Customer Reviews

Slow Heat in Heaven

5 star:		(45)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

This book is an example of Sandra Brown at her very best. In fact, I don't think anything else she's written has even come close to the emotional rollercoaster ride you get with this one.

Now, admittedly, Cash is not a hero for everyone; he is rude, crude, opinionated and just too sexy for words, but Schyler is more than a match for him. And I just loved the secondary characters of Gayla and Jimmy Don; their own love story just tore at my heart.

I bought this book when it first came out and recently re-read and believe me, it stands the test of time and very few books can do that. Bravo to Ms. Brown and please, please write another book that's as emotional and steamy as this one.

If you want slow and sensuous, if you want to paddle softly in a pirogue through a bayou at midnight, if you want a strong, gorgeous, mysterious, dark and brooding lover at the end of your journey, buy this book. It's the next best thing.

Sandra Brown is at her best in this evocative book about Schyler Crandall, who returns to her native Heaven, Louisiana after many years abroad to find her ailing father's logging business in danger, and her beloved family estate, Belle Terre, in danger of being lost. Schuyler's hateful sister and ne'er-do-well husband live at Belle Terre, but seem unable to save either the business or the estate. More exasperating, when Schuyler rolls up her sleeves to get to work, her sister's envy and hatred threaten to keep her from succeeding.

Enter the aforementioned lover, Cash Boudreaux, a native Cajun whose chip on his shoulder is equal only to his irresistable fascination for women. And Schuyler, who has known him from childhood, is not immune, although she tries as hard as she can to keep her confusing feelings to herself.

Now imagine a hot sultry night, a possible snakebite, and Cash Boudreaux performing his mysterious medical magic learned at his late mother's knee. Imagine him sucking the venom from your wrist. Holding you close to examine your wounds. Lifting you in his manly arms as you swoon. Oh yessssss....but unlike lesser romance novels, Sandra never sinks to the banal. This is not a bodice ripper. It has a plot, and plenty of it. There is mystery. A jailhouse rape. An abused woman who escapes only after her abuser dies horribly in a revenge killing as scary as any I have read.

There is a shady banker and his shallow wife, who has been having an affair with Cash. There is the mysterious force that is keeping the logging business in the red by any means, including fire. Is Cash the good guy? Or is he the evil behind all the mysterious deaths and destruction?

Read it and find out...and find yourself lured into the humid, sultry warmth of a hot bayou night. This is a romance must.

I have read and liked most of Sandra Brown books. Some of them, particularly the very early ones, are lighthearted read. This one is not. The plot is complex enough to keep the reader interested to the very end. The main and secondary characters are well developed [Jimmy Don and Gayla are a good enough example]. The suspense and passion in this book are arresting, with the loose ends' -few as they are- solutions hinted at but open to the reader's imagination or particular bend of mind. "Slow heat in heaven" grabs the reader until the last sentence, although it is not -at least for me- a book for one sitting, but then, it is neither a book to read only once. It remains a favorite.

This book has been reviewed umpteen times, so adding mine to the mix seems a little redundant, but I felt like I could share some information that might make the decision of whether or not to read this book easier for others.

I wanted to read this years ago, but after reading reviews chock-full of less than positive things to say about the "hero," I postponed actually doing so until very recently. I'm glad that I finally read it, because both the book and Cash weren't as bad as I thought they'd be. The plot isn't anything groundbreaking, and if you've read a romance or two, you can pretty much predict what's going to happen. The heroine isn't particularly special, in my view - she had moments where she was strong, and others when she could've used more of a backbone. She and Cash do have quite a bit of chemistry and sexual tension, though, which is more than enough to hold the reader's interest.

What sets this book apart (and made me give it 3 stars, though 3.5 is probably more accurate) is that Sandra Brown took a real chance in creating a lead male character who does and says things that are not what one would expect from a typical romance novel hero. This also tends to be what makes some people really despise this book. Prior to reading it, I wish I had known more about Cash's behavior, because I was imagining pretty terrible stuff, and while he's not as bad as I feared, there is a good reason that a lot of people seem to hate him.

I normally steer clear of including spoilers in my reviews. In this case, though, I feel like they're kind of necessary. So, in the interest of providing potential readers with more Cash-related information (the kinds of things I would've liked to know before reading the book), the following will have spoilers aplenty, so proceed with caution. :)

Spoiler Space . . . . . . . . . .

First, I thought I'd tackle the infamous "I should've raped you when I had the chance line." It's not entirely out of place in the context of the conversation in which this line is uttered, but that doesn't make it an appropriate thing to say. The sentiment could've been expressed much better, and in such a way that it wouldn't have completely turned off a relatively large contingent of readers. I understand that Cash has a lot of rough edges, and he does and says what he wants, but I think this line was a bit too over the top, even for him, and I don't quite understand why Brown wrote the line the way she did.

That being said, though I didn't like the line and wish it would have been reworded, at the end of the day, it wasn't such a big deal. The heroine didn't even react to it (which she absolutely should have), and the moment passed very quickly. It was just. . . Cash being Cash, and as this line signifies, he is something of an acquired taste.

And now, for the other women. Cash is typical of a large amount of other romance heroes in that he begins the book having the reputation of sleeping with many, many women. He is also in the midst of an affair with a married woman, with whom he continues to have sex even after he and the heroine have slept together. It is important to note a couple of things here: first, it is clear that the affair is a matter of both Cash and the woman using each other for sex, and absolutely nothing more. Secondly, when he sleeps with her after he and Schyler have hooked up, it is after he and Schyler have fought, and she's said some things that hurt him (though he didn't let her know that). Also, he and Schyler were not together in the relationship-sense. So, in his desire to escape his feelings, after the fights (then hooking up with Schyler and fighting again), he goes to the other woman a couple of times. He doesn't end things with this other woman until the book is more than 3/4 of the way over.

Then, too, there is an incident with another woman (one close to Schyler) near the end of the book, but in that instance, nothing really happens, as he is just putting on an act in order to get some information from her. Still, it was less than pleasant to read.

Now, I *hate* infidelity and cheating of any kind in books (and everywhere else), and I definitely didn't like reading about it here. That said, again, Cash and Schyler weren't actually in an acknowledged relationship until the end of the book. And it was made quite clear that with the other woman, it was just sex. On the other hand, he had real feelings for Schyler (and he'd had those feelings for quite some time), and it is that emotion and heat that makes his time with Schyler infinitely more significant.

Still, the hero sleeping with someone else is not my cup of tea, and I know that that holds true for others, as well. It could've been much worse than it was, though, and reading about his dissatisfaction with his encounters with the other woman helped to make it a little more tolerable.

Even though he says and does some relatively hateful things, Cash isn't a bad guy. He's full of hurt, anger, resentment, and bitterness, and it is those things that guide and influence his behavior. It is also those things, and the readers knowledge of them, that makes him more understandable, and makes the reader root for him to find some peace and happiness. The scenes with Cash and Schyler have a lot of heat and are very steamy, and the reader knows that each has feelings for the other. That isn't openly communicated until the end, and while it was poignant, the scene almost seemed too short and over too soon.

The book has flaws - lots of them. Cash is hot and alpha (almost to a fault), and full of angst. He is not a "hero" for everyone, but given his past and his issues, he is still someone to whom a lot of readers will respond positively. So, if you're in the mood for a relatively predictable story with lots of heat and passion, and a far-from-perfect hero, you should give this one a try.

I like reading Sandra Brown's books. This one probably is one of the preliminary works of her post-pure-romance era. So, in that aspect it is different from classical Sandra Brown. Actually I had read this book more than 10 years ago and enjoyed it. This summer, when I had nothing new to read I gave it a second chance. I have read probably all of Sandra Brown books and somewhow this one still worths rereading. Schyler is a great character. Most readers may find Cash a little bit irritating but I, personally liked them together. Cash is highly problematic. As I mentioned before, the scenes between them is a mixture of good and bad. Cash and schyler are remarkable. Warning: Don't hate Cash throughout the pages, particulary his dirty talk and womanising! Please keep in mind that Slow Heat In Heaven is not a romance book but it is still hot.

I have read Sandra Brown, Elizabeth Lowell, Nora Roberts, Danielle Steele, and many others in the genre. I absolutely loved this book. I finished it on a plane trip and had about a half an hour left on the flight and so I flipped back several chapters and re-read the ending again. The suspense and action added to erotic love scenes is incredible. I put this book away with my own five stars written on the front inside cover (a sign to re-read soon!) If you love a rough, sexy man than Cash is for you...

This was the first Sandra Brown novel I read & I read this book many times since then.

Cash Boudreaux is one of the sexiest male characters I've read about. Ms. Brown's ability to develop sexual tension between Cash and Skyler is phenomenal.

I have to honestly admit, this book is probably Sandra Brown's finest book. None of her other novels have measured up to this story. The characters are human, they have depth. Everyone has a flaw -- no one is perfect in this book. But Cash & Skyler overcome their own quirks and human flaws to love each other.

THe storyline does deal with poverty, small backwater town politics and gossip, intermingled with romance, suspense, and good ole' backstabbing redneck hypocrites... If you've never lived in a small southern town full of red necks, then I'm sure its difficult to imagine life in Heaven Louisiana. Honestly, I've been there/done that. Ms. Brown literally captures the feelings!!

Plus there is one fantastic story line that encompasses this lovestory. Highly recommended reading. i have literally worn out my book and am looking to replace it.....

I passed on this book on the first run through Sandra Brown's work because of the tawdry title and cover that belonged on an advertisement for an adult pay-per-view movie. Big mistake. Cash Boudreaux was certainly no milquetoast. He gets my vote as best hero in a Sandra Brown novel, and in my all time top ten. I enjoyed everything about this book, especially the realistic dialogue and vivid descriptions. I could feel the bite of mosquitoes and smell the swamp while reading in an air conditioned hotel room. I'd love to hear the true interpretation of the rattlesnake in the story. There was no epilogue, dare we hope to see these characters again?

Schyler returns home after a six-year absence upon learning her adoptive father suffered a massive heart attack. Heaven, Louisiana holds a lot of painful memories for Schyler; her scheming sister stole her fiance and has plans to liquidate the family logging empire. Schyler steps in to run the business, and discovers her father borrowed heavily on the family estate to keep the business running, and the marker is coming due in a month. Cash Boudreaux is the bad boy every father fears his daughter will fall for, and the best logging foreman in the area. He's a sexy Cajun, who has all the hearts in Heaven in an uproar. He's also the son of her father's deceased mistress. She's forced to swallow her pride to get Cash to help her get the mill up and running so they can pay the marker. In between fighting off former boyfriend (now brother-in-law) Ken, someone is lurking about and doesn't want Schyler to succeed, and going to great lengths to see that she fail. As Schyler and Cash fight their attraction to each other, she doesn't know if he can trust him, and he wonders if he shouldn't just let her fail so her can purchase the estate himself.

"Slow Heat in Heaven" sounds like a syrupy Harlequin romance, but it's definitely not. It is a tense action-packed, suspense-filled romantic novel with so many plot twists and turns that you'll find yourself on an emotional roller coaster wondering what Brown will come up with next.

I've recently starting reading novels again. Boy did I start out with the right one to get my blood flowing. I am a new fan of Sandra Brown and thanks to her, I have a major crush on Cash Boudreaux. I am so glad I came across this book at the beginning of the summer. I would love for her to write a sequel to this book, there is so much left to the imagination as to the future of Schyler and Cash. I WANT MORE OF THEM AND THEIR HOT ROMANCE!!