I was hooked early with this one; layered characters with honest voices, a mysterious backstory and some truly heartbreaking moments (I'll admit a having a teary on a peak hour train). I thought this book explored some interesting themes about connection and relationships and the way our histories shape that experience for us. It was admittedly a little dark, but realistically so and definitely not in a cringey 'damaged but sexy hero' way.

I'm really loving this author. Great easy reading, captivating story line. I was intrigued the whole time. A new fave author to watch

Clara is a therapist by day and a stripper by night. She makes good money by stripping but that's not really why she continues to dance. She gets a high off knowing that her clients are attracted to her, want her. Yeah she's got issues, what good therapist doesn't? Then one night at the club she meets a client whom she's inordinately attracted to. When she sees him while out with a friend, it sparks a hot journey between the two.

Lucas may not be exactly on the up and up, though, and there are letters written to Clara that scream of a stalker. Who is this letter-writer in relation to Clara and how does he fit in with the rest of the story? Does he fit in with Lucas?

I found Close to be interesting and pretty steamy. I like the suspense of trying to determined who the letter writer is. And I thought Lucas and Clara's chemistry seriously sexy. I can't say I particularly liked Clara or her obvious issues, but I did find myself liking Lucas for the most part. My actual rating is 3.5 stars rounded down mostly because I didn't really connect to Clara. But still, Close is well-written and suspenseful so 3.5 stars seems fair.

DNF 10%

I just couldn't get into this book; I felt no connection to Clara at all and didn't find her character believable. Psychologist by day and stripper by night, but they were as if they were two different people. She went on and on about how much she enjoys the power associated with being a stripper and how that job is more fulfilling than her daytime job. The book was too focused on her and her dancing without a plot being developed.

A woman who strips to pay for her degree doesn’t want to quit the job when she’s graduated and working as a therapist, for several psychological reasons as well as money. That old saying about counselors receiving counseling to know what it’s like doesn’t apply here, as she seems to have more problems than her patients. The biggest of those hang-ups is a fear of love, which she mentally discusses over and over, but it also turns out she as well as her fellow therapist had an eating disorder.
On the other gender side is a guy who appears to be simply smitten by her, but the truth is much more sinister. She’s right to wonder why he’s so hot for her, even if it’s not what she thinks.
At first it’s confusing as to why there’s an occasional chapter written by another guy; it took me a while to realize it was someone else. That guy’s a real downer, even beyond how closed off the primary two are. At least at the end it all makes sense, a good job of tying it all together. But seriously, these people are so damaged they induce sadness, even pity, much more than any rooting for their sputtering romance. Even if they end up happily ever after, it’s not enough to overcome this.
I’ve complained about how introspective some of these books are, but I can forgive it this time because she’s a therapist. On the other hand, despite it being a relatively short book full of that, I still grew annoyed at how often they got together and then he huffed out. I liked the writing more than the structure; don’t want to say plot, because it’s actually an intriguing premise, but the repetition made it difficult to stay invested.

Close was an interesting combination of a romance novel and a psychological character study. The two leads are both dealing with past pain and neither communicates well.
Clara is a therapist by day and an exotic dancer by night. There she meets Lucas who despite being at a strip club, intrigues her. He’s actually there to follow her. Oh my! What follows is good; a little slower and tamed than I expected but the psychological study is a welcome change to other romance novels.
I’d recommend giving this a chance-Ms. Wilde knows what she is writing about and does it well.

First story I've read by Fen Wilde and I am impressed. It was an interesting and unique book. Stripper book, at first I was like I don't know about this but the more I read the more I kept reading. I liked Clara for the most part and I really liked Lucas. Kind of a mismatched pair. Overall good writing.

I liked this read, it really draws you in with the suspense and intrigue. The story held by interest throughout, Clara and Lucas were great character with lots of depth and steamy chemistry. I was hooked from beginning to end with all of the twists and turn. A good read.

A story that takes you from the first pages. Clare is magnetic, a psychologist who does the strip at night is really intriguing. He, Lucas is a man full of mystery and secrets. But there is also a disturbing character who looks like a stalker and who seems to be attracted in a wrong way by Claire.
A sexy writing, flowing for a story that keeps you on your toes. I love it!
Highly recommended!

Yeah ! This just didn't work for me. It started pretty interesting. We get to meet Clara who works as a psychologist at day and stripper at night. Intriguing eh ?

So, we see that she really enjoys all the attention, the power she has over the men-folk fawning all over her when she gives them lap dances. Enter Lucas. He's being a little secretive. He's been eyeing her all this time and when she asks him if he would be interested in a lap dance, he accepts. Right! So, now Zefy aka Clara is giving Lucas a lap dance of his lifetime and?? She's hot and horny.. not that he isn't. But apparently there's something about him that makes her crazy. Yah, I didn't feel this part. And guess what.. soon they are in a somewhat relationship (which obviously means she's fallen in love) !! And when it doesn't work out, to keep emotions out of her relations she chooses a sugar daddy..

What Really ?? Can she even be a psychologist ?? She has unresolved issues !!

In the middle of all this, we get to read some guy called Aaron's depressing notes, about how he is obsessed with Dr.Black, how lonely he is and how there is nothing more in life for him. While reading the notes, you get a sense that the man is on the edge of suicide. I had initially thought this would be an amazing twist to the plot. But it ended on such a flat note.

I mean, I understand why Clara wanted to be in control and wanted all the attention, but I didn't like how the story proceeded. I didn't like that Clara gets often attracted to her night job clients, which she vehemently denies. Don't take me wrong, I have tried to be considerate of Clara's dark inevitable side, but something between Lucas and Clara didn't seem right to me. Even their love scenes seemed very unemotional to me. But maybe that's just me. But I didn't feel their chemistry.

So, the plot in this book was pretty good, but there was no synergy or chemistry between the characters. They were all marred by lies and omissions, and even if I accept this to be a part of the story, everything seemed to be happy happy in the end. I didn't see these people working or getting a closure on their issues. Somehow, it felt very rushed and incomplete.

Every book has a purpose, to affect the readers to bring out emotions. And this one didn't do that for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Kaleido Text Media for generously providing me the ARC in exchange of my honest review.

This is the first book by this author that I've read. This is a very compelling and gripping story. This is a dark, twisted, romantic, suspenseful read, which will keep you hooked till the last page. The characters have amazing chemistry between them. I can't wait to read from this intriguing author in the future.
Highly recommended
I voluntarily reviewed an advance reader copy of this book

Clara Black isn’t looking for love.Working by day as a therapist and by night as an exotic dancer, her guarded heart is thrown into confusion by the magnetic stranger who keeps showing up in unexpected places.Lucas Evans is everything she doesn’t trust. Oozing confidence and sex appeal, he leaves women scattered in his wake. Clara is determined to resist him.When I started reading I couldn't put it down I read the book i couldn't put it down.Fen is magnifysent writer.I cannot wait to read more of het books.Keep up the great work.