Early Review of Texas Hold 'Em (Hotter In Texas #3) by Christie Craig

Title: Texas Hold 'Em (Hotter in Texas)
Series: Hotter in Texas (Book 3)
Classification: Adult Fiction
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Format: Paperback; 480 pages
Publisher: Forever (January 28, 2014)
ISBN-10: 0446582824
ISBN-13: 978-0446582827 

Author's Website:  http://www.christie-craig.com/
Notes: I received and eARC loan from the publisher. 

For the past several years Austin Brook has been counting down the days until he could finally catch the man who had framed him and his partners for murder. Cops at the time, they'd been convicted and spent eighteen months in prison before evidence had surfaced which proved someone else had pulled the trigger. Still some believe they'd gotten away with murder, and Austin wants there to be no doubt of their innocence. The wrongful conviction had cost Austin and his friends their jobs, the respect and confidence of their fellow cops, and eighteen months of their lives which they'd never get back. As Rafael DeLuna, the man who'd orchestrated the frame up, knew each of their faces, the group had hired Roberto, a professional informant, to dig up dirt on the man. With no solid leads in the past six months, however, Austin has lost his patience and has decided to do a little investigating on his own. He's convinced DeLuna's half sister, Leah Reece, holds the key to finding the man. His sights are set, and he's prepared to do whatever is necessary to take DeLuna down. Turning on the charm for the man's sister and seducing the information out of her is the least he can do. After all, what could be easier? 

This was another great book in the Hotter In Texas series. Ms. Craig has a way of taking a serious plot and embedding it with humor, romance and handsome hunks creating a delightfully heady combination. Once again the boys of the Only in Texas PI agency are on a case. This one, however, is a little more personal in nature--finding enough dirt on Rafael DeLuna, the man who sent them to prison for a crime they didn't commit, to lock him away and leave no doubt as to who truly committed the murders for which they'd been accused. 

Leah Reece is a specialty veterinarian whose area of expertise is felines. Austin Brook, ironically, suffers from ailurophobia, a fear of cats. Posing as a neighbor, Austin will need to pretend to like cats to get into Leah's good graces as she is the proud owner of three. As one can imagine, this makes for some very fun moments. Additionally, Leah is still suffering the ill effects of a marriage gone wrong and has sworn off men. Austin will have his work cut out to get through Leah's defenses.

Austin is a determined individual with a lot of baggage in his past. He's looking for nothing more than the information that Leah can provide him. Leah, however, is nothing like what he'd imagined and he soon realizes she wishes to have no ties with the estranged half brother she despises. As things unfold the two start to grow close and Leah begins to trust him. While he'd been intent on seducing her, he soon finds himself starting to fall for her. The one thing that could get in his way are the lies he's woven to situate himself into her life.

Why is the book titled Texas Hold 'Em? Well, truth be told, I'm not entirely sure, but as I was reading the book, the lyrics to The Gambler, a song sung by Kenny Rogers, was dancing in my head. The lyrics, 

"You've got to know when to hold 'em

Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
Know when to run?"
seem  appropriate for this story. When hunting down a killer all those things are equally important so you don't end up getting yourself killed. Team that up with the fact the series takes place in Texas, and I think you get an idea of how the title may have come about.

Overall, I gave this one 4 1/2 out of 5 roses. I felt the story was well thought out, contained a nice combination of drama, humor and action while maintaining a fast pace. Plus, Ms. Craig added an equally delightful secondary romance between Roberto and Sara, Leah's veterinarian assistant and good friend.  On the Lisarenee Romance Rating Scale, this one got a STEAM rating--too hot for a fan, but you still have a handle on things. You should use extreme caution when reading a book with this rating in public. People may inquire as to why you looked flustered and flushed. A highly entertaining read that I'd definitely recommend.

Order of the series:

 

Blame It On Texas (Hotter In Texas #2) by Christie Craig

• Title: Blame It on Texas (Hotter in Texas)
• Classification: Adult Fiction
• Genre: Contemporary Romance
• Format: Paperback, 464 pages
• Publisher: Forever (August 28, 2012)
• ISBN-10: 0446582832
• ISBN-13: 978-0446582834

Author's Website: http://www.christie-craig.com/

Nearly two decades ago a kidnapping took place. A little girl, Caroline Bradford, was taken from her wealthy family and later murdered. Her burnt body was recovered, but the killers were never found.

We've all seen the stories of someone recognizing themselves or someone else on a milk carton, but for Zoe Adams it was an airing of an episode of Unsolved Mystery Hunters that had her come face to face with a suspicion she'd held for years, but had never voiced. She was certain the little girl whose picture she'd seen on her TV screen was her, and she was determined to find out if she was right. She wanted the truth. Luckily, she had the good fortune to get a referral to the Only in Texas detective agency.

Tyler Lopez and his colleagues had once been cops. Someone framed them for a crime they didn't commit and they spent several years in prison before being exonerated. They weren't allowed back of the force, so they opened up their own detective agency called Only in Texas. When Zoe came to them looking for help and answers, she was hesitant to tell any of them her suspicions. As she expected, Tyler first thought she was either a fortune hunter looking for some easy prey or just plain crazy, but when someone starts threatening and shooting at her, he finally starts to take her seriously.

Both Tyler and Zoe have their own emotional baggage. Neither was looking for love or a relationship. Sometimes, however, fate has other plans...

     Zoe held out the tray with the fortune cookies on them. "You choose."
     "That's okay," he said.
     "You have to, it has your fortune in it." 
     He smiled, "You believe in that?"
     "A little bit," she said...
     "Never let the past stop you from making a future." He dropped the the paper on the table and pretended as if it held no significance to him. "Your turn."
     She opened it, put a piece of cookie in her mouth, and then read it...silently.
     "And?"
     She looked down at the slip of paper. "It's profound."
     "So read it". He leaned closer.
     She focused on the tiny print. "Be leery of men who cross-dressed in their youth."
     He laughed. "And I thought I could trust you."
     She grinned and stood up. "Ladies' room."
     He watched her walk away, then he noticed her fortune beside the half-eaten cookie  He reached for it.
     'Love is always a risk. But it's a risk worth taking.'

______________

This was a very fun story. Ms. Craig has a wonderful sense of humor that carries over into her books. I always know I'm going to do a lot of chuckling when I open one of her books. In this book, we get an additional romance between two of the secondary characters which wraps up neatly by the end. 

I liked how Zoe is sweet, strong, smart, loyal and a tell it like it is type of person. She realizes how crazy her suspicions sound, yet she doesn't waver from her mission--to uncover the truth. Her feelings for Tyler are complicated by the fact she will be leaving Texas to step back into the life she left behind when she came to Texas. In her 'real life' she's a kindergarten teacher, but has been working as a waitress to make ends meat while living in Texas because she's paying for two apartments, the one she rents in Texas while trying to find out the truth and the one she calls home. Her plan was always to go back to her old life whether she turned out to be Caroline Bradford or just plane old Zoe Adams.

Tyler is another strong, smart, and loyal character. He also bears the emotional scars of a boy who witnessed the abusive relationship his parents had. While his father never abused Tyler or his siblings, his mother was another story entirely. Despite the abuse his mother endured, he has a great relationship with his siblings who can't seem to stop poking their noses into his business, but truth be told, he reciprocates in kind. Additionally, Tyler was deeply hurt when his former fiance married someone else and that caused him to be relationship shy. He is convinced he needs to date a different type of woman than he has in the past. One that doesn't want a commitment. That makes his attraction to Zoe extremely disturbing to him because she doesn't fit into his new self appointed type.

I loved the sexual tension which builds up between Tyler and Zoe that becomes so combustible each starts looking for an excuse to ease it. I loved how every time Tyler took off his shirt Zoe would get a little tongue tied and start bumping into things. I enjoyed seeing Tyler try to keep himself in check around Zoe because he was having a hard time keeping his hands off her.

One of my favorite funny moments was:
Realizing she'd have to ask Tyler for a hand, she looked back. "Do you want to get Lucky?"
His eyes widened, "Now?"
"Yeah" Hadn't he said she could bring her cat?
They stood staring at each other.
Finally he said, "I'm not sure now is the right time."...
"No, I mean...my cat, Lucky."

I gave this one 4 out of 5 roses. I enjoyed watching everyone piece together what happened all those years ago and seeing how everything fit together. The book had a nice blend of humor, drama, and romance. On the Lisarenee Romance Rating scale, I gave it a STEAM rating--too hot for a fan, but you still have a handle on things. You should use extreme caution when reading a book with this rating in public. People may inquire as to why you looked flustered and flushed.

Order of series:

FYI, Only in Texas was formerly titled 'Don't Mess with Texas'