Leslie Kelly, Wickedly Hot Review

Overall Rating

Wickedly Hot
Leslie Kelly
Harlequin Temptation, Sep 2004, $4.50
ISBN: 0373691912

Savannah Businesswoman Jade Maguire is irate that some heartless Manhattan hunk broke the heart of her sister Jenny when her sibling was trying to make it on stage. She hopes to one day have the opportunity to teach Ryan Stoddard a lesson on breaking hearts.

The grandmother of New York architect Ryan Stoddard has met Jade and thinks she is perfect for her grandson. She decides to matchmake them from a distance, not an easy feat when he lives in Manhattan and Jade in Savannah. So grandma "hysterically" calls Ryan insisting that Jade Maguire stole the painting her father gave to her. She demands that her grandson retrieve her painting and teach the thief a lesson. Because he would do anything for his grandmother, Ryan agrees to handle the situation. He travels to Savannah to confront Jade. When they meet and she realizes who he is she is elated because her chance to "avenge" her sibling has arrived at her doorstep. As Jade and Ryan hide their real respective missions from the other, neither expected love to enter the squabble.

WICKEDLY HOT is a heated, contemporary romance starring two likable protagonists with different agendas that make for an amusing read for fans because ironically we know what neither Ryan nor Jade discern about their opponent. The fun is watching love form, but trust not come with it as she feels guilt for falling for a philandering lout and he feels shame for desiring the felon who stole from his grandmother the matchmaker. Leslie Kelly turns Savannah hot with this tale of mistrust and romance.

Harriet Klausner