I'd give this 3 stars.

What I liked:
~ both Jacob and Linc, for the most part -- I enjoyed the dual POV, and it helped a bit when I got especially frustrated with Linc.
~ their jobs -- I don't know much about smoke jumpers, so that aspect was interesting.

What wasn't as strong:
~ Linc's attitude -- his continued loyalty to Wyatt's biases really irritated me. Even when we see why he's so grateful to Wyatt, it still didn't make sense to me that Linc would deny himself happiness -- and hurt Jacob -- simply because he knew Wyatt wouldn't approve.
~ the pacing -- this got really long, and I honestly felt like that tension between the two was drawn out to almost ridiculous lengths at time. It just took me a looooong time to finish, and I usually speed through.
~ Jacob's family -- they just irritated me, and possibly some of that came from Wyatt's homophobia (that they obviously didn't try to shutter much).

All in all, it was better than others I've read by Albert, but I don't know if I'd wade through it again.

Burn Zone is the first book in Annabeth Albert's new Hotshots series of books about m/m romances set against the backdrop of Oregon's fire fighting crews. Burn Zone features  a slow-burn, age-gap romance and was  really great read.

Lincoln Reid is surprised to see Jacob Hartman, his best friend's younger brother, amongst the new recruits for the season. Before his friend's death, Reid promised that he would stay away from his best friend's brother despite their chemistry and mutual attraction to one another. Now that Jacob's a recruit, Linc feels the pressure to keep him safe while maintaining a safe personal distance, but can he do that when their attraction is stronger than ever?

There are a lot of things to like about Albert's new release:

She writes M/M romances with a lot of heart and gravitas. Linc and Jacob have been through a lot together over the years (and we get little flashbacks to the past interspersed with the current day narrative) and we see their history and family connection from the very first page. They've both got a lot to lose (and gain) from their relationship and as a reader, I could feel the personal stakes for both of them.

The slow-burn, age-gap romance felt really well done. As a I reader, I sympathised with Linc's position - he's the older, more experienced (work-wise) person, who cares deeply about Jacob's well-being. He's also not sure he's ready to announce his sexuality at large to the people he works with. Jacob, on the other hand, is more impulsive, more willing to push his own boundaries (and Linc's) to get what he wants both professionally and personally.

I haven't read many firefighter books (romance or otherwise), and this was a lot of fun to learn about things I'd never heard of, including the smokejumpers. Their work is such an integral part of Linc and Jacob's lives that it's almost a character on its own and it was great. You can really feel the danger of their chosen career throughout the book as they work through various jobs, and the reality that it could cost them everything if they make a mistake. 

It was a pleasure, as always, to read another Annabeth Albert book, and I look forward to continuing the series upon its release.

2.5 Stars!

I’ve enjoyed every book I’ve read by Annabeth, especially her "Out of Uniform series" so I'm super excited to start another series written by her.

This book was good. The writing was excellent as usual and bonus points for it exposing me to the world of smoke jumping (which I had zero prior knowledge of). Those individuals who do this as an actual profession are all badasses and no one can tell me otherwise. WILLINGLY jumping into burning areas? Those people deserve all the accolades.Reading about their training and eventual deployment into the fires made for a fascinating read.

However, this was ultimately a romance novel and this is where I had my issues with the book. Look, I don’t expect any romance to be straightforward. Actually, I prefer if a couple struggles a bit before getting their HEA but what happened here was one person hijacking the happiness of the couple all because of his incessant internal struggles.

I was sympathetic to Linc’s internal war, I really was initially, but as it continued to drag on and on, I got more and more frustrated and finally gave up on him. I believe there’s a difference between loyalty and blind loyalty. There’s also a difference between sticking to your principles for valid reasons and hiding behind these same principles rather than grabbing the happiness that is right in front of you.

Linc’s constant self-recrimination made this a more tedious reading experience than it had to be. Also, this would’ve been a 5-star book if it hadn’t been for him. Jacob tried his best and went above and beyond what he could for Linc which I really appreciated but it got to a point I honestly thought is was wasted effort the way Linc was behaving. Jacob stuck to it though, which went a long way to reinforce how good of a person he was. Lord knows I do not possess that kind of infinite patience for such behaviour.

Nonetheless, as I said earlier, this wasn't all bad. The writing was great and it had good secondary characters I'd be more than interested in reading more about in the series' subsequent books. So Annabeth, bring on the other books! I'm ready! (just no more Lincolns okay? Okay. Thanks! Lol!)

Annabeth Albert writes consistently good romance. I've found I can depend on her for character depth, interesting settings that are more than just window dressing and hot physical chemistry, and most importantly to me, I can always feel the emotional connection between her MCs. I need to see past the steam, and she always delivers. And in that regard, this was no exception.

The connection between these two is palpable, even in the earliest, prologue scene. Jacob lights Linc up with his mere presence, and Linc's intensity sucks Jacob right in. It's easy to see why they would continue to be drawn to each other over and over, even when one of them has intentionally kept them in the seemingly eternal friend zone for so many years.

BUT. ButButButButButButBut. The foundation of this story centers around a bundle of tropes that are my least favorite to read about, and I did not realize that going into it. I find these particular tropes frustrating no matter how well the author handles them, but I also thought there was room for improvement with the specifics here.

The biggest issue is the underlying homophobia at play. Actually, no. The biggest issue was the MCs casual acceptance of the homophobia. Linc feels he owes best friend Wyatt for getting him though his childhood in one piece and seems to think keeping his sexuality out of sight, out of mind is a fair exchange for this since it bothers Wyatt so much.

I tried to address this without ranting, but it didn't work, and the rant gets a smidge SPOILER-Y GOING FORWARD. You've been warned.

So, Fact No. 1: Wyatt is a raging homophobe, and as such, when his little brother Jacob comes out to his family, Wyatt extracts a promise from his gay best friend Linc to keep away from Jacob, at least in part because Wyatt blames Linc's presence/gayness for turning Jacob gay in the first place. And Fact No. 2: Six years later, Linc still considers Wyatt his dearest friend, a man he remains blindly loyal to even after his death. HOW DO THESE TWO THINGS EXIST AT THE SAME TIME?????

In my opinion, once the book has established these two facts, it was required to answer that question. And it doesn't even attempt to. I kept thinking we were headed into an exploration of internalized homophobia, but no, that's not what this seems to be.

Then, even after Linc kinda accepts that Wyatt is dead now and he and Jacob are good together, he lets the fact that the rest of Jacob's family is also pretty homophobic become a barrier. Even though Jacob doesn't care what his family thinks, and Linc is already avoiding said family as much as he can get away with and is planning to move far away for a fresh start anyway. So how is that even logical??

And even if you attempt to ignore these frustrations and chalk it up to...I don't know, whatever rationalization gets you through this so you can let yourself enjoy the good stuff, THEN you also have to deal with Jacob -- who is completely, 100% self-assured in his sexuality and everything else ever, seriously, the man has no confidence or self-esteem issues AT ALL -- reacting to Linc's holdups being 100% due to the homophobic family members with basically, "Oh. Yeah. They'll be awful about it. You're right." So let's both be miserable forever??? I DO NOT UNDERSTAND

And if this is the story you want to tell, book, you have to make me understand. And the fact that it doesn't, makes it feel like this is supposed to be an acceptable mindset, and, just, NO. No, no, NO.

On top of all this, at some point we're told that under everything else is Linc's belief that he's just not worth all the trouble Jacob would go through if his family found out about them, but we never really get a clear understanding of where this basement level self-esteem is coming from.

So you have this four-star steamy romance between two smoke jumpers buried under all this angsty nonsense without any kind of psychological or emotional exploration for what's lying beneath this angst beyond straight up homophobia that the MCs don't actually share or buy into but are still letting run their lives, and I'm kinda wondering why I only took off one star at this point!!

But I really did like Linc and Jacob together, and the word count devoted to the problematic bits wasn't actually that large... It's just that it was the entire driving conflict for the whole book. There is nothing else keeping them apart, and the whole book is about them being kept apart. And I feel like this could have been accomplished just as easily with just the age gap and the original promise/subsequent grief followed by a need to keep things quiet from their co-workers. And now you've got the same story WITHOUT driving me crazy :)

So yeah. I finished this book feeling very grumpy, and I'm finishing this review feeling the same way, and as much as I loved Linc and Jacob together, it was not worth the illogical, homophobic, repetitive angst.

I will definitely read more Annabeth Albert in the future, but I would not recommend this one unless your tolerance level for illogical angst is much higher than mine. Which frankly, is quite possible, because mine's practically non-existent.

I was so excited to see a new series from Annabeth Albert and she did not disappoint. The storyline was engaging, heartfelt, believable, and well researched. Jacob calling Linc out when he is being a dumbass was great and the age difference was handled in the best way (ie not until everyone is an adult). I'm looking forward to the subsequent books and I'm super hoping for a McKenna/Kelley story.

Love the love between these two.
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First time reading the author and I was in the mood for a little hottie heat and with a name like Burn Zone, you know these firefighters can give up a little heat.

The author did a nice job developing the story and moving it along. She employed a bit of anticipation with the backstory and provided us with that great push pull with a best friend's brother no-no situation.

And when they finally decided to hell with it, they deserve each other regardless of the consequences, all bets were off. We finally get that delicious heat and fire between these two.

Full of tension and anticipation, and finally a beautiful connection, the author really brings a heated m/m story that breaks the rules yet ends up with a steamy, sexy happily ever after and so much delicious fire in-between!

I'm writing this review as someone who loves Annabeth Albert's books. I love the diversity and the different set of characters she's managing to create. This book has no less diversity or lacks all that much in the characters. But it wasn't for me.

For someone who loves pining and internal angst, this is perfect. For me, who likes angst in the small dosage and only if it's done well, wasn't the hugest fan. Nothing much happens besides Jacob's struggles to be seen as an adult, his ever-present attraction to Linc and Linc's struggles with survivor's guilt, promises he's made and the steadily growing adoration/infatuation/attraction/love he has for Jacob. And sure, there's some training, steamy sex scenes (those are always up to task in an Albert book), family time and jumps out of airplanes, but generally it's a slow paced book with lots of time in Linc's and Jacob's heads.

While I liked Jacob quite much - even though he's younger by 10 years, he feels like the emotionally mature one. Growing up in a loving, but not quite accepting of his sexuality or choices in life, family, he's determined to step out of his dead brother's, Wyatt's, shadow and be seen as himself. This is understandable, since his brother seemed to be walking the fine line one does when being a likable jerk.

Linc... I didn't understand. He's supposed to have had a tough childhood and we get to hear some about it and how Wyatt saved his life multiple times. He's going around with constant guilt and some kind of hero worship for a guy who couldn't even accept his sexuality - which was something Linc kept on quiet about anyway. Maybe because his best friend and extra-family would never accept him? (spoiler: yes)

Anyway, it's not a bad book - I don't think Albert can write a book I distaste. It's still diverse, has good conversations, some cute dogs, mostly fleshed-out characters and hot, hot scens. But it was definitely one of the more lukewarm ones and I found myself not caring that much about what happens to the characters.

Thank you for letting me read an advance copy of this, Carina Press, Netgalley and Annabeth Albert - these thoughts are entirely my own. Looking forward to what comes next!

When it takes me more than 4 days to read an M/M romance, it usually means I'm not digging it. This book rehashes the same, forbidden love situation over and over for the entirety of the book. Not much really happened...not even that many love scenes.

I wouldn't call it unreadable, but Albert's "Gaymers" was definitely much better than this one. I finished it slightly out of obligation, but also to see if it got any better.

Linc Reid has always tried to stay in the closet and not make waves. When his best friend Wyatt tells him to stay away form his out and proud brother Jacob, Linc makes a promise. Left with survivor's guilt when Wyatt is killed in the line of duty, Linc promises to watch over Jacob as he trains to be a fire jumper. What happens when the two have more sparks than the fires they are trained to put out? Will Linc finally admit to his feelings for Jacob and come out in the relationship? In true Annabeth Albert style this series is going to be hot!! With wonderful primary characters and loads of others that the reader is dying to learn more about this is going to be another series her fans will not be able to put down. I cannot wait for more.

I love Annabeth Albert's novels. I love all of her series and I couldn't wait to see what she was going to offer us in this new universe. My favorite series of the author remains Out of Uniform so I was super happy to find virile men in uniform even if they are firefighters and not soldiers.

I really liked this first volume. I loved the characters and quickly got into the story. I got so attached to Linc. I found this character super interesting in his relationship with others. I liked that the author didn't dwell on his childhood. She slides enough details throughout the novel so that we can clearly understand what happened. It is something important, which makes in large part  the man Linc is today, it is not the subject of the novel and Annabeth Albert offers us an effective alternative.

We mainly focus on his relationship with Jacob and all the implications for his professional and personal life. Ireally liked the evolution of Linc throughout the novel. The way he will finally learn to think of himself before he thinks of others.

I also liked the character of Jacob.He is really interesting. I really liked the way he fights to get what he wants and that he is not held back by all the expectations hanging over him. I really liked the fact that his brother is not perfect and that he even appears as a bad guy although nothing is ever said openly because  he is dead.

I enjoyed the way Linc and Jacob will forge their relationship and find solace in eahc other.

Once again, Annabeth Albert offers us a very well conducted novel, with deep and engaging characters and a thrilling intrigue. A very interesting universe to discover and a series which I look forward to reading the next volumes.

*2.5 stars*

I'm a huge fan of Annabeth Albert's writing, going way back. In fact, I've read twenty five of her books, and my average rating is well above 4-stars. But her recent stuff? I've been less than impressed.

Linc was a very hard character for me to relate to in any way. He was self-flagellating and cold, and I felt like he was a huge downer. I didn't like how he dragged his feet the entire time in his relationship with Jacob and how Jacob had to force his way into Linc's heart. Linc didn't deserve him. In fact, the whole book had a mildly depressing air, and not in the way of a good, angsty read.

Part of my issue with this book was the homophobia from Wyatt and Jacob's families that wasn't really ever fully addressed. I felt like that was a loose end that needed more closure. Another part of my issues was the excessive sex, which didn't feel in balance with the relationship development. The book took me ages to finish, which is never a good sign for me.

The book got better for me near the end, (I love a good "predicament-forced relationship development" plot device), but I still wasn't in love with the story.

Not a bad book, but not at all what I was expecting. I'm hoping Annabeth Albert's future works aren't trending in this direction for me.

*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*

I was really looking forward to this new series from an author I enjoy a lot. This was pretty good but overall did not meet my expectations. I struggled with Linc's character a lot. He was difficult for me to like. Jacob I really liked and I ran out of patience with both his family and Linc in how they treated him. There was also too much sex in this imo. I would have liked more relationship development outside the bedroom.

Overall though it was a sold start to the series and the excerpt for the next book was really good.

**ARC provided through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review**

Annabeth Albert's "Frozen Hearts" was a great series (my average rating was 4.5 for the three books) so I am looking forward to diving into Albert's new Hotshots series, which centers around wildfire fighters in Central Oregon.

Veteran smoke jumper Lincoln Reid is still mourning the death of his best friend and fellow smoke jumper Wyatt Hartman, so when Wyatt's younger brother Jacob shows up among the new recruits, Linc has a million reasons why Jacob shouldn't pursue his dream of becoming a smoke jumper.

Top of that list is Linc's sizzling attraction to Jacob, and Jacob's long-term crush on Linc. The plot is very predictable in that Linc, who is still closeted at work, fights that attraction but the two men finally decide to give into their desires and hopefully get it out of their systems. "A sexual exorcism or something. Anything was better than all this pointless wanting and not having." The sex scenes are plentiful and very steamy, and pretty much proof that Linc and Jacob belong together.

But Linc is stubborn in his belief that he cannot come out, cannot be with Jacob, will lose the love and support of the Hartmans, his surrogate family, and will lose the respect of his fellow smoke jumpers. And when I say "stubborn," I mean STUBBORN as it not listening to reason, being completely closed off to any possibility of the relationship being accepted, just not gonna happen. Linc's continued and insistent attitude personally drove me crazy, but I realize that other readers may not feel the same.

Despite a formulatic plot, and Linc's excessively dogged determination to not listen to reason, Albert does a good job in plumbing the nuances of Linc and Jacob's relationship and giving us well-fleshed out characters. 3. 5 stars for "Burn Zone" and I'm looking forward to reading "High Heat" coming out in July, 2020

I love anything by Annabeth Albert, so I was SUPER excited for this one. Firefighters? SIGN ME UP! This book is about Lincoln, a seasoned “smoke jumper” and new recruit Jacob. Jacob is the brother of Lincoln’s best friend since childhood, and out to his family and friends. Lincoln is not, but their years-long attraction is tested now that Jacob is 25 and determined to explore these feelings.

If you are a fan of Annabeth’s, you will be delighted with this new series. The chemistry of the two main characters is apparent right from the start, and it was so fun reading about this new environment. The sexytimes are hot hot hot (as always). I am super excited to keep reading this series, and I hope that there are many, many more to come!

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own

I've enjoyed several of Annabeth Albert's books but this one really felt phoned in. Nothing about the characters or plot was particularly interesting, and the characters felt more like caricatures of "hot firemen who bang" than anything else. There was also a lot of homophobia that was excused over and over again, which I found unacceptable. I understand people have complicated relationships in real lives, but modeling that kind of emotional abuse in a book as acceptable is dangerous.

**Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing an ecopy in exchange for an honest review.**

I was so excited to see a new Annabeth Albert series. I loved her Out of Uniform series. I adore that she writes about people doing tough, dangerous work and somehow finding the right partner to share their softer side.

Linc is a Smoke Jumper. I didn't know what that was or that the job even existed before reading this book. It's amazing when I find myself learning something new from a romance novel. But the truth is that romance novels have made a huge impact on my knowledge, my beliefs and most importantly, my attitude towards others. They've exposed me to characters and circumstances I would never encounter in my mundane life. I'll take this opportunity to again thank all the wonderful authors for their hard work in sharing their imaginations.

If I sound emo right now it's due to this story I just finished. It ramped up slowly, and it's maybe a little longer than usual, but the angst kept building and building until I was so bought in that I practically propped my eyelids open with toothpicks so I could read all night.

I don't like to give a lot of the story away in my reviews so I'll just give you a quick overview.

As I said earlier, Linc is doing a dangerous job. He hasn't had an easy life. He lost his mother at a young age and grew up with an abusive drunk for a father. His salvation came in the form of best friend Wyat. We learn a lot of history of this incredible friendship.

When Wyat's much younger brother comes out as gay to his family Wyat warns Linc away from him. Linc owes his life to Wyat and would never risk his friendship or the extended family he's found at Wyat's house.

Nineteen year old Jacob has a crush on his older brother's best friend. But the 10 year age difference and close family relations get him nothing more than a brush off when he flirts with Wyat.

Years and years go by and that crush remains banked embers, never totally extinguished. A lot (spoilers) happens in both of their lives. Eventually Jacob follows in his brother's footsteps and joins the Smoke Jumpers. Circumstances throw Linc and Jacob into close proximity and a hard fought love story unfolds.

Tears people! I hate crying. But this story had my throat closed up, my eyes blurry and my nose leaking most of the night as I was reading their love story. The last 40% or so of the book turned it into a solid 5 star read for me.

I loved Linc and Jacob and their romance. Even more so than that- I found their careers totally intriguing. I love how AnnaBeth knows and learns so much about different career paths and geographical areas. Her abilities are endless!

This was a phenomenal story with love, loss, heartbreak and healing. A very well rounded story that had my quickly flipping the pages.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review!

This was a great series opener with great characters and a storyline that really drew me in. Linc and Jacob were already connected by the grief they shared and the closer they got the more heat they generated. The relationship between Jacob, Wyatt (his brother), and Linc was just angst ridden, Linc was kept away because of Wyatt's homophobic ass and I felt that Jacob really deserved a better brother. He was such a strong person, going after what he wanted both in his professional and personal lives. All in all an enjoyably series starter.

*I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book provided by NetGalley*

This was a major hit for me. I love my bestie’s sibling as a couple because it can mean instant family or immediate conflict. This book had a bit of both.

Jacob’s brother did not deserve any of Lincoln’s thoughts tho. He was a homophobic prick to the max.

I loved their dance around each other and their slow burn romance. Jacob, despite being younger than Lincoln, knew what he wanted and went after it. Lincoln was the one who had to do a lot of growing up here.

Highly recommend.

This story is beautiful, and hot....but mostly just beautiful!
Linc is a gay smoke jumper who hides who is to everyone, including himself. Even his best friend Wyatt is a little judgmental and narrow minded about his sexuality. Jacob is Wyatt’s little brother, 10 years younger than Linc. The difference Jacob knows who he is and what ge wants, and what Jacob wants is a Linc.


This story hurt my heart. I felt for Linc on so many levels. To hide who he is, deny hus happiness, all because of misplaced loyalties and ideals was heart wrenching. I wanted to just wrap Linc up in a big ole hug! Jacob has known he wanted Linc since he came out at 19 and he’s is not afraid to show it. These two characters were perfect for each other. One pushed, the other pulls, and Jacob was definitely persistent!

This book has some hot sexy times, it has angst, it has drama, but most of all...it has heart. I cried, I got angry, I sighed in happy contentment, and at one point I even held my breath a little to long. The story was amazing, great primary and secondary characters, depth to the characters, and feelings, this book has all the feelings!

I enjoyed the heck out of this book and I want more! This book gets a big ole recommendation from me!!!