Review – Hot Text by Cari Quinn

Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Publish Date: Out Now
How I got this book: eARC from author

Sometimes what you think you want and what you need are two very different things.

As a technical editor, Jeffrey Maddox deals with plenty of words, leaving him few to spare on people, except his baby sister. To keep Daisy from wrecking her newly rehabbed life by shacking up with her older, married lover Lonny, he impulsively texts Lonny’s wife, Karyn. And then meets her at a coffee shop on a snowy night, ostensibly to convince her to stay with her philandering husband.

But soon texting turns to sexting. After spending the night getting to know Karyn, Jeff wants something much more personal—Lonny’s wife. For himself.

Despite her misgivings about Jeff’s intentions, Karyn can’t fight their attraction. She’s still not divorced, though she knows there’s no way she’ll return to her husband. But maybe an amazing night of conversation—and even more amazing lovemaking—can lead to more than just one night of hot text.
*Blurb from Goodreads*

Jeff’s younger sister is dating a married man and Jeff does not approve. When Lonny’s wife calls the phone that was left behind, Jeff texts her to meet up. Hoping to convince Karyn to go back to her loser husband so his sister can move on, Jeff meets Karyn for coffee. Only after a few hours with her, Jeff is no longer sure that he wants her to go back to her husband.

Karyn’s marriage fizzled out and with Jeff’s flirting she renews her sexuality. After some steamy text messages they get together for a night of pleasure and laughter. But when Lonnie stops by the next morning, will the light of day drive a wedge between Karyn and Jeff?

I’ll admit that I was a little worried about this book. I am not a fan of cheaters. Never have been, never will be, and every time I’ve read it I get annoyed and frustrated. With this novella, it’s obvious that neither Lonny or Karyn has any hope of this relationship going further. The divorce papers are in the works, but not filed yet.

That made me feel a little better. But I’ll admit that the one thing that really had me being on board with this was the way that Quinn handled the “morning after.” Yes, Lonny stopped by. Yes, Jeff got jealous and annoyed. Yes, Karyn became confused as to what she wanted and where she was at in life. But instead of Karyn and Jeff settling, they both did what they wanted, despite the consequence at that exact moment. I liked that, I liked that they thought about the future and not just in the moment. It really did make the book that much better for me.

The sexy times in this book were pretty hot. Jeff isn’t afraid to get a little down and dirty, and he is more than willing to show Karyn the ropes. But despite the fact that they got down and dirty they also had a really sweet moment together too. I loved how caring they were to each other while doing the painting, and how erotic it was in all it’s simplicity. I think I might have to go out and buy some nontoxic body paints now….

All in all I thought this was a well done novella. It is short, but it also is sexy, emotional and does not rush anything. I was happy with the choices that Quinn made and the direction of the story.
I give Hot Text a B-

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