All Fired UpRating: 4.5 stars
Buy Link:
Amazon | All Romance | Amazon UK
Length: Novel


Policeman Shawn Everly is new to the Las Vegas scene. His relocation brought him to the Las Vegas Strip assigned to foot patrol, which brings him sometimes entirely too close to the partying public. However, he wouldn’t mind getting close, very very close, to fireman Trent Marshall.

Trent has been a fireman for over a decade. He is well respected, dedicated, and a man of few words. His lost his partner, a former cop, when he was fatally shot during a robbery. When Trent meets Shawn, he knows he can only look as he won’t allow himself to become too close to anyone, especially another policeman.

The men have a few close chance encounters, but it’s during an emergency that overprotective Trent thinks Shawn is in danger and humiliates Shawn in front of the crew. When Trent tries to apologize, Shawn is so angry, but the men wind up on a lunch date. Spending some time together away from their jobs, the men have a lot in common, especially the heat surging between the two of them, and it’s a fire neither of them wants to put out.

Trent still can’t accept the dangers that come with Shawn’s position, and just as they are starting to put a real relationship together, Trent can’t seem to let go of the traumas of his past. Then, as events escalate on The Strip, a vigilante group, The Citizens Against Immorality, put the public and both men in the kind of danger Trent is all too familiar with.

One cop, one fireman, the blazing sun of the Las Vegas Strip, intense chemistry, and it is damn hot! This is just a well done story with two men that that really deserve to find love. We are first put into the chaotic life of being a policeman on foot in the heart of Las Vegas. Shawn just keeps getting into all kinds of situations, as per the job, and Trent is all too available, as per his job, to come to Shawn’s rescue. Their attraction is instant from the first time they see each other. Trent is not so much against getting into another relationship as he cannot handle being in a relationship with another cop. He still has a lot of emotional trauma just below the surface that he never dealt with regarding the death of the love of his life.

Trent and Shawn get to know each other–like really get to know each other. Their inner dialog, especially Shawn’s as he checks out Trent, is cute and amusing and even Shawn cracks himself up. While their time together sort of defines erotic, there is a lot of emotion behind their first time together and the heat and the emotions escalate throughout the story. And, just when it looks like things might start to be just too easy for them, Trent’s fears and protectiveness kick in and there is a good balance of intimate moments and real life coming at them. Trent has to get himself together and how unique is it that the men take a look at their issues and proceed like adults? (well done!)

In terms of the vigilante group, while the incidents play a large role in showing Trent’s state of mind and work well in that sense, the larger story line behind the group and the specific way Trent and Shawn are targeted detracts a bit from the overall effect of that aspect of the story line. And, just a few times, Trent’s dialog loses the natural conversational flow and sounds stiff, which becomes noticeable only because it is a contrast to the ease of how he sounds for a good portion of the story. The focus of the story is the relationship and intensity between Trent and Shawn and they are what makes the story memorable.

A sign of a truly enjoyable story is not wanting to let the characters go and an epilogue or a peek into what their future looks like would have added an extra layer. But, since this is the beginning of a new series, perhaps Trent and Shawn will wink at us in a future installment. I have read a few books by Knight and her characters are engaging and she definitely knows how to have them heat up the pages. Definitely a recommended read and a hothot start to a series of men in uniform set in Sin City.

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