Review: Wildfire by Carrie Mac

Wildfires are topical (and alarming!) and friends-to-lovers is definitely my thing. But it turned out this book was NOT really about either of those things. What did I think? Read my review of Wildfire by Carrie Mac below!

Wildfire by Carrie Mac. To be published by Knopf BFYR on January 28, 2020. Thanks to the publisher for providing me a review copy. This post may contain affiliate links.

Synopsis from Goodreads: Annie and Pete have been best friends since they were little. They know each other better than anyone, and they’ve been on more adventures than they can count–they even have a notebook filled with all the times they’ve almost died. But they always survive, because together, they’re invincible. Now they’re heading out on their next great quest: a ten-day backpacking trip through the mountains of Washington State, ending at Fire Camp, where they’ll learn to fight the area’s growing wildfire problem. The woods spark with the promise of adventure, but a freak climbing accident interrupts their progress, and as the wildfires close in and smoke envelops them, Annie and Pete wander farther from the trail. This gripping story of the power of unrequited love and the danger of the elements is harrowing, beautiful, and unforgettable.

Review: Wildfire by Carrie Mac

So … the title of this book, the mention in the synopsis (which I edited out above) that Annie and Pete are friends but she wants more, and the slightly romance-y, hand-holding cover threw me off a little from what this story actually turned out to be.

Wildfire is NOT a romance. It’s also not really much about wildfires, though they are a small part of the plot. This is a story about friendship and love, about the fragility of life and the brutality of nature. It’s a page turner. It’s intense.

Annie and Pete have been close friends since childhood. They are extremely comfortable together and both have a spirit of adventure. They decide to do a backpacking trip. Both experienced hikers and have a plan. But that plan gets derailed by wildfires and by some decisions they make and they’re soon facing a life-or-death situation.

Interspersed with that are flashbacks – to Annie’s relationship with her mother and grandmother, to the history of Annie and Pete’s friendship. As soon as I adjusted to the fact that no, this wasn’t a friends-to-lovers romance set agains the backdrop of wildfires, I found the book extremely gripping. The comparison to Wild by Cheryl Strayed is apt — as Annie deals with the challenges she’s facing on the trail, she reflects on other aspects of her life.

I think if you enjoy books with outdoors elements and books with set at an intense emotional pitch, you might enjoy Wildfire. I though it was beautifully written and very moving!

Looking for other books with outdoor survival themes? Check out my review of Wild Bird.

Update February 22: for some reason this post has been inundated with spam comments so I have closed comments on just this one post for now. So sorry!