much earlier in the book, the conflict felt like something that would have happened between these characters. I also appreciated that it came much earlier than the often found 90% conflict point and therefore Madison and Clementine had time to grow both individually and back together in an organic way that was very much in keeping with the rest of the book.

The additional storyline background story about Clementine was done really well and I also liked the way the Biddies were depicted in this compared to Two to Tangle.

As with most books that include animals, I have to give Clementine’s cat Toast a mention. I love the idea of him running around the kitchen chasing oranges!

I’m sad this series is coming to an end but I’m looking forward to seeing what Brayden has coming up next as she’s become one of my favourite authors. If you liked the other two books in this series you’ll enjoy this one, and if you haven’t read any of the series yet I’d recommend starting at Tangled.

I received an e-ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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The ARC of this books was provided by the publishers via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
When I went into this book, I didn’t know it was the third and final book of a series. This however didn’t ruin the book for me as it can be read standalone.
What a Tangled Web follows Madison LeGrange, a winemaker at the Tangle Valley Vineyard. Madison buys her favourite café. Unfortunately for Clementine, the manager of the café, who had plans to also buy it over. The novel follows the two women as they learn to work together and fall in love.
I really enjoyed the beginning and middle of this book. I would have liked more tension between Madison and Clementine over the ownership of the biscuit, I just thought it was resolved very quickly but I loved the chemistry between the two love interests.
I lost interest around the end of the book; I felt the tension of the story was lost and I found it difficult to finish.
Overall, I rate this book 3/5 stars. Enjoyable and I think I will go back and read the first 2 books of the series to understand the characters better!

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