The Fire Inside

Rating:
Summary: THE FIRE INSIDE
Review: Setting: Regency England

This is one of those love stories that has thrilling characters that you'd love to meet just to see them in action. Kat Martin has always had the ability to breath life into her characters and makes them so vivid that it only enhances your desire to read their stories. Her stories are usually very sensual, and interestingly filled with some of the most dangerous and devastatingly delicious heroes imaginable. Of course, Ms. Martin finds some intelligent and feisty heroines to give the men something to worry about. <Grin>

THE FIRE INSIDE brings together a rake of the first order in the drop dead gorgeous Clayton Harcourt, a man with a past, and the highly volatile redhead Kassandra (Kitt) Wentworth who doesn't want to marry at all, and is constantly getting herself into trouble with her curiosity and penchant for trying something different. Her father is at his wit's end and is ready to send her to a convent for God's sake. Will Clay let this happen to her? It's all very exciting, and sooooo tempting too.

Kitt and Clayton have known each other for years and are like oil and water together but in spite of it they are attracted too. Kitt has her own reasons for not wanting to marry, and Clayton has his reasons why he might like to marry her. The two become entangled after a misadventure and things take off like magic as they try to work together, but the biggest problem is learning to trust one another. Will they be able to divulge their secrets and build a firm foundation to their new relationship? They have a wonderful collection of friends that adds fire and color to the story, especially the tall, dark, and handsome and enigmatic Adam Blackstone, whom I hope we will be hearing from in the future. Add to this some gypsies, a devious man who harbors a vengeance and you have a humdinger of a romance.

If you are intrigued by the Earl of Greville and his lady Ariel, Kitt's best friend, then look for Kat Martin's HEARTLESS, May 2001. You won't be disappointed!

Kat Martin always gives you something to shout about with her sizzling plots and extraordinary characters and she sure has a smoldering love fire going in THE FIRE INSIDE. Don't miss it!

Rating:
Summary: Marry me Clay...
Review: That says it all. I like many others read this book out of sync in the trilogy. I started with Fanning the Flame and then this one and still have the first one to go yet. The characters are terrific with the bantering and then the love that develops. I too was slightly disappointed with Kitt's sudden departure. After she was able to stand up to her domineering father, you'd think she had enough gumption to stick it out with Clay. But alas, that is what makes romance novels. Girl meets guy, they fall in love, huge misunderstanding, and then the huge reunion. Always have to make the readers want to fight for the characters. Give this one a try. I'm not upset that I read it out of order, heck I didn't even realize it really until after I read the other reviews. I did see cross over characters, but it doesn't hurt the continuity of the books.

Rating:
Summary: Marry me Clay...
Review: That says it all. I like many others read this book out of sync in the trilogy. I started with Fanning the Flame and then this one and still have the first one to go yet. The characters are terrific with the bantering and then the love that develops. I too was slightly disappointed with Kitt's sudden departure. After she was able to stand up to her domineering father, you'd think she had enough gumption to stick it out with Clay. But alas, that is what makes romance novels. Girl meets guy, they fall in love, huge misunderstanding, and then the huge reunion. Always have to make the readers want to fight for the characters. Give this one a try. I'm not upset that I read it out of order, heck I didn't even realize it really until after I read the other reviews. I did see cross over characters, but it doesn't hurt the continuity of the books.

Rating:
Summary: Am I reading the same book as everyone else?
Review: This book gets a grudging 3 stars from me. I would normally give it only two, but Clay is such a great guy, I have a soft spot for him. First and foremost there was no plot to this story. The little suspense we do get, happens at the end of the book for about 30 pages and is extremely predictable. Where this is obviously a character driven book (verses a plot driven one), I found the characters weakly drawn. Katt seemed like a lot of clichés tied together. She has some issues, and I think the way Clay deals with them as being the only saving grace of the story. I got very bored reading about Katt's fear that Clay would never be faithful to her. Every other page for the first ¾ of the book had this fear flit through her mind. Meanwhile, Clay did nothing to deserve this fear. If anything the poor guy went out of his way to gain Katt's trust. (For such a rake, Clay had the patience of a saint.)

Katt and Clay knew each other before this story started and I liked that they had a background together. They were always at odds with each other in the beginning, but that chemistry quickly wanes and I was sorry to see it go. The "philandering" hero was the only reason I kept reading, and to be honest, I thought that by the end of the story, he would have been better off without Katt. He walked a fine line of getting too sappy in his feelings and deeds.

Ah well, Ms. Martin obviously left it wide open at the end for Adam's story, I just have serious doubts as to whether I will buy it or not.

Rating:
Summary: Heatwarming and Rich Love Story
Review: This book was everything I could have wanted in a love story. The hero Clayton is a strong well-written romantic hero. He's handsome, attractive to women, and strong. Kassandra (Kitt)begins as headstrong, stubborn, and reckless. She later becomes a strong and mature woman.

There is romantic and sexual tension between these characters from the beginning of the book!! It actually begins in Heartless and carries over into their story. I read Heartless first, and I couldn't wait to read The Fire Inside to find out what happened. I was not disappointed.

Kitt leads Clay on a merry chase before a "compromising" position forces them to marry. Kitt has a secret from her past that threatens her marriage to Clay and forces her to decide whether or not to trust her husband. Clay hopes that by marrying Kitt he can control her recklessness as well as the burning passion he has for her. As each of them soon finds out, they both must find a way to come to terms with the undeniable feelings they have for each other.

This book captured my interest from the first page. The sexual tension is believable. The plot is just as believable, with many twists and turns. I didn't want this book to end. I wanted the story to go on and on.

My wish is that Adam Hawthorne, Lord Blackwood, will get his story next. He played an instrumental part in several scenes in the book, and he is begging to feel the snares of passion like Clayton and Kassandra.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: This book was way too long. The beginning and ending were action-filled and interesting, but the middle section just dragged along in a very frustrating direction.

As a modern woman, I immediately admired Kitt for her rebellion against her society's oppression towards women - she was intelligent and lively, not to be owned or dictated to by a man. She was found a perfect mate in Clay, who encouraged her free way of thinking, and rather than hold her back, he went along with her on all her adventures. Even the bickering between them, something I usually find very annoying in a romance novel, was appropriate - probably b/c it was short-lived and basically the two did show great respect towards each other. Having been raped as a teenager, Kitt was afraid of sex, and Clay was incredibly patient and tender towards her regarding this, slowly gaining her trust and helping her to understand her sexuality.

It's no wonder these two fell deeply in love. So then, why did Kitt leave Clay after just a few weeks of marriage, right after discovering that physcial intimacy was a beautiful way to express their deep love? Her reasoning 1) that he didn't really love her b/c he never said it in words, despite his every action showing how desperately in love with her he was - and 2) that one woman would never be enough for him, and eventually he would stray and she couldn't bear to share him - were ridiculous. And then when she finally came to her senses, Clay had heartened his heart in bitterness towards her. This conflict was so unnecessary, and torturously dragged the story down. A little communication, which would have been expected from two such outspoken characters, could have avoided this entire mess.

The action packed ending, when their lives were threatened by an enemy from their past, brought them to a greater understanding of their love for each other, and redeemed the story.



Rating:
Summary: No sparks flying here - it was an all out FIRE!
Review: What a romance! It was my first KM book to read and I look forward to more. There is tension from the very beginning of their story and it grows! Kitt and Clay go way back. Clay is the typical hunk of a hero- a regency rake all the way. While Kitt is strong willed, beautiful, independent, and reckless. There's always been some taunting going back & forth between them. But Kitt goes too far dressing up like a boy and sneaking off only to get caught and locked up in her up in her room by her father. He declares either she gets married or he is sending her away. So Clay and Kitt are forced to marry due to being found in a compromising position. And instead of things smoothing out for them the tension just gets stronger. Clay is hoping to settle Kitt down by marriage but Kitt (in her mind) feels that Clay could never be happy and faithful to only one woman. Kitt has a secret in her past that keeps her from giving herself totally to Clay. But Clay is willing to wait- the sexual tension just gets stronger now. Actually it has been strong all the way through the book. ha, ha!!! There are twists and turns all throughout the story. And the story drew me in from the very beginning. I really enjoyed it. It's a keeper for me.