Customer Reviews

White Heat

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

In San Diego, wild land firefighter Griffin Moore still feels guilt and remorse over watching twelve people including his best friend die in an inferno in which he blames himself for not getting everyone out; he has not worked a fire since. His brother informs Griffin that he has found him work in Mexico to keep a runaway fire from destroying a small poor village.

Pilot Lyndie Anderson flies Griffin to Mexico, but is shocked that he does not want to be at the fire. When she asks him why he volunteered, he explains that he did not. As they walk the perimeter, he realizes that the fire must be stopped before it goes uphill or it will hit the village. As they fight the fire, Griffin and Lyndie are attracted to one another, but he says he is in it for the long haul while she insists no long term relationships for her. He counters by saying he may be mentally screwed up, but he will teach her to risk her heart.

The first two fire fights are very exciting leading to readers feeling the heat and smoke and worrying about the safety of the caring people fighting the blaze as well as the villagers. Though the fire was contained and this may be ignorance on my part, it seems strange that the hero left for home when he did because he left behind amateurs to insure no sparks rekindled. Still this is a terrific heated romance in which the temperatures are generated by something besides the magnetism between the lead duo.

Harriet Klausner

Lyndie is a pilot for a not for profit organization and she flies volunteers around the world. She is hired to fly Griffin to Copper Canyon to help put out a horrendous fire. Lyndie is emotionally reticent and really only cares about flying. Griffin is scarred from a previous fire in which he was the only survivor.

As another reviewer said, the plot felt very repetitive. Lyndie flies Griffin down to Copper Canyon and he helps contain the fire and then flies him out. Then she has to fly him back, etc. It was like repeat as necessary until the two have been around each other a believable amount so now they can let down all the walls they've built up.

To be honest, I don't know why this story didn't click for me. Partly because I wasn't that into either of the main characters, and the only secondary characters that seemed interesting was Griffin's brother and the sheriff/postmaster. If you read this book, I hope you enjoy it more than I did. It wasn't awful, but I didn't really enjoy it.

WHITE HEAT is smokin' hot...and I'm not talking about the fire! I loved both Griffin and Lyndie. Jill Shalvis does such a wonderful job writing about characters who aren't perfect, whose very flaws make you root for them to succeed. I can't wait to read BLUE FLAME!!

I don't quite know why this book did nothing for me. All the words were there and the character's heartaches, but I just didn't feel the emotion. The story line itself also did not have much of a plot to it. It seemed to repeat itself. There is a fire, Griffen comes to help put it out. They think they have it contained, so he goes home. Then it flares up again and he goes back, once again containing it. He goes home again, and when he returns once more there is another flare up. It's like the author couldn't find anything else to write about. The entire story along with the relationships could have easily been wrapped up in a quick short story without dragging it out.
The other reviews were so good that I was expecting more from this author. I just don't know why I didn't feel the same way about this book as they all did. Then again, I am only one opinion. All I can say is if you pay for this book and then share my same sentiments about it, you will be very disappointed.

I LOVED the premise of this book: Two wounded, solitary people find love in the middle of a Mexican wildfire. Lyndie is a tough-as-nails pilot, and Griffin is a firefighter suffering from survivor's guilt.

Unfortunately, I was bored most of the time. I was expecting the small, isolated Mexican mountain village locale to be interesting and exotic, but it wasn't! All those scenes involving Mexican meals, and I never once tasted anything! Sure, there were random fiestas (during the fire, no less!), but I didn't get a feel for the village culture. The locale felt whitewashed, superficial.

Although the characters were initially engaging and unique, their wounded natures seemed to have identical manifestations in the love department. I felt like I was on a seesaw. Lyndie: I want you. I don't. I want you. I don't. Griff: I don't want you. I do. I don't want you. I do. I was getting seesaw-sick.

The plot of the second half of the book also mirrors the first half! Fire starts. Characters go to help out. Characters can't decide if they want a roll in the hay or an HEA. Fire gets put out. Rinse, repeat.

3.5/5.0

A romantic suspense against the backdrop of hotshot firefighters is both unique and intriguing. Shalvis does a wonderful job of creating an exciting setting then drawing an intelligent look at a subject, building the tension slowly and realistically. Griffin Moore's character is damaged in a way readers can relate well too. None would want to be in his shoes yet all want him to succeed and find happiness. Lyndie Anderson was not as sympathetic or likable. While one understands her army brat background, it does not explain all the excuses she gives for being the way she is. Many women grow up under similar circumstances and don't turn out as hard and fearful of love and commitment. Because of this, she becomes the major downside to the story for me.

I also feel that while Shalvis is an expert at the physical aspects of a romance, she falls far short when it comes to emotional depth in her stories. So bottom line, if you like lots of physical stuff along with your suspense, there are few better. If, however, you prefer a rich emotional, loving read, it would probably be best to look elsewhere

White Heat by Jill Shalvis is not my favorite story by her, but I'm glad that I read it. I put it down a couple of times because the first half of the story just didn't hold my attention like the latter half did. Jill Shalvis is one of my top authors so I knew that it was going to get better so I stuck it out.

In this story, firefighter Griffin Moore has lived like a recluse the last year following a fire that killed some of his crew and his best friend. His brother volunteers him to go to Mexico to help out a small village there that is having trouble controlling a fire. His pilot, Lyndie Anderson, is also somewhat of a loner having been raised by her military grandfather, and having never really been shown love. Griffin is intrigued by her, but is reluctant to do anything about it because of his own hang-ups. But they keep getting thrown together in dangerous situations where emotions are running high as they both try to save this small village from fire.

There is lots of adrenaline with this one, but it seemed like forever before the romance starting to really take off and get white hot. Both of them are both very independent and head strong people fighting their feelings for each other. I liked the secondary characters with this story, Griffin's brother, Nina, and others. Liked how his brother gets his own mini-story in this story. 4 stars!

Lyndie Anderson is a bush pilot and a loner. She was raised by her grandfather after her parents died when she was four. Her grandfather taught her a love of flying. But he was a military man and that upbringing taught Lyndie to be independent - and alone. She believes she needs no one. However, she feels for the people of Cooper Canyon, a small town in the jungles of Mexico.

Griffin Moore still hasn't gotten over the loss of 12 lives from the previous fire that he worked on in Idaho; he believes he is responsible for their deaths. He's gone into hiding this past year until he's found by his brother Brody. Brody, trying to get Griffin to deal with what's happened, has gotten Griffin to volunteer to work on another fire - the fire that's affecting the people of Cooper Canyon.

As Griffin overcomes his inner demons dealing with this fire, Lyndie has to deal with her issues - is she really a loner? She believes she doesn't want a relationship - is that really true? Griffin wants a relationship with her, but that's not what she wants, is it?

If I could, I'd give this book 3 ½ stars - I found that I really didn't care for the Lyndie character all that much, so while there is some heat between Lyndie and Griffin, I just didn't care. I have to agree with another reviewer that this book just seemed to be missing something - the plot just seemed to revolve around a fire that just won't die. But I enjoy Jill Shalvis' books. They're fun to read and even a not great book is pretty darn enjoyable.

Griffin Moore lost his sense of self a year ago when twelve fellow wildfire fighters lost their lives on a mountain in Idaho . He's pulled away from his family and friends, doing nothing more than sitting on the beach in California and mourning his loss. That is, until his brother, Brody, shows up, somehow managing to talk him into volunteering to fight a fire in the Mexico mountain lands.

His pilot to San Peubla, the village hoping to escape the burning acreage, is Lyndie Anderson, a tough-as-nails woman who was raised by her military grandfather--and has the "need no one" act down to a science.

I LOVED this book! Not just the sexual chemistry between Griffin and Lyndie, which is undoubtedly hot, but the way the characters were portrayed--their own private needs, desires, and demons.

You won't go wrong with this book. There's action/adventure in the form of the fight against the wildfire; passion not only with the budding relationship between Griffin and Lyndie but that of some important secondary characters, as well; and just a lot of feel-good story interspersed with the kinds of ups and downs that make people tick.

Jill turned up the heat in this book! The characters and plot line are very well written and kept me reading until the last page. This is a must read book!!