Review ~ Wanted (Most Wanted 1) by J Kenner

Reviewed by Donna ~ 3-3.5 Stars

“You wanted to fly. I wanted to make sure you didn’t crash.”

Angie/Angelina/Lina, she has many names in this book and they all suited her really well. She harbours a lot of guilt over the death of her sister and is still really affected by her death even though she died many years ago. She is haunted by nightmares of what she perceives to be her sisters last hours and she struggles daily. She is an adrenaline junkie, the rush makes her forget, even for the briefest moments, but to get these “rushes” can get her into trouble. The only person that really understood her was her Uncle Jahn, so soon after her sister died she went to live with him and ended up working for him too. They had a very close relationship. It is with his untimely death that the book starts and we are introduced to his “three knights.”

Evan, Tyler and Cole are three very successful Chicago businessmen that Jahn took under his wing when they were younger. Jahn was a bit of a philanthropist and art buff and merged the two successfully to aid others less fortunate. The “knights” had been ever present around Jahn from a young age and Angie had always been in their presence. She saw them as her “brothers” all except Evan, she has had a major crush on him since they were introduced, but her Uncle Jahn had warned her off him many years ago and it seems he did the same to Evan. He could see the chemistry that they had and because he knew Evan’s back story and perhaps some shady dealings that he has been involved with, he wanted to protect his niece.

“I swear to god, Angie, you’re like Kryptonite – you fucking break me.”

After Jahn’s death there is nothing to stop them, except Evan’s willpower and he seems to have a lot of that! Will they get together, can they make a go of it, or will skeletons in both their closest’s cause problems for them?

“Anything. Because I will always be there. I will always catch you if you fall.”

It pains me to say this but this is the first Julie Kenner book I have not loved. I totally adored Damien Stark in the Stark Trilogy and I was expecting more of the same in Wanted. Don’t get me wrong, the characters were great, I love Evan, the plot was great, but I just felt it didn’t come together quite right. The first half of the book laid the foundations and had me hooked, I couldn’t see where it was going and I was intrigued. Once they eventually got together it was hot in true Julie Kenner style and I loved it…but the ending was just so rushed it totally spoiled the book for me. What should have taken probably a quarter of the book was told in what seemed like a few pages, it was just bang, bang, bang, bang…the end! I was gutted!

“…You are the biggest rush of my life. The biggest thrill. The wildest ride. You are everything I always wanted, and everything I thought I didn’t deserve. You are exceptional. You are beautiful. You are mine. And I love you.”

I will also add this point, my pet peeve is the “C” word, I do state this on reviews when the author has used the word, especially as a slang term for a woman’s private parts. It was used a lot in this book and every time it cropped up it made me cringe, I despise that word and again it really detracted from my enjoyment of the book. I know this may not bother some people, but for me, it is just yuck!

I will continue to read the series though, I love the enigma’s that these three are and I cannot wait to see where Julie Kenner is going to go with Tyler and Cole’s story. I hope to see more of Evan and Lina in those stories too as I feel that their story is far from over.