Into the Fire
Title: Into the Fire
Author: Anne Stuart
Copyright: 2003 (Mira); 378 pgs.
ISBN: 1-55166-694-4
Series: N/A
Sensuality: Warm
Who: Jamie Kincaid and Dillon Gaynor
Where: Wisconsin
Anne Stuart is known for her dark heroes, men that are hard to like, never mind trying to imagine how their heroines fell in love with them. Dillon Gaynor is no exception. He’s gruff, rude, cynical, and angry — among other things. He behaves in an underhanded way toward Jamie, alternately trying to scare her away with his behavior one moment and then in the next, sabotaging his own efforts in order to keep her with him a little longer. He’s a man who’s been in love with the same woman for half his life, yet won’t even admit that to himself let alone say it her. Throughout the book, the author gives the readers clues as to how much Jamie means to Dillon. She also shows us that the otherwise hard man is also capable of being gentle, tender even.
Into the Fire is not a light, romantic love story. I liked the book a lot despite this, primarily because of Dillon. He’s very realistic. He’s trying to get on with his life, atoning for his self-destructive youth. He has his business and his good friend, Mouser. He chose to turn his life around, long before Jamie came back into it, which is a nice touch — a departure from all the other bad boy heroes tamed by the heroine.
Twelve years ago, Dillon was the gorgeous bad boy of Marshfield, Rhode Island, the one every school girl fantasized about, including honor student and all-around good girl Jamie. It didn’t matter that he smoked, drank, and was usually up to something illegal. It didn’t matter that he seemed to be oblivious of her presence. It didn’t matter that the Kincaid’s were wealthy and that her mother hated Dillon. None of it stopped Jamie from secretly wishing he was her boyfriend. Her beloved cousin Nate knew about her crush on his best friend and that made it easier for him to convince her to come with them to one of their parties. Before the night was over, Jamie was raped and Dillon was hauled off to jail for nearly beating a man to death with his bare hands.
In the present, Jamie drives to Wisconsin to learn the truth behind Nate’s death. The one person who can provide answers is Dillon, possibly the last person to see Nate alive. He is also the last person in the world that Jamie wants to see again. But Isobel Kincaid, Jamie’s mother, loved Nate like a son and she wants answers. Showing up unannounced, Jamie hopes he won’t remember the last time they saw each other. She is hoping that he was too drunk and too high to remember the details of that night. Much to Jamie’s annoyance, Dillon remembers all too well, particularly what happened between them before she was raped. It also seems she hasn’t lost her fascination with him. Even in the midst of her protestations to the contrary, she’s attracted to him. It’s Dillon she wants, and probably always will.
But Jamie still clings to the belief that Dillon lead Nate astray and that Nate would never have let anything bad happen to her. In truth, Dillon is positively saintly when compared to Nate, yet Jamie doesn’t trust Dillon. Dillon knows just how twisted Nate was — but there’s no way he can convince Jamie of this. Jamie has been sheltered from the truth all her life. That last bit makes Jamie come across as a weak character. Truthfully, to me, it made her seem more realistic. Jamie has been misled by her family, people she should have been able to trust.
Other reviewers have stated that they did not like the ending. Considering all that Jamie and Dillon have been through, the ending felt right. For the first time in their lives, they are truly free from manipulative influences and have the opportunity to find out if they can make it work and have a truly lasting, loving relationship. To me, the ending seemed hopeful, and I was actually moved by it.
Started: 21 April 2009
Finished: 25 April 2009
Rating:
Liked A Lot
What Others Have Said:
The Romance Reader
I Just Finished Reading. . .
Addendum:
This is a re-post, due to technical difficulties. Comments, if any, were lost. I apologize for the inconvenience. (Aug 09)
This is a re-post, due to data loss. (Oct 09)
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What: Anne Stuart Read-a-Fest
When: 15 April – 15 October 2009
Who: Ana O. (Cosy Little World)
Rules: To read as many novels written by Anne Stuart in six months. No list required. Ana will be awarding prizes. To learn more and sign up, read the sign-up post.
Ever since I read Black Ice last year, I’ve been adding her books to my TBR. So far, all I’ve manage to read since is a short story from a Christmas anthology. I wasn’t going to join any more challenges, but I saw this “fest”, saw that there wasn’t a minium book requirement, and decided, “why not?”
Ana has provided a list of books here.
As usual, I will track my progress here.
Christmas Getaway
Author(s): Anne Stuart, Tina Leonard, Marion Lennox
Copyright: 2008 (Harlequin); pgs. 282
Series: N/A
Sensuality: Subtle
The stories in this anthology are connected by a main plot. The only author I’ve read before was Anne Stuart. The blurbs on the back are misleading, to say the least.
The overarching plot which connects the story is roughly this: Crooked Boston cop Connor O’Bannion tries to set up fellow police officer, James Fitzpatrick (Claus and Effect) as a fall guy. But Fitz goes on the run and Connor is due in Dallas to marry Molly Broadbent (Candy Canes and Crossfire), the woman he’s been dating for several years and he has now decided he needs to marry if he wants to advance on the force. At the rehearsal dinner, it appears that Molly’s maid of honor, Jean Norville (Caught at Christmas), may have overheard him make some threats. Figuring his cover is blown, Connor fails to show up at his own wedding. He goes to ground for a few days and eventually ends up in Australia at Christmas, hoping to get his hands on the diamonds his cousin, Vincent Devlin, has hidden.
As for the individual stories…
“Claus and Effect” (Anne Stuart)
Dr. Elois “Ellie” Pollard is preparing for her own wedding when James Fitzpatrick kidnaps her at gunpoint, dressed as Santa. Fitz hopes that Ellie can help him clear his name. He observed Ellie at the funeral for Vincent Devlin’s wife, Erica and had wondered if she might know something, anything, that can point the finger at O’Bannion. Unfortunately, Ellie only knew Erica through the woman’s brother, Joe Cartland (Candy Canes and Crossfire), whom she spent time with in a foster home in Australia. Since Ellie doesn’t know anything, Fitz’s only other hope is his first partner, long retired. He may have collected enough dirt on O’Bannion to prove him untrustworthy. But now that Fitz has dragged her into this, Ellie’s in danger, too, and Ellie refuses to leave a patient (Fitz was wounded).
This story was fast paced and the characters were likable. Ellie comes up with a clever way of getting passed a stakeout. Enjoyable read.
“Caught at Christmas” (Tina Leonard)
As stated above, Jean Norville overhears something at the wedding rehearsal. The best man, Connor’s crony, tries to take out Jean. She’s whisked away by Molly’s brother, Sam, to his secluded ranch. Sam’s a former Texas Ranger and he’s tasked with keeping an eye on Jean until Connor is nabbed. Jean isn’t thrilled by this. She rather be home in Boston, surrounded by her Christmas-loving family. Sam, feeling bad — and not knowing how long she’ll have to stay with him — allows Jean to decorate his home and even bake Christmas cookies. Sam himself isn’t much into the holiday and his parent’s bitter marriage has had a profound effect on both Sam and Molly’s views on relationships. Jean’s efforts and her stories about her family finally make him realize what he’s missing. But Jean’s barely there a day when the cops inform them that Connor has left the state, so Jean can go home. Sam elects to drive, wanting to spend time with Jean. And though Connor has gone into hiding, it doesn’t mean the coast is clear.
Of the three stories, I liked this one the best. And I loved Sam. This one isn’t as fast paced as the first, but I thought it moved pretty briskly and I thought the ending was just right — not too sugary.
“Candy Canes and Crossfire” (Marion Lennox)
After the non-wedding, Joe Cartland takes his dead sister’s children back to Australia. But Joe doesn’t know a whole lot about them, since Erica spent most of her time in the United States. Joe’s relieved when Molly arrives unexpectedly. The children — Charlie, Lily, and Zoe — are very fond of Molly and perk up when they see her. But Molly came to the secluded Devlin estate to get away and be alone after being stood up by a man who is not only crooked, but may also be responsible for the deaths of Vincent and Erica. However, she relents and whips them all into the Christmas spirit. But their quiet little holiday is short-lived. Connor is still on the loose.
This one was a bit slower and I didn’t warm up to either lead.
Overall, I enjoyed the book.
Started: 8 December 2008
Finished: 28 December 2008
Rating:
Liked A Lot
Black Ice
Author: Anne Stuart
Copyright: 2005 (Mira); pgs. 377
Series: 1st in the “Ice” series
Sensuality: Hot
Who: Chloe Underwood and Bastien Toussaint
From the back: Living paycheck to paycheck in Paris, American book translator Chloe Underwood would give anything for some excitement and passion — even a little danger. So when she’s offered a lucrative weekend gig translating at a business conference in a remote château, she jumps at the chance to shake things up.
Comments: I found this book hard to put down. I could have easily finished it in two days — one, if I had started reading it earlier in the day — but I forced myself to put it aside so I wouldn’t be two reviews behind.
Wow. Yes, Bastien isn’t your typical romance hero, and that’s what makes him interesting. A ruthless agent tired of the “at any cost” mandate of the agency he works for, Bastien is beyond burnout. This makes him vulnerable to his sub-conscience, which propels him to find out what’s become of Chloe in the château. Caring about anyone is a death sentence to someone in his line of work. As he sees it, if he’s going to die anyway, at least let it be for doing the right thing.
Though Bastien would have Chloe think otherwise, he is a good guy. The Committee is, regardless of their tactics, supposed to be working for the greater good. The fact that Bastien never considers turning traitor indicates he still have a few idealistic loyalties. However, he doesn’t hesitate to tell Chloe that he isn’t a nice man, that she shouldn’t make him out to be something he isn’t, and that she should forget about him and get on with her life. Once he realizes he’s in love with her, it’s more important to him that he keeps her safe by staying out of her life.
I liked Chloe. She is surprisingly strong — manages to withstand being tortured longer than one would have expected, bounces back from more than one brush with death, and faces down the same adversary twice. Though she has good reason to, she can’t seem to bring herself to hate Bastien for very long. She doesn’t realize the effect she has on him, that the small acts of kindness are the results of her influence on him: sparing the dogs, going back for his coat because she asks for it, etc. She has unknowingly wormed her way into his heart. She easily could have been annoying and whiny. I glad that she wasn’t. I don’t think a weak, clingy heroine could have lasted long with Bastien.
Looking forward to reading the other books in this series.
Started: 10 February 2008
Finished: 13 February 2008
LOVED IT !!
Rating:
