So how did I get myself into this situation, you ask? Simple: desperation. When you’re faced with being homeless and hungry or taking off your clothes for money, the choice is easier than you’d imagine. That doesn’t make it easy, though. Oh no. I hate it, in fact. There’s nothing I’d like more than to quit and never go into another bar again, never hear the techno beat pulsing in my ears again, never feel the lecherous gazes of horny men again.

Then, one day, I meet a man. He’s in my club, front and center. He watches me do my routine, and his gaze is full of hunger. Not the kind of desire I’m used to though. It’s something different. Something hotter, deeper, and more possessive. I know who he is; of course I do. Everyone knows who Dawson Kellor is. He’s People Magazine’s Sexiest Man alive. He’s the hottest actor in Hollywood. He’s the man hand-picked for the role of Rhett Butler in the long-awaited remake of Gone With the Wind.

He’s the kind of man who can have any woman in the entire world with a mere crook of his finger. So what’s he doing looking at me like he has to have me? And how do I resist him when he looks at me with those intoxicating, changeable, quicksilver eyes?

I’m a virgin, and he’s an American icon of male sexuality. I’m a stripper, and he’s a man used to getting anything and everything he wants. And he wants me. I know I should say no, I know he’s the worst kind of player…but what my mind knows, my body and my heart may not.

And then things get complicated.

Stripped by Jasinda Wilder

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

*ARC Given to Blog for Honest Review*

4 “Tell me one true thing.” Kisses

Without fail Jasinda Wilder has one of the keenest abilities to give me characters that I fall absolutely head over heels in love with. As if that wasn’t enough, she also has the capability of putting some of the most real and raw emotions I have ever read into her stories. Stripped was no exception…when I was bawling at 10% I knew this was going to be a crazy ride and I was absolutely correct. And who would have thought it woulda been a book about a stripper…

Grey Leanne Amundsen – 5’9”….I LOVE her because she’s tall…but I will continue. ‘Honey-blonde hair, long and fine and straight’…is she my twinsie? Maybe! 🙂 Gray eyes…a dancer’s body…with huge boobs…and now I hate her. Haha…jk, kind of. So what else is there to know about Grey…she’s a dancer, a very good self-taught dancer…she wants to go into the film industry…she’s got big plans for herself outside of being the daughter of the preacher of one of largest churches in the entire state of Georgia. But…with being a preacher’s daughter comes a few other things…she’s a little naïve, a little sheltered, and a little unprepared. What this translates to is a brilliant, resilient girl who really doesn’t know how to handle something as simple as her attraction to a boy, let alone understanding what it’s like to have a relationship. Grey is a conundrum, she’s strong in some aspects, yet weak in others – which to me came across as a girl that has a lot of struggles between what she wants to do and what she thinks she should do. For some, I can see how her indecisiveness can be frustrating…and it was at times, but on the flip side that’s also a part of watching her grow and develop as a character. You can’t have an 18-year-old girl who has never really lived out from underneath her parents rule, move to L.A. and expect her to be this strong woman who knows exactly what she wants. It’s not realistic.

‘And then there’s me, a messed-up pastor’s daughter from Georgia, a film student stripping her way through college.’

Dawson Kellor…he’s 6’4”…I’ll stop there. *jaw drop* Well…that was enough for me at least! Okay…so there is more. He’s a freakin movie star, so you know he’s breathtakingly beautiful. And of course being a movie star you get all the added trimmings of rich, powerful, mysterious, intriguing, sexy, alluring…should I stop? I can keep going. Dawson is swooooontastic. He doesn’t even have to say anything and I’m a puddle at his feet with a mere look. Oh…and then when he opens his mouth, I’m just plain done for. He’s a BBF dream. And to quote Grey, ‘Dawson’s touch is hypnotism made flesh.’ Where do I sign up for this??? But there is more to him…he’s the son of a famous Hollywood couple and despite all the fame, fortune and what-not, he has his insecurities. And he’s found something in Grey that he didn’t even realize he wanted…or needed…or was missing to begin with.

‘In person…he’s beyond perfection. I can’t look away from him, but his beauty burns me, like staring into the sun.’

So…I won’t tell you what made me cry, I would call that a spoiler but it is E.M.O.T.I.O.N.A.L.…and the precision with which Miss. Wilder wrote the emotions wrapped up into this event. Spot. On. Brilliant. Speaking from first hand experience, she hit the nail right on the head. So Grey is off, to chase her dreams…but dreams cost money…and eventually it runs out and she is left with one option. Take a job as a stripper. And thus begins the tale of the most reluctant stripper that ever was. But one good thing comes out of this horrible job…it’s how she meets Dawson.

‘He’s sucking me into the orbit of his intensity. His touch is a riptide. It sucks me under. It’s a catalyst, igniting the fire of need. I need. Him, his touch, something. Anything. I don’t even know. Just him.’

Their love was passionate…electric…and fast. But I felt it. They were drawn to each other from the instant they lock eyes, and while that can come off as cheesy at times – it really didn’t here. I was so in-tune with Grey’s feelings and emotions towards Dawson, which is a big shock for her…she’s a ‘good girl’ and good girls don’t feel that way. While we don’t get Dawson’s POV, so we don’t always know exactly what he’s thinking, Jasinda does an amazing job of making it very well known – it may not always be spoken, but the point comes across loud and clear. Grey is special to Dawson and it’s absolutely beautiful the way he feels about her.

‘…it’s a reminder of reality. His arms are around me, warm and comforting, and I want to stay here forever, just like this, because I can almost…almost forget about who I am and who he is and the reality that’s waiting for me.
Almost.’

Not only was it passionate and electric it was flat out, panty-melting, hot, steamy and smoking H.O.T.! I am self-proclaimed Dirty Book Whore…I have no shame – Dawson and Grey rocked my socks off. The sex scenes were amazing! I don’t have to have sex in books, don’t get me wrong – but I do enjoy and appreciate them, and boy oh boy! Did I enjoy these! And it wasn’t ‘sex for the sake of sex’, there was so much emotion and desire with the two of them…and after the build up with Dawson and Grey’s back-and-forth, finally having them come together was like *sigh* I can breathe again! I really do love the two of them together.

‘He’s brought me breakfast. In bed. And he’s done it shirtless. Women of America, be jealous.’

So, I’ve said it already, their relationship is fast…and while I did feel that emotion, a small part of me wished that it had been drawn out just a little bit. Within the span of a few weeks they’re telling each other that they love each other but they really don’t know a whole lot to base those emotions on. Once again, and don’t ask me why, but I never doubted those feelings…but it would have felt more realistic and solidified it that much more if I had really seen that connection be developed from more than what it was. It’s hard to explain but until they are finally together we miss out on a lot of their ‘happy’ times…those little moments where you get to watch them fall in love…I missed those. And I can’t help but feel certain parts towards the end were a little rushed. Some of the conflict with Grey’s dad seemed resolved a little too easily and the last chapter did come as a surprise. I didn’t expect such an abrupt ending.

“I want to kiss you whenever I feel like it. I want to tell you when you’re being ridiculous. I want to make love to you. I want to fuck you. I want to hold you. I want to be yours. I don’t know you, like, at all, but I want all this.’

All that aside…I really did get swept away by Dawson and Grey (haha…I rhymed!) I could have read a million more pages of just them. They’re just one of those easy to love couples that you hate saying good bye to. But they got their HEA…and so therefore I am a happy camper. 🙂

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New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jasinda Wilder is a Michigan native with a penchant for titillating tales about sexy men and strong women. When she’s not writing, she’s probably shopping, baking, or reading.

​Some of her favorite authors include Nora Roberts, JR Ward, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Liliana Hart and Bella Andre.

She loves to travel and some of her favorite vacations spots are Las Vegas, New York City and Toledo, Ohio.

You can often find Jasinda drinking sweet red wine with frozen berries and eating a cupcake.

Jasinda is represented by Kristin Nelson of the Nelson Literary Agency.