Review - - All Consuming

All Consuming

by Jaci Burton

Brotherhood by Fire - Book 3

Publisher: Berkley

Release Date: March 2, 2021

Reviewed by PJ

When firefighter Kal Donovan transfers to the Tactical Rescue Team, he's determined to succeed by giving work one hundred percent of his attention. This proves more difficult at his ten-year high school reunion when he runs into Hannah Clark, his first love. She's still the smart, funny, beautiful girl he loved in high school, but everything has changed. She's divorced, has a son, and has zero interest in exploring an old romance.
 
Hannah has moved back home after a disastrous end to a marriage that never should have been. Now her only focus is getting her hair salon up and running, and making sure her son is happy. She doesn't have time for love—especially not with Kal. She intends to look forward, not backward, and Kal is most definitely part of her past.
 
However as Hannah and Kal start spending time together, Hannah realizes that what she's feeling for him isn't nostalgia, but red-hot attraction. Kal's intent on showing her what it's like to be cared for, romanced, and consumed with passion—and Hannah loves it. But she wonders if she has the courage to risk her heart again, even as Kal vows not to lose her a second time.

PJ's Thoughts:

I seem to be reading a lot of second-chance romances lately and All Consuming is another good one. I enjoyed Kal and Hannah together. Their teenage relationship ended ten years ago and when they reunite at their high school reunion it's with no lingering guilt or hard feelings regarding the end of that young romance. They're adults now, with life experience under their belts, moving forward into a potential new relationship but with a foundation of friendship at its core. I enjoyed their banter, the spark of attraction between them, and the steam they generate when they finally act upon it. I especially enjoyed the fun they have together, in and out of the bedroom. There's such an ease between them that comes from that foundation of friendship. I also enjoyed the attention that was given to each of their careers, giving readers glimpses into their daily lives away from one another. I like learning new things and also gaining a more complete understanding of the individual characters.

Something Jaci Burton excels at is creating families I want to know better and there are some good ones in this book. It was fun to meet and get to know Hannah's young son, Oliver (I loved the relationship Kal forms with him), Hannah's mom (she's a hoot), and Kal's parents, his brothers, and their significant others. They all add an additional richness to the story. I hadn't read books one and two before beginning this one. All Consuming stands fine on its own but by the time I finished, I was so enamored with the Donovan family that I immediately downloaded both Hot to the Touch and Ignite on Contact.  

If you enjoy heart-tugging, second-chance, contemporary romance with likeable characters, a bit of steam, feel-good fun, and smile-inducing happy endings, give this one a try.