I thought this story was sexy and intense. The novellas were such a great start to this seeies andnprovided great background. I loved the chemistey and banter and will continue this series.

The life of a firefighter is full of risks that fluctuate like the flame of the fire. For Anne – her dedication to the job extends far beyond her love of her career. Anne hails from a family that has devoted their life to the job. The expectations that Anne sets upon her own shoulders are a heavy burden, but one she accepts willingly.

Danny is a fellow firefighter with the same company as Anne. The two find themselves faced with a daunting situation amidst the burn of a warehouse fire. As Anne finds herself facing peril, Danny plows forward with the determination to save her at all costs. That moment will change the course of both of their lives in ways that you will not predict. A fate sealed within the burn of the flames.

Consumed is the first book in the brand new Firefighters series by J.R. Ward. While it is not necessary to indulge in the prequel novellas, it does shed a new light on the events that unfold within Consumed. The prequels give you plenty of history between Anne and Danny!! The nibbles lead you straight up to the events that unfold in the beginning of this full length novel. The plot is based around a group of firefighters that put their lives on the line each time they answer a call. While Anne and Danny are the focus of this book, you do get glimpses into the lives of the other characters which will come into play in future books.

There is an epic situation that Danny and Anne face in the beginning of the book. One that will leave you questioning where things will go from here. There will be plenty of moments between friends, jilted lovers, and a fire investigation that will lead Danny and Anne towards an unexpected secret that hits close to home.

With an epic beginning to the novel, I did find the ‘meat’ of the book took a while to build up to a new revelation. Something that Consumed lays out is the groundwork for a new series. One that is different from other works from Ward. Dip your toes in the water, and experience what is sure to be a memorable series from the one and only JR Ward.

This story comes in hot! I was literally thinking, "Dang! All of this action and I'm not even a quarter of the way through yet!" I was a little skeptical because I thought the story may be a little cliche, but it definitely exceeded my expectations.

What I loved about this novel was that the relationships were realistic...it didn't have the fairytale ending where there isn't a fight and things turn out happily ever after. There were real issues and real people going through the struggles that both you and I go through in our normal lives. 

What surprised me probably the most was that I didn't expect the ending! And it leads us to anticipate the next installment of the series. 

Despite the characters' imperfections, I loved them and found them interesting. But most importantly, wanting to know more. Considering one of our main characters is female, this surprised me. 

I'm more than ready for the next novel in this series! Let me at it!

I absolutely loved this book! It was so true to life that I connected with the characters. It is not very often you read about a heroine who was an amputee. Some of the scenes broke my heart and made me cry. I love it when a book does that. To me, it means the author did her job and I became invested in the characters. As always, I am never disappointed in this author’s books!

I've tried twice now to pick up Consumed and read, but it hasn't yet grasped my attention to continue more than a few chapters at at time. While I loved the Bourbon Kings series, this one I just don't think is going to make it into my TBR Pile.

Consumed is the first book in J.R. Wards newest Firefighters series. I'm a fan of J.R. Wards writing style and her ability to captivate her readers with her words.

After reading the Prequels (which I highly recommend you read before diving into Consumed) I was intrigued to see what would become of Anne and Danny. Holy shit, was the beginning of this novel intense! I literally had to put my kindle down a few times just to take a breath and center myself. The trauma, the sacrifice, and poor Danny boy's tough decision and being put between a rock and a hard place, my heart legit broke for him..... The first 8 chapters nearly broke me.

Overall, Consumed was an okay read for me. After the first eight chapters, things started to go downhill. I found myself still a bit intrigued but also a bit bored. I loved the fact that Anne is still so independent even after the trauma and loss she's had to face, but the chemistry between Danny and Anne was lacking, I needed to feel a lot more from them than what was given. I needed more desperation, more want and need, more life and death moments, such as what was shown in the first eight chapters.

Anne is tenacious, beautiful, and sometimes a bit of a rule breaker. Danny loves his job as a Firefighter, and like Anne, he is not afraid to break a few rules as long as the job gets done. Together they make a great couple, both professionally and personally. Though Anne doesn’t believe that Danny has what it takes to stick with just one woman. He has a history of being a ladies man. But he swears that is all in his past. Ever since he met Anne, he wants to prove to her that they work well together for a reason and her perception of him isn’t 100% accurate. Has Danny changed his ways or has he just become really good at hiding who he is?

Consumed is told from multiple POV’s; mainly those of Anne and Danny, with a couple of other side/supporting character POV’s sprinkled throughout the story. I’ve read a few of the authors Black Dagger Brotherhood books in the past, so I knew to expect a good story with interesting characters. I was not disappointed. Consumed is not your typical romantic suspense story. There is no fluff or crazy over the top antics by the characters; which I can appreciate. I think it’s essential to read the two prequels before diving right into Consumed. Reading them beforehand gave me a better overall picture of Anne and Danny and their relationship. I really enjoyed the characters and how they progressed on their journey separately and together. The writing was well done and the story had a good start that hooked me and did not let go until the very end.


RATING: 4 out of 5.

I really wanted to love this book. I love J.R. Ward's Black Dagger Brotherhood series so I was so excited to read something else by J.R. Ward. Unfortunately, I'm 15% through this book and I"m going to have to DNF it. I've tried to read this book 3 times now and I just cannot get into this book at all.

The characters seem to be well written but I just wasn't drawn to them. I felt no connection to them nor any connection to the plot line. I cannot get into this book so I'm marking this as a "did not finish" and moving on. I'm sure that many people will love the harsh realities that J.R. Ward has shown with firefighters and will love the characters that she created. Unfortunately, this book just isn't for me.

I absolutely loved this story. I was hooked from the very first page. Anne and Danny had a working relationship to admire and their story is a heart-wrenching one.
It was the perfect balance of mystery, intrigue and romance. J.R. Ward has a way of writing romances that makes your heart race a bit.

I am new to this author, this being the first book I have read by her and Oh. My. Goodness. This woman can write one hell of a story! I definitely must check out her other pieces of work. I was sent this book for free via netgalley, but this review is 100% honest and my real opinion. Soo first I must say this story was AMAZING, it will grab your attention from the very very beginning, a bit horrific at first, but it never lets you go. I was consumed (wink wink) from start to finish. There is a something for pretty much any reader, you have the drama and romance between Danny and Anne. You have the mystery of an arson investigations and the corruption that goes along with that. There is the suspense and action with the attempts on Anne’s life. Oh and there is a dog! So many things!
Ward also does a great job at developing characters that are complex and connectable. The story surrounds Anne Ashburn who comes from a family of firefighters, but has always been viewed as less in her mind to the males in her family. Anne and her partner go into a fire to check the building for people, while inside Anne separates herself from her partner and this leads to a devastating situation that will maim Anne for life, but thankfully to Danny, who Anne is secretly in love with, she does get out with her life. After she is injured she can no longer work as a firefighter so she is moved to being a fire investigator, who is sent to check out some warehouse fires only to discover that they were set intentionally and they are related to the fire that left her injured for the rest of her life. As she get closer to the truth attempts on her life are made and these make her have to rely on Danny. Danny and Anne are both in love with each other, but Anne will not admit it and tries to avoid getting into a relationship with him, but with the threats Danny will not allow her to be alone so all this time together brings them together.
I tried to be vague so not to ruin anything, but I highly highly highly recommend this book to EVERYONE! Go read NOW! 5 out of 5!

Firefighters are hot!

Being a girl in the fire world isn’t easy, especially when your dad and brother both were/are the chief. That’s a lot to take on. And after an accident leaves her out of active fire duty, Anne finds herself as a fire inspector, investigating a series of arson set fires in her area. I feel as though she had a lot going on inside that wasn’t really brought up, or if it was, it was resolved rather quickly. I do hope we get more about her in the next book.

Now Danny... Was he perfect? No. But I do believe he’s working on it. Without saying much, I will say that I’m glad for the choices he made in the end. There’s more to him than we see here also. He has a lot of baggage. I’m glad we see more of him and Anne’s romance. That made my heart happy.

I know this may sound silly, but the part I loved the most was the sense of family. I realize some are but I’m not talking about them. The fire house is a family. They do things together and help each other out, no matter what. And when one is being a butthead, they all jump up to smack them back around. Silly, I know.

I am torn between 4 and 5 stars. While I LOVE firefighter stories, some parts of this seemed so far fetched. Maybe that’s the firewife in me, but there were a few parts that I found myself saying, “That would never happen!!” So I read it for the drama aspect. And that I liked.

I’m partial to Ward’s BDB series, and not usually a fan of dramas, but I am curious to see where the next book goes. I have a few firefighters I wanna know more about. I went in not knowing it was going to be a series but I’m happy it will be. There’s a few opened ended storylines that I need more from.

3.5 stars. Consumed is the first book in The Firefighters series. This can be read as a standalone, though I highly suggest you read the three short prequel books first to fully understand what is going on in the storyline. There is violence and some sex. I have loved this author's other series and enjoyed the short prequel stories so I couldn't wait to read this book. J. R. Ward weaves a well crafted tale of a group of people that is filled with with firefighters, EMTs, LEOs, etc. This book sucks you in and keeps you wanting to read to get to what happens next. I can't wait for more in this series.

When you know the book is about firefighters and that the author is JR Ward you are expecting a book to be hot, full of action and the characters to be alpha and strong as all get out, but this book not only met those expectations, it exceeded them! The characters were the epitome of strong and heroic, but also vulnerable at times with the actions that took place, the steam and romance for many of the firefighters and couples was oh so present and then the buildup of the relationships and dynamics of everyone in this story had me captivated and left me wanting more! By more I mean there is suspense, action, emotions, drama, family matters, friendships and betrayals. . . and I loved it. JR created a great new world that is vivid and memorable with the stories, characters, dialogue and emotion. By the end of the story I was sold on this couple and rooting for potential couples in the making. For instance, the brother in this story, I gritted my teeth at his actions, but I also kind of love him! And then the other firefighters..boy do they have some stories that I am here for!

Prior to publication, JR shared three novella's to help introduce this world. I think you can enjoy this story and become ensnared in this new world without reading the novella's, but they are amazing and really build up the tension, chemistry and dynamics of everyone so I would recommend reading them prior to diving into one of my favorite reads this year! Also, wink wink nudge nudge I hope to see more novellas between the stories:) (fingerscrossed)

Thank you NetGalley, JR Ward and Gallery Books for the chance to read this book and share my opinions!

Ann Ashburn has had a complicated life with a father she could never please and a mother she lost respect for and a brother who just doesn't understand. She took a job with the fire department following in her father and her brother's footsteps. Not that her brother ever wanted her to. One bad decision at fire scene changes her life drastically and she has to reinvent herself. Danny McGuire is one of the best fire fighter's around and the same fire that changes on Ann changes him as well but in a different way. This story starts out fast. It becomes a nail biter right from the beginning and i found myself chanting NO WAY, NO WAY! I think the author keeps you on your toes through out the story. Whose the bad guy? At the end of the book you find if you were paying attention at the beginning it was right there. The one problem i had was that at times the author used sentences that were a bit complicated to follow and took me out of the story. Overall though it was a great start to the series. Ann and Danny have to fight their own demons and figure out their relationship all while trying to figure out whose trying to kill Ann. I'm excited to see where J.R. Ward goes next with this series.



Find out more about this series and J.R. Ward Here www.jrward.com

This book really suck punches you in feels from the very beginning, Ann the main character loses so much. In this we see the main character have rebuild her self from the ground up.

Ward is great at writing scarred, broken characters. She is also great at making them find them find a way to find them some way piece themselves back together.

The guy in this one, as with all her books is a hottie with many faults of his own.

Recommended to fans of the author and genre.

Digital review copy obtained through Netgalley.

4 Wine Glass #Review of Consumed (Firefighters #1) by J.R. Ward
J. R. Ward’s Consumed is a gripping, powerful, and explosive story of love and second chances that kept me turning the pages!

Anne Ashburn is a strong, independent woman in a family of firefighters. She has no problem being just another one of the guys in Engine Company 17, and expects to be treated as one. To fellow firefighter, Danny McGuire though, Anne is all woman. One night of smoking passion turns into a burning obsession, but Anne knows that getting too involved with Dannyboy could mean the end of her career, especially if she's just another passing flame for him. When a call gone bad turns each of their world's upside-down, Anne and Danny must dig deep for that tiny ember that keeps them going. Will they be able to find support in each other, or will they burn out?

Consumed was classic Ward writing; with tough-as-nails characters, fiery passion, and stunning intrigue. I loved the raw environment that Ward has built here of firehouse politics, each of the characters frustrations were palpable. The plot was edgy and riddled with provocative subject matter. Anne, Danny, and the entire Engine Company 17 unit came alive on the pages and pulled at my heartstrings. The tension that sizzled between Anne and Danny was captivating and the twists, oh the hearts-stopping twists! I was white-knuckling the edges of my ereader when all of that pressure finally reaches a boiling point.

Consumed is a thrill ride that you won’t want to miss, and I’m looking forward to more from this Firefighters series. As for the prequels, if you would like to see how Anne and Danny first came to be I'd suggest reading The Rehearsal Dinner and The Reception. They give really good insight into these characters if you read it right before starting Consumed, and delve further into the fire that changed Anne and Danny's lives.

This was my first J.R. Ward book so I had no idea what to expect from this. I had heard good things about her Black Dagger Brotherhood series, so I decided to try this book, the first in a series, to see if I liked it and her writing style. She is also a very popular author at my library and I am trying to become more familiar with the authors and genres that fly off our shelves. Overall, I enjoyed the idea of the story but had some issues with the characters and the pace.

I enjoyed the action in the very first chapters and even though I know Anne and Danny would survive, based on the synopsis of the book, I was invested right away in the fire and the potential outcomes. I was very surprised when Anne lost her hand and how Danny was involved so I appreciated that the book had me invested in the characters right away. I also appreciate seeing a character with a disability as the main protagonist in a book. It’s very rare to see that and I was glad that Anne’s character wasn’t treated as a victim and seen as someone who faced a horrible event and survived.

My biggest issue was that I didn't buy the love story between Anne and Danny. At the very beginning of the book we are told that a flirtation had just turned into something more but that's it. There are no scenes showing them together that would make me believe they are unrequited lovers as Ward would like us to believe. We are supposed to believe that Anne and Danny love each other yet Danny sleeps with multiple women as a way to escape (clichéd) and Anne doesn't believe Danny for one second when Moose tells her about some questionable things he may have done. If you are truly in love with someone, I think you would at least spend a few seconds deciding if you can trust them or some random friend that you haven't seen in months. In fact, the whole of their relationship seems to be spent hurting each other and hiding their true feelings. I really wanted more of an idea as to why they fell in love in the first place.

Ward also decides to throw in a side story line about a suicidal, HIV positive fireman that came out of nowhere and then went nowhere. I didn't find myself feeling anything for this character because there was no lead up and no back story to why I should. This is the first in a series so I can assume that some of the side characters will eventually get their own book but this particular plot line was not enjoyable and was a waste of the pages it was on.

Overall, this was a book that got me interested within in the first few pages but fizzled out as time went on. I wish the characters had been better written and that the love story was more believable.

This book was inventive and definitely unique. The characters are memorable and the story sent me on a roller coaster ride of emotions! Ward mastered subtlety in this story and I cannot wait for more! I'm so glad she stepped into the mystery side of storytelling.

A once-firefighter learns an arson investigation can be as deadly as a blaze, when she finds herself the target of a killer.

With CONSUMED, J.R. Ward kicks off a hot, new contemporary romance series that feels as addictive as a gritty, TV drama. She introduces a new brand of brotherhood—nicknamed, tough-taking firefighters who value loyalty, bravery and service.

We meet Anne Ashburn, daughter of a legendary, fallen firefighter and sister to Fire Chief Thomas Ashburn. Strong-willed, brazen and fearless, Anne loves nothing more than the thrill of fighting fires alongside those she really considered family.

Her proximity to firefighter Danny McGuire is a bonus, her obsession with the blue-eyed bad boy running hot for years.

But then a risky gamble leads both Danny and Anne to a moment in a warehouse fire that changes them both, irrevocably altering their lives.

Afterwards, Anne must steel and redefine herself, away from Danny, away from the only home to which she’s belonged.

She takes on a job as an arson investigator, soon after pulled into a case with all-too-familiar aspects, linked to a man who seems untouchable.

Meanwhile Danny’s caught in a PTSD tailspin, the sharp edges of his pain blurred and forgotten with nights of heavy drinking.

But as Danny and Anne try to find their way past what once happened, past the guise of just one more night between the sheets, the fire starter threatens it all as he inches closer to them both.

Fans of J.R. Ward will love her quick-witted zingers slung effortlessly between this new crew. Ward is so adept at establishing a saga, in bringing to life compelling, multi-dimensional characters with longer development arcs, and we definitely see that here.

While the romance thread is woven throughout, it didn’t feel like a sweeping, front-and-center kind of thing (which I liked). Setting up the narrative, the world, the villains and the complicated clan of heroes takes center stage. I’d love to see more ratcheting suspense as the series continues, as it’s a fascinating world in which to root a thrilling mystery. Calibrating the balance between the drama, romance, humor and suspense will ultimately define the readership with whom it will most resonate.

JR Ward does not disappoint! This book is completely addicting and a total page turner! So glad I had the opportunity to read this book!