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Rockford Fire Department #3
Code of Honor
Lieutenant Jake Scarlatta has always believed that firefighting is about working as a team. But years ago, loyalty to a teammate resulted in a blemish on Jake's record. Now Chelsea Whitmore, one of the best firefighters on his crew - and the woman he's beginning to love - needs his support. But helping Chelsea clear her name means implicating one of his men.
This time Jake has to make the right decision.
This time Jake has to make the right decision.
296 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
99 people are currently reading
147 people want to read
About the author
Kathryn Shay
173 books501 followersKathryn Shay is a lifelong writer. At fifteen, she penned her first 'romance,' a short story about a female newspaper reporter in New York City and her fight to make a name for herself in a world of male journalists - and with one hardheaded editor in particular. Looking back, Kathryn says she should have known then that writing was in her future. But as so often happens, fate sent her detouring down another path.
Fully intending to pursue her dream of big city lights and success in the literary world, Kathryn took every creative writing class available at the small private women's college she attended in upstate New York. Instead, other dreams took precedence. She met and subsequently married a wonderful guy who'd attended a neighboring school, then completed her practice teaching, a requirement for the education degree she never intended to use. But says Kathryn, "I fell in love with teaching the first day I was up in front of a class, and knew I was meant to do that."
Kathryn went on to build a successful career in the New York state school system, thoroughly enjoying her work with adolescents. But by the early 1990s, she'd again made room in her life for writing. It was then that she submitted her first manuscript to publishers and agents. Despite enduring two years of rejections, she persevered. And on a snowy December afternoon in 1994, Kathryn Shay sold her first book to Harlequin Superromance.
Since that first sale, Kathryn has written twenty-one books for Harlequin, nine mainstream contemporary romances for the Berkley Publishing Group, and two online novellas, which Berkley then published in traditional print format.
Kathryn has become known for her powerful characterizations - readers say they feel they know the people in her books - and her heart-wrenching, emotional writing (her favorite comments are that fans cried while reading her books or stayed up late to finish them). In testament to her skill, the author has won five RT BookClub Magazine Reviewers Choice Awards, three Holt Medallions, two Desert Quill Awards, the Golden Leaf Award, and several online accolades.
Even in light of her writing success, that initial love of teaching never wavered for Kathryn. She finished out her teaching career in 2004, retiring from the same school where her career began. These days, she lives in upstate New York with her husband and two children. "My life is very full," she reports, "but very happy. I consider myself fortunate to have been able to pursue and achieve my dreams."
Fully intending to pursue her dream of big city lights and success in the literary world, Kathryn took every creative writing class available at the small private women's college she attended in upstate New York. Instead, other dreams took precedence. She met and subsequently married a wonderful guy who'd attended a neighboring school, then completed her practice teaching, a requirement for the education degree she never intended to use. But says Kathryn, "I fell in love with teaching the first day I was up in front of a class, and knew I was meant to do that."
Kathryn went on to build a successful career in the New York state school system, thoroughly enjoying her work with adolescents. But by the early 1990s, she'd again made room in her life for writing. It was then that she submitted her first manuscript to publishers and agents. Despite enduring two years of rejections, she persevered. And on a snowy December afternoon in 1994, Kathryn Shay sold her first book to Harlequin Superromance.
Since that first sale, Kathryn has written twenty-one books for Harlequin, nine mainstream contemporary romances for the Berkley Publishing Group, and two online novellas, which Berkley then published in traditional print format.
Kathryn has become known for her powerful characterizations - readers say they feel they know the people in her books - and her heart-wrenching, emotional writing (her favorite comments are that fans cried while reading her books or stayed up late to finish them). In testament to her skill, the author has won five RT BookClub Magazine Reviewers Choice Awards, three Holt Medallions, two Desert Quill Awards, the Golden Leaf Award, and several online accolades.
Even in light of her writing success, that initial love of teaching never wavered for Kathryn. She finished out her teaching career in 2004, retiring from the same school where her career began. These days, she lives in upstate New York with her husband and two children. "My life is very full," she reports, "but very happy. I consider myself fortunate to have been able to pursue and achieve my dreams."
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
August 18, 2010
I was very suspicious about this book when I started it. I was excited about the firefighter heroine, but worried how the masculine job would be handled. It was very well done. Not one of my fears came true (she was not treated "like a girl" or with kid gloves, she did not have to make a choice between a man and a job--this is fantasy and in my fantasy women don't have to make that choice--a whole host of fears I had for this book). The book and romance were believable, the characters likable, and the plot good. Good choice Dear Author Readers!
October 17, 2019
I wasn't certain there was any point in reviewing Code of Honor, considering it was published eighteen years ago. (!) But hey, I did read it this year, and later learned it's still available on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Code-Honor-Ame...
It's also up on Kindle, but I had the paperback edition sitting around. I first read romances around 1990, a few years before I started writing them, but all my life I've been picking up any book I could find about firefighters; this qualified both ways.
Code of Honor is one of Harlequin's Superromances: Extra long stories with a bit more depth and more subplots to them. Fire Lieutenant Jake Scarlatta was stabbed in the back by his best friend, a fellow firefighter, and now has trust issues. Firefighter Chelsea Whitmore has been assigned to Jake's station, but she's now a pariah on the fire department after an affair with another firefighter led to disaster. Oh, and she now has trust issues.
Trust issues are a big deal in romances, especially when there's no other logical way to keep a couple apart. In this case Jake and Chelsea have something else: He's her supervisor. But even while fighting off their growing attraction Jake is a fair guy, and fights to give Chelsea every chance. The only problem is, she keeps making rookie mistakes ... mistakes she insists she isn't making. Sabotage? It appears someone at the station is less open minded than Jake is.
Female firefighters aren't as big a deal these days, but this was written about twenty years ago. To put it into perspective, the book came out less than twenty years after a lawsuit forced the hiring of the first female New York City firefighters; in the words of the old ad, you've come a long way, baby.
Overall Code of Honor is well done. Getting the casual reader up to speed on the fire service leads to some clunky writing here and there, especially early on, but the plotting and description is strong, as is the characterization. I had two major problems, the first of which was my own fault for not noticing: Code of Honor is part of a series, and not the first book in that series. As such, I had some confusion as characters dropped in who'd already been established in earlier works. The lesson? Always read them in order, kids.
The second problem will go unnoticed to most readers. Shay clearly did her research on the fire service, and she got a lot of stuff right. But sometimes, for the sake of plot, stuff happens that just wouldn't happen. In one example, a crew arriving on the third alarm--in other words, after several other crews are already at the scene--advance a hose from their truck toward a large building fire, then run out of water when the truck's tank runs dry. A dramatic problem, except it wouldn't happen: Assigned to the third alarm, they probably would have taken a hoseline from one of the already-arrived units. If not, they'd have established a water supply from a hydrant or water tanker before making an attack on a fire that big.
Realism in entertainment is a problem with every profession: It's why I don't watch most firefighting shows, and I'd bet most lawyers don't watch lawyer shows, either. But overall if you like romances, you'll like this one. (Romances have also come a long way, baby, but we all have our preferred genres.)
https://www.amazon.com/Code-Honor-Ame...
It's also up on Kindle, but I had the paperback edition sitting around. I first read romances around 1990, a few years before I started writing them, but all my life I've been picking up any book I could find about firefighters; this qualified both ways.
Code of Honor is one of Harlequin's Superromances: Extra long stories with a bit more depth and more subplots to them. Fire Lieutenant Jake Scarlatta was stabbed in the back by his best friend, a fellow firefighter, and now has trust issues. Firefighter Chelsea Whitmore has been assigned to Jake's station, but she's now a pariah on the fire department after an affair with another firefighter led to disaster. Oh, and she now has trust issues.
Trust issues are a big deal in romances, especially when there's no other logical way to keep a couple apart. In this case Jake and Chelsea have something else: He's her supervisor. But even while fighting off their growing attraction Jake is a fair guy, and fights to give Chelsea every chance. The only problem is, she keeps making rookie mistakes ... mistakes she insists she isn't making. Sabotage? It appears someone at the station is less open minded than Jake is.
Female firefighters aren't as big a deal these days, but this was written about twenty years ago. To put it into perspective, the book came out less than twenty years after a lawsuit forced the hiring of the first female New York City firefighters; in the words of the old ad, you've come a long way, baby.
Overall Code of Honor is well done. Getting the casual reader up to speed on the fire service leads to some clunky writing here and there, especially early on, but the plotting and description is strong, as is the characterization. I had two major problems, the first of which was my own fault for not noticing: Code of Honor is part of a series, and not the first book in that series. As such, I had some confusion as characters dropped in who'd already been established in earlier works. The lesson? Always read them in order, kids.
The second problem will go unnoticed to most readers. Shay clearly did her research on the fire service, and she got a lot of stuff right. But sometimes, for the sake of plot, stuff happens that just wouldn't happen. In one example, a crew arriving on the third alarm--in other words, after several other crews are already at the scene--advance a hose from their truck toward a large building fire, then run out of water when the truck's tank runs dry. A dramatic problem, except it wouldn't happen: Assigned to the third alarm, they probably would have taken a hoseline from one of the already-arrived units. If not, they'd have established a water supply from a hydrant or water tanker before making an attack on a fire that big.
Realism in entertainment is a problem with every profession: It's why I don't watch most firefighting shows, and I'd bet most lawyers don't watch lawyer shows, either. But overall if you like romances, you'll like this one. (Romances have also come a long way, baby, but we all have our preferred genres.)
March 10, 2023
Trust, so hard to earn...
....and so easy to lose.
Jake knew it wouldn't be smooth sailing when Chelsea joins his team, but nobody could have foreseen the hazards, difficulties and dangers that plague Chelsea and the team.
....and so easy to lose.
Jake knew it wouldn't be smooth sailing when Chelsea joins his team, but nobody could have foreseen the hazards, difficulties and dangers that plague Chelsea and the team.
February 16, 2020
I enjoyed this story with plenty of action that moved right along. I particularly liked the plot about a woman fighting for equality in the male dominated world of firefighters. I also liked how the relationship centered around trust. After unfair treatment Chelsea transferred to a new fire station led by lieutenant Jake.
February 23, 2023
Professions, Romance and Conflict
I love Kathryn Shay’s ability to populate her books with real people who are professionals in careers I enjoy reading about. For me, her books are special because she addresses real problems that people in all professionals face. She neither sugarcoats the issues or trivializes them. Instead she demonstrates the issues, the difficulties and possible solutions. Her characters are not cooky-cutters of each other. Neither are the solutions trivial or the same for each couple. I’m
I love Kathryn Shay’s ability to populate her books with real people who are professionals in careers I enjoy reading about. For me, her books are special because she addresses real problems that people in all professionals face. She neither sugarcoats the issues or trivializes them. Instead she demonstrates the issues, the difficulties and possible solutions. Her characters are not cooky-cutters of each other. Neither are the solutions trivial or the same for each couple. I’m
August 16, 2020
These books are about the men and women who work in the Rockford Fire Department. This was the best book yet, loved Chelsea and Jake. This author not only gives us a realistic view into life in the fire department but also delves deep into the relationships with each couple. Going straight to book four.
February 8, 2024
another fire starter lol.
Wow first I loved Francey and Alex then it was Dylan and Beth now I love Chelsea and Jake. Each couple keeps getting better. Another five star. Way to go!
Wow first I loved Francey and Alex then it was Dylan and Beth now I love Chelsea and Jake. Each couple keeps getting better. Another five star. Way to go!
February 18, 2019
I love this series of Books. They evoke so many emotions. I am looking forward to finishing the last--- not.
April 29, 2023
Catherine Shay rocks it again!
Catherine Shea has a way with words that makes you stop and think and then hurry to see what happens next!
Catherine Shea has a way with words that makes you stop and think and then hurry to see what happens next!
September 13, 2016
Code of Honor: Rockford Fire Department Book three is by Kathryn Shay. It is a really good book with lots of excitement and romance.
Jake Scarlatta was chosen by Chief Talbot to take Chelsea Whitmore onto his crew. Jake prided himself on being fair but didn’t want a woman on his crew. They caused nothing but problems and he didn’t need any more problems. One of his crew members, Joey Santori, hated her for what she did to his buddy. However, he had no choice so did the best he could to make her transition to his crew as easy as possible. Would it be enough?
Chelsea Whitmore had fought hard to become a fireman. She was slight but had been sick just before training so had to overcome that before she could even have a chance to overcome the physical training. Then she made a major mistake on her first crew. She dated one of the other crew members. It didn’t work out when Billy became controlling so she broke it off. Billy refused to accept it and it caused problems as he became reckless on the job. She was determined not to make that mistake again and was determined to work with this crew even if they didn’t want it. Can she do it? Can she overcome her reputation?
As Chelsea settled into her routine with this new crew, someone just pretended to go along. His intention was to make her look so bad that she left the crew and the department of her own will. Can he do this without being caught and without hurting anyone? Will he get caught?
Jake Scarlatta was chosen by Chief Talbot to take Chelsea Whitmore onto his crew. Jake prided himself on being fair but didn’t want a woman on his crew. They caused nothing but problems and he didn’t need any more problems. One of his crew members, Joey Santori, hated her for what she did to his buddy. However, he had no choice so did the best he could to make her transition to his crew as easy as possible. Would it be enough?
Chelsea Whitmore had fought hard to become a fireman. She was slight but had been sick just before training so had to overcome that before she could even have a chance to overcome the physical training. Then she made a major mistake on her first crew. She dated one of the other crew members. It didn’t work out when Billy became controlling so she broke it off. Billy refused to accept it and it caused problems as he became reckless on the job. She was determined not to make that mistake again and was determined to work with this crew even if they didn’t want it. Can she do it? Can she overcome her reputation?
As Chelsea settled into her routine with this new crew, someone just pretended to go along. His intention was to make her look so bad that she left the crew and the department of her own will. Can he do this without being caught and without hurting anyone? Will he get caught?
August 23, 2014
Firefighter Chelsea Whitmore has transferred to another firehouse because problems at her last job. After a few weeks, it seems as though the other firefighters have accepted her, especially her boss Lt. Jake Scarlatta...the man she is falling in love with. Suddenly, little things are happening that make her think she is either going crazy, or someone is trying to sabotage her.
Good story about who very likeable characters. Another great addition to Shay's America's Bravest series. My rating: 4 Stars.
Good story about who very likeable characters. Another great addition to Shay's America's Bravest series. My rating: 4 Stars.
August 19, 2016
Great
This book was really good. It had a great love story between two great characters, Jake and Chelsea and a great plot, with a great whodonit. The only reason I didn't give it a higher rating is a I really didn't like the ending, it was wrapped up too neatly, too quickly and was implausible..
This book was really good. It had a great love story between two great characters, Jake and Chelsea and a great plot, with a great whodonit. The only reason I didn't give it a higher rating is a I really didn't like the ending, it was wrapped up too neatly, too quickly and was implausible..
June 9, 2016
Awesome series
I absolutely love the author of these books. I loved the hidden cove series and these are even better. You will get addicted to the characters right from the start ....
I absolutely love the author of these books. I loved the hidden cove series and these are even better. You will get addicted to the characters right from the start ....
June 24, 2023
Another very emotional and tense story of female firefighters in what is still a man's world. Chelsea is damaged goods and fears the reaction of the all male house to her transfer in. She is right to be apprehensive. She also falls in love with her lieutenant which is even a bigger problem.
Read
March 7, 2018Can firefighting and romance coexist?
Kathryn Shay has created her usual complex story of people who are likable, capable, interesting and supportive of everyone around them. I loved Chelsea and her ability to do a firefighter’s job at least as well as the men in her station. I also loved her support of the young people who needed help. The scenes where she interacts with the other firefighters and gets them to support her seemed very real to me.
The storyline and each of the secondary characters were unique and interesting.
Kathryn Shay has created her usual complex story of people who are likable, capable, interesting and supportive of everyone around them. I loved Chelsea and her ability to do a firefighter’s job at least as well as the men in her station. I also loved her support of the young people who needed help. The scenes where she interacts with the other firefighters and gets them to support her seemed very real to me.
The storyline and each of the secondary characters were unique and interesting.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews