Wanted

by Amanda Lance

[Nadz@Totally Addicted to Reading]

This author is new to me as such I had no idea what I would be getting myself into. I was intrigued by the premise of the story, hence my decision to read this title. This was my first time reading a captive/hostage story and I was eager to see the angle that the author would take. I was hoping to like this story; however there were moments when I found the story dull in some areas. Basically, it was not the exciting and gripping read I was expecting.
 
 
Wanted centres on Charles Hays and Adeline Battes. Adeline aka Addie and her father on a return home stopped at a convenience store to get some coffee. While there, Addie unwittingly walked in on a crime in progress. This led to her being kidnapped and held hostage by a gang of criminals. Charles aka Charlie, who is responsible for Addie being kidnapped is determined to keep her safe. I found his actions a bit strange; however, as the story progressed his need to protect her became clear.
 
Initially, Addie is wary of Charlie, however, when she realizes that his desire to protect her was genuine she let her guard down and began to trust him. I had difficulty wrapping my head around the idea of her falling in love with a known criminal in such a short space of time. It is evident that she is conflicted about her feelings and not sure how to deal with them.
 
She is a 17 year old who has been home schooled most of her life and never had much social interaction. She has no experience when it came to relationships, hence her struggle with her feelings. She may be book smart, but she was not street smart.
 
 
Charley was drawn to Addie before the kidnapping so it was understandable why he is determined to keep her safe. However, his desire to protect her would lead to conflict between him and his partners. He did not have an easy life growing up. He was abandoned by his parents and spent most of his life in foster care. He has deep rooted issues that are likely to be the reason why he has embarked on a life of crime.
 
These two are complete opposites, but they are able to find a common ground in their love for each other.
 
Based on the cover one would expect that this story would have some steamy love scenes. This however was not the case. This book is squeaky clean. Personally for me this was not an issue. My disappointment with this story stemmed from the author’s decision to take a long winded route to get her point across. This led to the story dragging in some areas.
 
In spite of this I kept reading because I wanted to find out if it was possible for these two to have a future together. While I may not have gotten the story I was hoping for I liked it enough to recommend it to readers who may find this type of story engaging and entertaining.