Jo Leigh’s Scent of a Woman is a keeper in the truest sense. It’s not perfect, and I’m not sure I would have given it a grade of “A” when it first came out. But it’s a book I’ve kept and reread several times over the last few years, and I appreciate it more and more. The first time I read it, I thought, “This is what a Blaze should be,” and it remains my favorite book from the line to date.

Heiress Susan Carrington has a great deal of money, but very little satisfaction in her personal life. Men have always looked at her differently because of her wealth, and she’s never sure whether they’re interested in her or her money. With all of her friends in relationships of their own, Susan longs to find a man who’ll appreciate her for herself, not for her name or her bank account. In the meantime, though, she’ll settle for something uncomplicated and fun, with no expectations or strings attached. One day she sees an attractive man in a store buying a scarf. They flirt for a while, and, acting on impulse, she invites him to meet her at a hotel bar the following Wednesday night.

Psychiatrist David Levinson is immediately intrigued and aroused by the mystery woman. He has a standing dinner date with friends every Wednesday night, but there’s no way he’s going to miss finding out what she has in store for him. When they meet at the bar, the chemistry between them is just as sizzling as it was in the store, and they quickly make their way to a room Susan reserved in the hotel. Before long, they’re meeting every Wednesday night, playing out their sexual fantasies with each other. It’s supposed to be a casual thing, but soon deeper feelings begin to develop between them.

Though some parts could have been better developed and the final conflict somewhat forced and overblown, the author gets it right in all the ways that count. First and foremost, it’s fun, very hot – and truly sexy. This is a great fantasy premise, with two strangers stepping out of their everyday lives to enjoy a fun, playful secret affair that only they know about, and Leigh lets us feel the characters’ excitement with them. Both Susan and David are acting out of character, Susan by propositioning him in the first place, David by going along with this woman he knows nothing about, and their risky behavior gives each of them a rush that’s palpable. In the beginning Susan sees that David’s having trouble deciding on which scarf to buy, so she comes up behind him, tells him to close his eyes, and gently runs each scarf against his cheeks, letting him feel the texture of each one and breathe in her scent. It’s a sensual scene and a great way to start the book. Even before they move to the bedroom, the author gives their relationship an effective erotic charge, and when they do hit the sheets, their encounters are explosive. Leigh proves that a sexy read isn’t about how explicit the terminology is or the sex acts themselves (although the characters are increasingly adventuresome on their weekly meetings); it’s about mood and sexual tension. This was one of the first, relatively speaking, Harlequin Blaze, and while they’ve become more adventuresome as time has passed, Leigh still delivers a daring, red-hot read that pushes the limits of the format. I’ve read more explicit books than this that I didn’t think were anywhere near as sexy.

The author also succeeds where many “hot” romances don’t by convincingly building a love story that starts out purely as sex and develops into something more. As their relationship evolves, it’s easy to believe that Susan and David are coming to care for each other on a deeper level. It helps that they’re both warm, likable people. The poor little rich girl might seem like someone who’s hard to sympathize with (like, boo hoo, you have a lot of money. Poor you.), but it’s easy to empathize with Susan. Most people want to be loved for who they are, and this part of her character is easy to relate to. They have good chemistry, and not just in the sexual sense. From their banter and the way they interact, it’s obvious that these are two people who are well-matched.

One of the best aspects of the book is that Susan and David are surrounded by a close-knit group of friends who play a part in the story. Most of these are characters from some of the author’s earlier books, but they never intruded on this story. Instead, they nicely add to it, expanding Susan and David’s universe a little more than some series books do. Like real-life people, these two don’t exist in a bubble, but are surrounded by friends with lives of their own.

Scent of a Woman is a book I invariably find myself turning to after I read yet another batch of tepid, forced Blazes. Every time I read it, it reminds me what the line could be, and far too seldom is. It’s simply a story about two nice, normal, attractive people who meet, engage in some fun, mutually enjoyable sex, and fall in love. There’s no moralizing. The characters are never judged for their behavior. The premise is sexy, not silly. The author delivers a palpable erotic mood and the characters have a wonderful, natural chemistry. It even has one of my all-time favorite Blaze covers. It’s a shame all Blazes can’t be this good, but how nice that this one is.