Addiction (The Hunted Series Book 2)

James and Penny would finally get caught. When they did they had to do damage control. Not only did James have to face the consequences, Penny did too. With all that went on after she told him her age and the party at the first house. She passed out and went to the hospital. Taken by Brenden who lived in the apartment building. When everything hit, the media camped out in front. In a get away moment he took her to see her parents to explain then to NYC. His brother came which was a good relief for James. He resigned but she was still have problems. They decided to move and she decided to take a semester off. What new drama snd deceit will rear its ugly head?

James & Penny’s Steamy Story Is Dripping In Angst & Will Have You Reaching For The Next Book In The Series! Their Romance Opens As They Meet At The Start Of Her Sophomore Year Of College. As Penny Balances The Three Men In Her Life – Professor James Hunter, Tyler, and Brendan – Things Become Very Complicated. This Book Is Explosive!

This is the second of four books in The Hunted series, which is James and Penny’s story. Their story continues in the three book The Light to my Darkness series. See James as a teenager in the four book Empire High series (Matt’s story), which gives the backstory for James and his friends, the Untouchables. There are other standalones that are spinoffs to these books, including City of Sin (Mason and Bee’s story), Third Chances (Rob and Daphne’s story), and Missing Pieces (Tyler and Hailey’s story).

The review for Addiction, book two, is below. For those that are not reading the series back-to-back, a little summary of the previous books is first included.

FROM TEMPTATION, BOOK ONE:

As book one came to a close, James and Penny’s tumultuous relationship had fractured. It had been love at first sight for the pair that first crossed paths in a coffee shop, but the professor-student situation they found themselves in the next day had them fighting their feelings for one another. Penny dated a little, including a double date with her roommate Melissa and her new boyfriend Josh that paired Penny with her ex from last year, Austin. Then there is Tyler. He is Josh’s Sigma Pi fraternity brother and sits beside Penny in Comm 212, which is the course Professor Hunter teaches. Tyler and Penny definitely have chemistry, but for Penny, it is not quite enough to pull her past the heartbreak that Austin caused her. They become good friends, though Tyler clearly wants more. He is sweet and thoughtful, but he definitely makes a few big mistakes. What makes Tyler so forgivable is the fact that he is sincerely apologetic. If Tyler and Penny were given time, they would most likely become a couple. Unfortunately for Tyler, time is not on his side when it comes to Penny. Though Tyler may be older than Penny, as a senior he is still a child in comparison to Professor Hunter.

The heartbreak that Penny experienced last spring is all but forgotten in Professor Hunter’s presence. Eventually, neither Professor Hunter nor Penny can maintain the appropriate professor-student boundaries. This puts them both in the position of hiding their forbidden relationship from everyone – not a healthy place for a new relationship to start. But James had kept the fact that he was technically still a married man from Penny, and she struggled to trust him again once she found out. They took a break, but when they got back together and James indicated he would like her to move in with him, Penny finally shared her own secret – that she was not a senior as he had presumed, but a sophomore just turning twenty. James has a past that still remains somewhat of a mystery, but trust is an issue he struggles with himself. He ends things with Penny on the spot, sending her back to her dorm room to nurse her broken heart. By this time Penny’s secret relationship with Professor Hunter had become known to Tyler and Melissa, neither of which is pleased with Penny.

IN THIS BOOK:

As book two opens, it is October fourteenth, the day before Penny’s birthday.

Penny Taylor, just turning twenty, is in the middle of the fall semester of her sophomore year of college at the University of New Castle in Newark, Delaware. She feels entirely alone. It seems everyone is disappointed in her. Two weeks have passed since Professor Hunter sent her away. Since then, Penny has spiraled downhill. She felt the sting of not being able to fully explain herself to James and has since let herself and her academics slip. Meanwhile, she has watched as Professor Hunter ignores her yet looks completely put together and unaffected by their breakup. Penny needs to make a change before she flunks her classes and loses her scholarship, and Melissa’s advice keeps coming back to her: the best way to get over someone is to get under someone else.

Penny is more inclined to stay in for the weekend than to find a party to attend. She tends to follow the rules and is rather straight laced. Her roommate Melissa, though, loves a good time and tries her best to pull Penny out of her comfort zone. She urges Penny to attend their joint birthday party being held at Sigma Pi on Friday, the fifteenth. With a few drinks in her system, Penny begins to feel the a little more courage. She hadn’t needed to drink to feel courage around Professor Hunter – she was naturally emboldened in his presence. But when he doesn’t even wish her a happy birthday, she knows their relationship is truly dead and over. The party is epic in so many ways. It ends in disaster, but it also opens the door for her and James to get back together. A lot went on during their two weeks apart, and much must be forgiven by the two if they are to pick back up where they left off. And there is one truth that James shares with her that makes her doubt what they have is real. James is an addict, and one might argue that Penny is his new addiction.

Once again, Penny has several men in her life vying for her attention. They all make their interest known to her. Austin makes a brief appearance again. Tyler continues to wait on the sidelines hoping his friendship with Penny will eventually lead to something more. His devotion is endearing despite the fact that his judgement is sometimes imperfect (fans shouldn’t feel too bad for Tyler; he gets his own HEA in Missing Pieces). Notably, a new man enters Penny’s life – a man that made a brief appearance in book one. Brendan, twenty-nine, is the architect that designed Professor Hunter’s ritzy apartment building. He had witnessed Penny’s half-dressed escape after she had found the wedding ring in Temptation. Here he once again catches her coming and going, and the pair begin an awkward friendship – one that involves advice as well as kisses. Like Tyler, he makes it clear what he wants, but he doesn’t mind being a friend in the meantime. As Professor Hunter and Penny try to work things out, the other men in her life aren’t too far away. And because their relationship is rocky, those men might just find Penny at a vulnerable point and swoop in to help her pick up the pieces. The angst keeps the readers on their toes! As Penny balances the three men in her life – Professor Hunter, Tyler, and Brendan – things become very complicated.

As James and Penny get more serious, more characters are introduced. Penny’s parents enter the picture, and their discovery of her relationship with James isn’t ideal. James’ friend from Empire High and Harvard fraternity brother Mason Caldwell gets a brief introduction, and he gets his own story in City of Sin. James’ brother Rob enters the story as well. Rob is a handful and talks a mile a minute. He is the opposite of James, and his influence on James is questionable. In some ways he seems to bring James out of his shell, but in other ways he seems to lead James into temptation. Rob might just qualify as one of the men vying for Penny’s attention; it is unclear if his blatant flirting is only meant to push buttons. Rob’s story is in Third Chances. There is also a Dr. Steven Ridge, whose relationship with James remains unexplained. Finally, Isabella herself enters the story. Her appearance ramps up the plot as things really begin to get serious in a variety of ways for James and Penny. As the circle that knows about James and Penny increases, so does the danger of discovery. This book is explosive, but the couple earns a happy for now ending. Their story continues in book three, Eruption

The second installment in James and Penny’s story doesn’t disappoint. The angst will have you in knots and the steam is hot. Though elements of this story are fantasy, there is a lot that feels very real. The characters are imperfect. James and Penny make some big mistakes. In the latter half of book one and part of this book, Penny is somewhat pathetic. She loses herself. We know that the weakness she exhibits is uncharacteristic of her, though, so she can be forgiven for the temporary setback. It makes her human. She does show some maturity by the end of this story. There is a lot of wavering in her head, but much of that is just showing her thought process. This book takes place over the course of roughly two very eventful weeks, and she struggles in her head over the changes and decisions she faces. Tyler’s character also feels very real. The fact that Tyler makes a few big mistakes could make him the villain, but this story humanizes his mistakes. It shows both sides despite the fact that it is entirely in Penny’s POV.

James and Penny’s steamy story is dripping in angst and will have you reaching for the next book in the series to see what happens in the next leg of couple’s journey! James and Penny’s romance opens as they meet at the beginning of her sophomore year of college. As Professor Hunter, James is taboo but that doesn’t deter Penny from pursuing him. He tries to do the right thing, but she doesn’t make it easy. They struggle against temptation and distractions, but when they finally seem to be on the same page, everything explodes around them. This story is nicely written. The plot is somewhat complex. The characters are three dimensional and real. The story is written in first person in Penny’s POV. I rate this book 4.5 stars.

Truth or Dare? “Dare,” you say? … I dare you to read this book!
Book 2 in The Hunted Series; Ivy Smoak
This book begins where book 1 leaves off. Can two people who are drawn together move beyond a little withheld information?
When a forbidden romance is written in the stars, there isn’t any turning back, no matter what the cost, no matter who tries to stand in the way, even if that person is an evil ex.
So many ups and downs, but when you truly love a person calling it quits isn’t an option, especially for Penny and James. <3

Broken hearted, mortified, lost. Penny can’t eat, she can’t sleep, she can’t focus on anything but the pain. Professor Hunter, however, seems fine. He’s back to normal, teaching and looking his sexy self with only one major difference. He won’t even look at her, he won’t acknowledge she exists. Seeing her sinking into devastation Tyler puts aside his anger towards her, concern trumping over his own heartbreak as he sees her slowly wasting away. Her friends keep telling her to move on, to get on with her life, and yet he was such a big part of her she fears she can never be the same. But she needs to try. He is doing fine, just fine without her, so maybe she too can recover, and like her friend says, the best way to get over someone is to get under someone. And it helped, right until he turned up. It seems things aren’t as finished as she thought. He was her addiction, her passion, her drive, but she needed to move on, didn’t she?

Ivy Smoak’s Addiction is the second book in The Hunted series, and if you thought the first one made your pulse race just wait until you get your hands on this. Life is changing for everyone and hard decisions must be made. The past is always present, infringing to the present, jeopardizing any chance of happiness but something else remains too, passion, love, addiction. Filled with contradiction and confusion Penny must understand her heart, learn what and who she really wants before someone gets hurt again. But no matter what she chooses someone will be hurt. There is nothing simple about love, especially when you feel you have to hide. Written with a passion and fervor that will make your heart race and leave you gasping. Jilted lovers, possession, heart wrenching, and moving, what’s not to love?

Feeling swoony after the ending…

I so enjoyed the book. Even though it was long, I never got bored. Penny is growing on me. She’s still immature, but there’s definite growth with her character, albeit slow growth. I adore James, but there are times I’m left unsettled because I don’t know what he’s thinking, and that’s because this story is told only from Penny’s point of view. I prefer two POVs in books, but that’s just my personal preference.

My one complaint — enough with the “tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.” Honestly, over a dozen times is insane! Anything over three times is too much. And really, how many times has a guy tucked a loose strand of hair behind your ear? Once? Twice? Three times? More than a dozen times? No? Yeah, didn’t think so, me either. It doesn’t matter if you change up the words in the sentence; the gesture is still the same! Redundancy is my biggest pet peeve in books. Authors need to dial it back. Here’s hoping someone before me complained about the loose strand of hair before the author wrote Eruption…

Another fantastic book in the Hunter series! I thoroughly enjoyed reading the continuation of Penny and James’ love story. I like that this one ends in an HFN.

Wow wow wow! Buy all of the books in this series. Trust me, you will not be disappointed. A college student falls for her college professor. He has a crazy ex-wife that really thickens the plot and takes the book in a direction that I just did not see coming. An amazing series!