Review: Chasing Fire (Colorado High Country #7)

Chasing Fire (Colorado High Country #7)

by Pamela Clare 

Blurb:

An I-Team/Colorado High Country Crossover Novel

Fire chief Eric Hawke knows it’s only a matter of time until the next big wildfire. He’s done everything he can to prepare his crews for the inevitable. When high winds turn a small blaze into a raging crown fire that threatens Scarlet Springs, he, Brandon Silver, and the rest of Scarlet FD put their lives on the line to save the town and its citizens. But the one thing Hawke hadn’t planned for was bureaucratic red tape and waffling from higher-ups that could turn this crisis into a catastrophe. When his requests for support go unheeded, he’s faced with the prospect of watching the town he loves burn to ashes.

But sometimes help comes from unexpected places.

Marc Hunter, Julian Darcangelo, and Zach McBride are in the mountains above Scarlet Springs for an interagency training exercise when they see a single wisp of smoke to the west. What begins as a fun day of playing cops and bad guys soon becomes a battle against time, as they join forces with Hawke and members of the Rocky Mountain Search & Rescue Team to save friends trapped by the fire.

Together, they pit their strength and courage against a terrifying and unforgiving force of nature. Will it be enough? Or will the ravenous flames claim lives—and leave the people of Scarlet Springs forever scarred?

Themes:  Contemporary, series cross-over

Rating: 5 stars

Heat Rating: 

Review:

Well now that my freaking tears have dries I can actually see well enough to write this review, because holy fuck did I cry buckets when reading this one.  Almost I must warn you to not begin this one unless you can devote the time to get to the end, because you will not be able to sleep and certainly working will be torture if you are forced to deal with it in the middle of this story. Pamela Clare might be an angel most of the time, but I cursed her so many times while reading this that even her years might have been bleeding.  This story revolved around all of our favorite characters from Pamela’s two contemporary series, the I-Team and Colorado High Country, as their lives crossed in a tragic and heartbreaking story of danger and true heroism. It is really difficult to speak too much about the book without giving away plot points, but I will do my level best. The story begins with the I-Team badasses beginning a join training mission just outside Scarlet Springs with the county sheriff’s office and saying sweet and sexy goodbyes to their wives.  Slowly we go through day-to-day uneventful beginnings for each of the main characters in the book and get to see how the characters will come together in forced circumstances.  When a fire breaks out, in the forest outside of Scarlet, the whole town is soon involved and we get to see all the everyday heroes we have gotten to know from both series put themselves out there to make sure that civilians and friends are safe. We live through the drama of possible lost loved ones, missing persons, and the dangers these men and women face daily right alongside them as the fire intensifies, and the tears and fears make it impossible to stop turning the page even long enough to feed yourself.  While it isn’t the typical structure of a romance novel, I dare to say it is truly a romance, as the love these individuals have for their families, friends, and significant others is undeniable at any single moment of the story. Pamela is one of the few authors that truly understand the psyche and lifestyle of these everyday heroes that we so often take for granted, and she continues to amaze me with the way she reminds us to appreciate them.  I was sad to see the pain that so many of the characters had to deal with, but in the end I know that they will all be fine and that their HEAs are going to hold steady for the rest of their long lives.  The beauty off this story is allowing the reader to renew the love of characters and series that we have missed in the past as we have moved to new series and also getting interesting reminder of the dangers we humans face daily if we aren’t careful to make sure that we respect the world around us.  I am hoping there is more coming in the Colorado High Country series, but if not, then Chasing Fire was a fitting end to the series as well and one that I won’t be forgetting any time soon.

*ebook provided by publisher (via netgalley) for the purpose of an honest and unbiased review.  No compensation was provided.