Reviewed by Taylin
TITLE: Fire and Granite 
SERIES: Carlisle Deputies #2
AUTHOR: Andrew Grey
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 200 pages
RELEASE DATE: July 10, 2018
BLURB:
The heat is growing from the inside, but danger is building on the outside.
Judge Andrew Phillips runs a tight ship in his courtroom. He’s tough, and when he hands down a sentence, he expects to be obeyed. So when a fugitive named Harper escapes and threatens his life, Andrew isn’t keen on twenty-four/seven protection… especially not from Deputy Clay Brown. They have a past, one that could cause problems in their careers.
But with Clay assigned to Andrew and the two of them together every minute, there’s nowhere to hide from their attraction—or from the fact that there’s much more than chemistry blooming between them. As the threat intensifies, Clay knows he’ll do anything it takes to protect the people who are taking their places in his heart: Andrew and his young niece and nephew.
REVIEW:
When I read the blurb for this novel, it led me to believe that I was getting a story based on two headstrong men, who, when one needed protection, there would be a clash of personalities. That would lead to, high friction, some courtroom drama, work issues and steamy love scenes. What I got was something entirely different.
I found this story to be more about family and its issues with the backdrop of a protection detail. Said problems throwing Clay and Andrew together in ways neither dreamed of.
FYI there will be spoilers so please look out for the warnings. I will try to keep them to one section.
I’ll get the technical stuff out of the way before sinking into the story specifics. Told in the third person, grammatically, Fire and Granite is well written. Readers who enjoy intensely descriptive tales, you will love the detail given here. For those who aren’t so hot on it, it will be tempting to skim over the back stories of some of the peripheral characters, and what people were eating. A positive is that the story is very much shown rather than told; containing plenty of dialogue. Also, if you are a reader who likes the bad guys to have no redeeming factors and the good guys to be nigh on saints, then you will lap up every word written, and revel in the story.
I love detective stories. They are generally my first choice when reading or watching TV. While I understand twists to reality based on story progression and viewing figures, I expect whatever story I’m reading to have a blemish or two, but still be as tight as one of Andrew’s courtrooms.
While experiencing the emotional fallout from being targeted followed by some drama, Clay, the deputy assigned to protect Andrew, becomes the man’s rock. From then on, the hard-nosed man from the courtroom only makes rare appearances, in favor of his softer, more unsure side. Instead, Andrew puts himself in the capable hands of the hunky Clay, and it doesn’t take long before domesticity, and lustful thoughts take hold.
Give Clay an extra power and the man would be a superhero. He’s a leading man, in all ways shapes and forms. He is wise, good-looking, brave, can take control – and damn, many a person will want to be on his side. Personally, I like my characters not so close to angels and rougher around the edges. Thus, for showing some flaws, Andrew was my favorite character.
However, there were a few areas I had difficulty with – so be careful as here are the spoilers.
Andrew has been threatened with death, and Harper is actively stalking him. Instead of whisking Andrew away to safety between court cases and keeping him under lock and key; the two give several opportunities for the bad guys to observe them. Some are avoidable, some not.
There’s a recognized possibility of someone inside the department informing Harper of Andrews whereabouts. Still, the two go to a 90% police only party, advertising precisely who is protection detail deal and where they are. I get that Andrew should be safe surrounded by police. But, Clay is Harper’s cousin, and considering Andrew is staying with Clay for safety, it kind of publicizes a few things.
Later in the story, they move to a place, belonging to Andrew’s family. Clay calls his mother to say he’s gone away to a vacation home. Clays mother frequently talks to Harper’s mother. While I get that Clay may sow a seed to see where it grows, it is a game that invites trouble. Clay also pays for things with a credit card further advertising his whereabouts to anyone with the know-how.
Also, a character ends up with a knife stuck in his arm (so that it slowly falls out) and hurt ribs. The knife wound is deemed to be a scratch and is dealt with by a glorified plaster, and there is no hospital visit to check on the ribs?????
(End of specific spoilers)
Regarding, the backgrounds of the main characters and their friends, it was a sad story/charitable fest. I am not so hard that I don’t appreciate the depth added to a story by such elements – and the exposure it can bring to a needed plight. But it seemed that there wasn’t a good guy that didn’t have a sad story or who wasn’t doing something for charity. The idea is very noble and for one to promote good aspects in a story is admirable, but the volume got a bit overwhelming. Even Petey, the dog, had a sad story.
While hearing about the backgrounds was interesting, for me, those outside the main characters diverted attention from the main arc.
Therefore, I found myself reading a story with mixed feelings. On the one hand, I felt a little deceived by the blurb, and the story has flaws in it. On the other hand, flaws are a part of life, but a Judge being threatened seriously enough to warrant protection shouldn’t have subjected to them. Then again, Fire and Granite is full of good intentions, well-meaning actions and muddling through when family does a number on you. It contains wholesome good guys, doing their bit for family and charity while making the world a safer place.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS: