PLAYING WITH FIRE

A group of strangers searches for a path to safety as a forest fire encroaches on them in this adventure thriller.

Natalia and Wyatt, two teens from Portland, Oregon, venture on a short hike which goes awry when a fire breaks out, blocking the trail. Wyatt’s wilderness experience and Natalia’s aspirations to become a doctor prove to be boons for the people they encounter and join forces with as they are trying to escape. These include a family—Ryan, Lisa, and their toddler, Trask; a man called Darryl and his grandson, Zion; Beatriz and Marco, a young couple; an older woman named Susan; and two men, AJ and Jason. In an escalating accumulation of bad luck that strains credulity, the group members in turn experience extraordinary injuries, health problems, and psychological challenges during the ill-fated journey. Natalia struggles with tragic events from her past that are explained in several interspersed flashbacks. The fast-paced action described through Natalia’s anxious but practical third-person voice will initially hook readers, and for those able to suspend their disbelief, it may carry them through the novel. However, the shallow presentation, particularly of the secondary characters, may lessen the title’s appeal. Natalia and Wyatt seem to be White by default; there is ethnic diversity in the supporting cast.

A frantic and harrowing but predictable tale of group dynamics and survival.