Hot Blooded

Written by Lisa Jackson

Narrated by Alyssa Bresnahan

First One Dead Body …
A prostitute lies strangled in a seedy French Quarter hotel room. Miles away, in a rambling plantation house on the sultry shores of Lake Ponchartrain, popular late-night radio host Dr. Samantha Leeds receives a threatening crank call. All in a day's work for a celebrity. Who would think to link the two?

Then Another …
A second hooker's corpse turns up. Samantha's ominous caller persists, along with a mysterious claiming to be a woman from her past—a woman who's been dead for years. With Detective Rick Bentz convinced that the serial killer prowling the shadowy streets of New Orleans is somebody close to Samantha, she doesn't dare trust anyone. Especially not Ty Wheeler, her seductive new neighbor who seems to know more about her than a stranger should.

… And Another
Somebody has discovered Samantha's darkest secret. Somebody is convinced that lives must be sacrificed to pay for her sins. So far, the victims have been strangers. But as a cunning, cold-blooded killer grows bolder, Samantha wonders in dread if she will be the next to die …

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: Dec 12, 2008
• ISBN: 9781436182980

Lisa Jackson

Lisa Jackson is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than eighty-five books including romantic suspense, thrillers and contemporary and historical romances. She is a recipient of the RT Book Reviews Reviewers’ Choice Award and has also been honored with their Career Achievement Award for Romantic Suspense. Born in Oregon, she continues to make her home among family, friends and dogs in the Pacific Northwest. Visit her at www.lisajackson.com.

Reviews for Hot Blooded

[tina1969_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

New Orleans is beginning to be afraid . . .A prostitute lies strangled in a seedy French Quarter hotel room. Miles away, in a rambling plantation house on the sultry shores of Lake Ponchartrain, popular late-night radio host Dr. Samantha Leeds receives a threatening phone call. All in a day's work for a celebrity. A second hooker's corpse turns up. Samantha's ominous caller persists, along with a mysterious female claiming to be a woman from her past - a woman who's been dead for years. With Detective Rick Bentz convinced that the serial killer prowling the shadowy streets of New Orleans is somebody close to Samantha, she doesn't dare trust anyone. Especially not Ty Wheeler, her seductive new neighbour who seems to know more about her than a stranger should.My Thoughts:I haven’t read a Lisa Jackson before but have read many like it with the likes of Erica Spindler and Sandra Brown. Another romantic suspense author which is normally something that I would seek out and enjoy.In parts I did but I felt that this book did drag on a bit and towards the end I just wanted to find out who the perp was. I did enjoy the romantic interest but that’s what makes these type of books tick. There are a lot of romantic suspense out there and sometimes they can become all the same and sometimes it takes one to stand out for the crowd. This book didn’t for me but overall it was an average thriller with a few chills and the expected romance.I would try a Lisa Jackson again but if I need a romantic/ thriller fix I would quickly grab perhaps an author that I know I will enjoy.

[lauren2013_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Hot Blooded
4 Stars

Radio psychologist, Samantha Leeds, becomes the target of a malicious stalker who uses a traumatic experience for her past to torment her on air. Detectives Rick Bentz and Reuben Montoya have the hands full investigating a possible serial killer with religious undertones, and soon come to realize the similarities between Sam's case and the murders. Can the killer be stopped before he makes Sam his final victim?

Some of the elements in this book are reminiscent of Leslie Tentler's Midnight Caller, such as the radio host subject to stalking, a connection to a serial killer, and a romance with an investigator. Nevertheless, there are sufficient differences between the storylines to make each book unique.

Jackson's book is more of a thriller with romantic elements than a romantic suspense novel. While the romance is satisfying overall, it does require some suspension of disbelief to accept that Sam would so easily forgive a man who lied to her about everything. That said, the serial killer/stalker plot is intense with many spine-tingling moments and an exciting climax and resolution.

In sum, this is a good beginning to the series, but readers expecting a more traditional mix of romance and suspense may be disappointed. The next couple of books focus on the two detectives and they both sound very promising.

[ftbooklover · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Psychologist Dr. Samantha Leeds hosts a late night radio talk show called Midnight Confessions. Still haunted by the death of a caller in Houston that committed suicide, Sam is now being threatened by someone named John, who tells her that he wants her to repent her sins. Several suspects include handsome writer Ty who recently moved into a house just down the beach from Sam's. As she and Ty get closer, Detectives Rick Bentz and Reuben Montoya connect "John" to the deaths of at least two women and begin to sort through the possible suspects. They have suspicions about Ty and tell Sam to stay away from him because they believe he is hiding something.

Hot Blooded provides the basic plot and suspects in this serial killer thriller. It is interesting that Bentz and Montoya aren't the main characters of this story even though this book is the first of a series in which they star. Nothing new or Earth shattering is evident in this story, but it does have some nice twists and keeps the reader guessing throughout the book. The setting of New Orleans is evident, but the Creole atmosphere is lacking. Some authors are able to permeate their stories with this atmosphere. Hopefully, New Orleans will be a bigger part of other books in this series. Overall, this is a good beginning to the New Orleans series - 3 1/2 stars.

[carol420 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Talk show host Dr. Samantha Leeds is being stalked. She is receiving phone threats and letters saying that she needs to be repented for her sins and that she will die soon. Sam doesn't understand what this nutcase is talking about until a girl calls up saying her name is "Annie." This frightens Sam even more. (I won't explain about Annie because that would take about a decade in writing). At the same time, prostitutes are being found murdered with a set of rosary beads, at the same time Samantha is on the radio. Detective Rick Benz and his partner belive that the prostitution murders are connected to Sam's stalker.

Lisa Jackson is a great story teller. I love that she uses some of the same characters in several different stories. I really enjoyed this book.

[bellafoxx · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Hot Blooded by Lisa Jackson
4 stars

This is the first in Lisa Jackson's New Orleans Series. It features Detective Rick Bentz and his partner Detective Reuben Montoya investigating the murders of prostitutes, all killed the same way, it seems a serial killer is stalking New Orleans. At the same time popular late-night radio host Dr. Samantha Leeds has a fan who'd like to love her to death...literally. She has received pranks calls and mutilated pictures of herself. Detective Bentz is assigned to the case also, the prank calls coincide with the murders, is it a coincidence or the same man? Of course we know it is the same man, the suspense here is, how are the police going to find out the connection, who is the next victim and how will he be stopped? There are subplots and a little romance thrown in, secrets from the past. The only problem I had was with the synopsis I read said Sam's dark secret from her past. There was a dark secret, but it wasn't Sam's, it was connected to something that had happened that she was involved in, but she didn't even know it! Little things like that bug me.

Anyway, this was another well put together book, plots and subplots, multiple characters and little tidbits along the way to keep you hooked, suspicions abound, I KNEW who did it! But I was WRONG!

[nfmgirl2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In one word, "eh". That's what this book was for me. It wasn't bad, and it wasn't that great. It was just "okay".

The characters weren't that well developed. I didn't really connect with them or "like" them that much. Probably the character I liked most was Detective Bentz.

What I really disliked was whenever the book would switch to the murderer's viewpoint. It just seemed...I don't know...childish? That's not quite it. It just wasn't believable to me. I was left with the feeling that the author was just writing this character based on a bunch of stereotypes from other thriller/killer stories. That's not what I'm looking for with a book like this. I want a character that makes me shiver and hide under the covers. This didn't do it for me. The character was too simplistic, with no real depth, and I found myself kind of bored with him.

And to make matters worse, the ending just sort of fizzled for me and seemed kind of unrealistic.

So, "eh". Maybe I'll give the second book in the series a try and see what I think about that. My one likable character Detective Bentz makes a reappearance in Cold Blooded, and I would like to give author Lisa Jackson another try or two.

[krissa_6 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is the epitome of what I like it my romance suspense. I’m not sure what took me so long to try her work, as a few different people recommended her. This one took me a while to read, as I was partly savoring it (as my first L.J.) and partly had to keep putting it down and picking it up as ‘obligation’ reads (ARCs, library reads, ect,) kept arriving.

I’m really glad that this was the first in a series. I really liked the characters, and the setting, and hope to see more of them. (I’m gonna miss Ty, Yummy!) I thought Rick was a bit harsh, I’m hoping he grows on me… Montoya was a bit of a non-character, I look forward to getting to know him a bit better.

It will be interesting, because I would have said that Sam and Ty were the protagonists, and they are gone in the next one (if I understand correctly) and Rick Bentz and Montoya are brought to the front. I look forward to the transition (or lack there of) for that too.

New Orleans has always been of interest to me, and some where I would like to visit. I’m interested to see how she deals with Hurricane Katrina. This book was written pre-Katrina. I wonder how she deals with New Orleans post-Katrina. Does she completely ignore it, or address it somehow?

The hard part is going to be deciding which of her books to read next. Do I read the next in the series (Cold Blooded) or read Wicked Game which she wrote with her sister, Nancy Bush (another author I really like).