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Silverlake Heat
In very good condition
226 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 1993
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June 18, 2020The story opens with bar-owner Laney Samms’s decision to break up with her partner of almost 20 years. It’s not because of another woman—at least that’s what she tells herself. But when golden-haired beauty Rhonda Rasmussen, a babydyke presently married to an Episcopal priest, comes into her bar one night, the scene is set for romance. Or maybe for heartbreak. Or worse, especially when a couple of the patrons of Laney’s bar end up dead.
Silverlake Heat is written with a solid hand and for once, Naiad editor Christine Cassidy has a winner. Credit also is due to the author’s partner, who evidently came up with some of the intricate plot devices. And devices it has—from one odd happening to the next and then to the next. It certainly kept me wondering until the end.
This was a tough book to write, because the crime is not committed until midway through. That means that Schmidt had to keep the reader entertained despite there not being a whole lot of action. But every page is necessary for what comes after. Not only that, it is an excellent treatise on what it means to be a lesbian, in the 1990s and now. After all, Laney is nearing fifty—not exactly the time of life to be breaking off a 20-year relationship to go after a youngster. On the other hand, how does that youngster—and others like her—find out about the lifestyle she only recently discovered herself part of. So the relationship between Laney and Rhonda is entirely believable. All of us have been in love with someone that is not really appropriate. We have hit both the giddy heights of love and dark moments of despair. We realize it’s probably not going to work, but think that if only we can hang on to that new person just a little longer, things will somehow work themselves out. So the first half of the book serves not only as a preparation for the mystery, but as a romance novella to boot. There is certainly more background on being a lesbian in this book than in most. The two semi-graphic sexual scenes are well done and necessary.
The book actually only becomes a mystery at the very end, when Laney begins to search deeply into her relationship with Rhonda. The book is, after all is said and done, all about relationships. Another plot device—one that adds to its credibility and storyline—is Laney’s attempt to stay sober. Her sobriety—like her long-time relationship—is sorely put to the test. The AA connection has been explored elsewhere, notably in Joanna Michaels’ Num in the Closet—in which the protagonist is also a bar owner—and Karen Saum’s Murder is Relative.
Go ahead and decide for yourself it this is the kind of book you want to read. I suspect that it is. My rating is about a 3.6—better than average without quite falling into the very good category. The Laney Samms series is one that—like its author—deserves to be remembered.
Another Note: This review is included in my book The Art of the Lesbian Mystery Novel, along with information on over 930 other lesbian mysteries by over 310 authors.
Silverlake Heat is written with a solid hand and for once, Naiad editor Christine Cassidy has a winner. Credit also is due to the author’s partner, who evidently came up with some of the intricate plot devices. And devices it has—from one odd happening to the next and then to the next. It certainly kept me wondering until the end.
This was a tough book to write, because the crime is not committed until midway through. That means that Schmidt had to keep the reader entertained despite there not being a whole lot of action. But every page is necessary for what comes after. Not only that, it is an excellent treatise on what it means to be a lesbian, in the 1990s and now. After all, Laney is nearing fifty—not exactly the time of life to be breaking off a 20-year relationship to go after a youngster. On the other hand, how does that youngster—and others like her—find out about the lifestyle she only recently discovered herself part of. So the relationship between Laney and Rhonda is entirely believable. All of us have been in love with someone that is not really appropriate. We have hit both the giddy heights of love and dark moments of despair. We realize it’s probably not going to work, but think that if only we can hang on to that new person just a little longer, things will somehow work themselves out. So the first half of the book serves not only as a preparation for the mystery, but as a romance novella to boot. There is certainly more background on being a lesbian in this book than in most. The two semi-graphic sexual scenes are well done and necessary.
The book actually only becomes a mystery at the very end, when Laney begins to search deeply into her relationship with Rhonda. The book is, after all is said and done, all about relationships. Another plot device—one that adds to its credibility and storyline—is Laney’s attempt to stay sober. Her sobriety—like her long-time relationship—is sorely put to the test. The AA connection has been explored elsewhere, notably in Joanna Michaels’ Num in the Closet—in which the protagonist is also a bar owner—and Karen Saum’s Murder is Relative.
Go ahead and decide for yourself it this is the kind of book you want to read. I suspect that it is. My rating is about a 3.6—better than average without quite falling into the very good category. The Laney Samms series is one that—like its author—deserves to be remembered.
Another Note: This review is included in my book The Art of the Lesbian Mystery Novel, along with information on over 930 other lesbian mysteries by over 310 authors.
August 14, 2025
If you like tales that take a walk on the wild side, you may find this is a book for you. I usually go for lighter, happier lesbian novels, but this was given to me and I decided to check it out. Laney, a bar owner in the Silverlake district of Los Angeles, meets an attractive woman, Rhonda, and is drawn into a very hot, sexy relationship. There’s a disturbing problem: Rhonda is married, unhappily she claims, to a minister. Getting her freedom won’t be easy, maybe dangerous. Then a bar patron is killed in a drive-by shooting, leaving Laney’s world further off balance. And then Rhonda disappears. Even if you aren’t a fan of dark stories, I suspect you won’t stop reading. I didn’t!
December 7, 2023
3.5 rounded to 4
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews