Format: E-book
Read with: Amazon Kindle
Length: Novel
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Harlequin American Romance Publisher Series
Publisher: Harlequin
Hero: John Bartholomew Hunter
Heroine: Dr. Elizabeth Holden
Sensuality: 3.5
Date of Publication: October 1, 2000
Started On: December 2, 2010
Finished On: December 3, 2010

This read certainly was different from my usual reads. Though this book is from Anne Stuart who is famous for penning the types of heroes that you hate to love but eventually you do anyway, not that this rule applied to me when I gobbled up her Ice series last month, the hero in Wild Thing is not the type to invoke shocked gasps from fainthearted readers. But rather what makes John unique is his history, the way he came to be labeled as the “Wild Thing”.

Dr. Elizabeth Holden (Libby) has a mind that refuses to be appeased from its thirst for knowledge and she holds doctorates in both anthropology and linguistics. Working on her research at the Stanfield University in Chicago, Libby is someone who thrives on order and regulation in her life. Someone who abhors the concept of camping or the outdoors, Libby is most comfortable in her city, surrounded by what is familiar to her. Her one serious relationship with Richard, a fellow colleague had fallen flat on its face when he had been more interested in nailing a graduate student rather than tying up the knot with her, a fact which drives home the fact that Libby is not one who tempts men to claim as their own. As an only child, Libby had been lost when her parents had died when she had been young, a result of which her family had become her education. When Edward J. Hunnicutt, the 7th richest man in the world who has quite an influence at the university requests for her service, Libby finds herself traveling to the other end of the world to a remote island off the coast of Australia to do his bidding.

What Libby encounters upon arrival couldn’t have shocked her more. Hunnicutt is convinced that he had found the missing link in evolution and is excited about the prospect of learning more about the hauntingly beautiful man he has strapped on a gurney with drugs pumping through his veins 24/7. From the moment Libby sees the man who is called a variety of names ranging from Tarzan to the Wild Man, something stirs deep within her and tenderhearted Libby cannot stand by and let people treat a man regardless of how savage he might be as a plaything for a billionaire.

When Libby helps the man she starts calling John escape from the facility, the last thing she had expected was for him to kidnap her and take her along in his trek through the forest that surrounds the fortress that Hunnicutt’s property is. The nervousness that starts growing deep within her at the close proximity to John who sets all her senses aflutter makes Libby open up herself and reveal all her deepest and darkest secrets, even the fact that she is entertaining lustful thoughts about the man himself, confident in the belief that John wouldn’t understand a word of what she is saying.

The last thing that reclusive John Bartholomew Hunter needs is a chatty woman harping on about her life trekking through the woods with him. But John had had no choice but to bring her along knowing that the Hunnicutt’s hired thugs wouldn’t take her role in aiding his escape lightly. What John doesn’t expect is to become enamored with her constant chatter to the point of missing her husky voice droning on in the background when she stops to take a breather. It certainly doesn’t help matters that John feels a deep need to claim her as his, a man who always is in ruthless command of all his emotions.

The constant restlessness that is a part of John ever since he had survived the plane crash that had killed his parents when he had just been 8 years old and John had had to survive on his own for 9 whole years until he had been rescued makes him uncomfortable around people and John had built his home on an island that wouldn’t require contact with the outside world. And even when that fails to curb his restless nature, John goes on his walkabout, trekking through the deep jungles, the only place where he feels at home. Captured by Russians and mistaken for a savage had lost him 3 months of his life at the sadistic hands of Hunnicutt’s hired thugs until rescue had come in the form of petite Libby with her husky voice and a mouth that would invite a saint to sin in the most wicked of ways.

Two lost souls, mismatched as they are find that they are more than a match when it comes to the combustive passion between them. Knowing that there is no future for them together doesn’t stop John from giving Libby the best sex of her life for one unforgettable night before John sends her away back to her city life in Chicago. When danger once again comes calling, it is John who rides to Libby’s rescue which in turn gives them their happily ever after.

I Liked:

1. The unique storyline in this novel. I have never read a book of the Tarzan-Jane theme and this was a refreshing change from the usual bunch of romances that line my bookshelves.
2. John. He is one delicious hunk of man flesh which just makes my mouth water. And of course there is a lot to be said for his broody nature, his restless soul that continually seeks something which it cannot find until he holds his Libby in his arms. *sigh*
3. Libby. Lord, she made laugh a couple of times with her sense of humor and her incessant chatter.  Was she in for a surprise when John utters his first words at her. The humiliation she feels leaves her seething but in the end it is no match for the strong yearning that takes a hold of her emotions when she comes into contact with her wild man. I loved her sunny nature which comes out to play only when John is around which perfectly complements John’s broody and intense nature.
4. Ah! This story does prove that Anne Stuart can in fact write an ending that would satisfy her legion of readers. I loved how this story ended with an insight into their lives 3 months after they get together when finally John realizes that at last he had found the other half of his soul in Libby after his latest walkabout.

I Disliked: Nothing comes to mind. I loved this story from start to finish!

Favorite Quotes

The pictures had been astonishing enough, but they failed to prepare her for the reality of Ed Hunnicutt’s wild man.
He was beautiful. There was no other word for him. Beneath the tangle of long, dark hair, beneath the deeply tanned skin and rough beard, he was absolutely stunning. She let her eyes run down the entire length of his body, his lean, muscled shoulders and chest, his long legs ending in bare, narrow feet. He was wearing some sort of ragged cutoffs and nothing else, and he looked like the male equivalent of Sleeping Beauty, perfection lost in an endless sleep.

Recommended for:

1. Those who love Tarzan-Jane themed romances.
2. Fans of Anne Stuart.

Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes&Noble