The Heat of Angels

this book has some very clever bantering shared between the two main characters as well as with their respective best friends. it also has much promise as the plot begins...and then it stops -- just a few short weeks into the characters budding romance, it simply stops. underdeveloped characterization is the result. the author gets praise for the witty dialogue and jeers for the lack of full character development, which leaves me lukewarm on this read.

The sample had me hooked. You have the by the book police officer, who sees everything in black and white, and the trust fund baby who likes to live in the gray area. This does become and issue for them and their blooming relationship. They also have other issues and secrets to overcome, and there were portions where I wanted to smack Chris for her stupidity. All in all the story flows well and the angst is kept to a minimum.

Well written and exciting story about Romance and Finding the right person. if you love animals and those who care fo rthem you will like this book.

I enjoyed this book and finished in one day. When I looked at the cover, I thought maybe this was a werewolf book, but far from it even though there were animals.Ms. Girolami had me in the prologue and I pushed because I thought the drama to unfold was a flashback. I love the sharing of being a K9 Officer entailed and the one-on-one chats Sarah had with Sasha. The rampaging fires in CA which threaten all including the animal refuge.Take a chance and pick it up.

I purchased this e-book through the Bold Strokes web site because I was anxious to read another book by this author. I wasn't disappointed.Her book contrasts two very different personalities that are attracted to each other. Chris,the K-9 police woman has been shaped by her military family to see the world in shades of black and white, whereas Sara, in order to protect herself, sees the world as nebulous gray. How they reconcile these two divergent world views makes up a large part of the story.I especially loved the depiction of Sara. This character was beautifully portrayed. I'm a sucker for beautifully wrought, flawed characters.The third character is the city of Los Angeles itself. The author's love for her city shows on every page.Lastly,I just want to touch upon her love scenes. I usually go through three or four lesbian romances a week. Needless to say, I've become a little jaded with the inevitable sex scenes (I'm more into the romance part). But instead of skimming through them, I actually stop and savour. I think it's because they are infused with lots of gentle romance.Can't wait for Ms. Giuliani's next book.

This is a book that has been on my TBR list for AGES but I never had a chance to read it till now. I was so excited by the premise, I know Bold Strokes puts out great books and I've heard that Lisa Girolami is a great author too, so I figured it was a safe bet. Yup. I dove in and didn't come up till it was done. Wow, was it ever easy to get lost in this one. Ms Girolami's mastery of adjectives gave this story such amazing descriptions but the plot would have held me even if they didn't.This story is about a policewoman, Chris, and a lost soul, Sarah, who is really only at home in the wildlife rehab center she works for. Sarah meets Chris at the grocers as Chris is crooning blissfully to the blackberries. It was quite the conversation they had (Sarah and Chris, the blackberry was murdered) and their journey began.They say opposites attract and this pair sure do have a a lot of ground to cover if they are to meet in the middle in spite of their similar and yet totally different upbringings. Its the way they are raised that makes them who they are and underneath it all they are two very damaged women doing the best they can to survive. Depressing, yes... and at the same time no. (This book has lots of contradictions if you look, but that's not bad) These ladies have the strength and humor to set themselves free, they just have to find it. It was very easy to care a lot for Sarah and Chris even when you wanted to scream at them.The only real problem I had with the book is that the time line as a bit fuzzy and confusing. It wasn't always easy to see how much time had passed from event to event but it wasn't something that the story suffered from and I certainly didn't put the book down!All in all, a wonderful read from an author I will be reading again.Original review on Prism Book Alliance ©

Lisa Girolanmi has written a great love story set in a city she knows well, Los Angeles. Her wonderful characters, K9 Police Officer, Chris Bergstrom, and "trust baby" Sarah Pullman are well drawn. Both women have troubled backgrounds, Chris from her "life is black or white" military family, and Sarah from her pretentious social climbing family. Their touching meeting over the blackberries at a Whole Foods Market, was beautifully and tenderly written. What follows is one of California's horrific fire seasons, with great descriptions, as well as a threat to the wild life shelter where Sarah volunteers. This emergency causes heroic acts by the volunteers at the shelter and police officers to get the animals to safety. The scene with the baboons in the back of the squad cars was priceless! "They could s***, you know". Chris responding, "so do the criminals."There are dark moments for both of these characters, but that is balanced by lightness from the great sense of humor each woman has. Readers also get a great inside look at some of the 'hidden' spots in L.A. This is another good story by a fine writer.

Review: THE HEAT OF ANGELS by Lisa GirolamiAn enticing and OPTIMISTIC narrative of two strong' independent women who for divergent reasons are each emotionally constrained. Both Sarah and Chris acknowledge their lives have limitations, but consider themselves to be living life as fully as they are able; until an opportune meeting knits a passionate and unbreakable love. THE HEAT OF ANGELS is a story from the Heart, to the Heart. A lovely tale for LGBTQ readers, and for straight readers.I reviewed an ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley.

Chris and Sarah meet shopping at Whole Foods over blackberries and the attraction is there immediately. As they get to know each other a bit better, it becomes obvious that both are quite different, and both battle with scares from their childhood. Those childhood experiences of growing up in a wealthy and unloving family, made Sarah a bit of a rebel. She fights convention and has a strained relationship with her parents. Chris, a K-9 officer, has grown up in an Army family and her world is black or white to the point of being narrow minded and a bit OCD. She certainly likes to stay on the straight and narrow...The sub-story about the wildfires doesn't really link into the story of Chris and Sarah, other than that the animal shelter Sarah works at has to be evacuated. I also felt that there were quite a few incidences woven into the story that didn't go anywhere for example Chris is called to a restaurant to help with a homeless guy who causes a disturbance. This had no baring to the story at all except maybe illustrating what kind of calls Chris answers on a daily basis. I felt there are too many of those in the book.In parts it feels that both of them probably should have a few therapy sessions as their issues overshadow reality and make them lash out or run off. If the intention was to write a-love-conquers-all-book, it just didn't work for me.The book is also littered unfamiliar comparisons, which I find sometimes a bit OTT - I don't think people really use those. For example describing a shack "It was a run-down, tired-looking building whose paint constantly peeled, showing more scrapings of color than a peacock who'd just lost a fight." I have never heard that one before.Last but not least comment - Marmite is British and not Australian (the real stuff anyway)... Vegemite would be the Australian spread. And yes, I am aware there is a New Zealand slash Australia Marmite (different from the UK stuff though) which people obsess about, but that's splitting hairs... Ms Girolami, in one sentence you managed to upset 2 nations...Saying all that - there is no doubt that Lisa Girolami can string a sentence together. She is an accomplished writer and has proven this more than once (my favorite being her 2013 novel "Cut to the Chase", which I really enjoyed). I also enjoyed the witty banter in the book, especially between Chris and her best friend.