Heat Level – Blaze

Close to You by Kate Perry

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Close to You (Laurel Heights, #2)
Grade: B-
Hotness Level: Blaze
Kink Level: No Kink
Genre: Contemporary
Series: Laurel Heights #2

Reviewed by Kate
267 pages


Margaret has owned her tea shop in the ritzy town of Laurel Heights for years but finances are starting to get tight. She knows who’s to blame too-Eve, the owner of the new coffee shop across the street. So Margaret sends her son Treat (yes, that’s really his name) into Eve’s shop to scope out the competition. As Treat walks into Eve’s shop, he’s glad this is a one time only spy mission because he completely falls for Eve. And the feeling’s mutual. When it becomes apparent someone is sabotaging Eve’s business, both Eve and Treat suspect Margaret is to blame. But is it too late for Treat to tell the truth about who his mother is?

Treat and Eve are great characters and I enjoyed reading about them.  But surprisingly, I really liked Margaret, the third wheel (and villain) in their relationship.  The author does a superb job of making you care not only for the hero and heroine, but the villain as well.  I would really like to see Margaret get her own HEA. 

How about you?  Romance villains.  Love ’em, Hate ’em, or Love to Hate ’em?

Just What He Wanted by HelenKay Dimon

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Just What He Wanted (Holloway, #4)
Grade-B
Hotness Level-Blaze
Kink Level-None
Series-Holloway #4
Reviewed by Kay

This story is a novella for the Holloway series. The main characters are Travis Yardley and Andrea “Andie” Patterson. Travis works with his semi adopted family in their nursery business. He goes through his life thinking he has everything he could need for now, great family and friends, a job he enjoys and female companionship when he wants it. Then he is asked a favor by a friend and when he sees Andie , he is floored by her.

Andie is self described as chubby but I thought of her as full figured not fat. She came to Holloway after her break up with a total jack ass, who tried to make her feel bad about herself. She enjoys her job and her new town, even if the town is small and in her business quite a bit. She’s here to start her life over and not with the hot young thing she just met.

I liked all of the aspects of this book: the full figured heroine, the younger man, the close knit family, the problem Andie had with the age difference and Travis’ total disregard of that difference. He was firm that she was beautiful in his eyes and did not like her putting herself down at all. He really was the perfect hero in my eyes. He know what he wanted and that was all there was to it. And when Andie realized it she was all in too. It took her a while but she came around.  This was a sweet, cute, short and funny read. It has been a long time since I’ve read a book by HelenKay Dimon and I’ve missed her writing. I will end with my favorite line of the book: He was six feet of hello-there-handsome. It still makes me giggle.

Flirting With Disaster by Ruthie Knox

Posted on by Dirty Girl Anne

Flirting with Disaster (Camelot, #3)

Grade-B
Hotness Level-Blaze
Kink Level-None
Series-Camelot #3
Reviewed by Kay

A security specialist computer geek, a recently divorced hometown girl, an aging in the closet rock star, an ex-military overprotective brother, and a precocious toddler. These are just some of the endearing characters you get in this novel. Sean is a former geek turned security specialist who has come back to his hometown to settle his estranged mother’s estate. Katie is a divorcee whose ex husband took their life savings and abandoned her. Judah is a rock star that’s gay but hasn’t come out yet and who has a stalker.

This is a great little read about the things we can and can’t change about ourselves and the choices we make because of that. It’s also about two different love stories, each that will touch your heart.  Sean and Katie have known each other since high school and have crushed on each other that long also. When they face what they feel, there a some pretty good fireworks. And when Judah finally confronts his orientation, you feel it too. Sean was so embarrassed by his stuttering and Katie’s not really noticing was precious.

I had a hard time when I started reading this but I’m glad I finished it. My lack of focus had nothing to do with the book not being good though. Everyone should read this book. In closing, I’ll leave you with my favorite thought in the book. It comes from Sean: He picked her up. Picked her up and carried her, as if she were Scarlett O’Hara and he were Rhett Butler, if Rhett had been the kind of guy to go down on Scarlett in a doorway. Which, let’s be honest, he probably was.