ARC Review: Midnight Heat by Cat Johnson

I have to start by saying that I have no idea why this book is called Midnight Heat. I felt like the title was a little misleading. I was expecting some real down and dirty hotness but this was much more of a mid-tempo sort of average romance. It wasn't bad, it just wasn't "midnight heat" level steam.

So for a brief background, the book is about Phoenix who gets in her head to make a road trip to meet her birth mother. She runs into Justin who happens to be on a trip to help Phoenix's birth mother relocate to Oklahoma. Phoenix decides to go to Oklahoma and Justin decides to take her even though he doesn't know the real reason behind her trip.

Justin was like a really sweet guy wrapped in a A hole package. I was particularly unimpressed by his efforts to ignore Pheonix when her ca broke down and he knew she needed help. I forgave him because he quickly got over his a hole ways but it was touch and go for a minute there. As for Phoenix...she didn't really do anything for me as a character. Phoenix seemed kind of flighty. Her choice to travel across the country with a total stranger was mystifying to me. I had a hard time getting past the sheer stupidity of it.

Dumb choices aside, once Justin and Phoenix discovered their feelings for each other, the development of their relationship was really sweet. I love the reluctant Hero who is convinced that he doesn't have room in his life or heart for the heroine. Justin is dealing with some major trauma concerning the death of his brother and his Mother's consequent condition. It made sense that Justin took the a hole route, his life wasn't easy at the moment that Phoenix entered it. I can't help myself. I'm a sucker for redemption and I was geekily happy to see Justin getting the healing he needed from Phoenix. I also found the side story about Phoenix's journey to meet her birth mother intriguing. It kept things interesting.

All in all, this is a super sweet contemporary romance. I don't know what happened to all the title "heat" but it's still a worthwhile read.

**ARC provided by Publisher**

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Feature and Giveaway: Midnight Ride by Cat Johnson

One bucking bronco…

Oklahoma ranch hand Tyler Jenkins is too young, too sexy, and too damn wild to be tied down by any single woman—for more than a few steamy hours…

One hard-working widow…

Widowed rancher Janie Smithwick is too busy paying off her debts to play rodeo with a reckless young cowboy like Tyler—no matter how hot he gets her…

One midnight ride they’ll never forget…

As a rule, Janie should be dating a man her own age, like her handsome neighbor Rohn—not the twenty-four-year old ranch hand he employs. But once Tyler gets Janie alone—held tight in his arms, pressed against his hard muscled body, burning with desire—the widow realizes that some rules, like broncos, are meant to be broken…

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