Helpful Score: 3
I got an eGalley of this book to review through NetGalley.com. This book was a wonderful historical fantasy paranormal romance. It was impossible to put down and the two main characters were absolutely awesome. The second book in the Darkest London series is scheduled to release in August 2011 and will be titled Moonglow.
One night when she was younger Miranda meet a strange man in an alley and she has never been able to forget him. Now Miranda is plagued both by her strange ability to call fire and by her father's horrible debt. Miranda is horrified when she finds that he father has sold her off to a nobleman with a reputation for being dangerous and mentally unstable. When Miranda finally meets the masked Lord Archer she sense something familiar about him. She finally realizes Lord Archer is actually the man whom she meet all those years ago. Someone is trying to frame Lord Archer for multiples murders and Miranda ends up in the thick of a magical and mysterious plot.
The two main characters are what hands down makes this book. The witty banter and heat between Miranda and Lord Benjamin Archer is unbelievably well done. Miranda is a Lady yet she has been thieving for her father for some time so she has some..uh..less ladylike skills in sneaking and fighting. She is tough, yet dedicated to those she loves.
Lord Archer is a wonderful male lead. He has that whole masked man thing going on which lends a mysterious and painful aura to his characters. His character channels both a little Phantom of the Opera and a little of the man in black from Princess Bride. He was just an absolutely perfect dark and mysterious male lead.
The heat and chemistry between these two characters (both who are lonely and harboring terrible magical secrets) is absolutely outstanding. I could not put the book down and could not wait to see what would happen next. I actually got goosebumps at points. I just don't know how else to say it; this is one awesome couple and reading about them and seeing how they can work as a team was just wonderful.
The world itself is interesting. It is set in historical London. Magic isn't all that well known. Werewolves are alluded to in the story at one point, but the magic Lord Archer is involved in is more the ritualistic/demonic type. There isn't a ton of world-building, but what is there is well done and easy to understand.
It looks like this is going to be one of those paranormal series where two different characters are featured for each book. This book pretty much wrapped up Miranda and Archer's story completely. The next book looks like it is going to focus on one of Miranda's sisters.
Overall this was an absolutely outstanding read. I couldn't put the book down. The two main characters really make the book; they are just very wonderful characters and the chemistry between them is incredibly well done. The world is interesting but basically just a alternate version of historical London; there is magic present but not a whole lot of paranormal races are discussed. I would recommend this book for fans of the Night Huntress series; or any other urban fantasy/paranormal series out there featuring a strong heroine and hero with a strong element of romance throughout the story. This book was very well done and I will be curious to see if the follow-up book, Moonglow, can be as awesome.
One night when she was younger Miranda meet a strange man in an alley and she has never been able to forget him. Now Miranda is plagued both by her strange ability to call fire and by her father's horrible debt. Miranda is horrified when she finds that he father has sold her off to a nobleman with a reputation for being dangerous and mentally unstable. When Miranda finally meets the masked Lord Archer she sense something familiar about him. She finally realizes Lord Archer is actually the man whom she meet all those years ago. Someone is trying to frame Lord Archer for multiples murders and Miranda ends up in the thick of a magical and mysterious plot.
The two main characters are what hands down makes this book. The witty banter and heat between Miranda and Lord Benjamin Archer is unbelievably well done. Miranda is a Lady yet she has been thieving for her father for some time so she has some..uh..less ladylike skills in sneaking and fighting. She is tough, yet dedicated to those she loves.
Lord Archer is a wonderful male lead. He has that whole masked man thing going on which lends a mysterious and painful aura to his characters. His character channels both a little Phantom of the Opera and a little of the man in black from Princess Bride. He was just an absolutely perfect dark and mysterious male lead.
The heat and chemistry between these two characters (both who are lonely and harboring terrible magical secrets) is absolutely outstanding. I could not put the book down and could not wait to see what would happen next. I actually got goosebumps at points. I just don't know how else to say it; this is one awesome couple and reading about them and seeing how they can work as a team was just wonderful.
The world itself is interesting. It is set in historical London. Magic isn't all that well known. Werewolves are alluded to in the story at one point, but the magic Lord Archer is involved in is more the ritualistic/demonic type. There isn't a ton of world-building, but what is there is well done and easy to understand.
It looks like this is going to be one of those paranormal series where two different characters are featured for each book. This book pretty much wrapped up Miranda and Archer's story completely. The next book looks like it is going to focus on one of Miranda's sisters.
Overall this was an absolutely outstanding read. I couldn't put the book down. The two main characters really make the book; they are just very wonderful characters and the chemistry between them is incredibly well done. The world is interesting but basically just a alternate version of historical London; there is magic present but not a whole lot of paranormal races are discussed. I would recommend this book for fans of the Night Huntress series; or any other urban fantasy/paranormal series out there featuring a strong heroine and hero with a strong element of romance throughout the story. This book was very well done and I will be curious to see if the follow-up book, Moonglow, can be as awesome.
Helpful Score: 1
Review originally posted at Ramblings From This Chick
I really don't know what I'm feeling now that I finished Firelight. I feel a bit upset and a pretty disappointed. I had such high expectations for this book, especially since I had since all I have heard good things about it. This book could have been great, but it just annoyed me and seemed to drag on.
In the beginning I found myself really interested in both Archer and Miranda. I loved the little snippets we are shown of them in the past and I was curious to see how things progressed between the two. Archer has been in love with Miranda for years and essentially paid Miranda's father handsomely for her hand in marriage. Miranda doesn't want to marry Archer. She doesn't know him and he's essentially a social pariah. He has a disfigurement on his face and has taken to wearing a carnival mask when out and about the ton. Ladies swoon in fear in his presence and she doesn't understand when Archer a noble, would want to marry her a third daughter of a business man. Miranda doesn't realize at first that she has actually met Archer, years prior and he happens to be the man she can never stop thinking about. When people who were once close to Archer start to turn up dead, Miranda quickly places her faith in Archer and believes in his innocence. She sets out on a mission to find out who may is trying to set him up.
This is where things start to go south for me. The mystery of the book. It goes on for forever. So long in fact that when the mystery is revealed I couldn't have cared less. It seems like the romance aspect of this book take a backseat and I hate when that happens. Also, when Archer finally does reveal himself to Miranda, I found that I didn't really care. I was so bored with their relationship and everything that was taking place. Both Miranda and Archer after awhile just became so annoying by the end. Neither is completely honest with the other and both are constantly running around and doing things in secret. I really don't understand how they both seemed to fall so in love with one another when they are both keep so many secrets.
With Miranda especially, I just never understood how she came to love Archer. She just wakes up one morning and all of a sudden she's in love. Neither had really spent anytime with the other at that point so it just didn't make sense to me. And if she loves him and trusts him why does it take so long for her to share her secret with Archer? As for Archer, I liked him a bit more than Miranda he just frustrated me a bit. I just wanted him to open up with her more. I understood why he loved he so much but I just wanted him to be honest with her. It frustrated me so much that these two just wouldn't open up with the other. Every time there's a problem Archer runs off. Why couldn't these two just ever talk?
All in all, this book was just okay for me. With completing Firelight, I'm not a hundred percent sure if I would read the next book in this series. I loved the world Kristen created with the mix of historical and paranormal, I just don't know if it's enough for me. I pick up a book because I want to be blown away by the romance and with Firelight there just wasn't enough romance to keep me interested.
**ARC copy provided by NetGalley**
I really don't know what I'm feeling now that I finished Firelight. I feel a bit upset and a pretty disappointed. I had such high expectations for this book, especially since I had since all I have heard good things about it. This book could have been great, but it just annoyed me and seemed to drag on.
In the beginning I found myself really interested in both Archer and Miranda. I loved the little snippets we are shown of them in the past and I was curious to see how things progressed between the two. Archer has been in love with Miranda for years and essentially paid Miranda's father handsomely for her hand in marriage. Miranda doesn't want to marry Archer. She doesn't know him and he's essentially a social pariah. He has a disfigurement on his face and has taken to wearing a carnival mask when out and about the ton. Ladies swoon in fear in his presence and she doesn't understand when Archer a noble, would want to marry her a third daughter of a business man. Miranda doesn't realize at first that she has actually met Archer, years prior and he happens to be the man she can never stop thinking about. When people who were once close to Archer start to turn up dead, Miranda quickly places her faith in Archer and believes in his innocence. She sets out on a mission to find out who may is trying to set him up.
This is where things start to go south for me. The mystery of the book. It goes on for forever. So long in fact that when the mystery is revealed I couldn't have cared less. It seems like the romance aspect of this book take a backseat and I hate when that happens. Also, when Archer finally does reveal himself to Miranda, I found that I didn't really care. I was so bored with their relationship and everything that was taking place. Both Miranda and Archer after awhile just became so annoying by the end. Neither is completely honest with the other and both are constantly running around and doing things in secret. I really don't understand how they both seemed to fall so in love with one another when they are both keep so many secrets.
With Miranda especially, I just never understood how she came to love Archer. She just wakes up one morning and all of a sudden she's in love. Neither had really spent anytime with the other at that point so it just didn't make sense to me. And if she loves him and trusts him why does it take so long for her to share her secret with Archer? As for Archer, I liked him a bit more than Miranda he just frustrated me a bit. I just wanted him to open up with her more. I understood why he loved he so much but I just wanted him to be honest with her. It frustrated me so much that these two just wouldn't open up with the other. Every time there's a problem Archer runs off. Why couldn't these two just ever talk?
All in all, this book was just okay for me. With completing Firelight, I'm not a hundred percent sure if I would read the next book in this series. I loved the world Kristen created with the mix of historical and paranormal, I just don't know if it's enough for me. I pick up a book because I want to be blown away by the romance and with Firelight there just wasn't enough romance to keep me interested.
**ARC copy provided by NetGalley**
This was an interesting and different historical paranormal. None of my guesses about Archer were correct and I liked that the author had such an original concept. I wished we learned more about where Miranda's abilities came from but it was still a good read. I'm looking forward to Moonglow, the next book in the series.
I enjoyed "Firelight". It is a mixture of several classic tales... "Beauty & the Beast", "Phantom of the Opera", "Dr. Jekyl & Mr. Hyde"...I'm sure I could add a few more to the list. I really liked that the book was not an "in your face" paranormal story. I LOVE the paranormal genre, but typically the reader knows immediately that the characters are some verbalized creature of the night. In Firelight there are tidbits of Miranda's Pyrokinesis (which is obvious from the cover)... but there is a big secret to what happened to Archer. It isn't until the end of the book that the reader finds out what Archer hides behind his mask. I liked Miranda's determination to find out Archer's secret and the glimpses of vunerability in Archer's refusal to reveal himself. Plus, I can't resist a book where the woman rescues the whether it be literally or emotionally. I look forward to the next book... which is McKinnon's story!
Very different then what I normally read but it still has a paranormal theme going on. The only thing I had trouble with is the 19 century London English speech and their 'slang'. Other then that I had no problem getting into this story.
I enjoyed this book and really had a had time putting it down. I would have liked more about Miranda and her ability to summon fire. It said she was born with it, her sisters (Poppy and Daisy) are "normal." This book is definitely more about Archer and what happened to him. I was certainly curious about his disfigurement (burns? pox marks? bad ache scars? well, no.).
I did think that was slow moving at times. Both take time to learn to trust and withhold information.
The end was my favorite part.
Daisy and Poppy's books are next!
I did think that was slow moving at times. Both take time to learn to trust and withhold information.
The end was my favorite part.
Daisy and Poppy's books are next!
Really great series. Loved this one!
