She Reads, She Reacts

Let me say this first: Losin Control is not a soft read, it’s messy, emotional, and will have you side-eyeing everybody involved. This is for readers who love urban fiction that leans into chaos, real feelings, and men who completely lose their composure the moment emotions get involved. Toxic with a touch of tenderness? Yeah… this book lives right there.

Marley is introduced at her lowest, grieving both her childhood love and her unborn child. After surviving a suicide attempt and carrying a lifetime of trauma, she doesn’t come back stronger, she comes back numb. She clings to anything that connects her to what she lost, shutting herself off in a way that honestly felt a little too real at times.

Czar, on the other hand, carries his trauma differently. Where Marley shuts down, he masks everything with control and that “don’t play with me” energy. But let’s be real, there’s nothing that hides pain louder than someone daring the world to test them. Under all that is a man who learned survival way too young, and it shows in how he moves, loves, and reacts.

Between Marley’s complicated ties to her past and the people still connected to it, and Czar’s circle that clearly plays a role in how he moves, the side characters don’t just exist, they influence everything.

Now Marley? She frustrated me more than once, especially when her past came knocking. But if I’m being honest, I saw myself in her. That urge to revisit what could’ve been instead of accepting what is. And like I kept reminding myself while reading, sometimes the past comes back just to prove why it needs to stay there.

Czar also had me ready to pack him up and ship him straight to Mars. Rejection is one thing, but knowing when to fall back versus when to push forward? Yeah… he struggled there. Still, I can’t lie, I appreciated that when it mattered, he showed up. Even if it took him a little longer than it should’ve, like most men… no shade, just truth.

I won’t spoil anything, but just know Ladii Nesha did not come to play. The twists? Unexpected. The emotions? All over the place. This book had me hooked, frustrated, and low-key stressed in the best way possible from beginning to end.

And I say this every time I read a good book, but Losin Control is easily in my top three reads of 2026. It’s intense, emotional, a little funny when you least expect it, and definitely one that stays with you after you finish.

Luckily for us, Ladii Nesha didn’t leave us hanging, there’s a novella that follows, and I’ll be back with a glimpse and a quick review of Losin Control: Half on a Baby or Two.

Read ya next time, girlies!

character profiles

Marley

• Emotionally guarded
• Deeply loyal
• Still healing, never pretends to be over what broke her

Key Connections: Benny, Harper, Pam

Czar

• Surface level control
• Reactive underneath
• Loves hard, learning how to show it, specifically when it comes to women

Key Connections: Ada, Cain, Tati, Honey