HOT

Author: Julia Harper ISBN: 0446619175 1/2008 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: GRAND CENTRAL

A Woman With a Plan For most people, being held at gunpoint by inept bank robbers disguised as Yoda and SpongeBob SquarePants would make for a bad day. For local librarian Turner Hastings, it's an opportunity. Using the distraction to pull a little heist of her own, she dives into a new life... on the run. A Cop on a Mission FBI Special Agent John MacKinnon always gets his man... or woman. After watching Turner Hastings dump the contents of a safety deposit box into her purse on a surveillance tape, he knows this case won't be run of the mill. What he doesn't expect is how the cellphone contact between him and his bounty is about to blur the line between professional ambition and personal desire. When bullets from a hired hitman start flying in Turner's direction, giving weight to her claims of injustice, John is willing to cross any line to save her life...even if it means losing his own. Things Are Getting HOT.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

HOT by Julia Harper is one of those books that is so good that it, unfortunately, is over long before the reader wants it to be. It pulled me in on the very first page, with unforgettable characters, slick dialogue and a story that is both romantic and suspenseful.

I never would have thought to give bank robbers such endearing personalities, or to make them wear laugh-out-loud funny disguises, but that's exactly what Julia Harper does. When Turner is held up by a pair of loveable, bumbling robbers, then takes advantage of her situation, I actually felt my jaw drop. It dropped several more times as Turner hightails it out of her ordinary, white cotton panty existence, liberates an enormous canine companion and goes in search of justice. She is pursued by a sinfully delicious FBI agent who finds himself feeling more than ordinary job-related longing for Turner. The game of cat-and-mouse they play is a life-and-death game, and as the suspense level builds, so does their desire to make their personal relationship closer.

Julia Harper writes hot, sexy characters in fast-moving situations with searing realism. There is a scene in this book involving handcuffs, Turner and Special Agent MacKinnon that is way off the hotness scale. Let's just say that this is a book I enjoyed the first time, and I know I will enjoy many times more.

HOT? Yes, I'd say that perfectly describes this book.

Kay James