Deep Autumn Heat is the first book in Elisabeth Barrett’s Star Harbor romance series.  Sebastian Grayson is back in Star Harbor for the yearly reunion with his brothers.  What the big city, celebrity chef hadn’t counted on is the oh-so-enticing Lexie Meyers.  Lexie runs a local café and her spirited personality challenges Seb immediately, but Lexie has been badly hurt by a man.  And with Seb’s bad boy reputation, it would be much smarter to avoid him. . . Except their attraction may be too much to ignore.

Both Lexie and Seb are complex and interesting.  Just like an unrepentant rake from a historical novel, Seb gets brought to his knees by a good woman but he’s man enough to do it with style.  And he brings Lexie down with him.  She’s strong because she’s rebuilt herself from the ashes of a very abusive relationship, so it’s understandable that she’s very hesitant to give another man any kind of power over her.  But Seb is definitely up to the challenge.

In addition to the romance, there’s a mystery about who is leaving threatening notes for Lexie at the café and some personal attacks that suggest her ex-boyfriend might have found her.  The suspense portion of the book is well developed and flows well with the developing relationship between Lexie and Seb.  Readers are also treated to glimpses of the other three Grayson brothers, who will figure in future stories, and these guys definitely provide plenty of good romance material.  I’ve already read Blaze of Winter (Book 2 in the series, Theo’s story) and enjoyed it, so I have no doubts that the rest of the series will be great too.

With Deep Autumn Heat, Barrett delivers a rich mix of sizzle, mystery, and heart.