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Bayou Heat
As irresistibly handsome renegade Teague Comeaux guides scientist Erin McClure through voodoo country, he asks her only for her trust and wins her love in the bargain
- GenresRomance
240 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 1996
13 people are currently reading
87 people want to read
About the author
Donna Kauffman
147 books1,798 followersUSA Today bestseller and award winning author of the Cupcake Club series and the Blueberry Cove series, DONNA KAUFFMAN has been gratified to see her books get rave reviews in venues ranging from Kirkus Reviews and Library Journal to Entertainment Weekly and Cosmopolitan. She lives in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains in southwestern Virginia, where she is happily working on the next book in her brand new Blue Hollow Falls series, set right in her mountain home area. When she's not writing, she can be found recapping the popular tv show NCIS for USA Today, or escaping into her garden to play in the dirt. Donna also works as a volunteer wildlife transporter for two local sanctuaries, giving orphaned and injured wildlife a second chance at survival. You can catch up on all of her adventures via her author page on Facebook, or on Twitter, or Instagram @writerchick. Donna loves to hear from readers!
Donna Kauffman passed away on April 9, 2020 of pancreatic cancer.
Donna Kauffman passed away on April 9, 2020 of pancreatic cancer.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
December 23, 2012
Read/Reviewed for Sara at www.HarlequinJunkie.com
Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley
Bayout Heat was a very good novel. I liked it and I would recommend it but don’t go into it expecting any surprises.
We first meet our heroine, Dr. Erin McClure. She’s arrived in Louisiana to further her research. She thinks that she can take the plants and herbs that are used in Voodoo rituals and make practical medicines that could conceivably help millions of people. I think I liked Erin just fine. She is a great heroine. She’s gutsy and she knows herself. She’s also got that really cool mix of confidence and vulnerability. Erin, having grown up traveling the globe as her father did his research, is full of drive and determination. You know that she can take care of herself and, even better, SHE knows it too!! But there ARE a couple of things she knows she cannot do. One of those things is navigating her way through the secretive world of Voodoo. In order to get the information she needs, Erin knows she must have a guide who can take her into the Bayou and introduce her to the secretive religion and to the high priestess in the area. Lucky for her, this is where our hero comes in!
Teague Comeaux is a seriously sexy bad boy! Certainly not Erin’s type, if she has one. But Erin needs a guide and Teague is the perfect man for the job. Not only has he grown up in the Bayou, but his grandmother is the high priestess!! The only problem is that Erin first “meets” Teague as he’s passed out, naked, in her bathtub! Of course, that’s not REALLY a problem, right? LOL! Anyways, Teague isn’t thrilled with acting as Erin’s guide but Teague’s brother, Marshall, asked him to do it as a favor and Teague is trying to have a better relationship with Marshall. Once he gets to know Erin better, Teague realizes that Marshall has unwittingly done Teague the favor! I felt that Teague was really sexy and absolutely embodied what I imagine when I think about a sultry Louisiana bad boy!
Erin and Teague are so hot together and its not because of the Louisiana humidity! Their chemistry practically jumps off the page. I think that they both have their hands full with each other! Unfortunately, it was a lot of buildup and not a lot of delivery. The way that the author described Teague made me think he had some kind of a troubled background but that was never really confirmed. At least, if it was, I never caught it. I mean, he had a rough childhood because his mom died while he was a young boy and he’s never really gotten along with his half brother but it felt like it was going to be something worse… like, he was in jail at some point or was in on a botched robbery that went bad and someone died… that kind of thing. But nope. And we never really find out the specifics on the illegal activity going on in the Bayou.
You may expect this to feel like one of those southern gothic styled romances due to the Voodoo aspect of the book but it doesn’t deliver on that either. Combing Voodoo, the Bayou and a man with a troubled past sounds like it would make for a secretive, mysterious, make-your-skin-crawl-type of story but I don’t think you’ll be feeling a lot of all of that. Of course, I wouldn’t know how to write something that would make people feel unnerved but I’m not convinced that the author does either.
After I’ve said all of that, you may be wondering why I also said that it was a very good book. Well, the simple fact is that I enjoyed it! : ) I obviously have my complaints but all of the good stuff was there: it was well written, had a little bit of mystery (even if you CAN see who the bad guy was from the beginning), had some humor and most importantly had great characters that you wanted to see again. So, I would recommend this book as long as you know what to expect and what NOT to expect when reading this one.
Review copy courtesy of the publisher via NetGalley
Bayout Heat was a very good novel. I liked it and I would recommend it but don’t go into it expecting any surprises.
We first meet our heroine, Dr. Erin McClure. She’s arrived in Louisiana to further her research. She thinks that she can take the plants and herbs that are used in Voodoo rituals and make practical medicines that could conceivably help millions of people. I think I liked Erin just fine. She is a great heroine. She’s gutsy and she knows herself. She’s also got that really cool mix of confidence and vulnerability. Erin, having grown up traveling the globe as her father did his research, is full of drive and determination. You know that she can take care of herself and, even better, SHE knows it too!! But there ARE a couple of things she knows she cannot do. One of those things is navigating her way through the secretive world of Voodoo. In order to get the information she needs, Erin knows she must have a guide who can take her into the Bayou and introduce her to the secretive religion and to the high priestess in the area. Lucky for her, this is where our hero comes in!
Teague Comeaux is a seriously sexy bad boy! Certainly not Erin’s type, if she has one. But Erin needs a guide and Teague is the perfect man for the job. Not only has he grown up in the Bayou, but his grandmother is the high priestess!! The only problem is that Erin first “meets” Teague as he’s passed out, naked, in her bathtub! Of course, that’s not REALLY a problem, right? LOL! Anyways, Teague isn’t thrilled with acting as Erin’s guide but Teague’s brother, Marshall, asked him to do it as a favor and Teague is trying to have a better relationship with Marshall. Once he gets to know Erin better, Teague realizes that Marshall has unwittingly done Teague the favor! I felt that Teague was really sexy and absolutely embodied what I imagine when I think about a sultry Louisiana bad boy!
Erin and Teague are so hot together and its not because of the Louisiana humidity! Their chemistry practically jumps off the page. I think that they both have their hands full with each other! Unfortunately, it was a lot of buildup and not a lot of delivery. The way that the author described Teague made me think he had some kind of a troubled background but that was never really confirmed. At least, if it was, I never caught it. I mean, he had a rough childhood because his mom died while he was a young boy and he’s never really gotten along with his half brother but it felt like it was going to be something worse… like, he was in jail at some point or was in on a botched robbery that went bad and someone died… that kind of thing. But nope. And we never really find out the specifics on the illegal activity going on in the Bayou.
You may expect this to feel like one of those southern gothic styled romances due to the Voodoo aspect of the book but it doesn’t deliver on that either. Combing Voodoo, the Bayou and a man with a troubled past sounds like it would make for a secretive, mysterious, make-your-skin-crawl-type of story but I don’t think you’ll be feeling a lot of all of that. Of course, I wouldn’t know how to write something that would make people feel unnerved but I’m not convinced that the author does either.
After I’ve said all of that, you may be wondering why I also said that it was a very good book. Well, the simple fact is that I enjoyed it! : ) I obviously have my complaints but all of the good stuff was there: it was well written, had a little bit of mystery (even if you CAN see who the bad guy was from the beginning), had some humor and most importantly had great characters that you wanted to see again. So, I would recommend this book as long as you know what to expect and what NOT to expect when reading this one.
November 19, 2012
Louisiana is a popular place to set sensual romance novels. I think it’s a combination of the heat and the Cajun culture, which gives a taste of the exotic right in the United States. Add in the voodoo religion, a smattering of Cajun French, and the sweltering heat and you have a recipe for a sexy romance.
Which is what Donna Kauffman thought back in the 1996 when this book originally came out. Loveswept, the publisher, at that time was a division of Random House and responsible for some very popular romance novels in the 1980s and 1990s. While this imprint disappeared for a while, I gather the publishing house decided to resurrect Loveswept as an ebook-only line, launching a new website dedicated to e-romances. In addition to new romance novels, (like the long anticipated Iced by Karen Marie Moning, the spin-off series from her Fever novels) Loveswept has cleverly mined its backlist to discover any titles that would benefit from a cover makeover and hold up to today’s market.
What they found was several of Donna Kauffman’s novels, and I, in turn, found them on NetGalley. The new covers are FABULOUS (and believe me, these books needed them) but with any reissue you need to worry about whether the content holds up after 15 or so years, right?
No danger here. Bayou Heat did not feel like a recycled romance in the slightest despite it’s lack of technology and only a couple of sex scenes (which is not what you expect looking at that cover). Instead I was sucked into this tale of Dr. Erin McClure, an ethnobotanist who discovers her sexy Cajun guide bloody and almost unconscious in her rented bathtub – oh, did I mention she was naked and ready for her shower? Teague Comeaux enjoys the view, thinking that this mental image does not match what he thought he’d be guiding through the bayou. From the first moments between them, Kauffman does a skillful job showing the web of sexual attraction while also highlighting how these two characters have trouble communicating with one another.
Teague has baggage – of the Samsonite 6-piece collection variety. He, like his half-brother, was born on the wrong side of the blankets to the wealthiest man in the parish. Although his father married his mother, it was a tumultuous relationship at best, one that led this unstable woman to commit suicide. Teague was taken in as a mourning teen by his grandmother, the local voodoo priestess who lived out in the bayou. While he loves her for raising him, one family member after another has rejected him for who he is, so much so that he left Louisiana as soon as he could and has only recently returned. What no one but the local sheriff knows is that Teague spent his time away from the bayou working undercover for U.S. Customs. Once he caught wind of an operation centered in his former backyard he got himself reassigned and purchased a local pool hall as his front. Now he has a feisty scientist stirring up emotions he never wanted to feel and shattering every image he possessed of how scientists are supposed to behave, an unexpected twist which could endanger his current job.
Erin McClure was raised untraditionally, to put it mildly. The daughter of a scientist herself (whether he was an anthropologist or another ethnobotanist, I couldn’t quite put my finger on) she grew up among a variety of cultures and highly self-reliant, camping in the Amazon by herself at the age of thirteen. As frustrating as her sexy new Cajun guide is, she needs his connections to the local voodoo priestess in order to her work, work she began with her father and now continues after his death. That he sees her as a desirable woman – something none of the academics she’s worked with before have done – is secondary to her mission.
There were a few pieces of this book that I found disconcerting. There wasn’t a ton of physical description, so it was hard to get a handle on how the two main characters looked. Call it a pet peeve, but I like a regular reminder or a reference to something other than the expression in their eyes, to keep me grounded. My vision of Teague and Erin was pretty blurry and I found it annoying in parts. Also, while I’m sure it mimics real life to perfection, I felt that a good part of the dialogue between Erin and Teague or Teague and his half-brother, Marshall, to suffer from lack of clarity. How exactly did Marshall have a hand in the smuggling venture? And what precisely were they smuggling from Haiti?
Kauffman’s writing strengths have me willing to read the other books I’ve pulled from NetGalley. The sensuality rampant between the characters was excellent and she has serious chops when it comes to writing body language and letting the reader literally see the attraction between characters. She also manages a nice balance between having enough authentic cultural details thrown in her books but doesn’t go the route of info dumping explanations of the culture. With her writing, I don’t think I would have minded more explanation, but I also admire a writer who gives me enough of a head start and then trusts me to look things up on my own.
This foray into Kauffman and the Loveswept line has me intrigued and wanting to try more. Thanks to Donna Kauffman for writing a book which holds up over time and thanks to Random House for reviving it.
Which is what Donna Kauffman thought back in the 1996 when this book originally came out. Loveswept, the publisher, at that time was a division of Random House and responsible for some very popular romance novels in the 1980s and 1990s. While this imprint disappeared for a while, I gather the publishing house decided to resurrect Loveswept as an ebook-only line, launching a new website dedicated to e-romances. In addition to new romance novels, (like the long anticipated Iced by Karen Marie Moning, the spin-off series from her Fever novels) Loveswept has cleverly mined its backlist to discover any titles that would benefit from a cover makeover and hold up to today’s market.
What they found was several of Donna Kauffman’s novels, and I, in turn, found them on NetGalley. The new covers are FABULOUS (and believe me, these books needed them) but with any reissue you need to worry about whether the content holds up after 15 or so years, right?
No danger here. Bayou Heat did not feel like a recycled romance in the slightest despite it’s lack of technology and only a couple of sex scenes (which is not what you expect looking at that cover). Instead I was sucked into this tale of Dr. Erin McClure, an ethnobotanist who discovers her sexy Cajun guide bloody and almost unconscious in her rented bathtub – oh, did I mention she was naked and ready for her shower? Teague Comeaux enjoys the view, thinking that this mental image does not match what he thought he’d be guiding through the bayou. From the first moments between them, Kauffman does a skillful job showing the web of sexual attraction while also highlighting how these two characters have trouble communicating with one another.
Teague has baggage – of the Samsonite 6-piece collection variety. He, like his half-brother, was born on the wrong side of the blankets to the wealthiest man in the parish. Although his father married his mother, it was a tumultuous relationship at best, one that led this unstable woman to commit suicide. Teague was taken in as a mourning teen by his grandmother, the local voodoo priestess who lived out in the bayou. While he loves her for raising him, one family member after another has rejected him for who he is, so much so that he left Louisiana as soon as he could and has only recently returned. What no one but the local sheriff knows is that Teague spent his time away from the bayou working undercover for U.S. Customs. Once he caught wind of an operation centered in his former backyard he got himself reassigned and purchased a local pool hall as his front. Now he has a feisty scientist stirring up emotions he never wanted to feel and shattering every image he possessed of how scientists are supposed to behave, an unexpected twist which could endanger his current job.
Erin McClure was raised untraditionally, to put it mildly. The daughter of a scientist herself (whether he was an anthropologist or another ethnobotanist, I couldn’t quite put my finger on) she grew up among a variety of cultures and highly self-reliant, camping in the Amazon by herself at the age of thirteen. As frustrating as her sexy new Cajun guide is, she needs his connections to the local voodoo priestess in order to her work, work she began with her father and now continues after his death. That he sees her as a desirable woman – something none of the academics she’s worked with before have done – is secondary to her mission.
There were a few pieces of this book that I found disconcerting. There wasn’t a ton of physical description, so it was hard to get a handle on how the two main characters looked. Call it a pet peeve, but I like a regular reminder or a reference to something other than the expression in their eyes, to keep me grounded. My vision of Teague and Erin was pretty blurry and I found it annoying in parts. Also, while I’m sure it mimics real life to perfection, I felt that a good part of the dialogue between Erin and Teague or Teague and his half-brother, Marshall, to suffer from lack of clarity. How exactly did Marshall have a hand in the smuggling venture? And what precisely were they smuggling from Haiti?
Kauffman’s writing strengths have me willing to read the other books I’ve pulled from NetGalley. The sensuality rampant between the characters was excellent and she has serious chops when it comes to writing body language and letting the reader literally see the attraction between characters. She also manages a nice balance between having enough authentic cultural details thrown in her books but doesn’t go the route of info dumping explanations of the culture. With her writing, I don’t think I would have minded more explanation, but I also admire a writer who gives me enough of a head start and then trusts me to look things up on my own.
This foray into Kauffman and the Loveswept line has me intrigued and wanting to try more. Thanks to Donna Kauffman for writing a book which holds up over time and thanks to Random House for reviving it.
November 10, 2012
Talk about bad first impression...Dr. Erin McClure is extremely excited about an opportunity one of her colleagues has set up. She is meeting a guide to take her into voodoo country, his name is Teague Comeaux. When Erin arrives at her room she finds the bathroom covered in blood with a naked, dead man in the bath tub. Well, he wasn’t really dead but at first site Erin believes him to be...maybe not dead but he is definitely naked, injured, smokin’ hot and he has a gun! Not a great start to a new acquaintance but definitely a very interesting one!
Teauge has a dark past, he grew up in the Bayou and now he promised his ½ brother that he will escort Dr. Erin McClure into the Cajun voodoo country. He has an ulterior motive to re-enter his past home, but no one definitely not the good doctor must find out about it. He didn’t plan on finding Erin so irresistible. Now he must protect her and himself, while his past, present and possibly future all come crashing together.
I loved this book. Erin was a fantastic character that anyone would be happy to have as a friend. Growing up in the field, researching with her father, she faces everything that comes her way with such great determination. Love the way her brain works! Teauge is the ultra alpha, you know how I love alphas... Donna Kauffman gives him just the right touch of vulnerability and tenderness to go with the tuff guy attitude. Another perfect action packed romance by Donna Kauffman 4 stars.
This ARC copy of Bayou Heat was given to me by Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review. Publish Date November 12, 2012.
Check out more reviews at http://tometender.blogspot.com.
Teauge has a dark past, he grew up in the Bayou and now he promised his ½ brother that he will escort Dr. Erin McClure into the Cajun voodoo country. He has an ulterior motive to re-enter his past home, but no one definitely not the good doctor must find out about it. He didn’t plan on finding Erin so irresistible. Now he must protect her and himself, while his past, present and possibly future all come crashing together.
I loved this book. Erin was a fantastic character that anyone would be happy to have as a friend. Growing up in the field, researching with her father, she faces everything that comes her way with such great determination. Love the way her brain works! Teauge is the ultra alpha, you know how I love alphas... Donna Kauffman gives him just the right touch of vulnerability and tenderness to go with the tuff guy attitude. Another perfect action packed romance by Donna Kauffman 4 stars.
This ARC copy of Bayou Heat was given to me by Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review. Publish Date November 12, 2012.
Check out more reviews at http://tometender.blogspot.com.
November 29, 2012
Erin McClure is an ethnobotanist who needs a guide into the VooDoo world of Louisiana. Teague Comeaux is that guide. From the moment they meet, they feel a connection that is hard to resist. As Teague guides Erin through the Louisiana swamps, their attraction and connection grows stronger. But Teague is hiding something from Erin. When she finds out the truth will she continue to trust him or will she walk away forever, like everyone else?
I enjoyed this story immensely even though I found it predictable. I had most pieces figured out about a quarter of the way through the book. The rest fell in place around halfway. The tension between Teague and Erin was awesome. I loved the way the air seemed to crack and sizzle when they were near each other. But once they finally got down to business, it fell a little flat for me. I wasn’t feeling the tension as much anymore.
A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
December 11, 2012
**My FULL REVIEW here**
Erin finally gets the break that she has needed to further her research, and is excited to get started. One problem preventing her from doing just that......the naked man in her bathtub. Teague wakes up to Erin screaming, and let's her go on thinking he is nothing but trouble before he tells her that he is, in fact, her guide that she needs to get deep into the bayous and the cultures within.
Teague leads Erin into the bayou, and Erin quickly discovers that Teague is hiding things from her. Things she suspects are illegal. Should she keep it to herself, or go to the authorities and risk losing the man she has fallen for, who also happens to be her only connection to the inner workings of the bayou?
Considering that I do normally love "bayou" books, something was missing from this one. The story wasn't bad, nor was the setting. I just really didn't connect with the characters. Perhaps it is because this book was originally published in the 90s? Who knows...
Erin finally gets the break that she has needed to further her research, and is excited to get started. One problem preventing her from doing just that......the naked man in her bathtub. Teague wakes up to Erin screaming, and let's her go on thinking he is nothing but trouble before he tells her that he is, in fact, her guide that she needs to get deep into the bayous and the cultures within.
Teague leads Erin into the bayou, and Erin quickly discovers that Teague is hiding things from her. Things she suspects are illegal. Should she keep it to herself, or go to the authorities and risk losing the man she has fallen for, who also happens to be her only connection to the inner workings of the bayou?
Considering that I do normally love "bayou" books, something was missing from this one. The story wasn't bad, nor was the setting. I just really didn't connect with the characters. Perhaps it is because this book was originally published in the 90s? Who knows...
November 7, 2012
Thanks to the publisher,Random House Publishing Group, and NetGalley for the chance to read this!
This is a re-issue of a Loveswept Classic Romance #801 originally published 8/96.
Once again, Donna Kauffman has delivered another well written novel full of romance, suspense and intrigue. The characters are complex with strong personalities. The author developed an intriguing mystery that have you playing detective – the story kept me on my toes as I discovered clues and solved the mystery. Unlike most suspense novels that are highly predictable, this one was not...it will keep you guessing -- until the very end.
Disclosure: This ebook was provided to me free of charge through NetGalley for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.
This is a re-issue of a Loveswept Classic Romance #801 originally published 8/96.
Once again, Donna Kauffman has delivered another well written novel full of romance, suspense and intrigue. The characters are complex with strong personalities. The author developed an intriguing mystery that have you playing detective – the story kept me on my toes as I discovered clues and solved the mystery. Unlike most suspense novels that are highly predictable, this one was not...it will keep you guessing -- until the very end.
Disclosure: This ebook was provided to me free of charge through NetGalley for the sole purpose of an honest review. All thoughts, comments, and ratings are my own.
January 31, 2013
I haven't read many of Donna Kauffman's early books, so I was glad to see that Loveswept has reissued some of them. Bayou Heat is a quick and enjoyable read. It is one story that I wish was longer. I would have loved to get to know Erin and Teague a bit more in-depth. Their relationship sizzles off the pages from the first chapter. It's quick, passionate and really hot!
There is a little intrigue, but nothing ultra exciting. I think it would have been better had it been longer. The reveal at the end was pretty easy to figure out. If you are a fan of her more recent books, you can see that she has come along way in her writing. If you are looking for a quick steamy romance, definitely give this one a try!
There is a little intrigue, but nothing ultra exciting. I think it would have been better had it been longer. The reveal at the end was pretty easy to figure out. If you are a fan of her more recent books, you can see that she has come along way in her writing. If you are looking for a quick steamy romance, definitely give this one a try!
August 9, 2016
I was not impressed. It was obvious from the beginning who Arnaud's boss was and how it would all play out. The entire book was predictable and if it wasn't such an easy read I'm sure I would never have finished it. But I can say that I liked the idea of reading a romance that was took a different route then any other book I have read, with the voodoo theme. However, it was so secondary to the rest of the book that it was just a prop and really the book could have been set up anywhere with any type of setting, because the setting had little to nothing to do with the story. So, I would say there are so many better romance books that it isn't worth your time.
October 8, 2007
09/11/05 #160
TITLE/AUTHOR: BAYOU HEAT by Donna Kauffman
RATING: 3.5/C+
GENRE/PUB DATE/# OF PGS: Romance, 1996, 212 pgs
COMMENTS: Set in Louisiana -- Erin Mclure is an
ethnobotanist who hires Teague Comeaux to guide
her through voodoo country.
TITLE/AUTHOR: BAYOU HEAT by Donna Kauffman
RATING: 3.5/C+
GENRE/PUB DATE/# OF PGS: Romance, 1996, 212 pgs
COMMENTS: Set in Louisiana -- Erin Mclure is an
ethnobotanist who hires Teague Comeaux to guide
her through voodoo country.
March 5, 2013
Kind of all over the place I found. O.k. story
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews