My Thoughts
Can you say historical,
paranormal, gothic, romantic suspense, thrilling, funny, magic, sexy and sexual
tension in one word? Yes, FIRELIGHT.
These novels weren't even on my
radar, but after reading a review of Moonglow, (book # 2 in the series) I
decided to give this novel a shot, and oh boy! I’m so glad I did.
Set in Victorian England, from the strong characters to the
familiar, yet unique plot, this book was a treat from beginning to end,
So you think you have heard it
all before; a masked hero, a heroine of incomparable beauty, an arranged
marriage and a romance story......Ah! But not so fast, because Kristen Callihan
has created a world that will not only pull you in, but will have you
captivated with her originality and clever cocktail of genres.
Beautifully crafted, the main
character’s love story will have to survive their differences, secrets and
their share of enemies, all while the sexual tension heats up to scorching
degrees (my cup of tea), to the hardcore romance listener this might be a little bit of a turnoff, as it takes a while in the story before these two get hot and heavy, and the murder plot seems to take time away from the romance, but for me, it was paced perfectly.
The battle to save each others souls brings the romance to
the front and unfolds a beautiful love story.
The magic and paranormal elements
are nicely blended to give the novel, yet another feeling that accompanied by
the darkness and suspense takes the novel up a notch from your regular
paranormal or historical romance.
To top it all, Ms. Callihan
also managed to create credible and exciting secondary characters that will have
you downloading the next novel within minutes of the conclusion of
Firelight...Yes, It’s that good!
I cannot say enough about how
much I enjoyed this novel, and how highly I recommend it to any fan of the paranormal
or historical romance genre, including urban fantasy.
Great reviews:
The Author
Kristen Callihan
Narration
OK, so after all that enthusiasm,
why isn’t it 5 stars? Well, it comes down to the narration.
First I like to give you my
opinion of what I thought was excellent from Moira Quirk (new- to- me narrator),
and that was her interpretation of Miranda, the ambiance of the novel and her
ability to connect you to the characters and the world in general.
Her clear British accent - I
always have to say that, because there are some British narrators that frankly,
lose me with their pronunciations, but I digress, I have no problems at all
with her accent, in fact, it was perfect to bring this world to life.
My complaint comes from the times
I found her a bit monotone, and it
distracted me a little bit, nevertheless the story comes on top in spite of it.
Sometimes it takes the first book
to get used to a narrator’s style - if the readings were competent enough and
by all means that was the case here.
Her male voices were just OK, not
deep enough for my taste, but a very nice effort to make the distinction in the
manner they were delivered.
All in all, I would give 4 stars to
her performance, I’m looking forward to having a better listening
experience with Moonglow.
Voices behind the books
Moira Quirk
