Sammy’s review of Consumed by J.R. Ward
Contemporary Romance published by Gallery Books 02 Oct 18
I have a serious love of firefighters. When I saw that J.R. Ward was coming out with a new series about them, I was very excited. Then she released the prequel stories and I was on board. The chemistry between Anne and Danny is off the charts. I begged, borrowed, and pretty much harassed the head ducky until I finally got that email. Hence my frustration when the book does not live up to the prequel. Wow. I was good to go on this book up until around the fifth chapter when things went south quickly. Or to keep it punny, went from sizzle to fizzle for me. My biggest problem with her books lately are deeply seated in the fact that I do not feel invested in the characters. I’m a character reader, you can have plot holes and a nonsensical story line and I can forgive everything if I am invested in the characters. I find this to be a problem in her Black Dagger books as well. What kept me going back for more were the characters. I didn’t care where the story was going, because I would have went anywhere the characters went. Without the investment, I honestly don’t care. This is what happened for me in this book. Glossing over major developments with the main characters. The main characters not being together for a long time on the page. While I love her writing style and it most definitely can be it’s me not you, I feel like this book and the last (The Thief) are being phoned in. Harsh, I know, but I’m tired of investing my time and money as a reader. If I could have titled this review anything other than the book title, I would have titled it “Opinions Are Like Assholes.”
The opening chapters are pure adrenaline. Anne and the gang from the 499 firehouse are going out on a call. There’s a big fire at a warehouse and Anne is having second thoughts about her hook-up with Danny. Danny, on the other hand, is thinking more along the terms as getting into a serious relationship. While that’s all well and good, Danny also has a reputation for being a player. Anne and Danny suffer from lack of communication and more into the bumping of hips. When they are in the fire truck, you get introduced to the other characters: Emilio “Amy” Chavez, Patrick “Duff” Duffy, Deshaun “Doc” Lewis, Captain Christopher “Chip” Baker. If you want to know Anne’s nickname, it’s “Sister.” Don’t look at me like that – I didn’t write the book! They get on scene and the Captain gives them their working assignments and off they go to fight this very dangerous fire. Anne, along with Emilio, are tasked with sweeping the place to rid it of any people who might be inside. It’s in this scene where things go very wrong. Anne makes a really bad decision and it costs her dearly, as well as costing Danny some serious emotional problems because of his involvement in order to save her life.
The book moves ten months ahead. Anne is rehabbing, Danny spent his time healing from his wounds physically and emotionally for this time period. I think it’s this jump in time that throws off the flow in the book. The entire rehabbing with Anne, the fact that she will never be a firefighter again, Danny not visiting her in the hospital, I was very disconnected from the characters after the time jump. In the meantime, it’s full steam ahead and Anne becomes a fire investigator and she’s looking into the fire at the warehouse where everything went south. While she’s doing this she runs into a stray dog that she adopts as her own. Meanwhile, you the reader know that Danny is in love with Anne and you also know up until this point she’s just not that into him. Danny gets back to work and, of course, he’s a bit angsty and he’s been doing risky things. I would also like to mention that there is not one likable character other than the dog. I did like Anne and Danny, so I shouldn’t say that so emphatically. I just like them separately. Anne is a rock star and I find it hard that she doesn’t have moments where she struggls with her new life. It just doesn’t ring true.
Danny is fixing up a house he purchased and asks Anne to help him out. They get close and, of course, they have sex. I was not impressed with those scenes. The prequel had more heat. In the meantime, Anne is investigating and bumping heads with someone she thinks is the arsonist. He’s rich and powerful and he keeps letting Anne know how he can shut her up forever. She is also having issues with her family. I personally feel the issues she has with her mother are head scratching. I don’t know why, after all is revealed, she has such a deep hatred for her mom. Which in a sense kinda lessened my like for the character. Bad guys are trying to get at her, there is the appearance of some SWAT guys. They seem interesting. Hell, at this point everyone other than the main characters are interesting. The big reveal of the bad guy was a good “holy shit!” I never suspected and for that part I will give the book some props.
In the end I was bored or bothered. I think the way the book is written really hindered the flow of the story. At times it read like a procedural manual. I am not into the weird story line of her brother and the Mayor. He’s a big asshole. The chemistry was seriously lacking. I was not feeling this book at all. As Ward readers, you know she has some strange ways of describing things and this book is no different. Like I said in the beginning of this review, opinions are like assholes and your mileage may vary.
Grade:D
Summary:
Anne Ashburn is a woman consumed…
By her bitter family legacy, by her scorched career as a firefighter, by her obsession with department bad-boy Danny McGuire, and by a new case that pits her against a fiery killer.
Strong-willed Anne was fearless and loved the thrill of fighting fires, pushing herself to be the best. But when one risky decision at a warehouse fire changes her life forever, Anne must reinvent not only her job, but her whole self.
Shattered and demoralized, Anne finds her new career as an arson investigator a pale substitute for the adrenaline-fueled life she left behind. She doesn’t believe she will ever feel that same all-consuming passion for her job again–until she encounters a string of suspicious fires setting her beloved city ablaze.
Danny McGuire is a premiere fireman, best in the county, but in the midst of a personal meltdown. Danny is taking risks like never before and seems to have a death wish until he teams up with Anne to find the fire starter. But Danny may be more than a distraction, and as Anne narrows in on her target, the arsonist begins to target her.
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
