Against the Fire
Written by KAT MARTIN
Narrated by Jack Garrett
4/5
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About this audiobook
KAT MARTIN
For New York Times bestselling author Kat Martin, a career in real estate led her down the road to romance. Through real estate, Kat found her own perfect match — her husband, Western author Larry Jay Martin. "We were on opposing sides of a transaction — I represented the seller and he represented the buyer," Kat recalls. A short time after the two became acquainted, Larry asked her to read an unpublished manuscript of an historical western he'd written. Kat fell in love with both the book and the author! "It was quite a romantic story," she admits. "I'd still like to see it get published." Then, after doing some editing for her future husband, she thought she'd try her own hand at writing. Kat moved on to become the bestselling author of over thirty historical and contemporary romance novels. To date, 10 million copies of her books are in print, and she's been published around the globe, including Germany, Norway, Sweden, China, Korea, Bulgaria, Russia, England, South Africa, Italy, Spain, Argentina and Greece. When she's not writing, Kat also enjoys skiing and traveling, particularly to Europe. Currently, she's busy writing her next book. Kat loves to hear from readers via her email: katmartin@katbooks.com
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Reviews for Against the Fire
79 ratings9 reviews
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Gabriel Raines is being targeted by an unknown enemy. The person is setting fires on the buildings his company is renovating. He meets Mattie Baker, a volunteer at the Family Abuse Center when a teenager is suspected of setting the fires. Mattie wants to convince Gabe that this teen is not quilty so she wants to work with him to catch the person who is setting the fires. This puts her in danger as well as Gabe.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The is the second book in the Raines brothers trilogy, and it's the second brother, Gabriel Raines's turn. He's built a successful construction business, and life is looking good until someone starts torching his construction sites.
After the first fire, the police quickly pick up a young man seen near the fire, Angel Ramirez. He had a previous arson conviction, but his family has been getting help from the Family Resource Center, and he's become a hardworking, well-behaved high school student. Mattie Baker, a rising young architect and also an active supporter of the Family Resource Center, visits Angel at the police station, meets Gabe--and convinces him to keep an open mind about Angel, and look for other, more likely, possibilities.
Gabe listens to Mattie mostly because she makes cogent arguments and is completely sincere, but there's no denying he's attracted to her--and she to him. This unacknowledged mix of motives is behind their decision to begin their own investigation in parallel with the official investigation, and when the police quickly uncover evidence that an unusual accelerant was used, and was purchased by a man who looked nothing like Angel, the young man decides that he's going to help, too. Mattie and Gabe tell him to take no chances, to ask no questions, just keep his eyes and ears open, but of course he feels the need to do more than that. The wrong person notices, and hits Angel on the head from behind, landing him in the hospital, in a coma.
The attack on Angel heightens the sense of danger, as do the subsequent fires at other Raines Construction projects, and, for Mattie, mysterious hang-up calls she's getting, which she does not tell Gabe about. As the investigation throws them together, and their mutual attraction draws them together, they are pushed apart by Mattie's fear of relying on anyone other than herself. That fear was created by her father's early death, leaving her mother and herself in poverty, and compounded by a previous romantic involvement that ended very painfully. In counterpoint to Gabe and Mattie's courtship is the courtship of Gabe's friend Sam and Mattie's friend Tracy, who has her own very different yet equally painful issues making it difficult for her to commit to a relationship. Each woman, of course, can see the ways the other woman is frustrating her own happiness.
As the fires continue and threaten Gabe's business, red herrings and confusing clues confound both the official and the unofficial investigations while an unbalanced but very clever and vengeful killer draws closer and closer. Whether or not Mattie and Gabe can find their way to true love will be moot if they don't find the killer before the killer catches up with them.
A good, satisfying read.
Note: I received a free electronic galley from the publisher via NetGalley - Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Against the Fire
3 Stars
There is something about Kat Martin's clipped writing style that turns me off - she tends to build her scenes up well but cuts them off at the precise moment they take hold, and the reader is left with a "huh, what just happened" feeling.
The characters are likable and share an intense attraction. Gabe is smart, sexy and down to earth, the perfect match for commitment phobic Mattie, who slowly manages to build trust with Gabe in a process that has a truthful ring to it.
The arson plot has potential but lacks tension. The police and fire department take a back seat in the investigation, which is completely unrealistic, and new suspects keep popping up (as late as 60%-70% into the story) with no foundation or development. Nevertheless, the climax and resolution are fast paced and exciting.
The secondary romance is sweet but superfluous at it adds absolutely nothing to the book, and the epilogue is unnecessarily drawn out.
All in all, a huge improvement on the first book but I remain underwhelmed by the writing and suspense plot. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Very good book with excellent suspense and good romance. Gabe overcame a rough childhood and has become a successful development and construction businessman. When one of his projects is torched by an arsonist, a young teen with a previous record is accused and arrested. Mattie is a successful architect and volunteers with a local Family Abuse Center. When a teen she's been working with is accused of arson, she's determined to show he's innocent.I loved the initial meeting between Gabe and Mattie. She's passionate about her belief in Angel's innocence and that gets Gabe's attention. Because of his own past, he's willing to give Angel the benefit of the doubt. There's an immediate spark between Gabe and Mattie that he is interested in pursuing, but she is wary. Mattie avoids entanglements with men and devotes herself to her work and her volunteering. Her father passed away when she was young, leaving her and her mother with little to live on, convincing her that it is better to be self sufficient than relying on someone else. Then the man she was engaged to deserted her when she was pregnant, reinforcing those beliefs. She's attracted to Gabe, but reluctant to get involvedWhen Angel is cleared of suspicion he wants to help find who is targeting Gabe and ends up getting badly injured. Feeling like they're responsible, Gabe and Mattie decide to do some investigating of their own. Constant proximity to each other has the sparks burning brighter and feeling beginning to develop. Gabe hasn't been much interested in relationships and permanence in the past, but the more time he spends with Mattie, the deeper his feelings go. But Mattie's fears have her trying to keep some distance between them. I liked Gabe's patience with Mattie's fears, but he also wasn't above pushing a bit to get her where he wanted her. Mattie slowly realizes that she has fallen in love with Gabe, but trusting him with her heart is something she isn't willing to do. It isn't until their lives are in danger that she's ready to give him everything.The suspense of the story was excellent, with the attacks on Gabe's properties escalating throughout the book. There were multiple suspects, all of whom had motive, and it was interesting to see them sort through them all. The fires start to take a heavy toll on Gabe's business and his frustration is obvious. He also became very worried about Mattie's safety as the attacks got more intense. I really liked seeing the help and support Gabe got from his brothers, especially Devlin. The final confrontation with the arsonist was intense and very scary.I also enjoyed the secondary romance between Mattie's best friend Tracy and Gabe's foreman and best friend Sam. Tracy has her own fears thanks to an abusive childhood, and doesn't plan to ever marry. She has no problem using men for physical pleasure, but doesn't trust them. Sam is a really sweet guy who takes the time to show Tracy the respect he feels she deserves. He slowly shows her what real love is and that they can have a future together.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Against the Fire is the story of Gabriel, the second Raines brother. A contractor, he is woken up in the middle of the night when one of his projects is found to be in flames. Closely followed by a second fire at another of his job sites a few nights later, officials soon determine it is arson and suspect a local teenager who had been caught setting a fire once before. Volunteer Mattie Baker comes to the boy's defense, and immediately feels an attraction to Gabe that just won't go away. When Angel, who has been cleared of all charges, decides to ask questions about the fires "on the street" and ends up in the hospital beaten into a coma, Gabe and Mattie are determined to find out who is behind it all and stop him. Gabe and Mattie's story is a sweet one and unltimately very satisfying, though at times Mattie's hesitation seemed a bit much. I'll definitely be looking for the first and second books in the series soon.
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Trilogy. Three brothers. Ok read
- Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5This was a slow read and took a while to get through. Not as good as I hoped.
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5It's hard to fight what you can't see. And Gabriel Raines can't be sure just who's setting the fires in his new real estate development. When two fires hit back-to-back, he knows it's personal, but any number of competitors or ex-employees could be the arsonist.The police suspect Angel Ramirez, a local teen who's been in trouble before where fire was concerned. But Mattie Baker, a volunteer at the Family Abuse Center, refuses to believe the kid she's been working with would go back to his old delinquent ways.Determined to convince Gabe that she's right, Mattie must get close to him and find out who the real culprit is. And just as the arsonist's flames continue to flare, they discover a heat igniting between them. It might just turn into a full-fleged fire if they can just survive long enough to find out.Excellent story!
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5AGAINST THE FIRE by Kat Martin an exciting romantic suspense set in present day Texas. This is book #2 in "The Raines of Wind Canyon",but can be read as a stand alone. What an interesting and exciting series this is,complete with sexy heroes and smart,sexy heroines. Gabriel(Gabe),a sibling of Jackson form "Against the Wind" and Devlin.He is an ex-Marine,tough,a Texas transplanted from Wyoming,wealthy,a major construction owner and is not looking for love.Mattie,volunteers at a Family Abuse Center,and is determined to prove the young teenager accused is not the arsonist.Someone is out for revenge on Gabe and targets his building under construction costing him millions of dollars in damages not counting one possible life. And of course if anyone should get in this arsonist's way they are only collateral damage. This is a fast paced,action packed story full of sweet sensuality,passion,murder,fire,arsonist.It has second chances and is captivating and heart pumping.Out of the smokefire comes love and passion.Another must read. This book received for the purpose of review from Net Galley and the publisher.Details can be found at MIRA and My Book Addiction and More.