Firelight

Darkest London, Book 1

By: Kristen Callihan

Narrated by: Moira Quirk

Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's Summary

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.

©2012 Kristen Callihan (P)2012 Hachette Audio

What's behind the mask?

Any additional comments?

The story is about a beautiful woman, Miranda, forced into marriage by her father. She has the power to create fire but refuses to use it or tell anyone about it. She also has an identity in the underworld of London as Pan. This is where our main characters first meet. Ben hides behind a mask, like in the Phantom of the Opera, not letting anyone see him. They don't even have sex for the longest time because of it. Miranda said it the best...she was his partner but not his wife. So it is quite obvious that they both have trust issues to work through.

The weakest part of the book, for me, was the romance. It was easy to identify the systematic formula used to lead us into the passionate moments. Each time the characters came together they moved to a new base, until they finally reached home. I wanted to scream "About time!" Talk about being teased.

When we finally get to the unveiling of the mask, I didn't guess 100% correct, but I was on the right track. That was a neat twist and the solution to the problem took on two point of views. It was interesting to listen to Miranda's view and then take a moment to know what Ben was experiencing too.

I wasn't expecting the villan to be who I thought it would be...although, looking back, I didn't like the person in question, but I didn't know how they fit in to the over all mystery...all the clues lead to that person tho. I don't read alot of mysteries, but I think that is what a reader is suppose to do...keep guessing. And if you can guess who did it the author didn't do a very good job of writing. So good job!

This is the most frustrating book I ever read!!

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

I am not sure how to rate this book the story was great but the writer just took too long to get to the point. A few times I just wanted to tear my hair out. I stopped listening few times.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Get to the point !!! it was frustrating !!!

Enjoyable

Would you try another book from Kristen Callihan and/or Moira Quirk?

The author tells a good tale. The reader was a bit on the breathy side, kind of airy, but she did a good job and was worth listening to.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I tend to read romance's for the interaction between the hero and heroine, this was missing a bit of that. The murderer is kind of easy to figure out. The lying and hiding between the two is a bit off putting and kind of made it hard to finish.

What three words best describe Moira Quirk’s performance?

Breathy, Quiet, Solid

What would have made this romance irresistible?

More interaction between the two main characters, more dialogue and chemistry.

Any additional comments?

This is an entertaining book, not something I was expecting. I did enjoy most of it and found it worth the listen. I wish it had more romance as it is a romance and less focus on other characters or the non-mysterious murder. But it is worth the listen.

A Beauty and the Beast kind of story.

A regency romance with a bit of paranormal tinge. I liked this story but I didn't love it. It does have a unique paranormal twist which I enjoyed, but I would have liked a bit more details on the back ground of what was happening to Archer. I really liked Miranda and her fiery spirit, but also that she realized when she was being a ninny too. My biggest problem with the book is how they keep saying how they never tell a lie and that they are straight forward, but then lie and avoid the truth with the important parts of their lives. The redeeming part is they call each other on it and eventually get past it. I also guessed who the bad guy was almost immediately and never strayed from my conclusion. I will read the next book in the series, but I will probably wait until there is a sale. The narrator was decent in the sound of her voice, but needs a little more work on the distinctiveness of each character.

Fantastic book

Any additional comments?

I found this book in my library and had forgotten i had it. I have just finished listening to this amazing author and narrator. The story has everything, suspense, excitement, love, lust, danger and much more. I thoroughly enjoyed this story so much i must say it is the best book i have read for a long time. Defiantly in my top 10. So very GOOD :)

Fiery Start to a New Series

Would you consider the audio edition of Firelight to be better than the print version?

I prefer audio books to reading so I don't know

What did you like best about this story?

The interesting paranormal creatures

What about Moira Quirk’s performance did you like?

She was okay, I think she did a good job with Miranda's voice, but needs to work on the emotional undertones of the characters in the story. So she is not bad but she could do better.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I thought the story was well written or told It keeps you engaged throughout. The romantic connection between the two main characters, but it also leads you to want to know more about their world and the people who in habit it.

A Perfect Book

What did you love best about Firelight?

This book is one of the best that I've listened to. Great story with well paced action. Absolutely no slow spots. A Historical/Paranormal Romance that doesn't seem forced at all. And Moira Quirk's narration was flawless. I gave serious thought to listening to this book again half an hour after finishing it the first time. It's a book I'm glad to have on those occasions when I'm out of credits. Miranda's very entertaining sisters have their own books coming out. This is a no-brainer, auto-buy series. Very well done.

A fun, mysterious adventure!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes! Very well written and read! The story was well paced and revealed just enough detail to keep the mind wondering about the rest of the mystery. The narrator was fantastic and actually enhanced the story with different accents and speech patterns that were very well done. Her interpretation of male voices was seamless and believable.

What other book might you compare Firelight to and why?

It is kind of a fairy tale. I wouldn't compare it to a single one--though it clearly has La Belle et la Bete overtones--because this story gives strength and power to the female lead. It was fun!

Have you listened to any of Moira Quirk’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Nope. This was my first one. Wouldn't hesitate to listen to her again though! One of my new favorites!

Loved the British accent

Firelight was highly addictive. Right from the beginning this book/audio drew me in. It made me INSTANTLY miss reading historicals. I’m picky with the historical romance books that I read since they aren’t my favorite genre but I do enjoy them. Firelight had the perfect mixture of historical with a paranormal twist, a touch of mystery and romance.

The story is about Miranda and Archer, their tumultuous relationship. Both of them are holding back secrets from each other. Archer will not reveal what he looks like, not many people know why, but you can imagine in London 1881 there is tons of gossip about him. Miranda holds powers that only her family knows about and have no clue of it’s origin. Miranda and Archer hit it off from the start. Miranda being slightly different herself will not shun Archer like others do.

Miranda is one tough cookie, she is not the typical meek young lady that will sit back and do as her father or husband says. She always speaks her mind and will not wait idly for anything, whenever action need to be taken SHE WILL take care of it.

Archer is an old soul. He is dark and sexy and very far out of the norm. Like Miranda, I was falling in love with Archer throughout the book without even knowing what he looked like.
Their love for each other build through out the book. It was serious torture witnessing the sexual chemistry that crackled between them.

Callihan told Firelight from several point of views, although it was primarily through Archer and Miranda. Several other characters held the reins quickly but it was more so to enhance the story in my opinion not to take away from the main couple.

I think I would have enjoyed the book a little bit more if I had more info on how or why Miranda had her powers. But, I very much liked this book and can’t wait to hear more from Kristen Callihan and this Darkest London series.

Narrator Note: I heard some of my friends didn’t like this narration that much and was hesitant to start this one. I will say that I LOVED the narration in this audio. I’m a sucker for accents and her British accent I thought was right on. She also had very distinctive voices for each character, either male or female, boy or girl. I can’t wait to hear more of her narrations.

Pleasantly surprised

I didn't have any high expectations for this book but I was pleasantly surprised, I really liked the story and was completely sucked in. Paranormal lore creatures running into each other in the 19th century with a side of lust and passion...what's not to love? Firelight's heroine is Miranda a beautiful fiery red head with green eyes, she is the youngest sister out of three sisters, with a special secret ability. Miranda's father is ruined in the world of business and is completely broke and so her father sells her hand in marriage to Lord Archer who literally hides behind a mask because he has a dark secret of his own. The book is very mysterious and alluring, which I completely love in a story.
This book is credit worthy in my opinion.

Dark undertones...

This début novel combines Victorian London, the paranormal & romance with dark undertones interwoven with mystery and suspense.Kristen Calihan gives a breath of fresh air to the saturated and flagging paranormal genre, I found it refreshing and it fast became my guilty pleasure over two days, instead of doing household chores I hid myself away to finish the book.
The characters are well drawn and the chemistry between Miranda and Archer I found captivating but not in an obvious way. Archer is a damned tortured soul, whereas Miranda is determined not to be hidden away to get to the bottom of the mystery, with or without Archers help. Guaranteed read ...

Will definately be reading book two in the series :)

absolutely loved this!!

I throughly enjoyed this to the point I didn't want it to end, It had just the right balance between normality and supernatural, The characters are fantastic and I really enjoyed the relationship between Archer and Miranda, It had a nice Gothic feel to it So brilliant! I brought the follow on Moonglow and am currently listening to it.

I cannot recommend this enough.

Great characters, great story

What made the experience of listening to Firelight the most enjoyable?

Moria Quirk's reading was brilliant but it was the characters that really made this so much fun to listen to

What did you like best about this story?

I think what I loved best was that despite being a not necessarily unique plot, it was still incredibly different to everything I have ever read. It's almost in it's own genre, kind of steampunk style but without the steam technology that makes steampunk what it is. I also really loved how inventive the author was. Through the whole book you basically know nothing about anyone, she holds all the cards & tiny dribbles of information slip out & even at the end there are things you think you know that haven't been confirmed yet. Brilliant author!

Any additional comments?

You probably want to get headphones if you are going to listen to this because even when people aren't actually getting amorous, they are thinking about it....not that it's bad necessarily, it's classily written, but it can be a little bit awkward if you think people might overhear....

Dont bother

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

Complete and utter tosh.

What could Kristen Callihan have done to make this a more enjoyable book for you?

Stopped repeating the same thing over and over, miranda looked at the box, archer looked at the box, the butler looked at the box, the box lay on the table, the box was in the palm of archers hand, oh miranda gasped at the box, get my drift, the box had a silver ribbon, oh look at the silver ribbon on the box, same same long and drawn out drivel!

What three words best describe Moira Quirk’s performance?

Nice pleasant voice

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment.

Any additional comments?

Nothing supernatural about this story at all. I always read reviews before buying a book and this sounded soooo good, its not, its boring!