Contemporary
One Hot Experiment
By Nickie Langdon
Dec 5, 2007 - 1:22:20 PM

Maddie Simons is a gifted person. She completed high school at the age of ten and college at thirteen. Both parents were educators. When school wasn’t in session, her parents pushed her at home.

Tim Foxmor’s home life was very different. He grew up without his mother and his father used the bottle to help him over his wife’s leaving.

After college, Maddie had a change to study at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar. She was willing to give it up to go to Princeton to study so she could be with people closer to her own age. She’d always been treated as a freak because she was so much younger than anyone in her classes.

Tim fell in love with Maddie while she was at Princeton. He respected the fact that she dated his roommate Mark and didn’t pursue her. Tim accidentally discovered that Maddie was considerably younger than everyone. One night when he and Mark were drinking, he revealed Maddie’s real age. He hoped that Mark would dump her and then he, Tim, would have a chance with her. What he hadn’t expected was that Mark would quickly spread the news around campus. Maddie was shocked to think that Tim hated her enough to ruin everything by blabbing it all over the campus. She quietly withdrew and went to Oxford.

Tim now has his own security firm and has been hired by Maddie’s boss to help find out who is breaking into the office.

Her boss brings Tim around to introduce him and asks that she take the man on a tour of the facility. The idea forms in Maddie’s head to exact her revenge. Tim sees this as the perfect opportunity to set things straight with Maddie and tell her how much he loves her.

Cheryl Dragon’s ONE HOT EXPERIMENT is filled with non-stop action from the beginning until the surprise ending. Someone’s breaking into the think tank after hours and leaves no clue. Nothing is taken, so why does this person continue? I read the story in one sitting, waiting for Tim and Maddie to confess to one another and for the burglar to be discovered. When Maddie’s taken hostage, all bets are off and it’s time to come clean.

The story is interesting, well written and will keep you sitting on the edge of your seat until the very end. As the reader, you pull for the two to make-up and become a couple. All the signs of love are there. It’s just a matter of Mattie making the right decision and Tim understanding why she wants revenge. The ending will surprise you. It’s a very good read. Enjoy!