Author: Nora Roberts

Title: Chasing Fire

Publisher: Putnam

The Missoula smoke jumpers of Montana are one of the most exclusive fire-fighting squads in the U.S. "Smoke jumpers" are those elite firefighters who fly through the smoke to parachute into the forest at fire's edge. Once there, they'll use shovels, chainsaws, portable pumps . . . whatever it takes to stop the raging beast in its tracks. It's difficult, dangerous, dirty work. Without the dedicated men and women who do it, countless acres, homes, and lives would be lost.

Enter our heroine: Rowan has been a smoke jumper since she was eighteen, following in her legendary father's footsteps. She's laser-beam focused on her work and has no hesitation in putting herself through the punishing physical training it takes to be the best. Rowan can drink, dance, and duke it out with the best (or worst) of them. She's something of a Super Barbie action figure, unwilling to let anyone behind the facade. Ro's not completely plastic—she suffers from nightmares and parental issues, is basically good-hearted, and an excellent leader—but I found her hard to warm up to.

Playing Ken to Rowan's Barbie is Gull (Gulliver) a perfectly cast leading man if ever there was one. He's gorgeous (of course), rich, kind, well-built, well-read, with a romantic streak . . . pretty much anything a girl could want. An experienced firefighter but a rookie smoke jumper, Gull was drawn to Missoula by a man crush on Rowan's dad. Once he arrives, Gull finds his hero's daughter even more intriguing. Ro has a personal policy against dating co-workers, but will it hold against the wit and washboard abs of our hero?

You know the answer, right? This is romantic suspense, heavy on the romance. If you're looking for mystery, stick with Robert's alter ego, J.D. Robb. While there is a bit more to the plot than ‘boy meets girl, boy gets girl into bed' it's not exactly difficult to spot who's behind various attacks. Still, the sharp, snappy dialogue is good enough to make up for a lot.

Smoke jumpers are a hard-living lot; their language and attitudes reflect that. Most of the characters place casual sex on a par with a good meal: "You have an itch, you find someone to scratch it." Knowing their next flight could be their last tends to lead to an "eat, drink and be merry; tomorrow we die" philosophy. The few "Christian" characters in the book were nothing more than stereotypes of the very worst kind with few, if any, redeeming qualities.

Where Roberts excels is bringing scenes to life; the book had an almost movie-like quality. She clearly did a ton of research. Her descriptions of the fires in all their deadly glory crackle with life. When the characters push themselves out of the plane and soar to the ground you can almost feel the wind rush past your ears. In fact, if Chasing Fire is not already optioned to Hollywood, it should be. But before you buy a ticket, know that it will definitely be rated "R".

*This review first published 4/25/2011