Hello everyone and welcome to a brand new edition of Lil Red’s Book Club! Today, we are going to be discussing a thriller by Len Joy called Dry Heat and I really enjoyed it. And, as always, no spoilers will be given away! Before we get started, I am going to be placing a trigger warning on Dry Heat for general violence and abortion. Now, let’s get to it:

Joey Blade is an all American football star at his high school and things seem to be falling into place for him when he graduates. He was awarded a football scholarship, has a new girlfriend, and a loving family. Of course, things don’t stay perfect for long in a thriller and things take a sharp downward turn at a bonfire to celebrate ringing in the year 2000.

When the bonfire burns out of control and the authorities arrive, Joey books it with his girlfriend, her ex, and a local drug dealer named TJ. Joey and TJ hop into the back of the truck and are speeding down the highway when they get into a race with another car. After a can of something not very nice gets thrown on Joey and TJ, TJ takes action and shoots at the windshield of the car. And, oh yeah, the people he shot at just so happen to be undercover cops.

When the police pull Joey’s get away car over, TJ runs away and leaves Joey to take the blame for the attempted murder of a police officer. Just like that, Joey’s dreams of greatness in college fly out the window and he is left dealing with the aftermath. He also learns during his time in holding that his father has connections to one of the most notorious gangs in the area, Vatos Locos, which is a whole other can of worms.

Desperate to restore his reputation, Joey seeks TJ out to come clean but is evaded by him once again. With all of his other options falling apart, Joey gets help from his new found connections with Vatos Locos to track TJ down but time is running out as his trial is looming right over the horizon. With his future on the line, will Joey be able to clear his good name? Read Dry Heat to find out!

When I first started reading Dry Heat, I admit that I wasn’t overly impressed. Then, the story started getting really intense really quickly and I couldn’t put it down to save my own life. The downfall of Joey Blade was swift and it was devastating to read about a young man with everything going for him having nothing at all.

As you all know, I love me a book that focuses on a trial and the court scenes were excellent. They were tense, well written, and left me shook. Especially because attempted murder isn’t the only thing that Joey was being charged with. This made his situation even more worrisome and I was rooting for him every step of the way because he was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

As far as main characters go, Joey was a great one and I loved his smarts and perseverance. I also really liked his parents, best friend, and the leader of the Vatos Locos gang. His high school sweetheart named Mallory was alright but didn’t make as much of an effect on me as the other characters.

My only qualm with this book was that there were a fair amount of typos and you all know that I am a huge stickler for that! But, overall, Dry Heat was a good one and I am going to be awarding it with seven out of ten stars. If it weren’t for the typos it would have gotten an eight! Dry Heat is a book that I would definitely recommend and I think that you will enjoy this fast paced read.

What are you currently reading? What should I read next? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah