Heat Level – Blaze

Her Favorite Rival by Sarah Mayberry

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Her Favorite Rival
Grade: A
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Reviewed by Anne
298 pages

Audrey and Zach are co-workers. They are both candidates for a promotion, and after a take over of their company, they’re also both at risk of being laid off. Both are driven and hard workers, and both of them are attracted to each other. They’re also way too smart to risk their jobs by indulging in an office romance. They’ve got a lot in common, though, and working together on an important project cracks the ice and starts a real friendship between the two.

Besides a great story between Audrey and Zach, there are wonderful secondary story lines. Audrey’s got a tense relationship with her family, who sees her as an under achiever. Zach is dealing with a troubled mother. Audrey’s got a best friend, Megan, and she’s not just for sequel bait!

Here’s Megan and Audrey in a bar after work discussing who might get laid off:

“I tell you who won’t be going, though – Zach. Fifty bucks he gets a promotion out of all of this.”
Audrey reached for the fries. “He’s not that good.”
“Sorry, sweetie, but he is. He’s smart, he’s good at what he does and he could charm a snake out of its skin.”
Audrey rolled her eyes. “Your’re only saying that because you have a soft spot for him.”
“Yeah, it’s called a vagina.”

There’s some great sexual tension between Audrey and Zach, and some great sex once they make the leap.

I highly recommend this book.  It’s a wonderful example of how good a contemporary romance can be!  Sarah Mayberry is an incredible writer and I love her books!
I also love that this book is set in Australia. There’s nothing special in the relationship that makes it Australian verses American, but I enjoy reading the different setting and slang. Do you have a favorite setting?

 

Seeing Red by Jill Shalvis

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Seeing Red
Grade: B
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Series: Firefighter #3

Reviewed by Kate
352 pages


Summer rushes back to her hometown when she hears her mother’s warehouse has burned down. She left town after a similar fire and has never looked back. What she finds when she arrives in town is her old best friend Joe. While Joe, a fire marshal, is investigating the fire, the last thing Summer expects is to feel flames for Joe.

If there is one thing Shalvis excels at, it’s the characters she creates. In Summer and Joe, she has managed to create two characters who are able to find each other without giving up who they are. The relationship with Summer and her family was realistic and moving. Joe’s friend Kenny provides comic relief better than a Disney villain’s sidekick.

When I find an author I enjoy, I – like any good reader – try to go back and read the author’s back list. More often than not, I discover that the author has grown into their writing, and their back list is sadly lacking compared to their newer releases. Happily, that was not the case with Seeing Red. Shalvis continues to keep me coming back for more.

How about you?  Do you enjoy catching up on an author’s back list?  Which authors’ backlists have lived up to your expectations?

Love at High Tide by Christi Barth

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Love at High Tide

 
Grade: B-
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Reviewed by Anne
142 pages 
 
Darcy is spending a week at the beach with her BFF, Trina.  Darcy’s got a big decision to make now that she’s finished her PhD.  Should she take the prestigious job offer from Africa, where she was miserable doing her dissertation?  Or should she…  what?  She has no other offers on the horizon. Some days of sun and relaxing sound like a great way to spend a few days before she has to make her decision.  If only Trina were content to just lay on the beach… But no, Trina drags her from one thing to another, starting with an embarrassing trip into the ocean where Darcy freaks out and is saved (in waist deep water) by the very handsome Cooper.  
 
Cooper just happens to be on vacation.  He’s taken some time off from the police force and is also trying to decide what to do going forward.  A little romance with Darcy for the few days she has left at the beach sounds really good.  Unfortunately, Trina has decided to start training herself for a career as a private detective.  Now that she’s finished researching the position, she decides to stalk, er, I mean watch a suspicious looking guy she sees on the beach.  There’s safety in numbers, so she drags Darcy along with her.  In between outings with Trina, Darcy finds time to go out with Cooper and their attraction is instant and off the charts.

So this book had some ups and downs for me. Darcy and Coop, I liked a lot. Darcy’s best friend, Trina, who has a lot of page time, kept moving back and forth from “She’s hilarious!” to “What a bitch!” She was very funny, but she kept pulling Darcy into these dangerous situations that I thought just made them both look dumb. That was really frustrating.

Aside from the stupid amateur sleuth stuff, and a couple way unnecessary comments about Darcy’s weight, Trina and Darcy had great banter and felt like real friends. They even make a Xena reference!

Darcy and Coop are both at a point of personal crisis. Those felt very real to me. And even though the story took place over only a few days, their connection and their decisions about the future were believable to me. They actually communicated with each other and talked things through!

So, while it had it’s annoying points, it was overall a good book for me.