I'd picked up "A Little Bit of Hot" and fell in love with Jackson immediately. A dedicated Navy SEAL, he'd stood by as, one by one, his buddies and teammates found and settled down with the perfect woman. He'd come to a point where he wanted happily ever after, too. It was a nice twist on a common theme - most of the time it being the woman who's looking to settle down. By the end of it, I knew I had to read "As Hot as it Gets."Along comes Mia. A 26 year old woman, struggling to support herself and her teenage brother, abandoned on her doorstep by their mother. She was strong, independent, but also tender and sweet. Her abandonment issues were understandable, considering the disasters she'd witnessed from her mother.There were so many things I loved about this book. The interaction between Jackson and his SEAL buddies was organic and totally believable. I hadn't read any of the prior titles, so there were times I became confused as to who was who, but it didn't take away from Jackson and Mia's story at all. In fact, I want to go back and read the others, now that I've discovered the Out of Uniform series.The interaction between Mia and her brother, Danny, was adorable. They bickered like all siblings do, but there was a profound love and need that flowed off the page. Adding Jackson to the family as a pseudo-father figure only added to the wonderful dynamic. How adorable was the sex talk between Jackson, his buddies, and Danny? Loved that!But we also had some time with Jackson and his family. A completely different form of sibling rivalry, combined with misunderstanding and rush to judgment had caused a rift, but with Mia's love and support, Jackson faces it head on. I was right there with Mia - fighting for her man. You go girl!There were only minor things I didn't care for in this one. The use of the word soldier - Navy men are sailors, not soldiers. I can see a character using the wrong term early on, but after being around these men and dating Jackson for months, you'd think Mia would use the correct term. The height difference, I'll admit, was distracting. He's 6'5" and she's 5'4". I did wonder about the "logistics" of their love making at times. That's a really big difference.Though there was some training Jackson went through during the story, I wondered about his service. If he was a member of an elite SEAL team, why was he never deployed anywhere? He grew a beard in "preparation," but never had to leave Mia's side. She'd been warned by other spouses of the fear, but we never saw it. Perhaps these things were addressed in previous titles, and I look forward to reading them.I've become a big fan of Ms. Kennedy's writing style. She goes enough in depth to answer just about any question I have, or shows me what I hope to see, and the story is complex enough to keep me glued without getting bogged down in detail. I love the characters she's created and will definitely be reading more! I read the short story A Little Bit Of Hot, which goes with the tenth installment of Out of Uniform. It is a short little side book of all of Jackson’s failed, set-up dates and up to the time he meets Mia and realizes that out of all of these dates he has been on, she is the first woman to spark his interest. Like all Out of Uniform books, Jackson was sexy, alpha male and Mia was a strong, independent woman. Mia is raising her 16-year-old brother and working two jobs, she doesn’t have time for sleep let alone have time for a relationship but that doesn’t deter Jackson. He uses his Texas charm to win her over and agree to just one date. From there, a relationship slowly starts to build. Both learning secrets of each other’s past gives an insight to why Mia is so hesitant to commit to Jackson and why Jackson is hides his bedroom behavior. Again, like all the other books, there is more to this plot then the smoldering scenes. Both Jackson and Mia have problems that they need to confront, learn from, and grow from. It is great to see two characters that can lean on each other to do so.~BookWhisperer Reviewer MC~
What do You think about As Hot As It Gets (2014)?
ok book, sex was hot, but dialogue and plot is lame.
—Daniel
