Week 2 Reviews: Taking the Heat, Taking a Risk

From Goodreads:

To support herself and her one-year-old daughter, Gabrielle Hadley is working as a prison guard – just about the only job available in the small desert town of Florence, Arizona.

Randall Tucker is a prisoner at Florence, convicted of murdering his wife. He has one goal: to survive until he can prove his innocence – and reclaim his eight-year-old son.

When he escapes during a prison transfer, Gabrielle follows him into the unforgiving desert. Within the course of a single day, staying alive becomes the only thing that matters. The balance of power between guard and prisoner changes as they're drawn together in a struggle to survive.

It's a relationship that's not supposed to exist – and yet it might save them both. 

From Goodreads:

Gabrielle Tucker is happy at last. She's married to her soul mate, and she's been reunited with her long-lost mother — and the sister she never knew she had. Now if only she could see her ex-husband and best friend, David, find true happiness of his own? But it just so happens that Gabrielle knows the perfect woman for David — her little sister, Lindy!

Lindy fell in love with David on their first date — a date arranged by her sister, Gabrielle. But it's obvious that David isn't over Gabrielle, even though she's now happily married to someone else. Which is why it's going to be very hard for Lindy to tell David that the one night of passion they shared has changed all of their lives forever?

My Review:
I really enjoyed reading these stories! They aren't technically in a series that I can find, but they star the same characters, with David being Gabrielle's ex-husband and father of her child, and Lindy is Gabrielle's sister. So they are connected.

The first half of Taking the Heat was survival in the desert. And the second half was part relationship drama, and part finding out who actually killed his wife. And I really enjoyed both parts, and I don't think I prefer one to the other. 

I enjoyed Gabrielle's situation of finding her birth mother. And I really enjoyed  mystery who who killed his wife, that was very interesting to read and I loved watching it play out. The one thing that I didn't really like was how quickly she fell in love with him, given that "in love" status with her husband-that she was not-was why they broke up. 

Taking a Risk was really cute and sweet, I'm really glad that we got to see David happy, and that he found happiness with Gabrielle's long lost sister was really cute! They have some problems, given that he was in love with her sister, and never called after their first date/one night stand, but the pregnancy gives them that excuse to spend more time together, to fall in love, and I loved that! 

These were some really great reads, and I had a great time reading them! 

Author: Brenda Novak
Read: January 13th, 13th, 2022
Source: Own, Online
Reason Why: Love her writing, and they're SAC 2022 Books! 
Publisher: Harlequin Mira, Harlequin Books S.A.
Published: January 24th 2003, 2003

Taking the Heat:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars

Taking a Risk:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars