SIMON SAYS

Author: Lori Foster ISBN: 0425216586 7/2007 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: BERKLEY SENSATION

With his perfectly chiseled, lava-hot body, Simon Evans, an ex-fighter, also has a perfect life—great job, great girl, and more than enough dough. All that changes, though, when he catches his girlfriend cheating. To shake things up, Simon goes full force back into the ring, ready to take his rage out on his opponents... To make matters worse, the father who walked out on Simon and his mom eons ago wants to be back in the picture. He's hired his stepdaughter, Dakota, to find Simon. Hot on Simon's heels, the gutsy Dakota puts love on the back burner. But when attempts are made on her life, Simon steps in to protect her, putting both of their hearts on the line...

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Before you start SIMON SAYS, you might want to turn down the temperature on the air conditioning. As an added precaution, you might also want to aim a fan (turned on high and close, real close) in your direction.

This latest installment in Ms. Foster's SBC (Supreme Battle Championship) series is a scorcher. In fact, the story starts out burning with anticipation and the heat index is cranked up even more as the story unfolds. The result is a blazing inferno loaded with some really well-done sexual tension, some really terrific love scenes and some really fine romantic moments.

No one does sizzling romance like Lori Foster.

Simon Evans and Dakota Dream are the highlights of this tantalizingly wicked tale. This dream team rocks. What Simon says usually has people scrambling to do his bidding. But not independent, feisty Dakota. It is not only a treat to watch Dakota take the supremely cocky Simon down a notch or two, it's also a real treat to watch this couple's instant attraction to each other develop into something more. Much more...

These two appealing characters carry SIMON SAYS beyond a rather ho-hum, sometimes silly mystery angle. I never did figure out, for example, why Simon's birth father (whom he has never met or even heard of) would expect Simon to help him with anything. And he might not even be Simon's natural father. That aspect, as well as several other questions, are left dangling at the end of SIMON SAYS.

Despite the rather lackluster mystery, SIMON SAYS is fun and incredibly sexy entertainment. Lori Foster fans won't be disappointed.

Debbie Jett