Happy Valentine’s Day in advance! For those of you who aren’t aware of it, Valentine’s Day is Harlequin’s national holiday. Not only does every series offer readers incredibly romantic books this month, but we also put out the Harlequin Romance Report, which looks at the state of romance in the world today. The report gets thousands of media impressions and is just another way we’re working to put–and keep–Harlequin on the map.

However, loyal Blaze readers don’t need a report to tell them that this February is HOT! Look what those talented Blaze authors have in store for you this month…

First up is our Valentine Collection, MANHUNTING, by NYT bestseller Betina Krahn, Joanne Rock and Lori Borrill. The three heroines in this delightful anthology make a pact that they won’t spend another Valentine’s day alone. And while it’s touch and go for a while, they manage to get their man. A big thanks to Joanne Rock for the idea behind this collection.

Next up is THE CHARMER, the first book in Kate Hoffmann’s new minseries, Smooth Operators. All three guys featured in this trilogy end up labeled serial bachelors on a dating/dishing website, SmoothOperators.com. But even though the general female population thinks these guys are a lost cause, one special woman uncovers the diamond underneath. Personally, I loved this book. The heroine is wonderfully different. Romantic Times Magazine agreed with me, giving THE CHARMER a 4 1/2 Top Pick. Look for THE DRIFTER in April and THE SEXY DEVIL in June.

For those of you who have a naughtier Valentine’s Day in mind, Leslie Kelly offers up a Forbidden Fantasy that will definitely heat up these cold winter nights. In PLAY WITH ME, the hero and heroine have a secret fling, meeting up all over the country to play sexual games. But for both of them, secrecy is a must. And so, you can guess what happens when one of their escapades ends up on YouTube…

Stephanie Bond finishes up her Red Tote Book Club (code for Erotic Book Club) stories with HER SEXY VALENTINE. Carol Snow, the cynical member of the group finally finds her true love…but not until she relives Valentine’s Day over and over again until she gets it right. This book is linked to October’s Book 500, SEDUCTION BY THE BOOK, as well as a special ebook we put out last month, entitled TOO HOT TO PRINT, because, well, it was.

Candace Havens makes her Blaze debut with TAKE ME IF YOU DARE. I had trouble figuring out what I loved best about this book – the strong, yet insecure heroine, the bad boy hero…or the incredible setting. After reading this book, you’ll be wishing you’d booked that tropical getaway…complete with hunky pool boy.

And then Wendy Etherington finishes up the month with TEMPT ME AGAIN, a light-hearted story about a cop and the woman who drives him crazy, and makes him love every minute of it.

Wonderful month, isn’t it? But wait, there’s more! In order to tempt readers who don’t make it to the Series Romance shelves, we’ve put together THE BLAZE COLLECTION, a trade-sized anthology featuring the February books of Stephanie Bond, Leslie Kelly and Kate Hoffmann. You’ll find THE BLAZE COLLECTION in the warehouse type stores – Costco and Sam’s Club–places where Harlequin books are not usually sold.

So, in honor of Harlequin’s national holiday (honestly – we even get chocolate treats left at our desks!), I’m offering two prizes this month – one set of the February books, and THE BLAZE COLLECTION. All you have to do is leave the comment, ‘I want those Blaze books to Be Mine’.

I hope Cupid’s good to you,

Brenda Chin
Senior Editor, Harlequin Blaze

This entry was posted on Monday, February 1st, 2010 at 6:00 am and is filed under Brenda Chin. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.