REVIEWED by Jen B.
TITLE: Burn Zone
SERIES: Hotshots
AUTHOR: Annabeth Albert
PUBLISHER: Carina Press
LENGTH: 336 Pages
RELEASE DATE: April 27, 2020
BLURB:
Introducing Annabeth Albert’s Hotshots series—the emotions and intensity of Chicago Fire with the raw, natural elements of Man vs. Wild.
Danger lurks everywhere for Central Oregon’s fire crews, but the biggest risk of all might be losing their hearts…
Smoke jumper Lincoln Reid is speechless to see Jacob Hartman among his squad’s new recruits. Linc had promised his late best friend he’d stay away from his little brother. And yet here Jacob is…and almost instantly, the same temptation Linc has always felt around him is causing way too many problems.
Jacob gets everyone’s concerns, but he’s waited years for his shot at joining the elite smoke jumping team, hoping to honor his brother’s memory. He’s ready to tackle any challenge Linc throws his way, and senses the chemistry between them—chemistry Linc insists on ignoring—is still alive and kicking. This time, Jacob’s determined to get what he wants.
Close quarters and high stakes make it difficult for Linc to keep his resolve, never mind do so while also making sure the rookie’s safe. But the closer they get, the more Linc’s plan to leave at the end of the season risks him breaking another promise: the one his heart wants to make to Jacob.
REVIEW: This was an interesting and exciting series opener. It centers around a team of smoke jumpers, or wildfire firefighters. Lincoln is the seasoned member who lost his teammate and best friend on the job. Lincoln made a promise long ago to steer clear of his younger brother when he came out, and he had every intention of keeping that promise.
Needless to say Lincoln was less than happy when Jacob showed up wanting to join the team. Not only is Lincoln fighting to get past his bff’s death and his promise to stay away from Jacob, he now has to deal with him doing the same thing that took his brother’s life, for which Lincoln carries a lot of survivor’s guilt.
So, this is a slow burn with a pretty obvious age gap, but Jacob is old enough, knows what he wants and has worked hard to get it. Jacob was pretty likable, unlike Lincoln, who was pretty dreadful to Jacob for a good part of the story. It took a long time for me to warm up to Lincoln. His stubbornness was a total downer. But, they have good physical chemistry and lots of steamy sex, but the relationship takes a while to get on the same path.
One thing that bugged me was the family dynamics and their reactions to things, such as Lincoln and Jacob’s relationship.
All in all, it wasn’t as exciting as I was expecting, but it was enjoyable and interesting, and I am looking forward to seeing where the story goes next.
RATING:
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