Smooth Talkin' Stranger

March 8, 2004
With this sweetly simple contemporary romance, Heath abandons the historical Wild West setting her fans have come to love, but she hasn't forsaken her beloved home state of Texas. Like Heath's first contemporary outing, Hard Lovin' Man
, this book takes place in Hopeful, a little town chock-full of charm. After spending just one night with beautiful single mom Serena Hamilton, CIA agent Hunter Fletcher realizes that he'd like to spend many more nights with her. This realization may raise some readers' eyebrows, especially given Hunter's fear of both relationships and commitment, but there's no denying that the attraction between the two is mutual. When a baby results from their brief affair, they decide to try to build a life together. However, they must first learn to trust each other. For Hunter, that means coming clean about his past association with Serena's late husband. Heath's prose is smooth and evocative, and her characters are refreshingly down to earth. But the big secret on which the protagonists' relationship hinges feels contrived. Be that as it may, Heath is such a master at her craft that she still manages to wrap readers up in the daily dramas of her characters' lives.

March 15, 2004
The second in a trilogy that began with " Hard Lovin' Man" (2003) is also set in Hopeful, Texas, and features Serena Hamilton, the widow of the hero's best friend in book one. Her mother has just died, and she's come home to help her father while still grieving for her husband. Feeling especially lonely, she stops at a bar, which is something she never does, and goes home with a stranger, another first. Hunter Fletcher, an operative for the CIA, is secretive by both nature and training. He knows Serena's special, but he can't bring himself to open up to her. Between his reluctance to share a past that might drive her away and guilt on both their parts, their relationship looks doomed. Then they find out their first encounter resulted in more than just a lot of enjoyment. Happily, the best-selling author of such popular historicals as " Texas Destiny" (1997) and" Texas Glory" (1998) successfully brings her strong characterizations and emotionally engaging plots to contemporary romance. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2004, American Library Association.)