Ruined (The Wicked Woodleys Book 4)

First off, I love so many of the author's other series. (1797 club, Mistresses, Duke's By-blows) However, after reading through Claire's book, I can't recommend the Wicked Woodleys--it's my least favorite of hers. The series has thus far centered on Claire's disappearance and frankly, after this book, I can't understand why anyone would want to care about her, let alone be willing to do anything to save her.Claire is self-destructive, petulant, selfish, and just all around a very stupid person. She's supposedly this great criminal now, and yet every decision she makes goes from bad to worse. She constantly puts everyone into danger, never listens to those who know what they're talking about, thinks she knows best, and constantly has to be saved. The hero of this book, War, deserved so much better than her. By the end, I just want to shake some sense into Claire.And as for her big "secret," I guessed it back in the first book. I still don't understand her reasons for running into Aston's arms. She would've been in her early/mid-20s when she ran, so old enough to not act like a spoiled child.I can't bring myself to read the other two stories in this series. I'm still too mad at Claire. Read any of the other Jess Michaels series, just not this one.

And what a story…. I’ve read the entire series and decided to write the review for this book as it was my favorite.. throughout the first 3 books reading about Claire and the search for her… we finally know the background story. The development of the plot was excellent and the relationship between Claire and Warwick was beautifully spun out .. I would very highly recommend this entire series of books …. There are a lot of people out there who could use a Warwick in their life..

Excited to finally read Claire's story. "Ruined" did not disappoint! As with the other characters in this series, I thoroughly enjoyed Claire and War. Warrick Blackwood has to be one of my favorites of Jess Michaels' heroes (and trust me, there are so many good ones to choose from).When I first read about Edward Woodley (Claire's oldest brother) as a minor character in The Notorious Flynns series, I wanted to read more of him, which was given to us in "A Marquis for Mary". Then came a whole new series, The Wicked Woodleys", and we were introduced to the rest of the family. I love the characters Jess Michaels has created in these two series, and highly recommend them.So anxious to read more about War's brother, Jack, in the final book, "Seduced", coming in May. We learned just enough in Ruined to want more. Can't wait!

This should have been the last book on this series, but I'm happy it's not. I likes Clare and War's story even if it was really stretched thin, but still enjoyable, specially because I got to see all the Woodleys together again and they are one of my favorite family.Questo sarebbe dovuto essere l'ultimo libro di questa serie, che invece andrá avanti e la cosa non mi dispiace. Mi é piaciuta la storia di Claire e War, anche se era piuttosto incredibile, ma divertente e soprattutto ho rivisto tutto il clan dei Woodley, che mi stanno proprio simpatici.

must say this is one of my favorites from this series. it laid to rest the common thread across this series. i like Warrington, and in some ways, i understand why Claire had to go, but on the other hand, knowing how much her family was suffering, why she still do what she did for that long. I guess we need to understand the period in which this was written to emphatise her no-go position. anyway, am glad this is resolved!

So this is book 4 and we finally meet Claire who has underlined every other book. I did not like her in the least. I had guessed part of the story, and just got angry at her for not asking anyone anything before she ran off. She got a happy ending.

Since she’s been gone, Claire had obviously developed the ability to hide her emotions. In the kind of world where she had been living, she would have had to do so to survive. But in that moment after she shouted out her secret, War saw everything she’d been fighting to hide. Her pain was so clear, it might have been tattooed across her face in words like grief, terror, and anguish.”FINAL DECISION: A satisfying resolution of the mystery regarding Claire that has dominated the Wicked Woodleys series. I absolutely loved Claire and War who are strong and compelling characters. My new all time favorite by Jess Michaels.THE STORY: Claire Woodley made a terrible mistake two years ago. The aristocratic daughter ran off to marry a man who turned out to be a liar, a thief and extremely dangerous rogue. Avoiding her family who has been searching for her, Claire has immersed herself in the underworld where her lover lives. Finally, she has emerged and seeks the help of the Woodley horsemaster Warrick Blackwood to retrieve something that her lover stole from her. War has wanted Claire for years, even though he rejected her attempt to seduce him two years ago. Claire’s request for help requires him to confront his own past and perhaps sacrifice his future, but he cannot resist her.OPINION: I absolutely loved this book. Claire is a woman with a scandalous past, a desperate present, and only a vague future. Throughout the series, readers have been teased with hints of what motivated Claire, what her current situation is and questions as to why she has not returned to her family. I’m pleased to say that this book provides a satisfying resolution while still providing a hot, sexy and suspenseful story. Thankfully, Michaels doesn’t make readers wait long to discover one of her big secrets. Even better, the hot romance between Claire and the man she wanted but who rejected her, War gets off to a fast and torrid start.War becomes an intriguing hero because he is a good man who has dark secrets. This gives him a complexity that makes him interesting and worth reading about. I especially like how he orchestrates the reunion of the Woodleys. He truly cares for the family and he is a good man who is willing to risk much to help Claire. War rejected Claire for her own good once and that ended up in Claire’s running off with a con man. Now that Claire is not so innocent, War is determined not to let the possibility of being with Claire slip by him again. War is sexy, earthy and complicated.War and Claire together are combative, emotional and a perfect pair. The two work together to solve Claire’s problem and end up discovering that their pasts have ended up making them an ideal match for one another in a way that wouldn’t have been possible before Claire’s downfall.One of my favorite parts of the Wicked Woodleys series has been the cross-social class romances. For those who like more historically accurate romances, this may not be the story for you. This series tends more toward erotic sexual encounters and the morals of the characters feel more modern. For me, however, I love this type of historical book where the time and setting provide texture and substance to the story but where the actual execution of the story has more of a romanticized fairy tale feel to it. If I want pure historical accuracy, I read historical fiction not romance.I enjoyed the plot of the book which was suspenseful and worked to provide an opportunity for the relationship between War and Claire to develop and deepen as te two depend upon one another and discover all the secrets each are hiding. I read through this book in record time and immediately went back to reread passages. For me, that is the primary indicator of a book that I will reread again and again in the years ahead. A book that exceeded my expectations!WORTH MENTIONING: Oh, I can’t wait until Jack’s book. That’s how an author builds a great series by having compelling characters that demand their own stories be told.CONNECTED BOOKS: RUINED is the fourth book in the Wicked Woodleys series. This book can be read as a standalone, but is so much more fulfilling after reading the stories of Claire’s siblings.STAR RATING: I give this book 5 stars.NOTE: I received an ARC of this book via Netgalley in order to provide a review. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

What can I say? Another awesome book by jess michaels.

I liked this book hope to read more from the same author

Enjoyed this book, intrigued by the next book with Wars, brother (bad boy) Jack.

Brilliant

Book 4 - " The Wicked Woodleys Series " - I wasn't impressed by the biggest portion of this novel - it didn't ring true to me that Claire would do anything to find it ... but actually sex was on her mind more than anything else. I know if my ... was missing I wouldn't stop until I found it. This was Claire's story so I thought the emphasis would be on this situation seeing that the whole series had brought this story out. I was not a big fan of " War " - he says he's trying to set Claire free by being dominant in the bed but not allowing Claire to speak and threatening to gag her isn't freedom to me - I think that is a jerk. I liked the last 10 chapters.