I was really interested in this story at first, Teague was wrongfully convicted of a crime he didn’t commit. Alyssa was a do-gooder, working at the hospital and taking care of prisoners who came in. He has a plan to break out and escape so he takes her with them and this begins the story.
I really liked the tension, the chemistry between the two. I liked the backstory and what happened with Teague.
There was a scene around 20% mark where they were confronted by some shady individuals. Very derogatory terms were used, repeatedly, during this part and it kinda gave me ick vibes. Like the constant use of insulting racial slurs I felt wasn’t totally necessary to prove the point of what was going on.
Overall it was an enjoyable read and I am thankful I was given the ARC for my honest opinion.

I received an advanced reader's copy of Hot Blooded (A Phoenix Rising Novel) by Skye Jordan from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Skye Jordan was a new author to me and a nice find (will definitely look for other novels by this author).

Overall, I enjoyed this novel. The main characters - escaped convict Teague Creek and doctor Alyssa Foster - were an interesting pair and secondary characters (good and bad) were well developed. I liked the characters’ banter, chemistry, and story arc. The novel was well written and the plot was engaging, if a bit predictable.

Exciting, intense and sad story, I definitely enjoyed it from the first page. Alyssa who is a doctor on a long run of 24 hour shifts ends up with a patient from the penitentiary, she never expects she will be kidnapped and on the run. Creek needs to escape the prison he has been sentenced to for a crime he didn't commit. He has it planned out and nobody will stop him. He has a goal and nobody will stop him from getting to it.

Can't wait to read the next one in this series.

My Thoughts~ It was very easy for me to get into, I was fascinated from the start with the storyline of the book. I loved the characters and there personalities, they fit well. Alyssa, i definitely connected with her personality loved it. she is a doctor that was kidnapped and caught up in a bad situation... turned good?? 😉 Teague Creek is a prisoner serving life that breaks out through the hospital in the process kidnapped Alyssa. I felt the author did good with making sure there was enough back story for both of them and even additional Characters. definitely enemies to lovers, Grumpy sunshine, lots of banter. There's crime solving and violence so
⚠️ Please check your trigger warnings⚠️

What I didn't like ~ there was mentions of racism through words and actions by a character. I felt like it just wasn't needed to get the point across that was trying to be made but I also understand what the author was trying to do.
Just could have been left out.

Otherwise I loved the book

Hot Blooded by Skye Jordan.
Convicted of a grisly murder he didn’t commit, Teague Creek has nothing to lose. In a desperate escape, he abducts a hostage to use as leverage, only to find out he’s taken the wrong woman. Soon, it’s clear not only the cops and the FBI are hunting him, but his ugly past has joined the chase. And while Alyssa Foster may not be the woman he needs, she turns out to be the only woman he wants.Alyssa is nearing the conclusion of her radiology fellowship with an amazing job on the horizon, but when she’s abducted by a prison inmate, her coveted position at the hospital she loves is put at risk. Creek has powers she doesn’t understand and a heart that tells her he’s not a hardened criminal. But when Alyssa digs in to help him, she finds something much darker than she expected. Undercover operatives want Creek silenced and they don’t care who they have to take out to suceed.
I really enjoyed this book. Loved Teague and Alyssa story. I did like how they were together. 5*.

Holy moly, this was a fun book. First in a new series, it functions as á standalone, but I suspect the mystery of the overarching storyline (chemical explosion, firefighters, special abilities) will thread through the series. And I'm on board for that.

The first firefighter/paramedic up is Teague. Left with the ability to generate heat and a healthy dose of suspicion about the origins of the explosion, he apparently asked the wrong questions and ended up in prison. All this happens before the story and we only hear about it through his--and others'--memories. I do wish there'd been a prologue instead; the lack of one to give us the particulars resulted in the book sometimes reading as if the book is NOT the series starter. I also wish all of the affected firefighters had made at least cameo appearances. We only see Teague, Luke, and Seth here.

Our heroine Alyssa is extremely awesome. A brilliant radiologist completing a fellowship that she hopes to turn into a full-time position, she finds herself a victim of mistaken identity that leads to her kidnapping. She senses Teague is not the bad guy the world thinks he is, and despite a harrowing few days, ends up on his side. The speed at which they get together seems farfetched and vaguely Stockholm Syndrome-ish, though one could easily argue that relationships grow faster in intense situations. I liked both her and Teague well enough to willingly suspend disbelief.

Other things seem conveniently pat: a rockstar defense attorney brother who seems to know (and be owed a favor from) all the right people, an ability to go into any number of stores with just baseball caps as disguises without being recognized, even Teague's abilities enabling them to escape over and over when mere mortals world be screwed. Again, I willingly suspended my disbelief.

The book ended with a teaser chapter for story 2, and I can't wait.

I received an ARC of this book for free from the publisher and Netgalley. I'm writing this review voluntarily, and it reflects my honest opinion. Thanks!

I am pretty conflicted in writing this review. To be honest this easily could have been a 4 or even 5 star read for me. The plot was interesting, I loved the mystery and trying to prove who did what. I loved all of the characters and what it took them to work through what happened.

What makes it less than that is the approach the author had to the race and ethnicity of the characters. Early on in the book the lead characters encounter a gang and sex workers at two different time points. The author goes out of their way to make sure the reader is very aware that both groups of characters are people of color. The gang was described in every racial gang stereotype you could think of. Overside clothes, bandanas, dreadlock followed up by making sure the reader knows the gang members are black and Mexican. Then proceeds to have a hole dialgoue of racial slurs between two of the characters. I get it, the one character who starts it off is the rapist murderer of the group but it still felt so unnecessary and added nothing to the book.

Even having the gang members make comments about the MMC being just a white boy and even had the line (direct quote) "what do you say baby? Want a taste of black meat?". The author also has one of the other characters whole crime be about how he murdered his sister and her lover because "his baby sister for sleeping with a Mexican."

It all felt entirely unneeded and really took me out of the book. I had a hard time recovering from this because it just felt really just gross if I am honest.

I think that this book would do well to be run by a sensitivity reader. Because it could have been great but I can't give a book that made me feel that way and made every sketchy character a person of color. From the gang, to the sex workers, even the murdering detective later in the book.

I received an ARC copy of this book from NetGalley and provided this review for free.

I loved this story! It kept me on the edge of my seat right from the first page! The story is filled with suspension, hot interactions and twists. I found the characters fun, sassy, and very lovable.

Teague Creek was a firefighter until he and his team was injured in an explosion. While investigating what happened to him, he is convicted of murder and sent to jail. He has spent three years away from his little girl for a crime he never committed. He escapes from jail and takes the wrong woman hostage. Alyssa Foster is a radiologist and is filling in for a friend when Teague is brought in for an extremely high fever. He takes the wrong woman, thinking she is his ex brother in law's girlfriend and goes looking for his daughter. Alyssa has a feeling Teague is not the man he is acting like. The more time they are together, the hotter the fire heats up between them. Can Teague get his daughter back, exonerate himself, and keep the woman he has falling in love with and stay alive?

Excellent start to a new series. It will hook you from the very first page. Sex. Bad guys. Action. You will not be able to put this book down. I loved it and can't wait for the next one.

* Received from Netgalley from the author and voluntarily read and reviewed it. *