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The Smoke Jumper

The Smoke Jumper

List Price: $39.95
Your Price: $26.37
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Predictable and Awful
Review: This book was predicable, sappy and awful. I knew exactly what was going to happen next. I have read all his books and the Loop is the the one I enjoyed the most. I live in Montana and enjoyed reading about places I have been but, the characters were spinless and there was no reason to like them. The writing had no continuity and you wonder if perhaps you are reading a couple of different books. So, save yourself some time and money and skip this book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Another Nicholas Evan's Hit
Review: After reading The Horse Whisperer which I loved, I anxiously awaited Nicholas' next book, The Loop. I was extremely diappointed with that book and could not believe it was written by the same author as The Horse Whisperer. When I saw The Smoke Jumper I hesitated because of my experience with The Loop, but I went ahead and purchased this book and was very glad I did. I really thought it was well done and liked the twists and turns of the storyline.

He is a great writer as his style keep the reader's interest as well as weaving a good plot along with great character development. He also did a great job with sub-plots based on the main characters. I also enjoyed his British expressions and descriptions which lend a special touch to an already great book!

I highly recommend this one! I would not be surprised if they make it into a movie like they did the Horse Whisperer--one of my all time favorites! I am so glad that Nicholas' is back on track. I anxiously await his next book...

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: One girl, two guys kind've read! Ummm...
Review: The Smoke Jumper by Nicholas Evans is a romantic suspense adventure that will have the reader swiftly thumbing through the pages as fast as they can-- A moving story about love, sacrifice, and amazing will-power, two friends, Ed and Connor (both) fire-fighters who parachute into forrest fires and one girl, Julia... And so the story begins... A story not to be missed!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Heart felt
Review: This is an excellent book, it held my interest through every page. I was disappointed when I reached the end...I STRONGLY urge you to read this..a great story of love, friendship, hardship, and romance, with some adventure thrown in!!

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Hot, Warm, Cold...So, So
Review: It was the title that threw me. After the wonderful first 150 pages, the setting changed so drastically that I wondered if I was reading the same book. Perhaps a broader title would've better prepared me. Hey, how can I knock a book that brought me to tears on two occasions? On the other hand, how can I highly recommend a book that makes you plod through the final hundred pages to reach an inevitable conclusion?

Nicholas Evans evokes scenery and natural beauty like few other fiction writers. On top of that, he does a decent job of creating character and dialogue, of capturing the nuances of relationships. With "The Smoke Jumper," Evans takes us into the lives of four interesting people--not all of whom will survive to the end of the tale--and asks us to follow along obediently. For the first third of the story, I was willing to follow. The plot moved quickly, and I actually cared about these characters as they faced personal trauma, forest fires, rock climbing, and outdoor survival. The twists were subtle, yet effective. I was intrigued and would've rated it five stars up to that point.

The next portion was a bit rockier. I, like one of the characters, felt as though I was following blindly. Exhibiting trust in the author's skill? No doubt. Hoping that this journey would lead to unpredictable places? You bet. Although Evans maneuvers through the emotions and difficulties of this section gracefully, I still felt as though I was being set up for the...drum-roll, please...obvious anti-climax.

And I was right. The story moves so far from its original setting and course that I felt I was reading an entirely different novel. "The Smoke Jumper" comes around at the end and delivers, as expected. On the last page, Evans even manages to pull together the horse, wolf, and fire themes of his three books. And that may be the problem: perhaps Evans felt driven to make this book broader, bigger, grander. In my opinion, he should have stuck to one theme. What started out hot, by the end...was not.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: amazingly connecting!
Review: this books drew all my hidden feelings straight from the heart.
Evans connected to my inner most dreams and life. he is a brillant writter and hope he will come out with another book like this soon.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Quest for Fulfillment
Review: Ed Tully is an aspiring musician/composer and part-time smoke jumper, who, with his best friend Connor Ford, spends his summers in Montana parachuting behind fire lines and battling blazes that can't be reached any other way. They are brave, young thrill-seekers in an elite club of only 400 smoke jumpers nationwide. Ed's girlfriend, Julia Bishop, decides to stay during the summer when she is offered a chance to work with a wilderness outreach program for troubled teens. She is crazy about Ed, but when she meets his best friend, Connor, there is an immediate attraction which makes both of them feel guilty and nervous. Connor's passion is photography, and he pursues it quietly during his time away from smoke jumping.

In an attempt to save the life of Skye, an especially troubled girl who ran away from camp on Snake Mountain and was trapped by a raging fire, Julia endangers her own life and the lives of the smoke jumpers who try to rescue them. The tragic outcome forces Julia to choose between Ed and Connor, and their smoke jumping careers are ended.

The second half of the book isn't about smoke jumpers at all, and takes on a completely different tenor, since it's about the settled, domestic life of Julia and Ed and their daughter. Connor chasing his own demons, becomes a photo journalist and accepts the most dangerous assignments in war zones and impoverished countries. Although he is the godfather of Ed and Julia's child, he disappears from their lives for many years. But Julia can never forget about him, and the connection they once felt.

Although the second half of the book didn't live up the promise of the first half (or to the title), I enjoyed it nevertheless, because it wove a story of love and friendship, devotion and courage into a satisfying (if somewhat predictable) conclusion.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Boring.
Review: This was one of the most boring, disjointed books I've ever read. One would have thought that a book titled "The Smoke Jumper" might have been about firefighters or forest fires or something along those lines. Instead it's about every random thought that jumps into the author's head.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Blah Blah Blah!!
Review: The book started out great and I thought I would really get into it, but it took a sudden turn south! Smoke jumper?? I thought I would be reading a book about Smoke Jumpers and lost love etc etc, but when Conner went on his venture to far off lands...it lost me and lost my interest. He tends to ramble on and on and on!!!! It is taking everything in me to try to get through the last 50 pages!! Acckkkk...what happened???
Im definately not impressed with this book at all. If Nicholas Evans would have stuck with the original storyline, it would have been a great book....what a bummer for us readers who wasted our time!!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: good read
Review: Having read some reviews prior to reading the Smoke Jumper I was prepared for the worst. Lucky we all have different tastes, how boring if we all thought the same because I enjoyed Nicholas Evans latest tale.
The Smoke Jumper certainly holds up with the best for a good portion of the book. The relationship between Ed, Julia and Connor is one of true friendship and the difficulties they all faced and how they dealt with them after the fire was truely sad.
Connor's exploits after were a little disjointed, or should I say the telling of them didn't sit well. But, this was a life story by Nicholas Evans and life doesn't flow along evenly either.
Yes, parts of the african theme weren't needed but then it's part of this story.
Overall, a good read by Nicholas Evans. Yes! I have to say a worthwhile read.


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