Too Hot to Handle

Emily Barnett is in dire straights. She needs a job to support her blind elder sister Mary and Mary’s daughter Rose. After leaving her small town of Hailsham to get out of a marriage to her cousin Reginald, who has been plotting behind her back to put Mary in an asylum, Emily applies as a governess to the Earl of Winchester’s new wards. Though she doesn’t have any experience, she’s going to try her hardest to get the job. However, the interview isn’t quite on the up and up. In fact, Michael Farrow, the Earl of Winchester, thinks she is applying to be his new mistress!

Upset and angry, Emily leaves his home, only to have him come looking for her. He needs a governess pronto and Emily intrigues him, plus, she’s the only candidate he’s had so far. She knows she shouldn’t take the job, but Emily needs funds and she needs a safe haven, so she reluctantly agrees. Michael swears nothing untoward will happen to her, but neither can prevent their all consuming attraction. As Michael tempts and teases Emily with caresses and kisses, a villainous figure lurks in the background, willing to do whatever it takes to get Emily fired and out of Michael’s life. As Michael and Emily’s tempestuous relationship continues to thrive, reality is about to slam into their lives, leaving them shattered and hurt. Will they be able to pick up the pieces and make a new future for themselves or are their lives too different to ever find a common ground?

Too Hot to Handle is the latest sensual story from master writer Cheryl Holt. The characters of Michael and Emily come alive on the pages, as they struggle futilely to stop their growing desire for each other. Ms. Holt fills the pages with lovers’ angst, loving embraces, and plenty of conflict to ensure that the road to happily ever after isn’t smooth. Michael appears to be a very unscrupulous rake, but as one turns the pages, his façade is slowly peeled away to reveal a vulnerable and lonely man. Emily may seem like she would never fit the Earl’s idea of a salacious woman, but as she learns from Michael’s tender ministrations, she discovers a new part of herself. Ms. Holt truly has another winner on her hands. A charming side story involving Emily’s sister and Michael’s brother completes this utterly romantic story of love in the most unexpected of places.

Reviewed by: Sarah W