Review: Blazing Midsummer Nights by Leslie Kelly

Title: Blazing Midsummer Nights (Harlequin Blaze)
Author: Leslie Kelly
Published: June 1, 2012
Pages: 224
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Source: NetGalley
Rating: C
Reviewed by: Marq

Favorite quote: "I'm assuming your housewarming gift for your new neighbors don't always include tongue?"


summary from Goodreads
Anything can happen on a magical midsummer's eve Marketing director/workaholic Mimi Burdette has The Plan-work for her father and date his right-hand man. Problem is, there's no heat in the relationship. Not even a spark. And worse still, Mimi is having some seriously sexy, panties-ablaze dreams-and the star looks a lot like Xander McKinley, the hunky firefighter next door. Mimi's dreams might be due to the strange tea she drank. Or the predictions from the fortune cookie she ate. Or they could be due to Xander's smokin' hotness. But whether it's magic or just old-fashioned fireworks, Mimi is about to break all of the rules-including her own!

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Marq's thoughts:
I love the Harlequin Blaze books because they are sexier and spicier but still manage to have a great romance story at the center. I really liked Xander and Mimi as a couple and loved the way they met. It was funny and sexy and embarrassing and set the tone for their relationship.

I enjoyed the story and the dynamics of Xander and Mimi's relationship. Xander is a fireman so that automatically makes him a sexy hero. Xander is constantly rescuing Mimi even though they both know it is best if they stay away from each other. Xander isn't interested in a relationship with someone like Mimi - a rich girl born with a silver spoon in her mouth. And Mimi has a boyfriend or a potential boyfriend. But Mimi seems to find herself in odd predicaments like disturbing a beehive while picking flowers or trying to rescue a cat. As much as he wants, Xander can't keep his distance and Mimi can't fight her attraction.

The only thing that bothered me was Mimi's dreams. To combat insomnia, Mimi drank this tea which caused her to have odd dreams that reflected her inner turmoil about her relationship with Dimitri and Xander. After the first one, I skipped over the last two. I didn't think it added anything to the story. We all know that she's torn between two men so having her deal with the issue via her dreams and showing us her dreams was unnecessary.

Blazing Midsummer Nights was a quick and sexy read. I liked the hero and heroine. You get your standard Harlequin plot with a lot of sexy times.