Reviewed by Amber

TITLE: Losing Control

SERIES: Broken Pieces #3

AUTHOR: Riley Hart

PUBLISHER: Self Pub

LENGTH: 195 pages

BLURB:

On the surface, Ben seems to have it all: money, influence, good looks. He smiles and jokes in all the right places, but it’s all a façade. Inside he’s a wreck, and it’s only getting worse. With his Congressman father using Ben’s recent kidnapping for his own political agenda, and Ben still struggling to get over the only guy he’s ever loved, he feels like he’s losing his grip on reality and he’s quickly spiraling out of control.

Then he meets Dante, an enigma of a man with as much self-hatred as Ben has. In Dante, Ben finds what he didn’t know he needed: Dante’s control, his power, is the only thing that clears the fog in Ben’s brain. For the first time in his life, Ben has a lover who just might need Ben as much as Ben needs him. When they’re together, the demons from their pasts don’t lurk so heavily on their shoulders.

But Dante can’t fix him. Not when a memory from Ben’s past is haunting him in ways he doesn’t understand, waiting for him to put together the missing pieces in his head…and what he discovers just might have the power to break him for good.

REVIEW:

I have been waiting for what feels like FOREVER for Ben’s story. I knew a couple things going into this story. I knew I’ve pretty much loved all of the books I’ve read by Riley Hart, so I figured I’d love this one. I knew I was incredibly intrigued and interested in Ben so the anticipation for his story was comparable to torture. What I didn’t know or anticipate was just how much I’d love this story. I’ve thought about all of her books and I definitely think this story has surpassed all the rest. This book was simply amazing. I honestly couldn’t put it down. It was so painful and so beautiful, gut wrenchingly beautiful.

Ben is a tortured soul. For such an unbelievably successful defense attorney who seems to have it put together, he is always on the verge of losing it. His grip on his anger is slipping more and more out of his control and he doesn’t know how to stop it. After his kidnapping he’s starting to have a lot of flashbacks from his childhood, especially involving his sister, Bonnie. It’s making him slip farther and farther away and he’s slowly losing control.

In the past when things have gotten bad mentally for Ben, he’s noticed that rough kinky sex has alleviated some of the tension. So he frequents BDSM clubs trying to find his release, but what happens suddenly on one of his outings causes him more distress. He’s not getting turned on anymore. His ability to feel desire, lust, and passion are muted and he is at a loss to fix it. One night he’s out trying to find a spark when he notices a Dom tying up another man. He realizes quickly he’s seen this man before and knows him from an earlier interaction. He’s interested, intrigued and pulled towards this person just from his look alone.

Dante has his own battle scars he deals with. When he sees Ben in the club he wants him, is attracted to him, but he sees in Ben the same thing he sees in the mirror, hopelessness and self hate.  But Dante can’t help but react to Ben and try to help him as much as he can. They find solace with each other but it’s never enough.

Ben has found a reprieve in Dante but he still battles demons from his family and especially from his extremely popular politician father. Without giving too much away things spiral out of control and horrific secrets are revealed.  All the while, Ben suffers and his tentative relationship with Dante deteriorates.

This story left me speechless and breathless. I was horrified and happy all within a couple of chapters. The calm Dante exudes to calm Ben is mesmerizing. Dante was such a silent force in this book. The way Ben actively gave in to Dante’s authority was unbelievably fascinating. I truly wholeheartedly loved everything about these two men together.

This author writes such flawed and fascinating characters. I love the pain she creates. I’m almost conditioned to it. I know she’ll make me bleed and work but in the end, all the pain, blood, sweat, and torment will be worth it. She writes the perfect balance of dream, nightmare, and happily ever after. What more could any reader ever want??

RATING: 

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