For fans of Fifty Shades of Grey and Bared to You comes the third novel in the erotic, fast-paced trilogy including Release Me and Claim Me. This sexy, emotionally charged romance continues the story of Damien Stark, the powerful multimillionaire who’s never had to take “no” for an answer, and Nikki Fairchild, the Southern belle who only says “yes” on her own terms. 

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Claim Me

(The Stark Trilogy, #2)

by: J. Kenner

Publishing Date: 4/23/13

Publisher: Bantam

Genre: Contemporary Erotic Romance

Source: Netgalley

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-a-million | IndieBound | Random House

Description:

For Damien, our obsession is a game. For me, it is fiercely, blindingly, real. 

Damien Stark’s need is palpable—his need for pleasure, his need for control, his need for me. Beautiful and brilliant yet tortured at his core, he is in every way my match. 

I have agreed to be his alone, and now I want him to be fully mine. I want us to possess each other beyond the sweetest edge of our ecstasy, into the deepest desires of our souls. To let the fire that burns between us consume us both. 

But there are dark places within Damien that not even our wildest passion can touch. I yearn to know his secrets, yearn for him to surrender to me as I have surrendered to him. But our troubled pasts will either bind us close . . . or shatter us completely.

My Review:
"Claim Me" is the second installment to J. Kenner's Stark Trilogy and it definitely answered a few questions that I had from the first book.  The second book picks up from where the first book left off at, so if you have not read the first book, I definitely recommend it.

Nikki Fairchild is obsessed with Damien Stark and in the second installment the obsession has become even worst for her.  In fact, Damien has now become her pain reliever and Nikki has become his source to let out some stress.  They both are amazing together though.  Damien is finally opening up on what is going on in his life in "Claim Me" and Nikki is proving to be the strongest of the two.  I have come to admire Nikki even more in this book.  Here the woman is put through a whole lot of mess and she overcomes it all.  She almost stumbles, but she has proven she can overcome anything thrown at her.

If you have read "Release Me", you probably had a lot of questions on what was happening in Damien's head and what made him have so many secrets.  Slowly, but surely he begins to open up in the second installment.
He showed his possessive side more in this book as well, which could be found to be annoying to some people, but his motive behind it all will make your realize his intentions are for the greater good.
I loved everything in the second installment and now I look forward to even more the final book.  J. Kenner leaves you hanging at the end which makes me wonder what is going to happen next.  Are the characters going to ever have a happily ever after?
I want to know who is causing all the issues and I have a funny feeling I know who it is.
Poor Nikki not only goes through so much in this book, but her best friend, Jamie did as well.
Her other best friend, Ollie, I cannot figure him out, but in this book I did not like him.  I feel he is up to no good.
I loved how J. Kenner made Nikki stronger though in this book and made me hate Damien at points in the book where I wanted to hurt him for Nikki.  Damien though is nothing like Gideon Cross from the Cross novels by Sylvia Day.  In fact, Damien, is not one who plays games, he admires and loves Nikki.   He just has a very particular way of showing it.  I cannot compare him to Christian since I have not read the FSoG books and really tend not to read them anytime soon so I will not compare Damien to him.

J. Kenner's writing style is definitely different from other contemporary authors I have read, which makes me adore her even more.  She has a way of describing in detail that will make you feel you are there. She also makes you feel the emotions of the characters.  That is one writing style that makes it more appealing for me to read since I feel like the characters are real.

This book has a lot of angst, friendship blow ups, and lots, lots of HOT sexual scenes between Nikki and Damien.  The purple scarf on the cover of the book plays a very significant role in the book.  =)

I give this book 4.5 full moons and highly recommend it to contemporary romance and erotica readers out there.  This book is intended for 18+ mature audience though...just to warn you.
There is anal play, mild bdsm, and a lot of sexual escapades in this book that will have you taking a cold shower afterwards.

I received a complimentary copy of the book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

How about you? Do you re-read? Or is reading time to precious and you have to move forward, not back? If you’re a re-reader, what’s your go-to book or series? 

One lucky commenter will win a copy of Claim Me! (print for US winners, digital for international winners!)  -Make sure to put your broken email addy in your comment so we can contact you if you win.  
Winner will be announced on 4/28/13

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author J. Kenner has written over 40 books under multiple names including Julie Kenner and J.K. Beck. Her newest release, CLAIM ME (April 23, 2013), is the second book in the bestselling Stark Trilogy, which began with RELEASE ME, continues with CLAIM ME, and which will conclude in July with COMPLETE ME. You can learn more about her at her website (http://www.juliekenner.com) or connect with her on Twitter (@juliekenner) or on Facebook (http://juliekenner.com/facebook/)

Enter below & win Damien (well, his story *wink*) and more!! 

Prizes below – US only & must be 18 years old to enter & win:

Release Me

(The Stark Trilogy, #1)

by: J. Kenner

Publishing Date: 1/1/13

Publisher: Random House

Genre: Contemporary Romance

Source: Netgalley

Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Description: 

For fans of Fifty Shades of Grey and Bared to You comes an erotic, emotionally charged romance between a powerful man who’s never heard “no” and a fiery woman who says “yes” on her own terms. He was the one man I couldn’t avoid. And the one man I couldn’t resist. Damien Stark could have his way with any woman. He was sexy, confident, and commanding: Anything he wanted, he got. And what he wanted was me. Our attraction was unmistakable, almost beyond control, but as much as I ached to be his, I feared the pressures of his demands. Submitting to Damien meant I had to bare the darkest truth about my past—and risk breaking us apart. But Damien was haunted, too. And as our passion came to obsess us both, his secrets threatened to destroy him—and us—forever. Release Me is an erotic romance intended for mature audiences.

My Review:

To the readers who have read FSoG and the readers who are reading the Crossfire books...you will definitely want to check out J. Kenner's release "Release Me", which comes out 1/1/13.
I am not one of those readers who has read FSoG so I will not compare Release Me to that trilogy.  Maybe when I have downtime I will finally read the FSoG books...but as of right now it is not my top priority.  
I will not also compare it to the Crossfire Trilogy due to the fact I believe J. Kenner has a different writing style all together from Sylvia Day.

J. Kenner has me not hating characters, but instead feeling emotional towards them.
Bring in the sexy billionaire, Damien Stark, who used to be a famous tennis player who has serious family issues, especially with his father.
And bring in Nikki Fairchild who is trying to change her life and get away from what she was.  She is making her mark finally outside of school in her new home in California with some old friends and meeting new friends.  She never thought she would meet one person who would change her life and what she should be doing in a place she least expected.

Damien has always got what he wanted, wherever and however and right now he has his eyes on Nikki and he will not take no from her.  Nikki knows she should focus on what she wants to do towards her future, but Damian is always there to try to claim her.  He will do anything to be with her, even get her fired from her job and also have her tell her darkest secret.
Nikki will be tested so many ways from Damien, but in the end will she succumb to what he wants from her, or will she be able to walk away from a man who wants to control her life like one certain person tried to do when she was younger.
Both Nikki has her own past she is still trying to deal with and now Nikki is learning Damien may have a dark past as well that she may end up being caught in.

"Release Me" is an emotional, steamy, intense book that will make you want more, especially when it comes to the sex scenes between the characters. This is when I will definitely not compare J. Kenner to any other writer out there.  She gave sex scenes between the characters that were steamy, intense and even sometimes sensual.  It did involve sex toys, and several other things in the bedroom that may be uncomfortable to certain people....but Damien did not try to harm Nikki at all. (at least not physically)  In fact, he gave her choices and did not even forced himself on her.  Instead, he gave her games to play that she enjoyed herself.  She never knew what to expect, but she knew Damien would not go too far with her.
Nikki, I have to say was the vixen sometimes.  She put herself in dilemmas that she would get punished for, but she would end up wanting it in the end.  She definitely made the book and Damien did as well.  He definitely makes the list of hotties for next year since this book comes out in 2013.  =)  He's up there with Gideon Cross and I definitely look forward to the 2nd book.
Even the secondary characters had their own role to play in the book and they had their own problems as well...especially, Nikki's roommate.  She definitely has some serious issues to work out.
Here's another thing with "Release Me".  There's not much of a big cliff hanger. We know there is still unfinished business because of certain things that need to be addressed, but we have no idea how J. Kenner will start off next or where she will take you....which is a definite plus.  I love not knowing.  =)
I look forward to the next installment in this trilogy because who can stay away from the sexy billionaire and the woman who he cannot get enough of....especially one who can put him through tests as well.
I highly recommend this to contemporary romance readers out there and fans of J. Kenner.  You will definitely enjoy this new book from her.  

If you are having withdrawals after reading the Fifty Shades Trilogy or waiting for the next release of the Crossfire Trilogy...well look no further...

New upcoming novel from the fabulous Author, J. Kenner that will appeal to Fifty Shades and Crossfire fans.  =)  

Description:

For fans of Fifty Shades of Grey and Bared to You comes an erotic, emotionally charged romance between a powerful man who’s never heard “no” and a fiery woman who says “yes” on her own terms.  

He was the one man I couldn’t avoid. And the one man I couldn’t resist. 

 Damien Stark could have his way with any woman. He was sexy, confident, and commanding: Anything he wanted, he got. And what he wanted was me. 

 Our attraction was unmistakable, almost beyond control, but as much as I ached to be his, I feared the pressures of his demands. Submitting to Damien meant I had to bare the darkest truth about my past—and risk breaking us apart. 

 But Damien was haunted, too. And as our passion came to obsess us both, his secrets threatened to destroy him—and us—forever. 

 Release Me is an erotic romance intended for mature audiences.

Here's an excerpt from the book below.  You'll definitely want to check out this book when it comes out 1/1/13.

Places you can pre-order it:  https://www.randomhouse.com/book/225186/release-me-by-j-kenner