Historical PNR Review: Firelight by Kristen Callihan

Firelight 

by Kristen Callihan 

(Darkest London #1)
ebook, 289 pages
Published February 1st 2012 by Grand Central Publishing
Buy: Amazon - B&N
RATING: ★★★★

London, 1881 Once the flames are ignited . . . 
Miranda Ellis is a woman tormented. Plagued since birth by a strange and powerful gift, she has spent her entire life struggling to control her exceptional abilities. Yet one innocent but irreversible mistake has left her family's fortune decimated and forced her to wed London's most nefarious nobleman. 
They will burn for eternity . . . 
Lord Benjamin Archer is no ordinary man. Doomed to hide his disfigured face behind masks, Archer knows it's selfish to take Miranda as his bride. Yet he can't help being drawn to the flame-haired beauty whose touch sparks a passion he hasn't felt in a lifetime. When Archer is accused of a series of gruesome murders, he gives in to the beastly nature he has fought so hard to hide from the world. But the curse that haunts him cannot be denied. Now, to save his soul, Miranda will enter a world of dark magic and darker intrigue. For only she can see the man hiding behind the mask. (summary and pic from Goodreads)



REVIEW:


Firelight is a mix-mash of genre elements. The timeline is historical and while reading it I often thought of The Phantom of the Opera, Beauty and the Beast and Jack the Riper, with paranormal elements through out.

I had originally got approved for the ARC through Netgalley back in January but I kept pushing it down my reading schedule for different reasons. So by the time I was ready to start Firelight the galley had expired. But I’ve seen so many great reviews and high rating I thought what the heck. So I bought it for my Nook and I'm really glad I did.

Firelight has the usual push and pull with the heroine and hero as far as the romantic stuff. You know boy meets girl, one or both are reluctant to let go and trust the other with their heart because either they are afraid of getting hurt or hurting the other.

BUT the reasons for this are different and instead of one character being hard headed they both are. I love the fact that because the story is set in a historical time, Miranda is still a spit fire and does not need a man. But oh she wants this man and she finds herself needing him. Not for his money or security but because of the man that he is on the inside. And the fact that he is dead sexy doesn’t hurt either.

Even though I’m pretty new to the whole historical genre and really enjoyed the time that Firelight was set in and I believe it only made the story and characters more believable and enjoyable. The only thing that I felt like was missing or maybe not missing but something I wanted to know more about was Miranda’s ability to control fire. It remained a mystery but maybe we will find out more about it in the next book since it’s about her sister. Or it may forever be a mystery. In any case, I can’t want to dig into the sequel, Moonglow.

Next book in the series:

August 1, 2012