Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: Wildfire

Author: Carrie Mac

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 4/5

Diversity: Broken families and one Indian side character

Publication Date: January 28, 2020

Genre: YA Contemporary

Recommended Age: 16+ (gore, language, drugs, alcohol, death, grief, and sex mentions)

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Pages: 272

Amazon Link

Synopsis: Into the Wild meets The Serpent King in this story about Annie and Pete, two best friends on a dangerous and emotional trek through the woods.

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.

And they've always been just friends. But lately, Annie has been thinking that maybe friendship is just the beginning, and she's been mentally replaying all the times they were almost something more.

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. Carrie Mac's gripping story of the power of unrequited love and the danger of the elements is harrowing, beautiful, and unforgettable.

Review: This book was a roller coaster of emotions. The book is a back and forth of Annie and Pete’s life together as the bestest friends of all who love to hike. The writing was amazing and the plot was very intriguing. I also love how the book wasn’t a normal contemporary tale.

However, I didn’t really like how the book began, it kinda began in an odd place and it took a bit to get into the rhythm of this book. The book also showed the two making really dumb/bad decisions, which is realistic and infuriating. I understand that every hiker makes mistakes, you can never full prepare for what will happen in the wild, but the mistakes they made were completely within their control and should have been accounted for. The most infuriating is that they didn’t tell their fathers where exactly they would be going. I understand that’s a teenager thing and it’s infuriating, but I did appreciate how the book showed how horrible it can be when your parents don’t know where exactly you are. My main concern is that, at one part of the book, Annie gets drunk and drives into a pole. Pete tells her to say she swerved to miss a dog so she wouldn’t get in trouble. I don’t think the book did a proper explanation of how dangerous and stupid that was of her to do… and honestly, because I work in the CJ field, the doctors would have run tests for the police to see if she was drunk or not. While you are transported to the ER first and formost when in an accident, you are detained and they can arrest you formally once released. The excuse of swerving for a dog will not work and you can kill someone when you drink and drive, if not yourself. It’s stupid to drive a two ton weight around like it’s a toy for any reason.

Verdict: Overall, I really loved this novel and it will stick with me for awhile.