Book Review: Wildfire

Last year I read and loved Icebreaker by Hannah Grace so I’ve been looking forward to reading her second book in the Maple Hills series, Wildfire.

Wildfire follows Russ Callaghan and Aurora Roberts. Russ was a minor character in Icebreaker and is on the hockey team as well. This book takes place during the summer after the school year in Icebreaker and Russ has decided to skip traveling with some of his friends during the summer break and work at a sleepaway camp a few hours away instead. Russ likes routine, playing by the rules, and is one of the most responsible 20/21 year olds you’ll meet.

Aurora is a student at Maple Hills too and is going back to the summer camp she went to throughout her childhood, but this time to work there as a camp counselor. Aurora is fun and impulsive and looking forward to being back in the place she loved so much as a kid.

The night before Russ and Aurora leave for the summer camp they meet at a party at Russ’ house thrown by his friends. The shy Russ is surprised when Aurora shows an interest in him and after hyping himself up and some liquid courage he and Aurora hook up. But some miscommunication has this looking like a one-night stand and the two will never see each other again even though they both actually really like each other.

That is until they end up working at the same summer camp and placed to look after the same group of kids. Now they have to spend the whole summer together and there’s a no-fraternization rule at the camp.

I loved the book and loved Russ and Rory! They both have family issues that have shaped and plague them and summer at the camp helps them work through some of their issues. I loved the tension between them and how they got to really know each other through all their time together. I was happy that the miscommunication is cleared up fairly early so they could really get to know one another and trust each other with the little bits of information about their personal/family lives that they revealed slowly. I liked how they had each other’s backs and supported each other through everything – no third act breakup! There’s conflict and instead of breaking up it was like “you’re hurting and I’m not going anywhere no matter how much you try to push me away” type thing which I loved.

Did I like this one more than Icebreaker? No, but I did still love it. While I loved Russ and Rory, I didn’t feel the same obsession/investment in them and their story as I did Nate and Stassie in Icebreaker, but again still loved the book.

Read this if you want a spicy romcom with the second chance romance, forced proximity, workplace romance, forbidden romance tropes.