Review: Four Seconds to Lose (Ten Tiny Breaths #3) – K.A. Tucker

Posted 14 November, 2013 by Linda @ (un)Conventional Bookworms in Reviews / 9 Comments


Warning: This book includes mature content such as: sexual content, and/or drug and/or alcohol use, and/or violence.
Review: Four Seconds to Lose (Ten Tiny Breaths #3) – K.A. TuckerFour Seconds to Lose by K. A. Tucker
Series: Ten Tiny Breaths #3
Published by Atria Books on 4 November 2013
Genres: Contemporary, New Adult, Romance
Pages: 416
Format: eBook
Source: Kindle Purchase

5 Stars

Owning a strip club isn’t the fantasy most guys expect it to be. With long hours, a staff with enough issues to keep a psych ward in business, and the police regularly on his case, twenty-nine-year-old Cain is starting to second guess his unspoken mission to save the women he employs. And then blond, brown-eyed Charlie Rourke walks through his door, and things get really complicated. Cain abides by a strict “no sleeping with the staff” rule. But being around Charlie challenges Cain’s self-control…and it’s been a long time since any woman has done that.

Twenty-two-year-old Charlie Rourke needs a lot of money, really fast, in order to vanish before it’s too late. Taking her clothes off for men makes her stomach curl but Charlie tells herself that at least she’s putting her acting and dancing skills to good use. And though her fellow dancers seem eager to nab their sexy, sophisticated, and genuinely caring boss, she’s not interested. After all, Charlie Rourke doesn’t really exist—and the girl pretending to be her can't get distracted by romance.

Unfortunately, Charlie soon discovers that developing feelings for Cain is inevitable, and that those feelings may not be unrequited—but losing him when he finds out what she’s involved with will be more painful than any other sentence awaiting her

Four Seconds to Lose is just as emotional as Ten Tiny Breaths and One Tiny Lie! I already loved Cain, but getting to know him better was a true pleasure. I have to admit that Charlie is a really great character as well, she’s the perfect mix of innocent and saucy, and it was great to see how she could unbalance Cain with just a wink. There is a very dark undertone to Four Seconds to Lose, but that is to be expected in this series, right? Nothing is ever easy for the main characters, nor for their friends. There are several sightings of characters you have met before if you are familiar with this series, Storm, Dan, Ginger, China… And they continue to be fleshed out even if they aren’t the main characters this time either.

I am in awe of the storytelling, the way the characters grow and how complicated both their lives are! Charlie is forced to do something illegal, and it’s the main reason why she’s even in Miami. Lucky for her, she meets Ginger, who helps her get a job at Penny’s. Cain is so stunned when he meets her the first time, because she truly reminds him of the Penny he named his club after – the one woman he couldn’t save, and who keeps him trying to save those who enter his club now, in dire need of both money and some self-esteem.

Both Charlie and Cain have some very deeply buried, dark secrets, and both realize that it would take very little to break the fragile bond they seem to have. Four Seconds to Lose is about the time it takes for someone to form an opinion about someone else, the time it could take to lose someone special, and how fast things truly change if you really think about it. As they get to know each other better – after weeks of teasing and enticing each other – Cain comes clean about most of his past fairly easily, and though Charlie would love to reciprocate, she doesn’t dare to. She’s afraid of two things, firstly, that Cain will think she’s scum and won’t ever talk to her, let alone touch her again, and secondly that he will want to save her to his own safety’s detriment.

Four Seconds to Lose is a complicated story, and the feelings it brought out in me are all over the place! I went from hot and bothered to sad, from happy to scared, from eagerly waiting for what would happen next to almost not daring to continue to read at all. As the story continues, the complications don’t exactly sort themselves out, they become worse, and Charlie has to make a very hard decision, she has to save herself, and if she can save Cain at the same time, that is a big added bonus.

The writing is so well done, it flows across the pages, as did my finger to click onto the next page. Four Seconds to Lose is written in dual point of views, we get to see Cain and Charlie in different chapters, and it is so easy to feel for both of them, all I wanted was some kind of happy resolution for them. Cain really has everything a book boyfriend needs, he is protective of the people he loves, he is able to give them space, and he isn’t pushy… until he is. Charlie is such a sweet girl, but she’s in such a bad situation it is difficult for her to even think straight at times.

If you are up for a dark, but still romantic and hot new adult read, you need to get ready to buy Four Seconds to Lose, it is entirely possible to read it without having read the two first books in the series, although I think you’d enjoy it even more if you already know some of the characters and the background a little bit.Four Seconds to Lose quote - (un)Conventional Bookviews

Just like that. In seconds, any trust I may have gained… lost.

Tonight, the way she handled Larissa with class and grace and an edge of bitch was beautiful. Unexpected

She’s hiding something and I’m guessing it’s something painful. I know I told her I don’t care and I don’t, but, fuck it, I want to know what it is.

All I see is a hungry snake among mice.

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Linda @ (un)Conventional Bookworms

About Linda @ (un)Conventional Bookworms

Linda is an English as foreign language teacher and has a Master's degree in English Language and Literature. She's an avid reader, blogger, compulsive one-clicker and a genre omnivore. Ever since she learnt how to read she has been seen with a book or two in her hands everywhere she goes.

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9 responses to “Review: Four Seconds to Lose (Ten Tiny Breaths #3) – K.A. Tucker

    • Oh, you should check it out, Stormi, it’s truly awesome! The way the characters work to better themselves even if they come from a difficult background is well done.

      Thanks for stopping by.

  1. Fabulous review, Lexxie! You know this is a series I have on my TBR because of YOU! 😉 FStL sounds like a very intense and emotional read. I will start with Ten Tiny Breaths since you recommend reading them in order. I hope I can get to this series sooner than later. 🙂

    On a different note…I finished Sterling yesterday and Lexxie, I’m so sorry I didn’t read it sooner! I loved it! I just wish I could read the whole series RIGHT NOW. 🙂 Thanks for always gushing about this series…and for giving me THREE new book boyfriends! 🙂

    Have a great day, my friend! *hugs*

    Bookworm Brandee recently posted: **Cover Reveal ~ Come to Me Softly ~ A.L. Jackson**
    • You are going to love this series so much, and yes, you should definitely get to it, your emotions and feels will be all over the place.

      WOW, you want three of them just for you, Brandee?? Now that isn’t very nice of you 😛 so, Justus, Logan and Simon – are my guesses correct? I’m so happy you enjoy the Mageri series, though, it’s one of my absolute favorites!

      Have a great day yourself, Brandee! *hugs3

    • Oh yes, if you enjoyed the first book, the next too will surely enjoy the next two as well, Kimba!

      Thanks for stopping by 🙂

  2. I am contemplating between buying the Ten Tiny Breaths series or not. On one hand, I’ve read a lot of positive reviews about the first book. While on the other, I’ve read mixed reviews for One Tiny Lie. However, for Four Seconds to Lose, the is the second positive review that I’ve read. And it makes me want to jump into the bandwagon and buy the three books immediately.

    The premise of Four Seconds To Lose is so awesome. It’s my first time to actually consider a book wherein the heroine is some sort of a stripper. And I am so curious about the kind of circumstance that led Charlie to that kind of life.

    OMG, I am kind of addicted with contemporaries right now. Fine, I am convinced to buy this series. I trust your judgment so much because if not for you, I wouldn’t have taken a risk and read Pushing The Limits. And it’s one of the best contemps I’ve read this year. Whew!

    Thanks for another great review, Lexxie!

    Charlotte recently posted: Book Review: Pushing The Limits
    • I’m so glad you enjoyed Pushing the Limits, Charlotte. You should definitely continue with that series. And I enjoyed One Tiny Lie just as much as Ten Tiny Breaths and Four Seconds to Lose! There is a lot of angst, and my feelings were shredded. (I think the book tried to murder me!) 😉

      Thanks for stopping by.

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