Turns out when Nora Roberts dials down the spice and lights a fire, I’m all in.
I don’t usually reach for Nora Roberts. Too much spice and not enough plot, at least for me. Truth be told, I reached for it because the Rusty Book Club is having a January challenge: To read a book with a blue cover. I figure a title with the word blue in it has to have a blue cover.
Blue Smoke surprised me, and I genuinely enjoyed it. Catarina Hale (Reena, if you’re family or friend) is a cop, a firefighter, and an arson investigator, and she’s tops at all three. Fire isn’t just part of her job; it’s practically a character in her life. Her family's pizzeria burned when she was a child, two former boyfriends died in fires, and danger seems to circle her whether she wants it to or not. Still, Reena doesn’t need rescuing. She’s competent, tough, and emotionally grounded, exactly the kind of strong female lead I’m always rooting for.
Then there’s Bowen Goodnight. Bo had a wild streak once, but the death of a friend forced him to grow up. Now he’s built a solid life and runs his own business. He’s not whiny, not needy, and not looking for someone to fix him. He is searching for “Dream Girl,” a woman he glimpsed for seconds at a party and never forgot. It takes a while, but when these two finally collide, it feels earned. (That part of the story created suspense on its own.)
As Reena investigates a series of fires, anonymous calls begin, and it becomes clear that someone is targeting her and the people she loves. That’s where the book really hooked me. I’ll admit I skimmed the sex scenes to get back to the mystery, careful not to skip too far and miss something important. The suspense and character work were what kept me turning pages.
Blue Smoke is a romantic suspense that actually leans into the suspense. If all of Nora Roberts books were like this, I'd read more of them! Strong characters, a solid mystery, and just enough romance (scannable if needed) to keep the story moving. Strip away the extra heat, and what’s left is a smart, suspenseful story that kept me reading for the right reasons.
