With a stop and go writing style that bluntly switched back and forth between leads, this was lacking any semblance of emotion. The heroine was uber snobby with some redemption towards the end and the hero was obsessed with his job only to have a sudden and lacking any emotional depth change of heart.
There was an Irish mob side arc that could have been interesting but again, wasn't invested in enough to have the reader care.
Never felt any chemistry between the leads and their I love yous came super quick and out of nowhere.
Very dry and lacking emotion :(

More comments/quotes - Buddy Read With a Twistcontemporary series17 s Isabella - SnooRegrets488 109

1.5 stars - buddy read with WhiskeyintheJar/Kyraryker from Romance Book Buddy reading

I was contemplating giving one or two stars, but I simply had so LITTLE fun while reading this book, I couldn't stomach to give more than one. Which was a shame, because DUH an Irish pub, the irish mob, flawed characters, friends-to-lovers. A lot of potential don't you think? Nah. Nope. No-No. NON! As Natalie would say.

From page one on I had my problems with ... lets be honest; everything. I hated the characters. I didn't the writing style. The plot was either non existent or just felt so non-existent that I couldn't give a shit at all. About anything.
I it when characters have flaws, character traits that mayhaps even offend some people - but for every bad trait there has to be something for me to or else the characters simply isn‘t well balanced enough. Especially the h, who could have been a really interesting character given her backstory - but as everyone around her is saying all the time, she is first and foremost stuck up, snobby and incredible judgmental. The whole book is incredible judgemental so far ro be honest.
She‘s got nothing going but a pretty face, because seriously the so called „feisty“ retorts the H claims she is giving are basically lukewarm.

But it isn‘t only her, I don‘t the Hero either. But what bugged me the most was how they interacted, this was not witty, funny, strong-willed banter - it felt just off, there was no chemistry, no connection between the two.And while she gets a little development to the better throughout the books - although to little for my taste - he keeps getting worse and worse and at the end, I don't think he was redeemable to me - although he didn't really do anything terrible in that way.

Then there is the writing style, which I just can't warm up to. The things I don't just added up and get more and more and that is why it was hard to enjoy this book in the least.

There was no groveling, weird OM interactions, a seriously lacking plot, no suspense, where there should have been, unable characters, bad writing and no emotions at all throughout the book. I didn't care for nothing - besides that it soon would be over.
Not picking up a book by this author again.big-nope contemporary ebook-collection-kindle ...more11 s Julie (jjmachshev)1,069 286

"With a Twist" by Deirdre Martin was a book I really, really wanted to . Unfortunately for me, the heroine got on my nerves from her first appearance and everything she said and did just GRATED for me. At the halfway point, I gave up. I just couldn't deal with the heroine's attitude anymore and so I quit. Plenty of other readers have enjoyed this book so I to think this was just a wrong person, wrong book situation.

Quinn is an Irish New-Yorker newspaper reporter...the best reporter in New York, just ask him! Natalie is a French emigre who fled her homeland after a bad situation/relationship. She's currently lowered herself to work in her sister's bistro, but what she really wants is to manage a 'real' restaurant...even though she has no experience. She agrees to work for Quinn's parents at their Irish bar in Manhattan but only so she can look for a 'real' job. She diss Quinn, the bar patrons, the food, and just about everything else. But somehow Quinn keeps managing to snare her attention.

I'm trying very hard not to overstate Natalie's distaste of...pretty much everything and everybody except herself and anything French. From the beginning her attitude, even towards her sister's 'quaint bistro' just lit me up. She believed herself better than pretty much anyone else and constantly put them down, even if in her own head. How could I a heroine that? I couldn't and I didn't. That's why I've rated this book as I have.

If my diss aren't yours, then you may enjoy this book. It has romance, a bit of mystery, and an interesting look at culture clashes. It just wasn't my haute cuisine.

2009-reads5 s Just - The romance reader549 33

I found myself turned off by Natalie's snobbery at times, but she is French right? That's how the writer had the other characters justify her sometimes snide and uppity comments. And I was often irked by Quinn's self-absorption and overall cluelessness of his neglect of Natalie. With that said, I enjoyed With A Twist. Natalie's sister Vivi was a very sweet girl, and I loved how much of a close-knit family Quinn had, along with the regulars at the Wild Hart pub, who were also family.

As the story progressed Natalie and Quinn's issues bugged me less and less because they both became more clued in and down to earth.

I again really enjoyed how Martin has brought back characters from previous stories and interwoven them with new characters. I look forward to experiences more of that!at-library2 s Lisa328 80

This was my first book by Deirdre Martin and I don't think it was the best one to pick. It says this is #2 in the Wild Hart Saga following an anthology story from Double the Pleasure (which I have not read yet) but I thought, oh its just a short story, probably ok to read With a Twist first. On that thought I was right, the couple from their only make a brief apperance. However, Natalie, the heroine, has a sister Vivi who has her own story in Just a Taste, which is part of the Blades series. I really felt I should have read that first as Vivi and her finace are in this book quite a bit.

Overall this was just an ok book for me. Kind of slow moving. I felt it could have been a little shorter and I may have enjoyed it more. Wonderful family connections. I do look forward to reading the Blade series and more books from Martin.1 Anna936 111

Not as bad as Chasing Stanley but nowhere near Fair Play. I realize why I stopped reading this genre of novels. chick-lit fiction read-in-20101 Lisa Levitt214 1 follower

It was okay. It was hard to the characters. Not one of my favorites of hers.read-20091 Maura3,883 99

First off, be aware, that although this is the beginning of a series, it sort of drops you into the middle of an already established universe...presumably the New York Blades. Series. So you've got a whole bunch of other characters with established relationships and backstories that are hinted at (and sometimes explained) and it was kind of irritating not knowing who everyone was. But we have Natalie, a french woman who is looking to get out of her sister's restaurant and into downtown Manhattan where the action is. So she finds a job as a waitress at the Wild Hart, an Irish bar owned by Quinn O'Brien's parents. He's been flirting with Natalie but doesn't at first believe he's good enough for her. But seeing her flirt with a sophisticated guy gets his butt in gear and he asks her out, even though he's swamped with work, his first love. Natalie says convinces herself she's okay being second best, but with Quinn's latest story requiring a lot of his attention and putting him and his brother into danger, she has to reevaluate whether she can stay with the man she loves.

The story itself, with the conflict between Quinn and Natalie, her issues, his issues and his trying to balance work with her wanting to be the most important thing in his life - that's really well told and pretty engaging. The drama of all of that is what kept my interest. But to be honest, I didn't care much for Natalie, who was materialistic, snobby and narrow-minded. She improved a bit towards the end, but it was a struggle to her. I also didn't care much for Quinn who was extremely selfish to the point that he continually makes promises to Natalie that he KNOWS he will not keep, rather than end it. He also claims to be in love with her, but nothing about his behavior actually indicates that. Even there at the end, it's not his love for her that convinces him. He doesn't think that she's the most important thing in his life and he'll give up anything to be with her. He looks at all the middle-age, single, workaholics that he works with and realizes that's his future, so he better snag up Natalie quick. . That doesn't seem a man who realized love is most important. And despite the declarations, the characters don't feel they're in love. Despite a well told story, there's not a lot of love and emotion in their actions and dialogue. There isn't really all that much sexual tension or chemistry in there either. The story would be moving along and then they'd be kissing and getting all sexy and I wasn't anywhere in the mood for it...it felt the sexy times didn't belong there. Maybe because that sort of love and desire hadn't been infused into the regular parts of the story. So then it felt strange to have those scenes there and it also didn't feel very much they were in love. This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full reviewannoying-characters asshole-hero contemporary-romance Jeannie Lopez1,122 13

fun and cute... LaFleurBleue841 37

I really d the NY Blades series and was looking forward to reading this one after having found it at my thriftstore.
I absolutely hated it and spent the whole reading time puffing. The heroine's name, Natalie, is spelled the American way, despite her being described as French through and through - in French, it would be Nathalie. That was line 3 in the book and it already got on my nerves. Then Vivi, her sister (also French) always mixes up the colloquial expression - that could have been quite funny, except when she does it when speaking with Natalie, as if two sisters would speak to each other in a foreign language when nobody's around. And this happened so many times I lost count of it. Then the whole book is spinkled with French words that include for so many of them some mispelling or grammar mistake that I cringed every time. And I could also mention some rude words that Natalie first said to Quinn, in between their tough and aggressive courtship, and then thought again about him at another time, that she could not think of, if she were really in love with the guy, as the word is really strong and would not be used in jest it's supposed to be.
Let's stop with all this and go to the story and characters. I did not care for either of the main characters, that are both unlikable and even rather despicable. Natalie lied through her teeth at each of her job interviews. Quinn behaved as if he's the King both in his job and in his personal life. Both deserved a strong setdown, that they unfortunately did not really get.
paperback romance-contemp Meredith Enos44 8

Usually, I get a random book from the library to read on my bus commute, something that's the book equivalent to Ugly Betty: escapism at its cheesy best. I need that, otherwise I get motion sickness on the ride. With a Twist was this week's book, and it was so bad I felt moved to write a review.

Look, I know these kinds of books are not masterpieces, but they should deliver on the "cheesy best" part: outlandish plot, banter, steamy sex scenes, weird inner logic, high jinks, chemistry, protagonists you , etc. I believe the term is “a literary romp.” This one failed on many fronts, but I’ll only mention one. There is a fine line between teasing banter and harassment, a distinction that eluded the author. Reading several pages of dialogue where the people just seemed irritated with each other made me world weary. Really. And then they start kissing, and it only served to make me more depressed because it became a sort of Sartre, Sisyphus-loving-his-rock kind of statement. Life is meaningless; do not choose for your mate one who inspires great love, or great hate, or great passion, but one who grates on your nerves, but just a little. That kind of thing. Or maybe I just had it on the brain, since the female protagonist is French.

To turn this into a learning moment, the word of the day is “tone.”
Sarah319 28

This is the book that connects the NY Blades series and her O’Brien/Irish series.

OK, to be fair, I usually love Martin’s books. I had been looking forward to getting my hands on a book that I hadn’t read yet. But, unfortunately, this book did not do it for me. I found the characters to be annoying, inconsistent, but more importantly, I didn’t believe the resolution. From my perspective reading this book, it seemed a little the author ran out of steam and just pushed out a novel to tie up loose ends.

I hate writing bad , but I’d say skip this book if you read the novels in this series. I really the NY Blades series, but I haven’t been as impressed with the O’Brien series nearly as much. I don’t know if it’s specifically that I don’t the characters, but I don’t find their stories to be believable. Briana162

This book had a some promise that it just didn't meet up to. The pacing was rather slow which made it hard to really get into. The two main characters Quinn and Natalie were annoying most of the time . Natalie's attitude was kind of grating (she's very much a snob and not really a lovable one either) and Quinn's was okay until it came to the subject of his job and then he was just a jerk who wouldn't compromise. Their romance sprung off of bothering each other but frankly for much of the beginning I questioned whether Natalie was really interested at all. The resolution seemed weak and kind of just thrown together. Overall I wasn't impressed with my first book from this author and it'll probably be a while before I open anything else by her. Jessica Alcazar4,056 562

I'm glad I gave Deirdre Martin another chance after a miserable fail with her NY Blades series because I LOVED this family!
This book actually spins off the Blades series after 'just a Taste' where Quinn is introduced and of course so are Natalie's sister and her HEA lol
I really loved Quinn and his determination, not only to go after his 'story of a lifetime', but also his love, Natalie :] and I wasnt really that put off by Natalie and her somewhat spoiled/snobbish personality. She was what she was and she played it well. And so did Quinn. They were fun to read about separate and together. The family/community atmosphere to the book was very heartwarming and I just enjoyed it. A lot. :]library-traded martin-deirdre Cherry-Ann485 3

My first Deirdre Martin and hopefully not my last. Loved the wit and humour between the characters. Believable story in good ole New Yawk...what a gag. My only complaint would be the character description and the love-making scenes. For one, possibly from TV shows I saw my Irish as wiry so when Frenchie kept talking about broad shoulders I was a bit confused. Then she "got off" so quickly - eew, don't know if that is an endorsement on his skills or as we say "blood close to the skin." LOL. All in all, an enjoyable book, loved the familial feel and importance of same, even found "the regulars" bearable. Not my usual page-turner but I did give up a few chores to complete. A good read. Michele416 35

These characters were introduced to us in the book "Just a Taste"

Natalie Bocuse is a waitress at her sister's French bistro in Brooklyn, yet she dreams of managing a chic restaurant in Manhattan.

Among the regulars is Quinn O'Brian, a reporter known for breaking stories-and hearts. When he offers Natalie a job at his parents' Irish pub in Manhattan, she jumps at the chance to be one step closer to her dream. But Quinn will need the luck of the Irish to charm Natalie and write a happy ending to his own love story. Carolyn806 20

With A Twist: Deirdre Martin

I usually enjoy Deirdre Martin books. But this was one was just okay with me. Started off Fast, and then it just got to slow. Found myself skipping parts also. Natalie was just to much of a snob but she finally comes around and Quinn invests to much of himself in his job but he does have a great family and a good sense of humor. So, even though I her other books this one just didn't grab my attention and I rated it a 3 star for it's OK characters, plot, and chemistry.contemporary-romance Ann Marie168 8

This is the second installment of the Hart series. I am a little sorry I read these out of order but all three stand alone pretty well on their own. Natalie returns from Just a Taste and is looking for a job managing a restaurant. Quinn is a reporter who stumbled upon the story of his career. This two are an unly match but I found myself cheering them on as they each pursue their dreams while trying to avoid each other. Mareli1,034 32

I did 2 in the morning because I couldn't stop reading. How wonderful is this book! I loved her and him so much. And to think I didn't her at the very beginning. She was too spoiled, too brat, too snob, too much a shopaholic for my tastes. And instead she dug a place into my heart. He was easier to love, so driven, so focused on his work. Really a wonderful story. And not to mention his wonderful family. Gotta love Irish people!

Mollie *scoutrmom*938 39

Great plot, OK characters, OK writing. I found myself skimming the love scenes because they were not integral to the advancement of the relationship (not even their first time) and they were not well written. It was as if they'd been added in because some editor said "more sex".

Oh, well, still a pleasant way to spend an evening. Especially because I bought a box of Russell Stover chocolates with nuts.read-in-2012 romance Jess3,117 5

You know, I picked this up on a whim because the author has a series of hockey romances I've been trying to read for what feels forever and I wish I hadn't, because I really just didn't this one at all. There's nothing objectively wrong with it; I'm sure lots of other people do it. But nothing about the couple clicked for me and that's the one thing I can't forgive in a romance novel.2012-all 2012-new library-book ...more Allison87

With a Twist is enjoyable, easy read. Perfect for the beach or time by the pool. There is enough of a plot to keep it interesting. I d Quinn and Natalie and their relationship. Their dialogue and stubbornness was amusing. I read saying they found Natalie annoying. I don't agree. I thought she was written well. If anything, Quinn got on my nerves a little. He was believable though.

My one complaint was that the author was a bit repetitive with her wording for the love scenes. Colleen356 47 Read

"I read some that said this was a ""Must Read"" which makes me question the reviewers or what they saw that I missed. I thought the book was okay. I found the lead character, Natalie, to be a spoiled snob. It was cute at first but wore thin rather quickly. Honestly, I started to understand why Quinn was working so much." Jessica78

I really enjoy Deirdre Martin, but I have to say I d her earlier works much better than her more recent books. Her first three or four were very good. Great characters. Strong character/personality reliability. The last three haven't been as satisfactory in character content. All that aside, I really enjoy Ms. Martin's style of writing and do look forward to her next book. Stormy427 27

I'm okay with this book. It was better than Just a Taste where the arguing was distracting. I sort of expected the gangster part to be a bit more graphic than it was and I actually skipped over the "steamy" scenes, I enjoyed the characters and was more interested in the story moving forward than their time in the bedroom. Sue me.at-the-library contemporary-romance ireland Angie334 4

I really d Natalie and Quinn. Half way through the book I realized that I've read a couple of stories from Ms. Martin and it was nice to see some more about the O'Brien family. I will say however, that I thought it was a little long. It seemed that Quinn and Nat would never get it together. Overall a fun read and I'm excited to read about Liam and his love in the next story. Leya471 7

I'm pleasantly surprised on how much I enjoyed this book.

Both Natalie and Quinn are career orientated, they're banter is hilarious and they're chemistry worked. Not as a steamy as some previous books, but much better than the last, in my opinion. The author also introduced a interesting group of characters and I cannot wait to read more about them.
library-book Tara1,223

I started reading Deirdre Martin because she wrote about hockey players. I read 277 pages into this book and it was such a waste of time. Too long, very predictable and story took way to long to developdidn-t-finish BrandyAuthor 55 books117

This book just wasn't for me. I found that I couldn't get into the story and had a hard time believing the hero and heroine had chemistry.

Maybe another time it would click with me. I don't feel I'll be trying to re-read. Sara605 1 follower

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