Desert Heat (Arabesque) [Mass Market Paperback]

JANICE SIMS (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Kate Matthews has just finished filling in for her physicist father at an awards ceremony. While she's phoning for a cab at the airport, she overhears the conversation of the man next to her. First he says he's a cold-blooded terrorist and then she sees his gun. Fortunately, her cousin works security and between the two of them, they wrestle the "terrorist" to the ground, but not before Kate gives him a bloody nose. Turns out, the gentleman is U.S. Marshal Rafael Grant. Kate and Rafe soon become an item, despite the inauspicious meeting. Although various issues such as the theft of her father's research, Rafe's killing a fugitive in the line of duty, and Kate's class reunion threaten to derail the budding relationship, they only make it stronger. The story has something for everyone: Kate provides the humor and wit, Rafe supplies the steamy romance, and Kate's large family offers a wide range of characters who make the whole a delightful read. Maria Hatton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Arabesque (September 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 158314420X
• ISBN-13: 978-1583144206
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,519,582 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I've always loved stories. When I was too young to read I loved listening to my parents and grandparents tell stories. I come from a family of storytellers. On lazy Sunday afternoons we would sit on the porch and the adults would try to top each other with outlandish tales. Some of them had a moral, some were funny, some were scary but all of them were completely enthralling. When I learned to read you could always find me with a book in my hands. The library was my favorite place in the world, and it still is. From the time I was seven, I was writing my own stories. At first they were very short and usually mimicked some fairy tale I'd read or heard. Then when I was in high school I started writing longer stories with romantic themes. A shy, awkward teen, the heroines in my stories were never like me, they were outgoing, together, and always got the cute guy. To date, I'm the author of sixteen novels and nine short stories that were included in some very interesting anthologies. I am blessed to be able to do what I was born to do: write. Because I never take my blessings for granted, I work hard at my craft and I hope it's reflected in the stories I produce. Ultimately, I write stories that I want to read. I'll say to myself, "You know, I've never read a book about African American shapeshifters, or a book in which the sea is so prominent it's like one of the major characters." So I wrote OUT OF THE BLUE. I hope you'll read it if you haven't had the chance to do so. Or I'll think to myself, "What if angels and humans mated and their offspring were still living on Earth?" So I wrote AVENGING ANGEL in the anthology, CREEPIN'. Ideas come to me in the strangest ways. Sometimes I dream them up, literally. I've always had very vivid, colorful dreams. They're better than any movie. And I remember every detail of them when I awaken. This is why I keep a dream journal. And I always suggest to aspiring writers that they keep one. You never know where your next idea is going to come from. Most of all, though, my ideas come from everyday people. Normal people who are really much more interesting than they think they are. I believe we are all special and we all have a story to tell. What's yours?

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The spirit of relativity., January 17, 2004

By 

The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (RAWSISTAZ.com and BlackBookReviews.net) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Desert Heat (Arabesque) (Mass Market Paperback)

DESERT HEAT is a combination of science, romance and mystery, set
primarily in the hot Arizona desert. Katharine Matthews has always
had her head in the stars, never taking time for a personal life. She
is now a successful author of academic text books on the science of
Physics. Kate is returning from an annual nuclear and particle Physics
conference where she accepted an award on behalf of her father. Kate
was not yet ready to follow in her dad's footsteps, she opted instead
to write, but her dad's recent stroke that halted his research on the
theory of teleportation may change that. The delay has created a stir
among other scientist and the questions concerning his research has
her afraid his project may be in jeopardy.

While walking through the airport, still upset from the conference, she
hears words like terrorist and nuclear annihilation. Glancing at the
perpetrator she sees a gun beneath his jacket. Kate thinks he is a
terrorist and she alerts airport security; in a flash the suspect is
subdued and cuffed. What results is the injury and near arrest of Deputy
Rafael Grant, the newly assigned Deputy with the U.S. Marshals Service.
Uncharacteristically, Kate accompanies Rafe to the hospital and then
invites him home for dinner and despite the rocky beginning, Rafe wants
to get to know this impulsive writer. When Kate finally agrees to assist
her father she discovers some of his research papers have been stolen.
Now there is a crime to solve and a possible romance to research.

Ms. Sims keeps with her tradition of delving into the scientific arena
with this finely crafted science fiction romance. The book can be
described as out of this world, but she keeps it real as she brings
this 'head in the stars' woman face to face with a grounded, basic kind
of guy. This book is a small tribute to teachers and scientists who have
inspired the author's life. This change of pace read expertly combines
the three ingredients with just the right flair.

Reviewed by aNN
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Janice Sims Does It Again!, October 26, 2003

By 

Rowena Winfrey (Corsicana, Texas USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Desert Heat (Arabesque) (Mass Market Paperback)

The first chapter of Desert Heat had me skeptical--would Janice Sims be able to blend romance and science in such a way that I would stay interested until the last page? I am happy to say that Ms. Sims did not let me down. The plot of "Desert Heat" flows like water, and if there is a man alive who can be compared to Rafael Grant, I want to meet him in person!! All of the characters in this book are interesting and memorable, and I was unable to put this book down once I started it. I am anxiously awaiting her next book, which should be a sequel to "For Your Love". But Desert Heat proved to be a wonderful distraction until her next book is printed.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 4 and 1/2 stars from Affaire de Coeur Magazine, October 31, 2003

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Desert Heat (Arabesque) (Mass Market Paperback)

Janice Sims gives her science fiction fans a fix with her well-crafted offering, Desert Heat. It has been five years since she wrote Out of the Blue, which convinced this sci-fi shy reviewer that there just might be other possibilities. In this novel, though the subject of teleportation is more of a scientific quest, the terminology and excellent research put into it will satisfy the Trekkie fans.

Dr. Katharine Matthews of Tucson, Arizona accepts an award for her ailing father, Dr. David Matthews, who is renowned for his quantum physics research. Kate is accosted by one of his colleagues who strongly suggests that David turn over his research so as to not heed progress. Her godfather and university Physics head, Dr. Jason Edmonton rescues her from the situation and Kate, still highly agitated from the incident, mistakes a handsome man with a gun as a terrorist at the Tucson airport when she arrives home that night. One minute Deputy Marshal Rafael Grant is smiling at a beautiful young lady with lustrous hair and a pretty smile, and the next thing he knows he has a possible broken nose.

Kate is horrified and embarrassed that she has attacked a law enforcement officer and offers to nurse him after they leave the hospital. There is no denying the attraction they both feel---it is too strong. In fact, Rafe leaves her house that night, rather than risk becoming involved too soon. But he is soon pulled into the lure of the Huerta women clan as he is baptized into this multicultural family. Kate has grown up in a combined culture family, a community of blacks, Native Americans, Mexican Americans and whites. As a teenager and lover of physics, she was an outcast in high school and after her doctorate, she decided that to offset her obsession, she would concentrate on scientific writing. After her father's twelve-year research is stolen, not only is she determined to find the culprits, she knows it is time to carry on her father's work.

This story has a mixture of good and bad guys, interesting well-developed characters of diverse backgrounds and lots of steamy love scenes that will curl your toes. Ms. Sims gives readers great imagery of the cultures that make up the community of Tucson as well as a view into the intricacies of quantum physics as it relates to the scientific community. There is even a scene that involves early morning sightings of alien life. This is definitely a cross-over romance that can be enjoyed by anyone.

Dera Williams for Affaire de Coeur Magazine, Oakland, California