A sexy agent hounds Wall Street’s hottest new wolf in an exhilarating novel from New York Times bestselling author Lauren Layne.

Ian Bradley is the definition of a Wall Street hotshot: seven-figure salary, designer suits, and a corner office. His drive off the floor is just as potent. Every woman who knows him has felt the rush. But now he’s met his match in Lara McKenzie—a woman with the power to bring Ian to his knees.

An ambitious, whip-smart daughter of FBI agents, Lara is a rising star in fighting white-collar crime. Her latest case—the investigation of Ian Bradley for insider trading—could make her career. She knows a scoundrel when she sees one. Ian fits the bill: a cocky, ridiculously handsome bad boy with a slick swagger.

She’ll do anything to prove he’s guilty. He’ll do anything to prove he’s not. But it’s only a matter of time before their fierce battle of wits gets oh so hot and personal. Now, taking down Ian has become more than business for Lara. It’s become a pleasure—and there’s more at risk than she ever dreamed.

Hot Asset is one of the books Rowena chose for me for our Summer Reading Challenge. For that reason alone I wanted to love this book. Truly. Alas, it was not meant to be.

Ian Bradley is a stockbroker on Wall Street. He works hard and plays hard. After being in multiple foster homes as a child, all Ian wants for himself is stability of the financial nature. He never had that growing up and he was determined that he would never go back. The shit hits the fan when the SEC gets a tip from an anonymous source saying that Ian has been involved in insider trading. Suddenly the life he’s worked so hard to cultivate and maintain is at risk. Ian knows he’s innocent, he just has to convince the SEC. Easy, right?

Lara McKenzie’s dream has always been to be a FBI agent like both her parents. She wants to work in the white collar crime division and she’s certain that working for the SEC will get her where she needs to go. She only needs a shining recommendation from her current boss. When she’s put on the Bradley case, Lara is sure that this is the case. Her golden ticket. Her way into the FBI. Then she meets Ian and realizes that it’s not going to be easy to prove that he had anything to do with insider trading.

Lara was almost a heroine that I could dislike. She took one look at Ian and decided he was guilty. End of story. She didn’t care what she had to do to prove it. Some of it was because she wanted to get into the FBI. The rest was that she wanted to teach him a lesson. Prove to him that he can’t get away with breaking the law. Ian was nothing but cooperative with her and she continued her investigation. My feelings for her did eventually change when she started investigating to help him. She also admitted to herself that she had become so jaded that she stopped thinking that the people she was sent into investigate could be innocent.

Ian and Lara’s romance was okay. Nothing great, but not horrible either. They were both instantly attracted to each other. Lara was determined not to let it interfere with her job while Ian was going to make it interfere. Ian is bewildered by his feelings for Lara. He’s never had a woman distract him before and Lara distracts him in more ways than one. I think Ian’s thoughts on being in a relationship with Lara were what made the book so good.

Lara really did get better in the end, but I was already invested in Ian so shrug.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

21 Wall Street