Chasing Fire

Starred review from February 28, 2011
This searing stand-alone from bestseller Roberts (The Search) celebrates the smoke jumpers of Missoula, Mont., who routinely risk life and limb to beat down raging forest fires. As close knit as any military combat unit, the "Zulies" include veteran Rowan Tripp, haunted by the loss of Jim Brayner, her onetime jump partner who was killed the previous season in a fall, and rookie Gulliver Curry, who soon earns the nickname "Fast Feet" for his speed and prowess. Threatening trouble is cook Dolly Brakeman, Jim's girlfriend, who blames Rowan for his death—and whose new baby may well be Jim's. Rowan and Gull grow closer as the team battles fires from Montana and Idaho to California and Alaska. Meanwhile, the Zulies are plagued by vandalism and sabotage as well as a killer with arson among his crimes. Roberts fans can expect another bestseller.

April 1, 2011

A smoke jumper who puts her life on the line every fire season has more to fear this year than fire.

A member of the Missoula smoke jumpers since she was 18, Rowan Tripp is tough and gorgeous, proud to be a member of a close-knit team that fights fires all over the West. But last year her partner was killed in a bad jump, and now his girlfriend Dolly is blaming his death on Ro. When Dolly sprays Ro's room with pig's blood, she's fired from her cooking job on the base, stepping up their enmity. Although Ro takes comfort from her new relationship with rookie Gulliver Curry, an erudite Californian with a penchant for firefighting, she's shocked to find Dolly's charred body at a fire scene. Dolly's latest lover is the next body found. Just to make matters more personal, someone (Dolly's father?) takes a shot at Ro and Gull. The fiercely independent Ro is surprised at the trouble she's having in adjusting to a relationship that is about more than sex and dealing with the fact that her legendary father has suddenly fallen for a smart, sexy grandmother. When they realize that someone's putting the team in jeopardy by sabotaging equipment, Ro and Gull resolve to catch the killer.

Popular, prolific Roberts (The Search, 2010, etc.) delivers hair-raising smoke-jumping sequences along with the obligatory thrills, sex and a mystery even the greenest armchair sleuths will be able to solve.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

April 15, 2011

Rowan Tripp, like her legendary firefighter father, is a veteran Missoula, MT, smoke jumper, and she knows nothing can match the thrill of leaping into the heart of a forest blaze and beating it into submission. Even the lingering grief over the death of her jump partner can't keep her from feeling the rush. But from the moment she connects with rookie hotshot firefighter Gulliver Curry, she knows this season will be different--she just never expects it to take a dark, murderous turn. But someone is out to make trouble, and people will be dead before the fire season is over. VERDICT In her inimitable style, Roberts pens an incendiary tale of murder, mayhem, and life on the rugged Western fire lines. The abundance of firefighting and smoke jumping detail lightened with a pair of delightful love stories will keep readers entranced. With a nod to Blue Smoke and Montana Sky, Roberts combines the scenic grandeur of the West with the high-stakes allure of taming a raging "dragon" and has created another enthralling romantic thriller. Roberts (Happy Ever After) lives in Keedysville, MD.

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2011
Rowan Tripp has one hard and fast rule: dont become romantically involved with your coworkers. After all, being a firefighter, especially a smoke jumper, is dangerous enough without complicating matters by dating someone who may hold your life in his hands one day. When the new crop of rookie smoke jumpers turns up at base camp in western Montana, though, Rowan is tempted to relax her rule, especially once she gets to know Gulliver Curry better. Not only is Gull one of the best recruits to hit camp in years, he thinks Rowan is pretty special, too. As it turns out, Rowan may need a man like Gull in her life for many reasons once she becomes the target of a revenge-seeker who blames her for the accidental death of her jump-partner the season before. Spiced with Roberts dry sense of humor, seasoned with fascinating details about wildfire fighting, and sparked by a generous measure of high-adrenaline action and high-octane passion, Chasing Fire is a riveting, five-alarm tale of romantic suspense. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Number-one New York Times bestseller Roberts, one of Americas top five favorite authors according to a Harris poll, is always in demand.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)