Book Review and New Release: Flirting with Danger (Book one of the Firefighters of Adelaide series)

Title: Flirting with Danger
Author: Claire Baxter
Series: Firefighters of Adelaide
Genre: Contemporary romance
Published: 2013
Pages: 200
Format read: ebook
Rating: A-

Firefighters. Set in Australia. Throw in that awesome cover (yeah, yeah, I know. But we all do judge, and you know it!), and seriously, what’s not to love here?

Flirting with Danger is the first book I’ve read by Claire Baxter, but it definitely won’t be my last. I just couldn’t put this one down!  I was completely drawn into Jasmine and Aaron’s lives and was in no way ready to leave them when the book was over.

Jasmine Mackinnon loves her job. As the only girl in a family of four brothers, she’s always been a tomboy, so she has no problem fitting in with her male coworkers. She can more than hold her own with them, and though she’ll admit to some loneliness, she’d never consider dating a member of her team. Even if that were an option, serial womanizer Aaron Parkes is completely out of the question.

Until he isn’t.

Aaron has always had a friendly-yet-antagonistic relationship with Jasmine–she loves to give him grief about his lifestyle, and he doesn’t mind their banter one bit. When he sees her dressed to the nines in her bridesmaid outfit, though, he suddenly notices her in a whole new light. He’s sure their relationship can’t have a real future, though–can it?

I really enjoyed Jasmine and Aaron’s progression from coworkers to friends to something more. Even though the novel takes place in a relatively short time frame, it never felt as if their relationship was rushed. I could clearly see why certain things were happening along the way in developing the plot, yet the events never felt contrived–very skillfully done.

Both Aaron and Jasmine had a considerable amount of baggage going into their we’re-not-dating relationship, and for the most part it was believable. I thought Jasmine was perhaps a little quick to forgive her mother after so many years, but on the other hand I was glad that she finally did, so am willing to overlook the abruptness. I liked how Ms. Baxter gradually showed us–and Jasmine–just how different the reality of Aaron was as compared to the public image.

All in all, I am definitely looking forward to seeing more from this series. There’s quite a few firefighters left, so I’d love to see them all get their HEAs! (Out of fairness, naturally. Not just because I want to read about hot firefighters. Honest.)

A- for a highly entertaining read.

Don’t forget about the release day giveaway on yesterday’s post–enter to win an Amazon gift card!

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

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