Claiming the Enemy: Dustin

Porter Brothers Trilogy

by Jamie Begley

The Porter brothers were raised to live and die by Three Rules.
One, a Porter always keeps what’s his.
Two, a Porter stands his ground.
Three …
 
 Dustin never had to search for his true love. They used to play and get in trouble together, shared a playpen, and their mothers used to be best friends. But that was before their fathers made them enemies and changed the course of their lives. Now the Porters stayed on their side of the mountain while the Hayes stayed on theirs.
 
Believing it was easier to coexist as frenemies with Jessie Hayes rather than changing the Porter stubborn ways, Dustin was content with booty calls, raising his son, and growing weed as a side business … until he heard her screams. Now he was going to show a murderer just how much they had underestimated this Porter brother. And he was going to have to break his father’s last rule: Leave no enemy standing … to claim the enemy that held his heart. 

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Contemporary, Friends To Lovers, Enemies To Lovers, Second Chance, Dark

443 pages, ebook

First published September 27, 2018

About the author

Jamie Begley is not your average Kentucky girl, and while she does like to cook her southern meals, this down-home momma prefers living in her biker and alien worlds!

Want updates on new book releases? Sign up for her newsletter at JamieBegley.net or follow her on Facebook if you want to chat. Happy reading!

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Jamie Begley Reading Order:
1. Soul of a Man (The Dark Souls)
2. Soul of a Woman (The Dark Souls)
3. Soul of a Demon (The Dark Souls)
4. Razer's Ride (The Last Riders) 
5. Viper's Run (The Last Riders) 
6. Knox's Stand (The Last Riders) 
7. Sex Piston (Biker Bitches) 
8. Teased (The VIP Room) 
9. Tainted (The VIP Room) 
10. Shade's Fall (The Last Riders) 
11. King (The VIP Room)
12. Cash's Fight (The Last Riders)
13. Fat Louise (Biker Bitches)
14. Riot (Predators MC) 
15. Shade (The Last Riders)
16. Stand Off (Predators MC)
17. Lucky's Choice (The Last Riders)
18. Keeping What's His: Tate (Porter Brothers Trilogy)
19. Merry Blissmas (Biker Bitches)
20. Hostage (Predators MC)
21. Winter's Touch (The Last Riders)
22. Train's Clash (The Last Riders, Biker Bitches)
23. Standing His Ground: Greer (Porter Brother's Trilogy)
24. Crazy B!tch (Biker Bitches)
25. Rider's Revenge (The Last Riders)
26. Stalked (Predators MC)
27. Claiming the Enemy: Dustin (Porter Brothers Trilogy)
28. T.A. (Biker Bitches)
29. Dangerous Love
30. Gavin’s Song (Road to Salvation: A Last Rider's Trilogy)
31. Ho Ho Hennessy
32. Reaper’s Wrath (Road to Salvation: A Last Rider's Trilogy)
33. Reaper’s Salvation (Road to Salvation: A Last Rider's Trilogy)
34. Dark Ties: Desmond
35. Jewell (Biker Bitches)
36. Firewalker (The Colemans' Legacy)
37. Desired by Doom (The Last Riders, Ohio Chapter)
38. A Treepoint Christmas
39. Moon’s Promise (The Last Riders)

Reviews

[Sabrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-read May 26, 2019

NOW LIVE!
Amazon US * Amazon UK



Dustin is definitely the calm Porter brother but he still has that wild and crazy personality that the Porter's are known for. I loved seeing that insanity turn into more of caring and sweetness and getting to see him finally taking what he wanted. He was so calm and patient with Jessie that it had me swooning big time.

And of course through all of that cuteness that he brought to the story there was still a good amount of humor from how insane all of the Porters can be. The combination of the sweet parts with the funny and even the heartbreaking ones was very well done and had me enjoying this story from start to finish.

[Fatimama · Rating 1 out of 5]

1 star for the cover.

Le sigh, where do I even begin.

- H/h were best friends since babies and each other’s first love before they even knew what it meant
- H pushed away h coz their dads are enemies and H just did what every JB H has ever done, sleep around
- H fell in love with someone else, got ow preggy, married ow, didn’t have the means to fight for ow coz ow’s father was against their rel, ow gave birth to their son without H knowing
- More sleeping around when H reunited with lost son, even sent son to heroine’s daycare
- Meanwhile all these years since H pushed her away, heroine has been carrying a torch for H forever, she saved her virginity and first kiss etc, never dated
- Here’s the kicker, she got assaulted and raped
- after H found her in the woods, H thought he now could not live without her...
- I can’t believe how quickly they had a ‘friendship’ after all that crap with H being a manwhore who never reached out to her before and with her getting brutally assaulted

Like seriously?? There is nothing to recommend Dustin.. he was even so adamant he did not want to get married and a, Dustin has stated several times that he did not regret falling in love with ow coz he got a son.. and all that time heroine was actually a witness of H’s young love affair with ow, seeing them date and all.

So how can he say heroine is his only love.. blech! apparently, later on heroine found old letters from young Dustin asking to marry him.. she found them after they got married due to a super contrived drama of Dustin having brain tumor.. blaaaah!


Heroine deserved to meet someone else, and fall in love with someone else.. preferably someone outside Treepoint

So anyway, blech! I hope Gavin’s (Last Rider) story is much nicer.. less whoring around and no loving ow bullshit (tough luck coz he had an ex fiancée). I shouldn’t keep my hopes up.

[Mysti · Rating 5 out of 5]

UPDATED:
This book will rip your heart out and then repair it again, and it doesn’t lose its impact no matter how many times I read it. I cried myself ugly and used a box of Kleenex by the time I finished this book. The fact that I hate sad books and still continue to read this should tell you that it’s a good story.

"If I lived a thousand lifetimes, in a thousand different bodies, you would steal my heart every damn single time."

Dustin Porter (26-ish, accountant, Logan's dad) and Jessie Hayes (25-ish, daycare owner) fell in love when they were just children, but one night, Jessie's father does something that causes the two families to split apart. Dustin, acting out of anger, throws Jessie and their childhood friendship away. As they got older, Dustin, being the stubborn ass Porter man that he is, let his pride keep him from apologizing to Jessie, and fighting to get her back. Instead, he hooked up with Sam (former club whore who Knox was accused of killing in TLR Book 3), and she had his baby, Logan.

Now, years later, something terrible happens and it changes the two families forever.

"I was saving all my firsts for you, Dustin. If I couldn’t have you, I didn’t want another man. I always, always knew I loved you. Even when you threw our friendship away, I still loved you."

Dustin is willing to own the multitude of mistakes he's made over the years as far as Jessie is concerned and he's ready to confess all to the only woman he's ever truly loved.

"You got my first smile. You were the first girl I fell in love with…. I saved the most important part of me just for you. I saved my heart for you, Jessie. I saved it just for you."

Just when you think Jesse and Dustin will get their happily ever after, the death bells ring again and the Porters are faced with something that leaves them devastated.

You can’t turn love on and off like a water faucet. You just have to mop it up and fix the leak so it doesn’t happen again.

After Jamie Begley put these two through hell, the families heal, forgive, and get the happy ending they deserve.

A star belonged in a sky, homing pigeons knew where their home was, and her heart had always known where it belonged.

SEX: Good lord…. There’s not much, but the love between them makes it so sweet. Their first time is at 61% and Dustin makes it really good for her. There is only a time or two after that, but that’s ok. This book is definitely about the angst.

JESSE: Fucking love this girl. I felt every single bit of her pain, and I cried so much for her.

DUSTIN: Why can’t JB ever write a man who hasn’t been a whore? Not only do we have to suffer the pain Jesse felt by watching Dustin slutting around town, but then we have the pain of his redemption story. Ughhhhhh the fucking ANGST of it all. Personally, I wanted to see him beg for forgiveness more, but that’s not the Porters’ style.

TRIGGERS: These things are huge spoilers, but it’s triggering as fuck for some folks so I want to give you a chance to read them first: (Jesse is attacked, raped, and thrown off a mountain. She was a virgin at the time because she was saving it for Dustin. I know - I cried too. There are no details of the rape at all because Jessie doesn't remember any of it. We get the aftermath of the rape and the fear and pain she suffers. I usually hate the rape trope in books because the authors are so bad at writing them. This one hit different for me. That’s all I’ll say on that. THEN we have something that happens to Dustin. He gets sick and is dying and it fucking suckssssss. I cried so much.)

ANIMALS: We know that JB loves to kill of the animals. Both a dog and a fox die. It’s what triggers everything.

BOOK ORDER: If you’re not reading these in the recommended order, then you won’t understand what’s happening. I’ll save you the trouble of reading the Predators MC series and fill you in on what happened. In “Stand Off” ( Predators MC Book 2), the FMC Casey has a brother, Cole, who was beaten and suffered a brain injury, so he only has the mental capabilities of a child. In "Stalked" (Predators MC Book 4), Penni (Shade's annoying sister) tricks Greer into meeting Cole and then guilts him into using his abilities to heal Cole. Now Greer is weak in this book and can't use his powers to heal anyone when they need it.

HAYES: I ended up loving Jesse’s brothers. Hell – the entire clan was funny. She’s got cousins named Bubba, Bud, and BoDean and OFMG I laughed so much.

HEALING: Despite all the tears, the book was really cathartic. It was honestly a beautiful fucking story.

AUDIO: Elizabeth Hart narrates again and I loved it.

I’m so in love with Jessie and Dustin that I couldn't give them less than 5 stars even if I wanted to.

[Sheyla ✎ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent addition to the Porter trilogy!

I laughed and I cried reading it. Yet, again another book that made me cry while on a plane. My poor husband kept on asking me if I was all right. Thankfully, I was in the window seat, so no one else was privy to my madness.

Dustin is the youngest Porter brother. He has a son that he loves and a respectable business despite the reputation his family inherited. His dad was tough on him and his only friend growing up was Jessie Hayes. Jessie's dad and Dustin's dad hated each other and after a nasty event, Dustin broke off his relationship with Jessie for good.

Dustin, like his siblings, has something to hide. Something that only family and I guess the Last Riders know about him. Or maybe I should say that he has three secrets but I won't tell you those. What I can tell you, is that Dustin takes charge when Jessie goes missing after being brutally attacked and left for dead. I can tell you that he's extremely patient and careful with her and when the time comes, he will tell her exactly what he wants from her.

Jessie has always loved Dustin. She has followed his life, his happy and sad moments from afar and I felt sorry for her for not moving forward. I'm not sure I like the idea that a woman is pinning her life on a man and will wait forever for him despite not knowing if he cares for her. The only time I saw Jessie shine was at work or when she was firm with her brothers. I think those situations saved her from being a doormat.

One of the reasons why I continue reading the work of Jamie Begley is because of the huge character pool she has created. There are so many characters that I love and that I enjoy seeing them reappear even if it is a tiny cameo.

The one character who shined in this book was Greer. He has become one of my favorite characters in the series. I hope to see more of him in the Last Riders.

Cliffhanger: No

4/5 Fangs

MrsLeif's Two Fangs About It | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

[Lu Bielefeld · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 ⭐⭐⭐ - OK decent reads.
======================
UPDATE: Reread 21 February 2021
---------------------------

Rereading the author's books in the order indicated by her while I wait for Gavin's third book.


=============================


I was not convinced of his love for her.
You can call me cynical and bitter, but he was really in love with Sam. For her he would leave the family and the land he loved. He married Sam.
He had sex with everything that moved, breathed, and had some hole available.
Our heroine remained a virgin and not even she was kissed by anyone.
Pathetic.
Sad.
Loser.
Doormat.
I think he felt guilty for not having warned or even phoned her when he had the premonition that something bad would happen. She was not on his priority list.
BUT ... the story was well written and the author added drama and supernatural to spice it all up.
It always works to add hospital scenes and danger of death. Readers love dramatic scenes.
I've separated some quotes for you to make your own conclusions.

==>Knox's Stand (The Last Riders #3)

“I embarrassed her.” Dustin made a wry face, his hand running through his curly hair. “We began seeing each other when she was a freshman in high school. She didn’t tell anyone because she didn’t want her rich daddy to know.”

“We were in love,” he continued. “She wasn’t like she was until after we broke up. She was always a handful and a smartass, but she wasn’t mean and a slut until after she broke up with me. When her mother died, we were going to sneak away and get married. She was just waiting until the end of the school year then we were going to leave town.”

“She disappeared for about six months, and when she came back, she wouldn’t talk to me and then she began seeing every man in town who had a hard on for her.”

“No, but I’m afraid to find out, too. I didn’t know the Sam that opened that motel door. She thought I was Knox coming back for more.” His face showed the pain in his soul that loving the woman had cost him. He was too young to go through this.

If he hadn’t interfered, Dustin and Samantha would probably have married and raised their child together. Vincent Bedford deserved more punishment than he was getting.

“They’re not going to offer him a deal! They’ve been trying to lock one of us away for years, and all because of that slut they are going to get one of us!”
“I told you not to call her that!” Dustin said.
“You were always blind where that bitch was concerned! I told you to stay away from that stuck up pussy, and did you listen to me? Hell no! Now look at the mess we’re in all because you had to have that slut!”

“I told Sam when we married and had kids I was going to name my son after my dad.”

==>Keeping What’s His: Tate (Porter Brothers Trilogy #1)

His young, devil-may-care attitude hid the pain Samantha had left behind. Dustin had loved her. He had never discussed it with him or Greer, but both brothers felt Dustin’s pain.
Their father had warned them when they each turned sixteen that a Porter loves only once.

I’m gonna give you the same warning my pa gave me: once a woman catches a Porter man’s heart, she never lets it go. My pa and each man before him only loved one woman.

==>Standing His Ground: Greer (Porter Brothers Trilogy #2)

“Her name was Lindy.”
“That explains it.” Dustin ran his hand along the back of his neck. “She hates my guts. I got drunk one night and promised her that if she took me home with her and showed me a good time, she’d never have to work again.”
“And she believed it?” Holly couldn’t believe the woman—any woman—was that gullible.
“I bought her several drinks. She was as drunk as I was. I thought King fired her.” Dustin looked at Greer.

Dustin grinned. “If I thought Jo would date a younger man, I’d go for her myself.”

==>Claiming the Enemy: Dustin (Porter Brothers Trilogy #3)

“Heck yeah! If you find more, I might marry you … when I get old like Clyde.”

“You fucked every whore in town. Hell, when you got drunk, you’d offer them a new car or apartment. Me? You wouldn’t give the time of day to unless you wanted to pick Logan up late.” She gave a sarcastic laugh, unaware that the pain she had gone through could be heard in her voice.

I wouldn’t have been a virgin for that son of bitch to steal if you had just texted me one time for one of the booty calls that you send to at least three women in town a couple of times a week.

I won’t ever regret Sam. She gave me Logan. She was never able to stand up to her father to tell him that we were seeing each other and wanted to get married. The only time she was able to stand up to him was when she found out she was pregnant with Logan.

I’m not talking about marriage. I want to be clear on that point. I don’t see marriage in my foreseeable future.

“When you kissed me the other day, it was my first kiss. I’ve never had a boyfriend, and if I hadn’t been raped, I would have died a virgin before giving it up to another man who wasn’t you.

“You know what firsts you saved for me? Not a single one. I even know you and Sam eloped.”

“When children are enrolled in my daycare, I ask for birth certificates. Holly gave me Logan’s. It listed you as the father, and Sam… she signed it Samantha Porter.”

Shelly moved her hand away. “Is one of the things that’s been keeping you busy Jessie Hayes?”

“Have I ever had any problem keeping more than one woman satisfied?”

Taking a plate, Dustin took the breast on top. Like he said, he was no fool. He had fucked pretty girls who had the brain of a pea; that didn’t mean he didn’t enjoy it. And that chicken breast was too pretty to pass up.

“You’re beautiful,” he breathed out in awe. Jessie raised her eyebrows. “Why is the first time you call me beautiful, you’re not looking at my face?” “Because I know what’s important.”

Showering, he tried to think of a way to show Jessie the joys of fucking in the shower. He hated the thought of taking her to the same hotel he had others. He was familiar with each of the rooms.

“Please … Dustin. Marry me?” “Peanut, you had me at the fried chicken.”

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

Slow start.
Unromantic.
Zero chemistry.
Lack of romance.
Lack of sex scenes (odd considering the abundance in previous books!) Then a weird turn of events that had me eye rolling.
Not an enjoyable read.

[Vintage · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, JB is still staying away from STD sex and changing sex partners with this one, thank you VERY much, but it lacks the charm and sweetness of the Standing His Ground: Greer. Greer is still the strongest and funniest presence in this book, stomping and bellowing his way through this one with his beleaguered bride who has learned how to handle him. The spirit of Diana Palmer is strong in books 2 and 3 in this series.

Then there are the hero and heroine. Umm Dustin and Jessie. Zzzzzz. Kind of bland. Childhood friends/sweethearts, bad parenting rips them apart where the H grows up and gets a skanky bee-yotch pregnant in drama in one of The Last Riders books, supposedly sleeps his pain away all the while keeping the heroine sacred in his heart. Barf. Meanwhile, the h channels virginal Sainthood, opens a Preschool, and pines for the hero for all the firsts they should share.

With the skanky bee-yotch dead and raising his plot moppet, the H is really not much of a manwhore, more of a tired single Dad in a small-town full of hungry women.

Begley lost me when she uses the murder of one woman and the rape of the heroine as the catalyst for stupid Dustin to realize that the h has been in his heart as his number one all these decades years. No bueno. The discovery of the murderer/rapist was awkward and out of left field, plus with all the Last Riders hanging around for cameos they really should have hauled the bad guy off for some serious retribution.


The discovery of the murderer is not the end. We have another supernatural subplot that doesn’t work near as well as the one in Standing His Ground: Greer, but is some of the best part of this book. Some poignant and nice moments are the family coming together and solving a huge problem in a uniquely sweet way. Bottom line, the true hero of this book is Ema, Cash and Rachel's little girl.


Summary of why it didn't work. One that will trigger rage for readers of The Last Riders series.

1. Boring and bland romance between the H and h.
2. Rape of the virginal victim with no therapy other than yelling at her idiot, hillbilly brothers and snuggling with the hero. Only after she’s told him she can never see him again.
3. Lastly, the sanitization of St. Bliss, all around good friend, loving trophy wife and preschool worker. PRESCHOOL WORKER?

[Fatimama · Rating 1 out of 5]

1 star for the cover.

Le sigh, where do I even begin.

- H/h were best friends since babies and each other’s first love before they even knew what it meant
- H pushed away h coz their dads are enemies and H just did what every JB H has ever done, sleep around
- H fell in love with someone else, got ow preggy, married ow, didn’t have the means to fight for ow coz ow’s father was against their rel, ow gave birth to their son without H knowing
- More sleeping around when H reunited with lost son, even sent son to heroine’s daycare
- Meanwhile all these years since H pushed her away, heroine has been carrying a torch for H forever, she saved her virginity and first kiss etc, never dated
- Here’s the kicker, she got assaulted and raped
- after H found her in the woods, H thought he now could not live without her...
- I can’t believe how quickly they had a ‘friendship’ after all that crap with H being a manwhore who never reached out to her before and with her getting brutally assaulted

Like seriously?? There is nothing to recommend Dustin.. he was even so adamant he did not want to get married and a, Dustin has stated several times that he did not regret falling in love with ow coz he got a son.. and all that time heroine was actually a witness of H’s young love affair with ow, seeing them date and all.

So how can he say heroine is his only love.. blech! apparently, later on heroine found old letters from young Dustin asking to marry him.. she found them after they got married due to a super contrived drama of Dustin having brain tumor.. blaaaah!


Heroine deserved to meet someone else, and fall in love with someone else.. preferably someone outside Treepoint

So anyway, blech! I hope Gavin’s (Last Rider) story is much nicer.. less whoring around and no loving ow bullshit (tough luck coz he had an ex fiancée). I shouldn’t keep my hopes up.

[Alpha Possessive Heroes]

Sigh..

Gotta say, I'm not so excited about Dustin's story. He's not as interesting and ott alpha like his brothers. Anyways.. I wonder who's the heroine here? ;)

[Bwmurf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably more of a 2.5

Idk what’s up if it’s iust me or what but I sure haven’t been feeling the love between last few hero and heroines. I really didn’t like how he was suppose to have loved Samantha but also loved heroine. Cause I believe it was in Tate’s book that it was said Porters only love once. I’m pretty sure throughout some of previous books it was noted how much he was in love with Samantha. So to believe he loved Jessie more I would have need to have it played out for me not just be told that’s the way he feels. Plus there was this unfortunate scene:

she asked “why the first time he told her she was beautiful he wasn’t looking at her face” and he answered “cause i know what’s important”. He was looking at her vajayjay!

So not a one of her worst but prob still better than Riders’ book.

[*CJ* · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Claiming the Enemy: Dustin" is the story of Jessie and Dustin.

Childhood friends torn apart by family rivalry are reunited when a horrific tragedy destroys the heroine's life. How they reconnect while dealing with past and present traumas forms the story.

Not gonna lie, the first half was a dud for me. I felt no chemistry between the characters and the plot was disjointed. Second half had tragedy and paranormal elements, and the pace picked up a bit. Nice ending.

TW: heroine gets raped, hero dies and comes back

Unsafe
2.5/5

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

Slow start.
Unromantic.
Zero chemistry.
Lack of romance.
Lack of sex scenes (odd considering the abundance in previous books!)
Then a weird turn of events that had me eye rolling.
Not an enjoyable read.

[Neringa Neringiukas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly, I'm struggling how to feel or what to say about this story. I was irked more then half through the book with how Jessie never moved on, with each piece revealed of how she never stopped loving Dusty. I always hate when h is stuck on him while H lives his life. I guess you could argue about Dustin living his life. I do agree, that there was sweet moments revealed how he felt about Jessie through the years. Moments that softened me a bit towards him. But I still couldn't get over the fact that he let his pride or whatever he wanted to call it, to get in his way to fight for her. So many wasted years for stupid excuses or whatever. And also it sometimes made me feel like he didn't cared, didn't loved Jessie as strong as she loved him. As Dustin claimed he did.
So, yes. I was irked about some things but also this story have some funny and endearing moments. Also it may have made me emotional, because it have hearbtearking moments, when you are left feeling that there's no hope. But once again you are shown that this big family no matter what may wait on someone path, they will always have each others back.

[Ayesh · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a huge expectation for this book & unfortunately am disappointed by it. I read the Last Rider series by the same author and have to say the writing style of those books r more matured & intense compared to this Porter Brothers series. It lacks the thrill. This book had a story line which could go a long way to make up for the lacking I found in the other books. But sadly it was just a simple story where they met again and started a relationship just like that. Only the happenings of the last pages saved this book for me.

[Heather Emery · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a emotional roller-coaster. It is hard to put into words how good this book was. The characters and the plot took my emotions on a ride that I wasn't sure I was going to make it. I can't remember another book by Miss Begley that had my emotions so twisted, but in a good way. I wasn't expecting any of what I got from the story. I know these books are good, but this one just took it to another level. Dustin is so strong, stubborn and perfect for Jessie. Jessie is just as strong and the missing link in Dustin's life. The secondary characters were just as well done and perfect addition to add to the story. Great book, I want more!

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dustin and Jessie

First I need to say I set through enough tissues during the hospital scene. Dustin and Jessie have loved each other for a long time, but actions of others kept them apart.

When Jessie is attacked, Dustin is her hero. He helps her heal as he also catches the bad guy. I have to say I LOVED all the Porter books they are all unique and special.

[Nicky · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 Stars

For the love of Pete. An h on ice. The H a HUGE whore. Ugh! Not redeemed, he was not sorry. Words mean shit. His actions spoke volumes. I absolutely hated the way the doormat h acted.

The only reason this book received stars were due to the side characters.

[Alecia (The Staircase Reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

What is going on with me.
Here is another one that I liked but didn't love from Jamie Begley.

Claiming The Enemy is the third book in the Porter Brothers Trilogy and the twenty fourth book in Jamie Begley's reading order. This is Dustin Porter and Jessie Hayes story.

Dustin found his true love at a young age in his best friend Jessie. But they both decided to hide their friendship due to their father's Bitter rivalry. After a tragic situation occurs and Dustin learns a harsh lesson in growing up, he decides to end his friendship with Jessie and cuts all ties from her all together.

My Thoughts:

Oh my gosh, after just now reading someone's question on here I realized that Claiming The Enemy's plot coincides with the Stalked plot...... GRRR.... I'm going to have to come back to this one because I don't think I gave Stalked a fair enough shot.

I'm going to do a reread and see what I get out of it, so for now my rating will stay at three stars. Because I liked the forbidden vibe throughout this one, but there were moments of confusion and I feel like maybe that confusion stemmed from me not giving Stalked a fair shot.

I will be back to update my review in a week or so.

________________



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[Anne Sherman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just ok

Felt no connection with Dustin and Jessie. Where is the heat that Jamie knows how to write. Been missing in her last few books. I think Geer made this book if it wasn't for him i don't think I would have finished. I found it boring at times and seemed to just dragged on to make the book longer.

[Danielle Tate · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great ending to a trilogy

This book was amazing I ugly cried, I lol, I cussed at the screen and threw my iPad .Dustin and Jessie were well rounded characters that had a great plot line this was a perfect ending to the Porter trilogy

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe 3.5 stars. The story was pretty good but definitely not my favorite. So many characters that I couldn't keep them all straight. As usual, the author did what she does best, bringing forth a deep sense of love of family and family/friends support in times of need with a deeper thread of the importance of faith.

[Joanne Maltas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well well what a dark horse Dustin porter turned out to be .. absolutely devoured this book ..emotional and funny .. loved it

[Bowags12 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not what I expected, but good twist, I love Greer.
I think the issue is I have to remember they are not the last riders.
But it’s hard to see them with out a big names character-say one of the woman. I can see Tate as a last rider with jewel or someone......

[J.S. Andersson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh the emotions. This was an emotional rollercoaster ride for sure..
I liked Dustins story I found him to be sweet...

[Brandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another emotional addition to the Porter Brothers Trilogy!

This book was a beautiful balance of heartache & happiness. It made me ugly cry, it made me laugh, it pissed me off & it made my heart smile. I simply couldn't put it down.

The best thing about this book... The love the Porters have for one another. The bond this family shares is arguably the strongest, most unbreakable one in this entire series. That fact has been demonstrated time & time again in the books through actions, words & of course, the spirits.


*****SPOILERS*****

As for our main couple in this book, Dustin & Jessie... they were pretty darn cute together. I love that they had a second chance kind of romance going on & that they were playmates when they were little. Couples who have a history like they did, always know how to touch my heart.

Dustin... Loved his jealous streak, the way he loved Logan & how he protected his family, even while in the midst his own personal struggle. The attempts to win Jessie over with Logan at the mud hole & when camping, turned into some super fun scenes too. And that whole "bring-church-to-the-Porter's-property" thing... *swoon* My biggest gripe with him... the fact that he didn't fight harder for Jessie. At the very least, he should've tried to make contact with her some time during the last three years, when she moved into town & opened her daycare. I just don't get why he was still worried about her brothers at that point in time. And all that Sam sh*t? He said that Sam would always be second best to Jessie but after reading some of the little notes he left Jessie in their hidey-hole, it didn't always come across that way to me. I mean, dude... Don't profess your love to her AFTER you just said you got someone else pregnant!

Jessie... My heart went out to this woman. What she had to go through was horrific. Throughout it all, she remained tough, down-to-earth & was such a caring person. Loved her relationship with her brothers (Holt braiding her hair was beautiful), the way she was with Logan & how hardworking she was. I really wish she would've struck up a friendship with Jo. They're both mountain women, both have gone through trauma, have similar familial situations & tomboy-ish traits. Scenes with them & Rachel would've been golden!

More FAVORITES-
*Greer- Him as a daddy was a-freakin'-dorable. And him in that bridal shop scene... OMG, he was so sweet & funny!
*Ema- Just like her Uncle Greer, this little lady was a SCENE-STEALER! The possessiveness she showed over "Her Dusty" was the cutest thing ever!!
*Cole- His appearance at the end of the book was awesome to see. It was only a taste but it sure left me hungry for more. Really hope he gets his own happily ever after in a future Predators book!

Some WTF?!!-
*Ginny/Genny- Which is it?! She started out as Ginny, so it should stay the same way throughout the series.
*Age inconsistencies- I've learned to go with the flow where ages are concerned (because they ALL seem to be drinking from the Fountain of Youth in this series) but I just had to put it out there that there is no way Jessie could only be 18 when she opened the daycare. Pretty sure she's older than Rachel & that she was older than 11 years old when Logan was born... *shrugs*
*Too many new characters- I love me some new additions to the cast of characters but I almost couldn't keep them straight. I LOVE the new single dads we met through Jessie's daycare but there were one too many single ladies introduced for my liking. (I don't want Gavin with ANY of them, by the way!)

So excited to get my hands on the next book in this ongoing saga! Remember that since each book builds off of the last one, Jamie Begley books are best read in order. Be sure to check out the recommended reading order on her website, on Amazon or here, on goodreads. :)

Side Note: How the f*ck is Kaley still alive?! She was in the church when Beth, Razer & Lily were kidnapped in Shade 2 & stood by when Beth was being whipped. How is she not in jail or at the VERY least been kicked out of Treepoint?!! #ridiculous

Side Note #2: I'm still in a very "F*ck you, Penni!" mood, after the sh*t she pulled in Stalked with Greer. It'll take more than Shade's help to get you in my good graces, girl.

[Marie Vayer · Rating 1 out of 5]

The books from this author are going further down hill with each one. So many editing errors in this one...mainly missing words from sentences. Took forever to get into the story almost 30% into the book before the story started - too much back story of the kids growing up, talk about slow and dry ugggg. Took me 3 days to read, her books normally finished in a day. Dustin was different in this book than he has been in previous books (he was never a manwhore in previous books)- the character personalities have changed as she writes each book. Bliss, Greer and Knox made this book - no connection Between Dustin and Jessie at all, they bounce between barely looking at each other, to BFF, to yelling at each other to friends and finally lovers talk about a bouncing ball. I honestly don't remember the Hayes kids being in previous books,(I am going to go back and read book 2 of the Porters) but if they were mentioned they were just slight/secondary characters to the point the majority of this book was taken up telling their story and that of the cousins.... A good portion of this book was about the special talents the Porter kids have, its almost like the author was trying to make this a paranormal but didn't quite reach it. Normally each book has more of the Last Riders in it, other than Knox, a little on Shade, no one else was mentioned until the end when TLR formed a line to keep Greer away from Dustin. Loved seeing Bliss/Drake in the story again, the daycare started in Bliss's book.

Over all the story was slow, dry and more on the other secondary characters (brothers/cousins) than on Dustin and Jessie. for the price charge just not worth it....This re confirms that JB isn't doing all the writing, too many inconsistencies and character changes from previous books, nothing to reach out and grab the reader, where her early books were highly charged and strong characters - now they are slow and dry and just not worth the high cost. No romance, no sex (compared to all the previous books) and the effort to be a paranormal but not quite making the cut. The Porter talents were always brought out in other books but this book was centered on it even more than the relationship or lack of between Dustin and Jessie.

[Kikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

I struggled a bit with rating this one. I really enjoyed the vast majority of the story, but the end was so bland. I guess I was just expecting more...

[Caro · Rating 3 out of 5]

Best friends to enemies to more.

I can't believe I'm going to say this cause I love this author, but I just didn't gel with this story or the characters.

I mean I loved Greer and I thought he was the worst out off the Porters. Turns out he wasn't.

I think the main reason is that I wasn't convinced of Dustin's love. He loved Sam (god I hated her!) and Jessie was really just a doormat. Guess the heart wants what the heart wants.

Although I didn't love this as much as I've loved the other authors books, it was an ok read, very emotional though. There was great drama and a line that made me smile 'Peanut, you had me at fried chicken.' 3.5 stars

[hopelesslyinlovewith_books · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG! This book broke me for a minute there. Dustin and Jessie were my favorite couple out of the Porter Brothers books. They loved each other for so long. My heart broke for them in the beginning of the book and I was devastated toward the end. Thankfully that HEA made up for the tears I shed! And Greer! Greer is the winner Porter brother for me in all the brothers books. He cracks me up so hard! Loved this book! I’m so sad we are through these brothers, wishing there was another brother to read about. Hopefully they make a scene or 2 in the remaining books in Jamie’s reading order because I can’t get enough!

[Monique · Rating 5 out of 5]

This would definitely be one of my absolute favourites of the whole series. Besides Shade and Greer's books.