So far I’ve found the new Harlequin Blaze line to be a mixed bag, but Secret Games is a winner through and through. It has the steamy sex Blaze prides itself on, but it also has a couple I could root for. If you’ve been wanting to try Blaze but wanted to make sure the focus wasn’t all on the sex, I can’t think of a better place to start. For all its lustiness, Secret Games is a surprisingly tender tale of best friends falling in love.

When two clients of relationship counselor Maggie James walk in to announce they’re canceling their couples therapy because their problems have been solved by “incredible sex” at an erotic supper-club, Maggie is intrigued. She decides to go check out the “Falling Inn Bed and Breakfast” (see, falling inn bed – get it?) for herself – to consider whether she’d recommend it for her clients, of course. Riiiiight. Of course Maggie can’t go by herself to a place called the Falling Inn Bed and Breakfast (what would she do?), so she invites her best friend Sam Masters along. Just to hang out. Riiiiight.

What Maggie doesn’t realize is that Sam has been in love with her for years, though she never took his teenaged attempts at romance seriously. But now Sam is all grown up, and what better place to express his feelings than on a romantic getaway? At the resort, Maggie’s all too happy to roll into bed, but Sam is holding out for love – a nice little role reversal.

Sam and Maggie are likable characters, if a little perfect. I found their banter believable as friends and lovers. Maggie’s commitment-shy, but she’s much more believable as a relationship counselor than the 30-year-old virgins we usually see as sex therapists. And Sam is pretty near perfect, but I was willing to go along with the fantasy. Their foreplay takes up most of the book, and it’s steamy, inventive, and fun. But Maggie and Sam also think about their relationship and what it will mean, and this development deepens the book.

The most impressive part of Secret Games is the exotic setting. You’ll find yourself wishing that the Falling Inn really did exist, cheesy name and all. The themed suites like the Warlord’s Tower are the perfect setting for Sam and Maggie’s sexy romps. Considering the number of Blaze miniseries, I’m surprised London missed the golden opportunity of setting one here.

The book does falter somewhat in its subplot. The Falling Inn is up for a big hotel industry award, and the staff is just certain that making sure that Sam and Maggie, the only unmarried couple at the resort, wind up together will impress the judge and win them the award. To this effect, they do things like stranding Maggie and Sam in the elevator. This gets silly, but it does give London a good excuse to bring in mysterious gifts like edible paints.

Overall, Secret Games is a delightful little parfait of a book. I’ll definitely be watching for the next books from newcomer London, who provides just the right mix of sugar and spice.