Wildfire - Hannah Grace

Maple Hills students Russ Callaghan and Aurora Roberts cross paths at a party celebrating the end of the academic year, where a drinking game results in them having a passionate one-night stand. Never one to overstay her welcome (or expect much from a man), Aurora slips away before Russ even has the chance to ask for her full name.

Imagine their surprise when they bump into each other on the first day of the summer camp where they are both counselors, hoping to escape their complicated home lives by spending the summer working. Russ hopes if he gets far enough away from Maple Hills, he can avoid dealing with the repercussions of his father’s gambling addiction, while Aurora is tired of craving attention from everyone around her, and wants to go back to the last place she truly felt at home.

Russ knows breaking the camp’s strict “no staff fraternizing” rule will have him heading back to Maple Hills before the summer is over, but unfortunately for him, Aurora has never been very good at caring about the rules. Will the two learn to peacefully coexist? Or did their one night together start a fire they can’t put out? (link)

Review: 3/5

I thought this book was fine, but I wasn’t blown away by it. I thought it was extremely cheesy and coming off of her first book, Icebreaker, I was really expecting a lot more from this. There wasn’t enough spice to keep me enticed, and the plot was just meh, too.

To be fair, this was like a copy and paste of Icebreaker. With the continuation of characters and daddy issues, I felt like I was rereading the book in a different font. I know this is what some people really like, but I rarely want to read a continuation of stories. If I read a story like this, I think I either want it to match in the spice department or match it in the writing department; and it for sure didn’t match Icebreaker for either department. I was just let down by this book, plain and simple.

It was so hard for me to continue reading this book after the first hundred pages. Every time a character was introduced or spoke, it just felt like someone writing a how to book on being woke. The men were way too self-aware, and we KNOW men are not like that in real life. I mean the amount of well-rounded conversations that these barely post-teenagers had made me think this book was fantasy. Having a well-rounded conversation with a 20-year-old is fantasy, sorry! The sentences that came out of this dialogue were like a therapist guiding the characters to communicate with feelings like anger or being upset. Basically, it sounded like the communication cheat sheets I received the first two years of therapy I did. (I’m obviously still in it, since I clearly need it. Why do I sound so judgy?)

You know me, you know that I love the continuation of characters through different points of view, and I thought having both of the main characters' points of view was great. I always LOVE reading from the man’s perspective in love stories (shoot me if that’s not romantic). I don’t know, this book felt like it was trying too hard with the communication stuff, so I was confused when there were still miscommunications? I don’t think this book was for me, but on to the next!

This song is a cabin-lover, summer-camping, folk-enthusiast’s wet dream. Shocker, I didn't adore it! I’ve never been to summer camp, but I did spend a weekend in a cabin with 10 other girls for girl scouts. So, I’m equating my experience as a pre-teen who snuck out onto the river to some sort of feeling for an endless summer romance. I know, wow, I am so on it!

Spotify: LINK