Hudson Lane is a woman on the run from a bad situation. Her brother Dominic, the leader of a military-style group, has promised her in marriage to his second-in-command Knox and she is dead set against the idea. What makes CLAIMED a little different from your average "woman on the run" scenario is the setting of the story. CLAIMED takes place in a futuristic dystopian world where war has devastated most of the planet. The ensuing earthquakes have caused part of the Americas to drop into the sea, leaving Utah as the coastline. What is left of the people are the haves who live in the walled cities, and the have-nots, the nomads who eke out a living in the barren wilderness. This new world order is run by the Global Council, and peace is kept by an armed forces band called Enforcers. These enforcers sweep the wasteland in an attempt to keep the unruly survivors in check.

Hudson escapes the city, and leaves her oppressive world of luxury behind. She's taken in by a group of outlaws who live a violent lifestyle, surviving by their skills and the supplies they steal by attacking Enforcer outposts. This gang is led by a hard man named Connor, who rules his men with an iron fist. Connor has been devastated by loss caused by Dominic and his enforcers. It's not long, however, before Hudson makes herself useful to the group with her nursing skills, and wriggles her way underneath his hard shell. Connor, of course, has no idea who she really is, only that she is a runaway from the city.

CLAIMED is a quite interesting story. The futuristic storyline is intriguing and shows promise of greater depth as the series goes along. The worldbuilding is fairly well detailed, and the dystopian setting is fantastic. The characters have a free-wheeling lifestyle and live each day to the fullest. This attitude leads to quite a bit of sex in the book, however, which occasionally threatens to derail the plotline. The sex in the book is often voyeuristic, and there is some sexual sharing involved. Be forewarned if that is not to your taste in an erotic romance read. I do hold out hope, however, that the next books will expand the storyline and the dystopian setting a bit more, and show a little more originality from other stories in this genre.

CLAIMED is the first book in Elle Kennedy's new erotic romance Outlaws dystopian series. I really enjoy this kind of futuristic setting in a story. CLAIMED is a lot of fun to read, and I am looking forward to more in the series. There are several more men in the outlaw gang waiting to have their stories told. CLAIMED is a recommended read to those readers who also enjoy this kind of dystopian setting, barring the caveat stated above.

Book Summary

The bestselling author of the Killer Instincts novels “knows how to write scorching sexual tension”*. Now she really sets it on fire in a new series about men and women living on the edge of violence, sex, and life and death.

After a devastating war decimated most of the world, Hudson Lane has only known the oppressive life under her own father’s tyranny. She finally escapes, branding herself an outlaw and hunted by the Enforcers. Her best chance at survival is Connor Mackenzie, an aggressively sensual fugitive who opens her eyes to the wicked possibilities of a world without rules.

As the leader of a band of outlaw fighters, Connor can’t resist the beautiful stranger who asks for his protection. Despite his reservations, he agrees to introduce her to a whole new way of life. But when Connor discovers Hudson’s connection to the enemies of liberty, he wonders how far he can trust the woman who has abandoned all inhibitions to challenge every forbidden desire.