Hot and Bothered by Kate Meader

A Fire They Can't Put Out...

Although her baby boy keeps her plate full, Jules Kilroy is ready to take her love life off the back burner. Despite a bevy of eligible bachelors, it's her best friend, Tadeo DeLuca who's fueling her hormones with generous servings of his mouth-watering Italian sexiness. But Jules learned her lesson once before when she went in for a kiss, only to have Tad reject her. She's vowed never to blur the lines again...

After a lifetime of excuses and false starts, Tad has finally opened a wine bar, a deal made even sweeter when Jules joins his staff. Lovers come and go, and he's had his share, but friendships like theirs last forever. Still, ever since he tasted her luscious lips, he can't stop fantasizing about what could be. Then she signs up for an online dating site--and the thought of his Jules with another man makes Tad's blood boil. Even if he gets burned, Tad can't stop himself from turning up the heat this time.

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I feel like I was already somewhat familiar with the characters from the Hot in the Kitchen series since I read the first two books already. Jules and Tad were mentioned here and there so I felt like I already knew about them. Boy was I wrong! Kate has given these two such a rich story. From Jules' shocking arrival and announcement of her son (and "unknown" father) to Tad's deep and depressing past, Kate has really given us a juicier story than the last two books in this series. 

Juliet Kilroy, sister/half-sister of Jack and Shane is in Chicago starting a fresh page. She's left her past in London and is starting anew as a mom of an eighteen month old boy. She's discovering that she CAN forge her own path and take care of herself and it's nice to see. She comes to terms with herself and learns to realize that she is worthy of the best in life. I love that about her. She's definitely turned herself around from the low-self-esteemed girl that's allowed a learning disability dictate her life.

Taddeo DeLuca may come from a super-Italian family but he's no stranger to being lost, alone and depressed. He finds light in his best friend Jules and her son. He doesn't believe that he deserves to live a happy life but he, almost too late, begins to accept that maybe he can move on from the death of his parents. 

It's heartwarming to see two "lost" souls help each other forge a future and awesome life together. Hot and Bothered was definitely worth the read. A nice ending (right? or are there more coming!!?) to the series. The first two in the series were good and third was just a BAM! Loveable and realistic characters are present and the chemistry between the two is just sizzling hot. 

My Rating: 4 Stars - LOVED IT

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Feel the Heat by Kate Meader

Celebrity chef Jack Kilroy is in town for a few days filming an episode of his Iron-Chef-esque show. His producer, Cara Deluca, is hoping that the publicity will help save her family's restaurant that's on the fast track to failure if things continue the way they are. Along the way, Jack crosses paths with Cara's sister. Lili is the rock in the Deluca family. She runs the restaurant, she takes care of their once sick mother, etc. She's great at doing everything for everyone and neglecting herself. Jack's growing attraction to Lili is met with every possible obstacle, excuse and roadblock as Lili tries to avoid having to take her own wants and needs into consideration. But as he is with his restaurants and with his career, Jack won't stop until he gets what he wants.

The characters...

Lili Deluca is a well-rounded, bright and witty individual. She's struggled most of her life with her body image but has started to come around to believing that she has so much to offer. She's a lot like her sister in that way but you'll have to read All Fired Up to understand what I mean by that ;) Lili's so lovable and you just want to, like Jack, defend her to all the jackfaces in this world. A sweetheart through and through, it's hard to think of her in terms of being so sex-crazed. I love this otherside of her. I love that, for once, it's not the guy who wants to be doing it all the damned time!! Even still, though, Lili is reliable and really has proved to be the rock of her family. The fact that Jack can bring himself to trust Lili in such short time in a life that has, otherwise, surrounded him with superficial and manipulative people really attests to Lili's character.

For the life of me, I could not get Gordon Ramsey out of my head when I was reading this book. Maybe it was the whole chef thing but I couldn't imagine anyone else. This could have been detrimental to my enjoyment of this novel but aside from my skewed mental image, Kate pens Jack Kilroy to be hottest of hot characters (arguably hotter than Shane!!? :o). He's famous, he's good looking, and he's not looking for just a good time. :| Trust issues, yes, but those can be overcome with some effort and commitment from the right woman. Jack is just a ball of intensity. I read the book waiting for the next thing Jack to explode on (I think that's why the whole parallel to Ramsey...)

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Having read All Fired Up first, I already knew of Lili and Jack so it was nice to get to know their story. To be honest, though, I didn't love this one as much! I think one of the main reasons was because I couldn't get Gordon Ramsey out of my head lol. It definitely wasn't bad but I didn't enjoy it as much as the second book in this series. It was nice to see how they all come together, though, since I didn't have much of a back story when I read the second novel! I'm definitely excited to see that Julie and Tad's story is coming out soon, though!!

My Rating: 3.5 Stars

The Kindle version of Feel the Heat is available for purchase on Amazon!

All Fired Up by Kate Meader

Cara DeLuca is from your stereotypical Italian breeding where life revolves around food and family. These are two things that Cara has never felt comfortable with. Shane Doyle is a self-made pastry chef from a rough upbringing. The two are so completely different and, yet, after a drunken night in Vegas end up together...MARRIED. Oops! Having skipped over the whole dating thing, Cara and Shane find themselves getting to know each other while trying to keep their secret marriage under wraps from their family and friends (all while trying to annul the nuptials!). The more time they spend together the more irresistible they become to each other. Could there be some merit to their impulsive, out-of-character actions?

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The great thing about having a stack of books to get through is that you forget what each book is about. I also make it a policy not to read the backs of books before I pick it up--if it ended up on my "to read" pile, it got there for a reason. And, mannnn, did this book start off with a couple of big detonations. The book starts off with what you think it was just a one night stand, but, BAM, Bomb #1: by the end of the chapter you find out that there was an alcohol-induced elopement. And, as if that weren't excitement enough, by the second chapter, BOOM, you get Bomb #2: Shane is Jack's half-brother. In the first two chapters you've got two huge storylines started. Kate does not disappoint. There's such development with the characters that you really get to the point where you feel their pain with them. She really digs in with the themes of mental illness and abusive behaviour on a few different levels. It made the book a bit more than your average love story. A thoroughly enjoyable read. It was a slow, sexy read (definitely digging the boots and the Stetson!!). I think it would have been a lot of fun if Jack knew all along that Shane was his brother but that's just asking for too much drama, right?

The Kindle and Nook versions of All Fired Up are available for purchase!