ARC provided by Netgalley for an honest review.
I'm all about romance and rom coms but The Hunter was just "meh" for me. The male lead, Hunter was just so cocky and arrogant at times that I just wasn't feeling his character and was over his personality. Sailor I liked up to a point until she became addicted to Hunter and it was like her personality and character did a complete 360°.

Hunter
I didn’t mean to star in a sex tape, okay?
It was just one of those unexplainable things.
Like Stonehenge, Police Academy 2, and morning glory clouds.When I started reading I couldn't put it down.L.J. Shen is magnifysent and amazing writer.I cannot wait to read more of there books.Keep up the great work.You should definitely read this books.Can't wait for the next book

Loved this book. I honestly love all her books but this one is right up there with my favorites. It’s an easy read for a longer book and the characters are full and robust. You really get a feel for the complete story here.

LJ Shen has such a unique voice. These next generation stories are fascinating to me - the parents involved were not exactly wholesome traditional people. These stories have a lot of dark elements address teh superficial, party culture of the very rich head-on. Hunter is the pattern card for an entitled, rich, playboy (with the accompanying viral sex tape). He was raised by nannies and at boarding school and is family doesn't seem to spare any strong emotions for him other than disgust. After the sex-tape SNAFU, he is forced to come back to Boston and be celibate and alcohol free for at least six months while he goes to school and starts learning the family business. To do this - his father demands he have a live in behavior nanny in the form of Sailor.

Sailor is hyper focused on her Olympic dreams, to the exclusion of just about anything else. Including living any kind of life. She is the daughter of an infamous "fixer." Living with Hunter is something she only does to help with her Olympic goal.

Although their relationship starts out as enemies - it quickly turns in to much more for both of them. At times both Sailor and Hunter read as much older than 18 and 19 - and maybe that is a product of the lives they've lived. Their family experiences are very different - but where they end up with a lot of baggage. This book isn't as intensely emotional as some of the others - but it definitely brings on all the feels. If you like romance with darker themes - especially with new adults, this is a must-read for you.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, but these opinions are all my own.

Forbidden romance steals the stage in this standalone L.J.Shen romance. With likable characters, steamy scenes and enemies to lovers banter, The Hunter is one that romance readers need to have on their radar!

Hilarious, heart-squishing romance…

Sailor and Hunter were sizzle-y perfection! Brought together to keep Hunter out of trouble, the friction was immediate and sparked chemistry, angst, anger and everything in between! Hunter was mad. And frustrated. And… hurt? Most of all he was angry, and he’d been that way for a long time. His latest escapade was something he couldn’t wriggle out of – at least from family consequences anyway. He grudgingly accepted Sailor in his life but that, shockingly for both of them, morphed into so much more…

Oh did I love these characters and their story! Hunter, on the surface, was a flighty man-whore. And he SO was but he was also a lot more. Capable of deep feelings and empathy, there was a lot to learn and like about him. Sailor was a great female lead, a great character, full stop. Warm, funny, focused, she hid a lot insecurity behind her quiet façade…

Little did they know how much the other was going to help them not sort out their problems but also become their most ardent champions. And, man, did I love how it all unfolded. Every flirty text, cheeky comment, and heated scene – in other words, every minute of it…

It’s only the start of the series and my heart is beyond happy there will be lots more to come!

Hunter is a badboy specializing in debauchery. Until things go south. Drastically. His family calls in an Olympic hopeful, Sailor, to tame him and keep him under control. What a great, fun story. This series is well written, full of vivacity and just the right amount of spice. After I read this book, I went back and read the beginning of the series.
LJ Shen knows how to create fascinating characters. Hunter ticked me off so many times, I had to put the book down. That's when you know a story is great.
Thanks NetGalley for providing this copy. This review is entirely my own opinion.

First off, let me say I am an authors nightmare! Not many books can hold my attention, and I often give up reading halfway through, which is why I hardly ever review books, I don't believe in tearing authors' works apart, but I do give recognition where I feel it's deserved. This book popped up as a recommendation, and since books about romance are one of my favourite genres, I thought I'd give it ago and I was not disappointed. I don't want to give too much away, but this book was addicting. I powered through it in one day because I had to know what happened next. It's also brilliantly written to the point you don't want it to end. I can guarantee anyone who reads this book won't be disappointed

i love LJ Shen.. I LOVE the bad guy who cusses, is misunderstood and is a general wh0re. But I think hunters age didnt jive with the story and the mix of what is all happening in it. I am not going to lie i will probably reread this later and feel way better about it.. because all of LJ Shens men she writes about are my favs

This book introduced me to LJ Shen. It made me fall in love with her characters and her writing. I cannot recommend this enough!

The Hunter by L.J. Shen is An Enemies-to-Lovers Romance. This is the story of Hunter and Sailor Brennan.
Hunter is a man whore who took it to far when he was video taped with a bunch of women. Now he has to commit to being sober and not messing around with women. This is how he meets Sailor who has been assigned to baby set him to keep him on the road to right. Enjoyed

This is my first book by this author and, I will admit, it took me a little while to get into it. Hunter was a man-ho of epic proportions! I felt I always needed the sanitizer whenever he appeared. But as Sailor got him to open up, I fell in love with his sensitive, loving, but potty mouth, nature. While I admired Sailor’s dedication to her sport, I had a difficult time understanding how both sets of parents would feel that Sailor acting as a babysitter to Hunter was going to work out at all. After all, Sailor wasn’t even in Hunter’s radar at the time. Why would he care about having an almost-virgin, hyper focused, oblivious-to-him girl looking over his shoulder? While I didn’t totally buy into the love connection, I loved reading about both characters emotional development. I am really curious as to who will be Cillian’s love match!

I loved how strong Sailor( the female lead) was, however it took me a little bit to get into this book. I wasn’t a huge fan of the character dynamic at first at the way Hunter spoke, it made him seem like he was in high school. However, after I read through it more I fell in love with Sailor and Hunter and loved both of their character development. This book turned out to be great, I just had to get through the first few chapters. But all in all, great book!

I wasn't a huge of this book, but it should be noted that I haven't had the best luck with LJ Shen's books in general. Some of the quotes in this book said by the hero were a little... strange and seemed somewhat unrealistic. For example, "He didn’t look directly at me as he spoke, like it was my fault I’d been blessed with a physique fit for constant nudity and an eight-inch dick." and “That’s just a natural discharge designed to tell you the female body is ready for mating. You’d know that if you fucked women who were alive.” and "I barely remembered the chick. What I did recall was carroty hair that looked about as soft as blistered feet, more freckles than a face, and the body of a malnourished, five-year-old boy." -... what. Is this supposed to make us like the hero? I couldn't get past the character and personality of the hero, which is a huge reason why this romance didn't work for me overall.

4/5 stars

Let me start by saying first five chapters, I hated Hunter and thought there was nothing that could redeem him. Then as he spends (forced!) time with Sailor, he starts to mellow and I warmed up to getting to know the real him. I love forced proximity and this does this so well with the support of their family and friends behind this relationship. Hunter really is a good guy who feels alone and Sailor really is a fun girl that’s too focused to pay attention to anything other than archery. The evolution of their relationship felt really genuine and I became a huge Hunter fan by the end.

The Hunter brings in characters from this authors previous books in particular Sparrow, to enjoy this book you do not have to of read any previous ones but once you’ve finished this you’ll be “one clicking” away!
Hunter is in trouble, his days of drug taking,alcohol and women all implode when he is filmed staring in a sex tape that goes viral. His father has finally had enough and will disinherit Hunter and not allow him to come and work in his oil company. Enter Sailor Brennan, virgin, scrawny ginger haired and intense. An athletic she is determined to win fold at archery in the next Olympic and is consumed by this desire. She is persuaded to stay with Hunter to keep an eye on him for six months, in return she will receive endorsements towards her goal.
So starts a story of mutual hate and loathing. It romps along with great dialogue, wonderful characters and surprising depth. As these two opposites start to become attracted each does their best to resist…..Resistance is futile!
A wonderful book, it was great to catch up with previous characters, and I’d you loved this wait until the next…The Villian.
My thanks to net galley and publishers for the opportunity to review this book honestly.

I loved this! Forced proximity ahhhh! Hunter is completely misunderstood and the his actions are with reason. Him and Sailor are just fire. They have such undeniable chemistry. They build a connection that blossoms and captivates you. So much amazing banter and the steam was A++.

Thank you to Netgalley for gifting me an arc in exchange for an honest review!

3.5⭐
This was my first experience reading from this author and on a whole, I really did enjoy it!
Firstly, it was Dual POV!!!! Being Dual POV allows us readers to see the story (&romance) from both hunter & sailers perspective.
I liked the tension between the characters & the little bit of mystery they kept us entertained. I enjoyed sailers friendship with the twins too, and with hunters sister in fact.
Although, neither of our main characters are particularly likeable. Sailer doesn't do anything to make us not like her, in fact she's a strong female lead but I just felt like there was something missing from her development?
Hunter, I mean, is supposed to be unlikeable (I think?) But his character had great development and I actually started to like him.
I also must admit, I got a little lost with the talk with the parents hear the end.

Sorry, this book just didn't do it for me. Let's start with the problematic lead that is Hunter. We the reader were supposed to see him changing and fall for him in some way. But all I could think was, "I want to slap this man and not in a hot, kinky way." And Sailor isn't much better. Zero character development and no redeeming qualities for either of them.

And I won't even talk about the ridiculous amount of repetition. Seriously, L.J. Shen, learn some new adjectives!

Wow! The Hunter wasn’t what I expected. I definitely don’t think this book is for everyone. I have wanted to know Hunters story. Hunter is given six months to clean up his act or he will be cut off. And Sailor is his babysitter and keep him in line. Hunter definitely grew on me. This was a good enemies to lovers story!