Review: Winter Heat
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 10, 2012
This is Ms. Barrett's second novel in the Star Harbor Series. In the first novel we met Seb and Lexie...two very competitive chefs who learn they can pursue their own career, but still love each other.In this novel we meet Theo, Seb's twin, but a very different man. Theo is a famous novelist who writes adventure stories about swashbuckling pirates. He is suffering from writers block, living on his brother's boat, and sharing a cabin with his police officer brother. The arrangement just doesn't work. Theo is doing research at the local library, and Emma, the librarian suggests a room at the Inn. It's December, quiet in town without many tourists. Sounded like a great idea!At the Inn we meet Avery Newbridge, Emma's sister, who is in town helping to run the Inn for her Aunt Kate, who is recovering from breast cancer. At least that is what she is telling herself. She is a social worker in Boston, counseling drug addicts in recovery. After a tragic incident with one of her clients, she needed time away. Star Harbor, with her aunt and her sister seemed like the best place. At Theo's and Avery first meeting she feels the pull. "The small quaver in her belly told Avery one thing: this man was trouble with a capital T." She sees him as tall dark and handsome and way out of her league. Theo is immediately taken with Avery, so different than the women he knew in San Francisco. After a dinner, and some conversation, he's intrigued. "His titian haired beauty was like one of those wooden box puzzles-one he wanted to solve layer by layer, to find out what was beneath the surface."We encounter all our friends from Star Harbor, and a few new ones. The mystery of the Siren Lorelei is still unsolved, and there are strange unexplained noises, and drafty rooms at the Inn. Theo is relentless in his pursuit of Avery, and she is frightened he will leave. This novel is heartwarming, with a bit of mystery, and, oh yes, some hot scenes in a pantry, car, and yes a bedroom or two.I recommend this novel to readers who enjoy small town stories, with a lot of heart.Ms. Barrett has more Grayson brothers waiting for their story....can't wait.....