Books & Spoons Review: Feeding the Fire by Andrea Laurence

Living in the small town of Rosewood, Alabama, hairdresser Pepper Anthony has one rule—never date a Chamberlain. She’s always said, “the only thing worse than being ignored by a Chamberlain is being dumped by one.” But Grant Chamberlain, town fireman, isn’t used to rejection, and Pepper has consistently turned him down since high school. She isn’t intimidated by his family; she’s one of the few who refuses to take their crap.

When Grant volunteers at the charity bachelor auction, to his surprise, Pepper buys him. She hadn’t meant to, but Adelia Chamberlain dropped a cold drink in her lap, sending her leaping into the air at precisely the wrong moment. Suddenly she had a massive bill to the town and Grant at her disposal. Since the money has to come from her “restore the house” fund, she decides to use Grant for manual labor instead of romantic dinners. Grant is happy to help, sweaty and shirtless, because one way or another, he’s going to get Pepper to admit she’s attracted to him. All it takes is a small spark, and soon they’ll be fanning the flames

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Small town living from the eyes of a firefighter and hairdresser, who can't help but fall in love, despite the feud between their families.
This story has surprising elements in it, the mystery of the peeping tom in town, and the family feud, that is messy, a bit ugly, and very hurtful, brought more components to the tale. The small town gossip was fun and light, the family meals always entertaining, and this book actually managed to make me laugh out loud several times - achievement in itself!
Grant and Pepper are endearing, the fact that Grant has had a crush on Pepper since he was 14, was cute. They have an obvious connection, they enjoy each others company, make a great team, and the passion is burning hot between them.
The conflict between them was real, raw, and hurtful, even though it wasn't directly about them, the ripple effect of it touched their lives as well. I admire Mr Anthony, Pepper's dad, what a stand up man he is. Also the strife wasn't drawn out long, or with too much angst, even though the ending of the story is rather dramatic.
Well written, fun story from small southern town, full of interesting characters, and a touch of mystery
~ Four Spoons