Review // Claimed by J.R. Ward

He was a master of pleasure. He was power and control. He was, in a strange and undefinable way, taking not just her sex, but her soul. She was...
Claimed.

Claimed by J.R. Ward

Lair of the Wolven #1
Release - July 27, 2021
Genre - Paranormal Romance
Multiple POV - 3rd person
Heat Level - 3.5 / a few scenes
Format/Source - eARC provided by the publisher
Page Count - 400
Publisher - Gallery Books / Pocket Books

Buy it here: Amazon

A heart-pounding new series set in the Black Dagger Brotherhood world, with a scientist fighting to save the timber wolves—and getting caught in a deadly trap herself...

Lydia Susi is passionate about protecting wolves in their natural habitat. When a hotel chain develops a tract of land next to the preserve, Lydia is one of the most vocal opponents of the project—and becomes a target.

One night, a shadowy figure threatens Lydia’s life in the forest, and a new hire at the Wolf Study Project comes from out of nowhere to save her. Daniel Joseph is both mysterious, and someone she intrinsically wants to trust. But is he hiding something?

As the stakes get higher, and one of Lydia’s colleagues is murdered, she must decide how far she will go to protect the wolves. Then a shocking revelation about Daniel challenges Lydia’s reality in ways she could never have predicted. Some fates demand courage, others require even more, with no guarantees. Is she destined to have true love... or will a soul-shattering loss ruin her forever?

What.
Was.
THAT?!

Lydia was a behaviorist and I loved her passion in protecting the wolves and their habitat. Although her impulsiveness, rash judgments and curiosity could be annoying, these traits also helped to move the story along and feed into the questions and secrets surrounding the plot. And while I'm no fan of women who know what they want, but play that they don't, I enjoyed the little flirting games she played with the hero.

Daniel was the character who would definitely raise some eyebrows. There was obviously more to him than met the eye and I still don't quite understand who he was supposed to be. His cover story of being a drifter and handy man made me question everything. What were his motives? Who did he work for? The fact that he was sexy was an interesting bonus!

Xhex was also featured and I practically drooled for every glimpse of John Matthew!! Seriously, what is going on with Xhex? What do the Wolven have to do with her present, her traumatizing experience with the labs, and her murky future?

Claimed was far more than your run-of-the-mill paranormal romance. It held mystery and intrigue and suspense. I did find that it was slow to start, however, when things started to pick up, I couldn't put it down. Here I am at the end and I'm devasted to learn that I have to wait until next summer to find out what will happen next!

For lovers of The Black Dagger Brotherhood, Claimed is a must-read! And if you're anything like me, it will inspire you to give the entire series a re-read just to be able to dive back into this dark, deadly, enchanting, and binge-worthy world again!

J.R. Ward is the author of over thirty novels, including those in her #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling series, The Black Dagger Brotherhood. There are more than 15 million copies of Ward’s novels in print worldwide and they have been published in 25 different countries around the world.

After graduating from law school, Ward began working in healthcare in Boston and spent many years as Chief of Staff of one of the premier academic medical centers in the nation. She lives in the south with her incredibly supportive husband and her beloved golden retriever. Writing has always been her passion and her idea of heaven is a whole day of nothing but her computer, her dog and her coffee pot.

Visit the JRWard Facebook Page for more on the Brotherhood or email her at assistant@jrward.com.

Visit https://jrward.com/ for more information!