ADDICTED ( The Outlaws #2) by Elle Kennedy-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 28, 2016

Lennox used to live in a paradise on earth with his best friend Jamie, in a place where visitors came and went, allowing their desires to run free. But everything changes when a deadly attack forces them to take up with Connor Mackenzie’s band of Outlaws. Lennox knows Jamie is hung up on someone else, but he’s always believed he’s the man for her—and won’t let her go without a fight.

Even though Jamie is well aware that Lennox is one hot specimen of a man, she refuses to let sex ruin the most important relationship in her life. But when the object of her interest spurns her, she indulges in a little pleasure-filled revenge with her very magnetic, very willing best friend. One thrilling night with Lennox is enough to awaken Jamie’s unexpected desires for him. And now that she’s had a taste, she’s not sure she can ever give him up.

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REVIEW: ADDICTED is the second installment in Elle Kennedy’s adult, post-apocalyptic/dystopian Outlaws erotica, romance series. This is Lennox and Jamie’s story line.

NOTE: CLAIMED contains scenes of M/M/, M/F and M/F/M sexual situations and may not be suitable for all readers.

SOME BACKGROUND: The OUTLAW series by Elle Kennedy focuses on the post-apocalyptic USA where the country is now divided into a number of respective territories without government control. There are various factions of bandits, enforcers, outlaws, and the people from the city. Life on the outside is hard; there are no laws, no law enforcement, and death is often the better option. Several groups of outlaws have banded together in gated communities for protection and control.

Told from several third person points of view ADDICTED is a friends to lovers story that follows Lennox and his best friend Jamie, as well as fellow outlaws Rylan, Pike and Kade, as they are ‘sent’ to another Outlaw camp to train their members for an upcoming war. But Connor is suspicious of the real reason that the other outlaw leader Reese has requested the help, and Connor believes he may be placing his friends in danger when the truth is finally revealed.

Lennox and Jamie have been best friends for most of their lives. Twenty years of watching family die, friends killed, and with only one another for support, Lennox and Jamie joined Connor Mackenzie’s band of Outlaws but now find themselves in a fight to survive. The relationship between our leading couple is one of friendship and love but Lennox has always rebuked Jamie’s advances until the day his jealousy can no longer be contained and he claims Jamie for himself. The $ex scenes are intimate, aggressive and provocative. Jamie is a woman willing to fight for the man that she loves.

Once again, there is a large ensemble cast of characters including many secondary and supporting roles. With Lennox and Jamie’s visit to Reese’s camp, the introductions are vast; the friendships are varied but not all survive to see another day.

ADDICTED, like the previous installment, is heavily weighted in graphic sexual situations including M/M, M/F/M, M/M/F and M/F material. Public displays of $ex acts are common; group $ex and multiple partners are encouraged but for all intents and purposes, the sexual situations detract from the story line premise. $ex is a commodity; bandits and enforcers use $ex as power and control therefore if you are sensitive to certain sexual situations, this series may not be for you.

Elle Kennedy’s ADDICTED has romance, suspense, action and love. There are moments of heartbreaking loss, emotional fall out, and the realization that you have to give love a try before life takes it all away. The premise is fated and entertaining; the characters are colorful, animated and passionate; the romance is a friends to lover trope filled with hope for the future. The OUTLAWS series is a provocative, erotic and dramatic look at a post-apocalyptic world where life is fleeting and love is shot in the dark.

Click HERE for Sandy’s review of book one-CLAIMED

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy