Ride The Fire by Pamela Clare

blog review from 3/21/05 Ride The Fire is amazing. Sez I. I love just about everything about this book, hell I even like the title and cover. Ride The Fire is the last book in a series that follows Sweet Release and Carnal Gift. And it does a great job of bringing the series to a close. The hero is really almost too perfect. Too hard, too tough but in a honorable manish way and it makes you feel for him. Makes you care what happens to him. le sigh... I love him. Nicholas Kenleigh was captured and tortured by Indians and I do mean tortured, in all the ways that can truly fuck up a man. But he survived, only to decide he wasn't a good man any more and couldn't be with his family. So off to the wilds he goes to live for six years. click for more He introduces himself to Bethie at gun point, while bleeding and demanding she help him. What? We all have to start somewhere. Bethie, or Elspeth, is young, widowed, pregnant and has been tortured in ways that can truly fuck up a woman. YES! They are soulmates. They heal each other in ways only they could, bringing a peace and acceptance into their lives. And together find ways to close old wounds. Nicholas and Bethie spend a large majority of the book alone in the cabin and I do love a good cabin romance. And we are treated to a good bit of history and it 'fits'. The background doesn't scream wallpaper historical and the issues tackled are more than ways to move the story along or fill up pages. The class issues are well dealt with and bring to life how messy the world can be. Ride The Fire doesn't paint the conflict between the races or classes pretty colors but illustrates how 'black and white' isn't always what life gives us but that we need to learn to embrace different shades of grey. Really this is a wonderful end to a great series. So even if you didn't like Carnal Gift I would suggest picking up Ride The Fire. One word of warning... some readers did feel it was more violent than they felt a romance 'should' be. So if you have a low squick level, keep that in mind. Personally I didn't have any issue with it and didn't even think about it until after the fact, when other readers complained. It isn't it nice to have different books to fit different tastes? Really, go read this, tis romance at its best.