This was my first read ever by Nisha J. Tuli, and it did not disappoint! Not Safe for Work is a super cute, fast paced, and slow burn workplace romance that highlights the challenges women—especially women of color—face in male dominated industries. With sharp banter, forced proximity, and undeniable chemistry, this book delivered an entertaining read with some important themes woven throughout.

The STEM representation was perfect. A workplace romance set in an engineering firm? YES. Tris, a South Asian FMC, is a talented environmental engineer who has had to work twice as hard for half the recognition in her company, WMC Purcell. I loved how Tuli addressed the sexism, nepotism, and racial microaggressions that exist in STEM fields. It was frustratingly real, but necessary to see in romance. The author’s note at the beginning mentioning her personal experiences in engineering made this aspect even more impactful.

If you love your romance tropes, Not Safe for Work has plenty:
✔️ Rivals to lovers
✔️ Forced proximity (only one bed/only one pillow!)
✔️ Workplace romance
✔️ Only one honeymoon suite (in Hawaii!)
✔️ Banter and angst
✔️ Chronic pain rep (Tris struggles with migraines)

I loved Tris. She’s sharp, ambitious, and isn’t afraid to call out crap when she sees it. She’s been repeatedly overlooked for promotions while her male colleagues (particularly her boss’s son, Rafe) rise up the corporate ladder with minimal effort. Her frustration, exhaustion, and ultimate determination felt incredibly real, and I was cheering for her every step of the way. Also, her ability to serve up a well timed snarky comeback? Perfection.

Tris and Rafe have been professional rivals for years, but the tension shifts when they end up stuck together at a corporate retreat in Hawaii. Their back and forth banter was so much fun, and the slow burn buildup made the eventual payoff feel earned. Rafe being protective of Tris, especially when other men at the retreat got too handsy, was a highlight. And yes, the spice takes its sweet time to arrive, but when it does… 🔥

Rafe needed more depth though. While I liked Rafe, I felt like his character could have been fleshed out more. He’s obviously smart (he’s an engineer), he’s protective, and he’s got some family baggage, but I wanted to really get to know him outside of his workplace struggles and his drama with his dad. His character arc seemed to revolve around proving himself to Tris and escaping his father’s shadow, but I needed more insight into who he was beyond that. I think having his POV would have helped with this, but we did not have that.

The pacing and development was a little off. The slow burn was slow, and while I generally enjoy that, I think the story could have benefitted from a bit more development in the second half. The resolution felt a little rushed, and I wanted to see more of Tris and Rafe together outside of their work drama.

Overall, Not Safe for Work is a solid debut in the rom com genre from Nisha J. Tuli! It’s a fun, trope filled workplace romance with smart commentary on gender and racial disparities in STEM. While I would have loved more depth to Rafe’s character, I enjoyed the slow burn tension, witty banter, and the ultimate resolution for Tris’s career arc. If you love a good workplace rivals to lovers story with plenty of angst and forced proximity, this is worth the read!

There’s a sneaky reference to Tuli’s Artefacts of Ouranos series! If you’ve read her fantasy books, you’ll catch it but if not, it won’t impact your enjoyment of the story.

Trigger Warnings: Sexism, racism (including racial microaggressions), nonconsensual touching, past revenge porn incident, blackmail.

Would I read more from Nisha J. Tuli? Absolutely! Looking forward to seeing what she does next in this genre.

Thank you to NetGalley, Nisha J. Tuli, and Forever for the eARC of this book.