BURNING UP BY JENNIFER BLACKWOOD - ARC REVIEW

Unemployed schoolteacher Erin Jenkins is back in Portland, the town she hasn’t called home for more than a decade. It’s not the way she wants to spend her last days of summer: in between jobs and avoiding her mother’s snooping by escaping to the ice-cream aisle. But when the opportunity arises for her to accompany her brother’s best friend—her lifetime crush—to a wedding, summer gets a whole lot more interesting.

Firefighter and single dad Jake Bennett has built a nice, safe wall around his heart—no romance, no getting burned. That doesn’t mean he’s ruling out a fling. Considering Erin’s visit is temporary, they’re the perfect fit for a scorching no-strings one-night stand. Or two. Or five. Until the worst thing happens: Erin and Jake are feeling more. Damn that four-letter word.

Now their hearts are on the line, and when their smoldering summer comes to a close, it’s going to be harder than ever to put out the fire.

I think I read this book at exactly the right time.  I was in-between jobs through no fault of my own, kind of like Erin and I could really relate to her desire to put down roots while struggling with the unknown and where she would even be living in the next six months.

Jake is a single dad, so roots are all he knows.  Roots, and caution, and playing it safe, and not getting involved so he doesn't get hurt.  He says it is for his son, that he is cautious for him...but really it is to protect himself from getting hurt...so of course he falls for a woman who is leaving.

So many books are about people who are opposites, or who have reasons that their relationships won't work.  But occasionally, there are books like this one, that you believe and that speak to you in a way that really resonates with you and where you are in your life.

Oh, and there is a kraken.  Well, a reference not a real kraken (totally different book at that point, huh?) and, really, who can resist reading a book with a kraken?

I enjoyed this title, and I recommend it.

About the Author: Jennifer Blackwood

Jennifer Blackwood is the USA Today bestselling author of the Rule Breakers, Drexler University, and Snowpocalypse series. Aside from writing contemporary romance, Blackwood teaches English in Oregon, where she lives with her husband, son, and unruly black Lab puppy. When she isn't writing or teaching, you can find her binge-watching some of her favorite TV shows, such as Supernatural and Gilmore Girls. Visit her author website at www.jenniferblackwood.com, and follow her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/AuthorJenniferBlackwood and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/jen_blackwood.