REVIEW: Turning Up The Heat by Tanya Michaels

Turning Up The Heat is the latest Harlequin blaze novel by author Tanya Michaels. It features a few classic scenarios on the road to a happy ending – a friends to lovers romance and a fake relationship being the key drivers of the plot. Phoebe is a pastry chef who worked at a restaurant with her boyfriend Cam, one of the owners and chefs. When he persuaded her to look for another job, on the premise that it would be better if they didn’t work together, it was really a step towards him breaking off their relationship. Phoebe naturally feels hurt over their breakup. When Cam’s partner Heath, her now ex-boss and longtime friend proposes a fake relationship to make Cam jealous and aware of what he’s missing, it sounds like a great idea. Well, until Phoebe and Heath discover that they are just as compatible in the bedroom as they were in the workplace. Can they get past their initial reasons for faking a relationship and move on to the real thing together?

I had a small problem with the start of the story. I found the introduction of Gwen, Phoebe’s roommate to be a little confusing, mostly because her animosity towards Heath made it almost sound at the beginning like it was going to be an enemies to lovers story between Gwen and Heath as opposed to a friends to lovers story between Heath and Phoebe. So I was a bit trepidatious moving forward as I wasn’t entirely clear where the story was headed. It’s eventually explained that Gwen’s got strong feelings about Heath because she could see that Heath had a low level interest in Phoebe even when she was involved with someone else, and this clears up the confusion. Gwen is just looking out for her friend, and concerned about her getting involved with Heath, who is a notorious playboy.

Heath definitely has his flaws. He’s a player, a man who only gets involved with women for sex and hasn’t had any long term relationships since his girlfriend dumped him for his step-brother (ouch! no wonder he’s leery of commitment). The good thing about his character though, is that he knows his own faults. He’s a bit cocky, sometimes selfish, but at heart he is a good guy. It took me a bit to warm up to him, but he really does treat Phoebe well, and makes her feel beautiful. And he thinks Cam is a fool for having dumped her (though it’s obviously to his advantage). I liked him and Phoebe together, and I thought they made a good couple.

Phoebe is a little bit shy, definitely hurt over her breakup, but coming to realize that there were a lot of signs that Cam wasn’t as invested in their relationship as she was. Her attraction to Heath surprises her, but also shows her that things with Cam were rather stagnant. Though her initial agreement to fake a relationship with Heath is to try to gain back Cam’s attention, it’s not long before she realizes she’s quite happy without it. She and Heath share some very steamy scenes together, as part of her arrangement with him is to give her some freedom to be more sexually expressive. She comes from a restrictive background where sex is taboo, and that has shaped her as an adult. With Heath, she has found someone who doesn’t judge her, and who is interested in all of her, body and mind.

I liked the setting, including a 4 day trip that Heath, Cam and Phoebe make to Miami to investigate some new business opportunities there. I did think it a bit strange that Cam was involved in as much of the story as he was, since he and Phoebe had broken up. But his working relationship with Heath meant that any business decisions had to involve him, so I suppose it’s not that surprising. But in Phoebe’s shoes, having been dumped by him, I don’t think I’d have wanted him hanging around as much. I did like the emphasis on cooking and desserts, there were some lovely scenes that made my mouth water with the food descriptions and decadent desserts. Overall, it was a good read, and I’ll look for more from this author.
 

Book Info:

Publication: May 24 2016 | Harlequin Blaze |

“Teach me to be sexy…”

Phoebe Mars can’t believe her chef boyfriend has unceremoniously dumped her. She’s beautiful, successful, one of the city’s hottest pastry chefs…and determined to show her ex she’s worth fighting for. Notorious player Heath Jensen is just the tall stud of sexy hotness to help her win back her man!

Of course, there are a few teeny complications. For one, he’s Phoebe’s friend. For another, he’s her ex’s business partner. And when Heath volunteers to help her discover her wild side, Phoebe knows she doesn’t want her ex back. She falls for Heath’s charms, but outside the bedroom, he seems happy to just stay friends. Can Phoebe go back…especially when her heart is on the line?