For Captain Nikolai Romanov, nothing is more important than his career in the Russian Army and he will do whatever it takes to remove the stain against his name. When he is asked to spy on a CIA agent about to board his submarine, Nikolai intends to use whatever means is necessary to find out this agents agenda and put a stop to it. He did not count on being attracted to her.

Julie Severin is an analyst for the CIA but, because of her familiarity with the Chinese culture, she's ordered to go undercover as a journalist. Julie would have been glad to help out it if had not included Russians and a body of water. She hates the Russians because they killed her father and she is deathly afraid of the sea. Before long Nikolai helps her get over her fear of the water along with her hatred for everything Russian. As they fight their attraction to one another and go about obeying orders, they discover that someone else is trying to stop Julie from finding the SD card she was sent to get. Nikolai's men spot a Chinese submarine hovering near by about the same time that his sub is sabotaged and Julie is almost killed. Banding together is the only way to save themselves and everyone else but trust is lacking on Julie's part and Nikolai must decide if he wants the woman he has fallen in love with or the captaincy he has fought so hard to keep.

A great cast of characters and the heated sexual tension between the hero and heroine keeps this romantic suspense story moving. Although I learned more about submarines than I wanted to, RED HEAT was a good book with a perfect blend of romance and suspense.