Tag Archives: Stark International

Review: Take my Dare (Stark International #4) by J Kenner

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Title: Take my Dare
Author: J Kenner
Publisher/Year: Martini & Olive 11/8/16
Length:   113 Pages
Series:  Stark International #4

Overview

New York Times bestselling author J. Kenner returns to the smoking hot, emotionally compelling world of the Stark International trilogy that  features Jackson Steele, a strong-willed man who goes after what he wants, and Sylvia Brooks, a disciplined woman who’s hard to get—and exactly who Jackson needs…

I’ve never been happier than I am with Jackson Steele. But I should know better than anyone that happiness always comes at a price …

My life with Jackson is nothing short of perfection. He is my love, my husband, the one man in all the world who makes me feel alive and whole. Our careers are on track. Our family is growing. And the ghosts of our past have been vanquished – or so I believed.

When a wonderful night of sensuality and passion following a masquerade ball turns dark with the news that haunting, horrible photographs of me have surfaced, my old fears and insecurities threaten to knock me down, and it is only within Jackson’s arms that I find the strength to endure.

But even Jackson’s protection may not be able to save us, because I know my husband well. And he will do whatever it takes—even if it means risking himself—in order to protect our family…

My Thoughts

I’m a huge fan of all things related to this series, be it the stories about Damien and Nikki or those that we get now about Sylvia and Jackson.  There’s so much great stuff going on with these stories, both with the exciting plot lines and twists as well as the hot passion that’s shared between each of the couples.

In this novella we get a peak into the life of Jackson and Syl now that they are parents and are moving on with their lives beyond all the stress that finally allowed them to be together.  If you remember back, we know that Syl’s dad went to jail for killing Reed – the man who abused Syl all those years ago and took pictures of her in compromising positions – but mind you i believe she was a minor so anyone who went to release them would be doing themselves a world of hurt.  Regardless, there was that bit and then the fact that Jackson has a daughter (Ronnie) who’s now living with them along with their new little baby boy.  So as you can imagine, their life is very different and as all new parents wonder, how do you keep the passion and spark alive.

These two really have no trouble in that department.  They were combustible before and even more so now.  When it’s the night of a costume ball, we see that the challenge has been thrown down – Syl has been dared to dress up and disguise herself so well that Jackson has an hour to locate her in the throngs of people otherwise Syl wins.  She goes to great lengths with the help of her friend Cass and while i think that it’s quite impressive how well she does, you know that these Stark men have a sixth sense with their women and you know she’s going to lose.

That’s only a part of what makes this story great – since you know that if he does catch her, there’s going to be some amazing sceneing, likely at the party and at home, but there’s another subplot that we get.  her father is released from jail so it’s a matter of some how blending that world with her own now, and figuring out if she’s able to forgive him for all that he did, and making sure he can experience her family.  The other bit of this story is that those pictures that were supposed to die along with Reed have somehow resurfaced, along with a woman that Syl fired, and that means that all that she worked to hide may come out and all that her father went to jail for in the murder may come out as well.  Not ideal at all, and i think that we’re going to see how that all plays out since the ending isn’t necessarily what we expected.

On that note – i can’t wait to see what’s next in this series since i read that there will be another installment in the Damien and Nikki bits of the series – which of course is always hot and steamy since he’s Dominant with a capital D.  Have a great day all!

Review: Under My Skin (Stark International #3) by J Kenner

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Title:  Under My Skin
Author: J Kenner
Publisher/Year: Random House Publishing 9/1/15
Length:  255 pages
Series:  Stark International #3

Overview

Jackson Steele and Sylvia Brooks are back in the powerful finale of a provocative, sizzling-hot new erotic trilogy set in the world of J. Kenner’s beloved Stark novels: Release Me, Claim Me, andComplete Me.

He’s the only man I’ve ever loved, and the one man I can’t bear to lose.
 
Jackson Steele is my light in this world. Charismatic, bold, and always in control, he knows what he wants and how to get it—and absolutely nothing stands in his way. His hold on me is magnetic, his claim on me complete, his kiss my ultimate escape.

We both harbor dark secrets that could tear our lives apart. Though we’ve tried to bury our pasts, there are certain people who won’t let us forget. But the closer danger comes, the brighter the fire between us burns—our ecstasy consuming and soothing us both.

There’s no telling what lies ahead, but I know that Jackson never gives in without a fight. I’d do anything he wants to keep him safe, give him anything he needs. And now that we’re in deep, nothing can make me run.

My Thoughts

i LOVE this series and i love the one that it’s a spin off from.  When we left Sylvie and Jackson, they had managed to come to terms with what they were to each other, yet there was something major about to happen.  We knew that there was a past with Sylvie and Reed, a director who photographed her when she was a teen-  he was blackmailing her with the pictures – and the same man wanted to make a film of a story that was Jackson’s past that he didn’t want made.  Well, apparently he had a lot of enemies, as we find that he’s been killed – and Jackson is suspect #1.

So where we are with this third installment is the roller coaster of did he do it, did he not, who did it if it wasn’t him, although there’s so much evidence and motive, and he won’t say that he hasn’t done it.  we also wonder what it’s going to mean to the happy couple since we know that they were hanging on by a string at times.

On top of that strife, there’s the issue that the resort that Sylvie’s leading is under attack from someone.  There’s another resort being built further south, and the wonder is whether they are behind all the pain, lies, damage etc that’s being done, but then the question comes up whether all the leaks etc are internal.  I personally had my opinion since day one on who it was, and i’m glad that we finally find out if i was right or wrong.

If that weren’t enough, there’s the issue of Jackson claiming his daughter, and deciding what would happen to her since no one knows.  IT’s hard cause he wants to protect her, doesn’t want her to stay in the hands of someone that won’t care for her properly, fears what bringing her into his life will do, especially since it’s a sure thing that he’s going to jail….and Syl doesn’t know if she’s ready since she’s got a crap example from her parents.

The good thing though, if you’ve read any other books by J Kenner, you know that in between all this, in the middle of it actually your’e going to get so much heat and passion that you have to forget about what’s going on.  The connection that Jackson and Sylvie have is amazing, you can feel it just from reading it and the way that they come together, it’s passionate, explosive, hot.  you can’t get enough of it.

I’m glad that we get a nice resolution of sorts for most of the characters, and some less than ideal for others.  The good news though is that on the last page, it notes that the next trilogy is Dallas Sykes who’s the bad boy investor that we hear a lot about in this book, so i can’t wait for that.  Have a great weekend everyone!

Review: Tame Me (Stark International #0.5) by J Kenner

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Title:  Tame Me
Author: J Kenner
Publisher/Year:  Evil Eye Concepts 3/21/15
Length: 131 pages
Series: Stark International #0.5

Overview

Aspiring actress Jamie Archer is on the run. From herself. From her wild child ways. From the screwed up life that she left behind in Los Angeles. And, most of all, from Ryan Hunter-the first man who has the potential to break through her defenses to see the dark fears and secrets she hides.

Stark International Security Chief Ryan Hunter knows only one thing for sure-he wants Jamie. Wants to hold her, make love to her, possess her, and claim her. Wants to do whatever it takes to make her his.

But after one night of bliss, Jamie bolts. And now it’s up to Ryan to not only bring her back, but to convince her that she’s running away from the best thing that ever happened to her–him.

My Thoughts

I think that it’s safe that we are all rooting for Jamie and finally seeing her happy is amazing.  We’ve come to know and love her through Nikki in the Stark Series, and not only is she an amazing best friend, she’s had it rough in LA  trying to be a successful actress and getting used by the people that she meets.  She’s made some really bad choices over the years and has finally decided that The Plan is the best way for her to find herself, get grounded and maybe have a chance at being happy back in LA.

We are reunited with her on the night of Nikki’s wedding where the happy couple has left for their honeymoon and Jamie and Ryan Hunter (Damian’s head of security) are closing things out at the party and their house.  You guys can all recall throughout the main series that there’s been a great chemistry between Ryan and Jamie, yet they’ve never acted on it.  It’s been driving Jamie crazy and maybe this is the night to see what’s going on.

What happens next, well it’s the point of no return since it’s a complete opposite ideal than what her Plan tells her to do.  getting involved with him even for the night will make things go upside down when she really just needs to stay away from men and find herself.  Lucky for her, he turns her down and that makes things even more interesting.

So it’s when Jamie is resigned to just going back to Texas to sort herself out, Ryan flips the tables again, and from then on we see a really passionate roller coaster with someone who wants nothing more than to protect and savor Jamie, and while she wants him, she wants to fight him too.  And she runs….

J Kenner continues to weave this amazing story that you want to get involved in.  While we got a tease that there was something more between these 2, it’s not an entirely predictable path that we go on to get there.  They fight one another and there are demons that caused this.  We also get the revisting of a few folks that caused some of the pain and turmoil in Jamie’s life and it’s always interesting to see if jealousy makes things happen at a faster pace.

Never the less, we get an intro into the dark and stormy side that Ryan (Hunter) has, his proclivity to BDSM and how he’s showing that to Jamie and learns her responses to it.  It’s nice to see that we get that path with these 2 since it’s hinted among some of the others that we’ve read about but yet never fully experience.  I think that while this is a little novella that we’ve seen teased in the ARC i read last night, i think that we’ll be fortunate to see more of them if their relationship is something that can be made to work since Jamie’s set on going back to TX and Ryan’s in LA.  so, with that, i’ll leave you with my suggestion to enjoy it on a nice Sunday afternoon!

ARC Review: Say My Name (Stark International Trilogy #1) by J Kenner

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Title:  Say My Name
Author: J Kenner
Publisher/Year:Random House 4/7/15
Length: 254 pages
Series: Stark International #1

Overview

ew York Times bestselling author J. Kenner kicks off a smoking hot, emotionally compelling new trilogy that returns to the world of her beloved Stark novels: Release Me, Claim Me, and Complete Me. Say My Name features Jackson Steele, a strong-willed man who goes after what he wants, and Sylvia Brooks, a disciplined woman who’s hard to get—and exactly who Jackson needs.

I never let anyone get too close—but he’s the only man who’s ever made me feel alive.
 
Meeting Jackson Steele was a shock to my senses. Confident and commanding, he could take charge of any room . . . or any woman. And Jackson wanted me. The mere sight of him took my breath away, and his touch made me break all my rules.

Our bond was immediate, our passion untamed. I wanted to surrender completely to his kiss, but I couldn’t risk his knowing the truth about my past. Yet Jackson carried secrets too, and in our desire we found our escape, pushing our boundaries as far as they could go.

Learning to trust is never easy. In my mind, I knew I should run. But in my heart, I never felt a fire this strong—and it could either save me or scorch me forever.

My Thoughts

WOW – i loved this first installment to this spin off series – it was AMAZING!  If you thought i was all ‘fangirl’ on J Kenner before, i think i may be in competition to be executive committee of the club now.

First off – thank you Netgalley for getting me a copy of this before it comes out – but now i’m sad that i’ll have to wait even longer for the 2nd installment.  Anyhow, we are quickly dropped back into Damian and Nikki’s world but from a semi indirect manner.  We get to see Sylvia (Ms. Brooks), Damian’s assistant take a lead role – both professionally and personally.  We also get to see more about Jackson and what makes him tick since he’s dark, handsome and has an aura of naughty that we love.

Sylvia has managed to snag the lead role on a new development project after convincing Damian that buying an island off the coast of Cali is the way to go while they are sorting through options for the Bahamas resort.  Since we know that no good business deal can go off without a hitch, we are fast to learn that there are issues with the architect that they had signed – deciding that he was retiring and moving to Tibet.  This is where things get even better.

Sylvia and Jackson have a bit of a past – a fling of sorts from when she was living and working in Atlanta and they crossed paths.  IT was hot and heavy and something that scared them both, but because of her own demons, she asked Jackson to let her walk away and not follow him and that was five years ago.  Those feelings of course are never quickly dispelled and when they are forced to cross paths again, it’s explosive.  in more ways than one.

The journey that we go on is really complex and that’s something that our author is amazing at doing.  We get to see how complicated and hot and passionate a relationship is, but you know that there has to be soo much more underneath for both characters that we have to dig and dig and dig and when you dig enough, you either get hot passion or deep anger.  we get both.

There are so many demons that Syl has been hiding – getting tattoos as a way to cope that it’s no wonder things are heated and steamy with Jackson.  The man is no saint either – we only get to see glimpses of things with him, but he has his own share of issues, and interestingly you want to think that there’s something there with Damian since there’s so much hatred.  I think that the 2 directions that J Kenner takes us on that one is really amazing and while sort of expected, i think the progression and build up was great.

We’re left at the end with minimal resolution of things – you know that we’re just about at the tipping point for so many of our characters.  Folks that we want dead are coming up, and the strength of relationships are being tested.  While i know that we all want our characters to be happy – i think that the fighting and the turmoil that they put on themselves makes it so much hotter to read.  I for one have spent most of today turned on and aroused since there is so much passion going on here that i couldn’t put the book down until it was done.  on that note – enjoy – please please enjoy!