Review: Losing Control by Jen Frederick (Kerr Chronicles #1)


Note: This ARC was provided by Montlake Romance via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

They were two strangers who bumped into each other on the street only to meet once again when she shows up on his front doorstep with a special delivery, not knowing that she's what's being delivered. But billionaire businessman Ian Kerr is hesitant to see bike messenger Victoria Corielli as nothing more than a delivery. He's been fascinated with her since he first laid eyes on her and each new encounter with her brings new revelations about her personality--she's beautiful, feisty, fiercely independent, and would do anything for her ailing mother. But even he has to admit that she's perfect for a role he wants her to play...if only they can both stop themselves from losing control of the situation and keep their hearts safe.

Losing Control is the first book in the Kerr Chronicles series from bestselling author Jen Frederick and was originally released in June 2014, while this new edition has been expanded and includes editorial revisions. This was so much more than I was expecting, it being above and beyond the tried and tasted (and sometimes tiresome) tale of the wealthy alpha male and the somewhat innocent female by giving it a creatively fresh plot and out-of-the-box characters. Your attention is captured from the beginning and it's difficult to turn away from everything that happens to and between Victoria "Tiny" Corielli and Ian Kerr. There's a lot of romance and sex, plus a dash of suspense on top of a bit of drama and just enough humor.

It's easy to look at Tiny and Ian and focus on all their differences, the most glaring of all being their financial statuses--he makes more money in a day than possibly a third world country in a number of weeks and she's struggling to make ends meet for herself and her mother whose cancer has returned. But as their love story progresses, you see that they're able to open each other's eyes to whatever it is they've been missing prior to them crossing paths. Ian is protective and caring, not just of Tiny but of Tiny's mother as well, and he doesn't see his spending as buying Tiny's affections or attention but merely a means to an end, that end being the ability to give Tiny and her mother a more comfortable way of living.

I loved that Tiny wasn't this mousy slip of a girl who would bat her eyelashes in innocence at everything Ian did or said. She certainly wasn't afraid to speak her mind or to put Ian in his place. And yet, reading as their relationship evolved and progressed, you could see why these two fell in love with each other in the first place. Their conversations were always entertaining--sometimes sweet, sometimes snarky, but always a way for them to check in and see how the other was doing or to simply get to know each other better. Stories like this can become sickeningly sweet or too focused on the whole alpha male thing with an almost "me Tarzan; you Jane" feel to it. There's felt like a real relationship, complete with all the ups and downs.

Aside from the love story, there's also a story of revenge, one that Ian has been coming up with for quite some time and Tiny is to play an important part in it. This particular aspect of the story is not fully resolved in this first book. In short, you're going to be left with questions that'll need to be answered, but then both books were re-released at the same time, so there's no need to wait impatiently to get the resolution that you'll find yourself waiting for at the end of book one. With a story and characters like these, I had no problem putting in the time reading both books back-to-back. I enjoyed getting to know Tiny and Ian and watching the early stages of their relationship in Losing Control. I'm giving this 4.5 stars. ♥

Release Date: 04 August 2015

Date Read: 20 August 2015

Learn more about Jen Frederick here.

Purchase Losing Control on Amazon.

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