Single Sundays: Company Ink by Kat Colburn

Single Sundays: While this blog may be focused on reviewing book series as a whole, we can’t forget about the good ole’ standalone novel! On Sundays, I will review a novel that is considered to be a standalone novel. Here is this week’s offering:

Synopsis for Company Ink (from Goodreads):

The Company has a rule about falling in love on the job.

I’ve never been one for rules. But I need this one. I need this rule to remind me why I can’t be with Dani Wallace.

I need this smart little foul-mouthed fighter by my side more than I need her in my bed. I need her to close this massive deal. She thinks it holds the key to her escape from cubicle hell and another shot at the life she always wanted.

But there is more riding on our success than she can possibly ever know. So I’ll keep my hands to myself and my secrets safe for one more day.

But now I can’t stop wondering what my best friend has on beneath her conservative suit. I can’t stop imagining the things that sharp mouth of hers could do to me if I leaned back in my chair and unzipped my pants. And I can’t stop pushing our flirting too far.

I’m trying to remember the rule. But some rules are made to be broken.

Author: Kat Colburn
Genre: Adult, Contemporary, Romance, Suspense
Heat Rating: Toasty
Point of View: First Person, Alternating
Publication Date: December 2017
Source & Format: Author–eARC | Thank you Kat Colburn!

Why I Picked it Up / My Expectations:

When Kat asked me to read her debut office romance novel I was excited to see what it was all about. I love a good office romance novel thanks to the delicious sexual tension that often accompanies them. And this one was billed as a “slow burn” which has been one of my favourite tropes of late.

The Concept:

I have to say that the synopsis is slightly misleading. For one thing, it made me think that we were going to get Dan’s POV for a majority of the book since the synopsis is told in his voice. And while Dan does have a POV, it is a while before we actually get to it.

It’s also billed as a “friends-to-lovers” romance but it should be “strangers-to-friends-to-lovers” romance as these two don’t know each other at the start. I went in thinking these two had been friends for a while and only know the tension was becoming too much for them to handle but that isn’t the case. And the slow burn (ie watching them become friends and then into more) romance we get is nice to see but not necessarily what I was expecting when I picked up the book.

The Plot:

This story suffers a bit from its pacing. It takes a long time for these two to become friends and during that time we get more details about the business than I would have preferred. Points of it felt repetitive too. It made the first half of the book seem terribly slow and I was starting to lose interest. You could have easily cut out some scenes and still delivered the story successfully.

The second half picks up though when the two start to almost cross the line romantically and the suspense aspect of the plot picks up. The drama that comes from the suspense plot was a nice touch and gave this story a refreshing spin to it.

The Characters:

I had a weird relationship with Dani as a lead. Sometimes I appreciated her almost cynical views on life but other times she came across as rude and that irked me. I did understand her character’s background though as she is rather open in that respect. But then I would be confused about some of her thoughts and actions because of things she would say earlier but do/think the opposite of later. (Like with respect to her career).

Dan was an interesting lead as well. He’s got an aura of mystery around him which is always fun to read about in a lead. Of course, keeping those secrets got a little irritating but it did add to the suspense of the novel.

The Romance:

I found that this was a lot more telling than showing. You get told that they spend all this time together yet you rarely see them interact in those moments. So the chemistry was something that took awhile to be readily apparent to me.

I will say, I did enjoy the slow burn aspect. It was perhaps slower than I anticipated but in the second half of the novel I felt like the romance really benefited from that approach. I always like to see the emotional connections between characters and there was no doubt in my mind what great partners these two were for each other in all aspects.

My Rating: 2.5/5

I think those looking for a heated office romance will not find that here. But those looking for a story that takes its time building up will enjoy this debut.

Read if You Like: slow burn, office romance
Avoid if You: want erotica