Customer Reviews

Kiss of Heat (Feline Breeds, Book 3)

5 star:		(32)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

"Kiss of Heat" is book number three in Leigh's engagingly hot and pulse-pounding Breed series. The first in the series to feature the anomalies of the Breeds, as experienced by one of their female members, makes this installment a totally new experience for fans. The differences in the female breeds are just as interesting to read about as the males. However, the experiences that the female breeds suffered while under Council control were much more terrifying and brutal. Kiss of Heat delves into more forbidden territory, revealing to readers even more of the sordid machinations of that secret government agency and the consequences they had on the female Breeds.

Sherra Lyons is a haunted woman. Haunted by memories that slowly threaten her sanity and well-being in general, she has turned to the only thing that has kept her going since her escape from the Council labs - hatred. Hatred for the soldiers who violated her, hatred for a world that is bent on destroying her and her family, but most of all, hatred for the one man she thought she could trust with her heart. She has waited for eleven years to face, once again, the soldier that stole her body, her mind and her heart in the secret labs of the Genetics Council, and now that time has come. Kane Tyler, brother to Merinus, who we saw in Tempting the Beast, has believed Sherra to be dead all this time. Thinking she died in the fires that ravaged the Council labs, he has been valiantly trudging through a bleak existence, doing the only thing he thinks he has left to do, to help the Breeds in any way he can. Imagine his shock when Sherra confronts Kane, not with the love he thought he remembered, but with malice. Determined to have the woman that his body, and yes, his heart have been burning for, he wages an all out personal assault on her, determined to make her see him as her mate. As their unsure world continues to explode around them with danger, intrigue and passion, both will have to come to terms with the animal lust that has them in its grip.

"Kiss of Heat", for me, has packed the most emotional punch so far in the Breed series. Maybe seeing the effects of the Council's evil purposes in one of the female Breeds is much easier for a female reader to relate to. Some horrors that Sherra experienced at their hands are things that can happen to any woman in real life, making her story seem much closer to home. I wept for all the Sherra went through, but was so glad she had a mate like Kane, strong supportive and sensitive, to step in and care for her. This third book in the series has a nice mix of plot as well as well-developed and emotional characters. We're introduced to even more of the feline Breed members, with good setups for future books in the series. While I was desperately hoping that Dawn's, Sherra's sister's story, would be next, it seems that Tanner's story is the next in line. Leigh is currently reworking some of her books, preparing them for print and I for one cannot wait to get my hands on the entire series!

This is the third in Lora Leigh's Feline Breeds Series (first was TEMPTING THE BEAST; second was THE MAN WITHIN) and it is another terrific, steamy read which advances the story of the Breeds and their quest for acceptance by society. The time period in which KOH takes place overlaps with her last, stand alone Wolf Breed story, ELIZABETH'S WOLF, and I think it helps to read that book before this one as some of the characters from that book (Dash, Elizabeth and Cassie) appear in this book and references to them (especially Cassie) may be a bit unclear to those who haven't read EW. Plus, EW is a great book and you should read it anyway! Optimally one should read all three mentioned prior books to fully understand the ongoing saga of the Breeds and what has led to the events in KISS OF HEAT, but I read some of them out of order and followed along okay.

Kane Tyler is former military and had infiltrated the secret labs of The Genetics Council eight years ago before the public knew of the experiments that took place there. Humans with animal DNA were being created to be super soldiers, but treated like little more than animals for experimentation. There he met Sherra, a beautiful blonde with snow leopard DNA. In his undercover role as a guard he is recruited to mate with Sherra in order to see if she will be able to breed. After being with her, he is determined to get her out of this hell, but is thwarted in his attempt. When explosions rock the labs Kane accepts that all inside, including Sherra, have perished. Kane has carried his bitter grief for the loss of Sherra for the last eight years fueling his desire to bring The Council down.

Unbeknownst to Kane, Sherra survived the explosions believing that Kane had lied to her about getting her out and simply left her behind to her living hell. Now, years later, she plans to avenge herself when she finally meets Kane again. Kane's sister Merinus is married to Sherra's fellow Breed Callan (their story is TEMPTING THE BEAST) and he has joined forces with the Breeds to protect them from the "blood supremacists" whose goal is to annihilate all Breeds. He is stunned to see Sherra alive and well, and what follows are several steamy, tension-filled encounters wherein each begins to learn just what has happened to the other over the past eight years. There is much heartache here, especially for Sherra, and Kane's pain and frustration that he was not able to be there for her is palpable. And their sexual relationship is steaming! The Breed males in this series are as uber alpha as you can get, and Kane fits right in! He loves to give orders and expects them to be obeyed. Too bad Sherra is a strong person in her own right and is not easily cowed by the domineering Kane. Not that Kane is totally one-dimensional - he's capable of great tenderness and his love for Sherra is obvious behind his bluster.

Another terrific, fast-paced, action-packed and sexy read from Ms Leigh! I just love her Breeds Series. There is also a trio of Wolf Breeds stories that, though I haven't read them all, pre-date the Feline series and are not intertwined with those stories (though there is some reference to rumors of a wolfpack living "under the radar" in the other books): WOLFE'S HOPE, JACOB'S FAITH, AIDEN'S CHARITY.

I found this book very fast paced. The action did not stop. I also definitely knew that I was reading erotic romance so the feint of heart need not purchase! The character development was very good--since I had also purchased Breeds 1 & 2, I was familiar with the background. I am looking forward to the stories to come about the other "breeds".

this book is hot! hot! hot!. i love the breed series by lora leigh because her characters seem so real and i would really love to get to know them. kane and sherra in this book have been through so much. you feel sherra's pain over the heartaches in her life and you want her to find happiness. kane is so determined to love sherra and to make her his, how could you not fall in love with him? no matter what obstacles life throws at them they are meant to be together it just takes sherra a little longer to realize this. once you start reading you will not put it down until you finish it!

The evil Genetics Council experimented with mixing animal and human DNA in an attempt to create the perfect killers, but some of their own scientists and "Breeds" rebelled and escaped. A handful of the Felines hid away for a time, trying to escape notice and the killers the Council sent after them. In Book 1, they were forced to reveal themselves in order to maintain their safety--and that of their new human allies, Merinus Taylor (a journalist) and her powerful family.

In Book II the Breeds tried to settle into their new walled compound despite repeated attempts on their lives. Taber, one of the Felines, discovered he was mated to an old friend of his, and he brought her to the compound to shield her from their enemies. Both she and Merinus, of course, as mates to two of the Felines, became targets for the Council.

In Book III we finally come to the story of Sherra and Kane. Kane is Merinus' oldest brother, who long ago fell in love with Sherra, one of the Breeds. One of her Feline brethren, however, jealous of their feelings for each other, tried to kill Kane (nearly succeeding) and caused Sherra to miscarry her child, all the while convincing her that Kane had abandoned her. Even though she now knows that isn't how things happened, she can't let go of years of rage and hatred toward him--and the urge to protect them both from any further pain. She's tried to hide from the fact that she's mated to him, but now that he's close her body won't let her rest, driving her mad with pain and longing.

The pseudo-science, Genetics Council, and military influence are all more prevalent in this book than in the other two, which did make it a little harder to ignore spots that didn't feel quite "right" in tone or detail.

Also, unlike the other two books which, I felt, never went overboard in how stubborn and hard-headed the characters were, this one seemed to go too far. By the time the characters' feelings had been disclosed in sufficient detail to make their actions understandable, it was too late to avoid the eye-rolling "oh just get ON with it!" reaction.

However, it's interesting to watch the world develop further, exploring the consequences of the Breeds' "coming out" to society. This book clearly sets the stage for further follow-ons, and I do look forward to reading them.

When Kane and Sherra do manage to connect, the scenes are pretty explosive and enjoyable. I happen to think Leigh writes good sex scenes--inventive and exciting without making you laugh (except, of course, when you're supposed to).

I still think that book 2 is the best of the series, followed by 1 and then 3, but each of them makes for an enjoyable evening's read.

Summary: Third book in the series....This is the story of Kane and Sherra...Destined to be mates but can't stop arguing with each other...Kane has thought Sherra dead for years but Sherra shows up one day to kill him. Sherra vowed to kill Kane after he abandoned her in the breed labs.
When Sherra goes into heat she can't bear the pain of not having relations with Kane. Kane then steps up to the plate and forces her hand...

The story line is excellent as usual for this author...I can't get enough of Lora Leigh... Hopefully she continues with this series I love how all her characters interact in all her books..
It's like following their life, you get right into the book and feel it..

A MUST READ !!!

This was alright. I wasn't as impressed by this as I was with the first two Feline Breed books. Sherra was too much of a downer for me to like it. I know she suffered, I know she was hurt, abused and betrayed. Get over it. Kane didn't betray her. She knew it, everyone else knew it, yet she still persisted on giving him the cold shoulder. I didn't understand it. He was as much a victim as she was, yet she was blaming him and punishing him throughout 3/4s of the book. Pity, party of one.

The sex was as hot as could be, when they finally do have sex. Of the three Feline Breeds books, Kane and Sherra hold out the longest against the mating heat. Which wasn't a problem but since Sherra hates Kane so much, there was no passion in their sex. It was just relief for them. They might as well have been two ships passing in the night. I didn't like that. I also felt that Kane's dominance was overblown. I was reticent to read this book because I was afraid he wouldn't be able to match Callan or Taber's animal aggression and now I know Lora Leigh probably worried about the same thing. So she overcompensates and in my humble opinion, it was too much. Kane wasn't all bad though. He has great love and affection for Cassie, the little wolf cub that lives with the Pride and his interactions with her were, unfortunately, the best parts of the book for me. Also, he has some of the best zingers, which he happily fires off indiscriminately among the Pride. "Do you think I can't imagine the hell she went through, you purring bag of mismatched genetics?" Priceless.

The use of the Council and the purists who keep managing to sneak onto the property is getting old. At this point, I'm thinking they need to rework their security infrastructure because it's not working. Just a thought, just a thought. If I was Merinus or Roni, I would demand 24/7 bodyguard protection because it's obviously not safe. Especially whenever an alarm is tripped because when the males go haring off, no one has caught on to the fact that it's a trap. As the last two times and every time before that would suggest.

I don't know if I was just reading too fast, trying to get this book over with or what, but I felt like some passages were not clearly written. I was confused as to what was happening, who was saying what and to whom. Part of the reason was that Kiss of Heat is actually not next after The Man Within. Apparently, Lora Leigh wrote them out of order and Elizabeth's Wolf is next after The Man Within, and then Kiss of Heat. So there was some byplay I was not getting, which was fine, but I felt that the epilogue was poorly written, regardless. Almost as if they were tacked on as an afterthough, in order to pave the way for the next book.

Anyways, this was book wasn't bad, it wasn't great, it was just alright. Which was a shame. Kane and his sense of humor was really funny at first but just as Sherra wore him down and defeated him, she wore me down, too. :(

Lora Leigh continues to deliver with the 3rd in the Feline Breed series. Kane and Sherra's story gives you a slightly different slant on what its like to mate with a Breed... If you have read the first book, Tempting the Beast and the second Man Within and liked them you certainly won't be disapointed with this... A great read.

I must say that this is the 1st time this has happened, but I strongly disagree with most of the reviews on this book. I just did not like it.

The characters are a mess and by the time the issues were resolved at the end, I just really didn't care but made myself finish the book, which was hard to find (Amazon rocks!). Some reviews said that the female Sherra was a downer and Kane was wonderful. I totally disagree. I thought Sherra was OK and Kane was hateful, mean and not funny at all. What sense of humor.? Yes, there is the typical misunderstanding, but somehow its always the traumatized female victims fault for not being totally logical and rational as they are raped and tortured as a child or young women. The other breed males including her two brothers (who are supposed to be all so protective of each other) let Kane humiliate, demean and verbally abuse Sherra constantly in front of everyone). The answer is never about the female, if she is hurt the male says "do you know how that would effect me". She was brutally gang raped, the male feels "do you know how much that hurt me."

Those men should have stood by Sherra, and kicked Kane's a$$ for his behavior, then told Sherra to get over herself, someone did eventually, but Kane still deserved a but wooping. Yes she had her downer moments, but I thought they were understandable and not rooted in the past, but how he was treating her in the present. It was abusive. all for her own good overcourse. This mating, is by the mating heat only, not love.

I started this series late, and went back and read the early books. I must say that I really have not liked the earlier books that much, but love the later ones (Mercury's War and Coyote's Mate are my too favorite books)

I didn't like this book as much as "the man within". I got wore down by all the hate between the couple. It just went on for too long. By the time Sherra and Kane got together I really didn't care anymore. I did make my self finish the book and it had a nice ending. I just don't know if it is worth going through the middle of it.