ARC Review: Want You by Jen Frederick

I have been a fan of Jen’s for a long time, and Want You appealed to me right away with it’s forbidden storyline. I am a huge fan of forbidden romance stories, so this one sounded like it was made for me. After finishing though, I had to take a few days to really let it sink in and gather my thoughts. While there were things I liked here, this didn’t have the same feel as Jen’s past books that I have read and it wasn’t just the darker aspect of this story. Readers should be aware going in that this book could have some possible triggers and proceed accordingly. 

Leka and Bitsy met when he found her in an alley hiding. She was 5 and he was 12. Feeling a connection with her right away and being unable to leave her behind, Leka took her in and vowed to protect and care for her. But as they grew up together things began to change for both of them. Leka will do whatever it takes to protect her, even if that means sending her away. But Bitsy isn’t about to give up on a future with Leka, and is determined to show him that they belong together. 

I liked both Bitsy and Leka. These two did fit together and I didn’t have trouble believing in their connection. It was clear right away that after everything that they had been through that they needed each other. While I didn’t struggle with the characters themselves, I did struggle with their ages and how things went. I found a lot of what they were doing and getting away with to be unbelievable for their ages. Because of that it was hard for me to be fully invested in their story though I liked them. 

I also found that there wasn’t much conflict here and it was easily resolved. It also didn’t seem to be entirely believable for me considering the world and darkness that Leka operated in. Things were supposed to be on the forbidden side, and I see part of that, though for me it wasn’t truly forbidden and felt a bit forced. They were only 7 years apart, weren’t related in any way, and while they did find each other at a young age it was more that they belonged together and fit rather than being a case of Leka raising her or anything like that. So while I liked the characters and the ending of their story, I wasn’t fully invested and didn’t feel like their journey was a believable one. I am curious to see if there will be more in this world after reading the epilogue and I am definitely interested in reading it if there is. While this wasn’t my favorite of Jen’s books, I liked the characters and I do think it is worth the read.

**ARC Provided by Bocci PR**

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