Title: Protect
Author: Paisley Hope
Publisher: Slowburn
Genre: Romance
Pages: 416
My Rating:

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Protect

Rowan Kingsley has been through a lot over the past few years, including the loss of his best friend. His job as a hotshot firefighter isn’t easy, but it’s what he loves to do.

Now, Violette Taylor is back in town. Rowan dated Violette, the twin sister of his late best friend, when they were just 18 years old, and seeing her again brings back a flood of memories. But it’s not just difficult for him. Being back in Sky Ridge isn’t easy for Violette either; everything reminds her of her twin brother, who passed away years ago.

Review

This is the second book in the Sky Ridge Hotshots series, which is written by three different authors, something I think is pretty cool. I really enjoyed the first book, Fight by Sloane St. James, and I was excited to read this one as well. I was already somewhat familiar with Paisley Hope, since I recently read three of her books and absolutely devoured them.

The books I previously read by Paisley all had a cowboy theme, and for some reason, I’m really enjoying cowboy romance stories. I’m not entirely sure why I find cowboys so attractive, but I’ve now discovered that I’m also drawn to firefighter romances.

The main characters, Rowan and Violette, are great. They have a lot of chemistry, even though their breakup years ago was messy. They’re still clearly attracted to each other, and you can really feel the tension between them. I especially liked Rowan because he’s such a gentleman. The small things he does for Violette and her daughter completely melted my heart. The three of them together were just incredibly cute.

But this book isn’t all sweetness. Early on, you get a clear sense of how dangerous Rowan’s job as a firefighter really is. He even gets into an accident and ends up in the hospital with burns. I happened to read this book while there was a wildfire in my country, which made it hit even harder. It really made me realize how dangerous this job is, and I definitely have a lot more respect for firefighters now. This aspect of the story also added some action, which I really enjoyed. It wasn’t all fluff and romance; I liked the balance between tension and love. I think that combination is my favorite, and it’s probably why I’d also enjoy romance stories about soldiers, even though I haven’t read any yet.

The reason I’m giving this book a 4/5 instead of a full 5/5 is that I usually reserve five-star ratings for books that make me laugh out loud, truly move me, or feel life-changing. This one came close, but not quite. Still, I can highly recommend both this book and the series.

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Title: Fight
Author: Sloane St. James
Publisher: Slowburn
Genre: Romance:
Pages: 384
My Rating:

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Fight

Callahan is a firefighter, and he and his team fight wildfires, which can be extremely dangerous. The team is very close, which makes sense since they spend so much time away from home. He isn’t interested in a relationship, especially after the last woman he dated cheated on him.
Prescott has nothing except what she can fit in her car. She has run away from her past and is ready to start a new life. On her first night, she meets Callahan, and they immediately hit it off.
Later, Callahan discovers that Prescott isn’t just new in town, she also works as a nurse. One night, they find themselves stranded together in a dangerous situation, and their relationship begins to grow.

Review

This is the first book in the Sky Ridge Hotshots series, written by three different authors. I think it’s really cool that multiple authors collaborated on one series. The first book is written by Sloane St. James. The entire series focuses on firefighters, and I just realized that I’ve never read a book about firefighters before, at least not that I can remember.

I loved this book from the start. The chemistry between Prescott and Callahan was amazing. Neither of them is looking for a relationship, but as the saying goes, you find love when you least expect it, and that’s exactly what happens here. The romance was really well done, and I enjoyed the writing style a lot. This was my first time reading a book by Sloane St. James (I think), and I was pleasantly surprised. I’ll definitely consider reading more of her work in the future.

I also liked the suspense in the story. Prescott has a mysterious past, and Callahan tries to figure out what she’s hiding—and whether she might already be married. Since he has been cheated on before, he wants to avoid going through that again. The final part of the book was especially good. When something happens to Prescott, they end up in a dangerous situation together and are forced to hide. That moment pushes them to open up and finally talk about their feelings.

I’m not entirely sure why I didn’t give this a 5/5 rating, because I clearly loved it. But I usually reserve 5 stars for books that completely blow me away. So a 4/5 is still a very strong rating for me.

I’m definitely excited to read the next books in the series, written by Paisley Hope and Danielle Baker.

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