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Burn

by Crystal Hubbard (Goodreads Author)

3.84 of 5 stars 3.84 · rating details · 257 ratings · 31 reviews

Cinder Wyatt wants only one thinga chance to start over. A new life seems possible when she moves across the country to the quiet town of Webster Groves, Missouri. Cinder finds an ally in Giancarlo Piassanti, an ex-Marine turned martial arts instructor whose private lessons teach Cinder more than simply how to defend herself. But just when Cinder thinks she no longer has

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Paperback, 340 pages

Published December 1st 2010 by Genesis Press

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Mar 25, 2013 ARe Cafe rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: susans-picks

Burn by Crystal Hubbard is one of the most gut-wrenching yet beautiful stories I’ve read. The story starts somewhat innocuously and then all of a sudden goes into this unspeakable house of horror that as I read, I didn’t want to blink until I discovered what was in the room as Zebulon climbed the stairs. From that point on I was hooked. Burn is an interracial romance with moments of high suspense and while some tough issues are raised and dealt with, the romance that develops between the main ch...more Burn by Crystal Hubbard is one of the most gut-wrenching yet beautiful stories I’ve read. The story starts somewhat innocuously and then all of a sudden goes into this unspeakable house of horror that as I read, I didn’t want to blink until I discovered what was in the room as Zebulon climbed the stairs. From that point on I was hooked. Burn is an interracial romance with moments of high suspense and while some tough issues are raised and dealt with, the romance that develops between the main characters and the budding one by their friends makes this above all else a wonderful romance novel. I loved that Cinder White is a fighter and despite what would have possibly killed most women, she was determined to not let her psychotic, ex-husband win and decides to take back control of her life. Gian Piasanti becomes Cinder’s savior but he doesn’t do so by fighting her fight; he gives her the tools she needs to fight for herself which is even better. The validation Cinder receives at the end that she can protect herself from this monster, and the support from Gian, does wonders in restoring her broken spirit.

For Cinder White love brought nothing but emotional and unspeakable physical abuse. She should be dead. By all accounts the vicious attack she suffered at the hands of her abusive husband should have killed her. Even after surviving the attack which took weeks of recovery, Cinder should have died emotionally from the trauma she suffered. However, with the help of her best friend, she relocates and tries to make a new life. She still bears the physical and mental scars of her past but determined to put some closure to her past life, she enrolls in a martial arts school both for the mental as well as physical conditioning it requires. Gian Piasanti is fascinated by the seemingly broken woman who wants to learn how to defend herself. He doesn’t know what demons she is wrestling but he knows the signs of an abused woman because his sister suffered a similar fate. Gian recognizes that Cinder is a woman that needs to be cherished and from the dark shadows he’s determined to be the man to bring light back into her eyes.

~ Susan for AReCafe(less)

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Sep 08, 2011 Mimi Tremont rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: bw-wm, interracial-romance, romanctic-suspense

Despite the fact that her ex-husband is in jail for attacking her, Cinder Wyatt knows his only thought upon release will be to kill her. So, she does what any woman with an ounce of sense does, she moves away, creates her own personal Fort Knox and takes lessons in self-defense. She does everything possible to protect herself when the unexpected happens…she falls for her sensei, former Marine Gian Piasanti. Too bad, he’s not the only one wanting to stake his claim on her.

From the moment Cinder w...more Despite the fact that her ex-husband is in jail for attacking her, Cinder Wyatt knows his only thought upon release will be to kill her. So, she does what any woman with an ounce of sense does, she moves away, creates her own personal Fort Knox and takes lessons in self-defense. She does everything possible to protect herself when the unexpected happens…she falls for her sensei, former Marine Gian Piasanti. Too bad, he’s not the only one wanting to stake his claim on her.

From the moment Cinder walks into his dojo, Gian Piasanti’s intrigued. There’s something about this quiet beauty that speaks to him on a physical and emotional level. It’s obvious that she’s been emotionally scarred and every protective instinct he has is screaming to protect her at all costs whether by teaching her to fight back or taking on her battles himself.

Burn takes the reader into the world of a recovering victim of abuse. It explores it from the subtle clues at the beginning of the disastrous relationship to the moment the sirens scream and beyond. Readers are given the opportunity to watch Cinder not simply rebuild her life, but make the journey back to being who she was meant to be and discovering that true love nurtures and protects.

As a whole, it’s a good book and quite enjoyable. But it does have some slow moments that I could’ve done without and subplots involving secondary characters that as a reader I wish the author had hinted at less (I’m of the mind that the author was setting up the premise for her next book) or allowed to reach it’s obvious conclusion before Burn reached its happily ever after.

Like: The author’s attention to detail and her focusing on the subject of spousal abuse.

Dislike: Too many secondary characters. After a while, it became a bit difficult to keep track of them.

Favorite Scene: *Spoiler Alert*

When Cinder finally puts her new found skills to use, in the final scenes of the story, she was beautifully cold and calculating and I loved it.
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Feb 02, 2011 Ceej rated it 3 of 5 stars

This book was good. Great premise and Hubbard doesn't pull many punches. You can't help but be drawn to Cinder after reading the prologue. It might take a minute to realize what it was about because the transition was a little airy. But she picks up and has a cast of the usual characters. Some I'd like to find out if they have their own books. Zae kind of steals the show because Cinder doesn't show much muscle until the end.

I had a few problems with the book. Again we have an author who referen...more

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Crystal I was tempted to have Gian nickname his schvance using a gun/gun-related metaphor, but I thought it would seem like a copycat of the very thing you re...more
Feb 13, 2011 09:16pm

Clio My husband has been a Marine for 23 years and he's never referred to his member as a "gun" or anything of that nature. Ms Hubbard has worked at our lo...more
Feb 14, 2011 09:40am

Apr 30, 2012 Erica Smith rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: addiction-to-fiction

Cinder Wyatt has one objective: Move across country to escape the violent life she had with her ex-husband and hide until…whenever.

But when she meets Giancarlo Piasanti, a martial arts expert with his own dojo. She gets more than she bargained for. She takes lessons with him, meets his friends and for a while the threat of her ex coming to find her is lessened. She falls for the handsome Giancarlo and excels in defending herself, thanks to his private lessons.

The author seems to have infused so...more

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Feb 14, 2011 Clio rated it 5 of 5 stars

It has been a while since I read an IR romance because many of them are so stereotypical. I was glad to see that Crystal Hubbard has a new one out. Well written, moving and funny Burn has all the trademarks of a Crystal Hubbard masterpiece. Surviving spousal abuse is the heart of this book, a more serious topic than in other books by Ms Hubbard. She handles it with sensitivity and care. The romance and banter between Cinder and Gian is exceptional and real.I love the scene where Gian tries to sh...more

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Jul 24, 2011 Lady Danielle aka The Book Huntress rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Fans of Sleeping With the Enemy and Enough movies

Shelves: favorite-or-autobuy-author, all-things-summer-challenge, fans-of-irr-group-read-july-11, owned-copy, interracial-romance, bwwm, black-african-or-aa-heroine, small-town-slice-of-life, soldier-or-military, ninja-samurai-martial-artist, bad-first-marriage, abused, hero-italian-or-mediterranean, favorites, hot-and-steamy-romance, stalker-ex-or-wannabe-lover, sigh-worthy-hero, hero-i-loved, heroine-i-loved, scarred-heroine, hero-or-heroine-gravely-ill, hero-or-heroine-in-jeopardy, romantic-suspense, character-diversity, 2011-reading

Crystal Hubbard has delivered a great story of a woman trying to start a new life, and break free from the prison of fear that her abusive, controlling ex-husband held her captive to. For readers who enjoyed movies like "Sleeping with the Enemy" and "Enough", this book will strongly invoke memories of those stories, but Ms. Hubbard has put her own spin on that storyline of an abused ex-wife on the run from her crazy, stalker ex-husband.

Ms. Hubbard teaches me as an aspiring writer how to use lan...more Crystal Hubbard has delivered a great story of a woman trying to start a new life, and break free from the prison of fear that her abusive, controlling ex-husband held her captive to. For readers who enjoyed movies like "Sleeping with the Enemy" and "Enough", this book will strongly invoke memories of those stories, but Ms. Hubbard has put her own spin on that storyline of an abused ex-wife on the run from her crazy, stalker ex-husband.

Ms. Hubbard teaches me as an aspiring writer how to use language to tell a story. She always stimulates all the five senses when she writes. She beautifully describes colors and imagery, that give this novel a three-dimensional feel. I liked how she uses the language of color to describe how different Cinder's relationship is with Gian to her painful marriage to Sumchai Wyatt. Whereas everything was grays, blacks, and whites with Sumchai, there is a dazzling array of colors, each vibrant with Gian. Her descriptions of food were so scrumptious, I wanted to jump into this story and start eating. And the love scenes are very descriptive and evocative, making me think about sex and how it can express the feelings that a couple has for each other to a degree that I usually don't when I read a romance. Also, I appreciated how she wrote Gian as a hero in an inspiring, appealing way, but also showed that he was just a man, not a superman. In this case, Cinder didn't need a champion in the traditional sense. She needed to find her inner champion, and Gian helped her to do that.

The characters in this story came to life, fully realized. Cinder was a deep person, not perfect. A real woman. It's really easy to cast judgment on abused women, and say, I'd never let a man do that to me. However, it happens more than not that a woman ends up in a relationship that starts out good, and then finds that her life is completely controlled by a man who doesn't know what the meaning of love is. In this book, I could see how Cinder went from point A to point B, and woke up one day realizing exactly the extend of the control and games her husband had over her. Some of his cruel tactics made me so angry, and I couldn't imagine being in that situation. Yet, I didn't feel the need to judge Cinder, because being in love with someone does give them a control over you that allows you to put yourself in situations that can be just as unhealthy as Cinder's, and there is a large component of psychological damage, steadily inflicted that allows a person's will to be weakened to the extent that they feel that this is the norm. There is also that fear and shame of speaking out and telling others what is going on. Fear for oneself, and fear that this person might hurt them as well. As with the slow procession from lover to victim that unfolds with Cinder, we see her slow healing and the psychological breakthroughs that allow Cinder to come back from that edge and reclaim her sense of self, her identity, and control of her life. I think this was written brilliantly, and unlike film media, I could see deeper into the abused wife scenario. I admit that this was a harrowing journey at times, too. You think in your mind, how could someone associate this with love. How could you deliberately hurt your wife that way. It was clear that Cinder's ex-husband was a deeply mentally ill person, but not one that I ever felt sorry for. Not when he truly didn't want to get better. At the end of this story, I was cheering loudly for Cinder, having gone along the way every step with her and seeing how hard she worked for her emotional/mental/physical victory.

Gian was a hero that I just adored. He was a very good man--a lovely mix of oh-so delicious masculinity, stability, honor, sweetness, and gentleness. Not to mention sexiness. I liked how he was a man with a military past that had colored him, but he had some conflicted feelings about the violence he had to commit as a soldier. When he told Cinder why he ran a martial arts dojo, it was a very profound thing. I know I've heard it before that martial arts helps a person to empower oneself on a level that makes it easier for them not to kill someone, but it made even more sense from the vantage point of a man who had to kill people for a living, and was subjected to the violent acts of others. There wasn't anything I didn't love about Gian. He was a fully-realized kind of hero. The one that you can drool over and respect, and think how much you'd admired and be drawn to him in real life. It wasn't that he was perfect, and no man or woman is. He was just perfectly lovable.

I loved the integration of martial arts styles and philosophy in this story. It was clear that Ms. Hubbard did her research, and she built a beautiful story around it. I never felt subjected to 'info-dumping'. Instead I found the facts and descriptions very intriguing. Of course, being a long-time fan of Asian martial arts, in the real world, and in the cinema, that gave me just one more thing to like about this story.

As one of my friends on GRs touched on, I loved the diversity in this story. You have such a beautiful mix of ethnicities, which is how I see the world being. Not one palette, but so many colors, coming together to make an intriguing society, each contributing to the world in which they live. I loved the scenes of Gian's employees at the dojo, Cinder and his mutual friends, and their trash-talking and playing around. Also how they helped each other and stood up for each other. I even liked how things worked out with one employee who really acts like an idiot over the course of this book.

This is my third book by Crystal Hubbard, and my praise for her is well-earned. She is such a good writer, and she delivers a beautiful love story, one that is more than just romance. It's fiction that hits on many cylinders, and gives the reader even more than they expected. Burn is a book I'd highly recommend.

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Jan 14, 2011 Tina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: interracial-romance, 2011-reads, romance-contemporary

This book has easily surpassed Crushas my favorite Crystal Hubbard book.

The very first chapter of this book immediately hooks you. It is a prologue introduction to the the penultimate chapter in the heroine, Cinder's, life with her abusive husband. It is effective because the events unfold as told by a bystander who happens upon a horrific scene of domestic violence. It sets up the rest of the story very well because you are as sure as Cinder is that her psycho husband isn't quite done with her...more This book has easily surpassed Crushas my favorite Crystal Hubbard book.

The very first chapter of this book immediately hooks you. It is a prologue introduction to the the penultimate chapter in the heroine, Cinder's, life with her abusive husband. It is effective because the events unfold as told by a bystander who happens upon a horrific scene of domestic violence. It sets up the rest of the story very well because you are as sure as Cinder is that her psycho husband isn't quite done with her yet.

So when Cinder moves away to a small town and starts to rebuild her life, a life that includes making new friends, creating new family and meeting a new guy, you are always aware...waiting for the shoe to drop.

Hubbard does a great job of letting Cinder open up by inches, letting us watch her blossom, and letting herself breathe a little easier. In the meantime her relationship with Gian is wonderful. He is strong, disciplined and super sexy. The romance isn't drawn out. Once Cinder realizes she is ready to actually try being with a man again she is really ready. For his part, Gian is gone on her and makes no bones about it. He knows she is it for him and he is matter-of-fact about his pursuit and feelings.

Since Gian is an Alpha hero, both he and reader assume that he is the most protection Cinder will need when her ex shows up (as know he eventually must). But Hubbard does a very gratifying thing, I won't spoil the ending, but I will say that she doesn't allow him to come riding to the rescue. As a matter of fact, the ending of the book is just as fraught, surprising and tense as the beginning.

Outside of the well executed plot and the romance between Cinder and Gian, I have to say my most favorite part of this book are the supporting characters. Oh my, each of them is memorable and add so much to the texture of the story. Gian runs a traditional Japanese dojo where he teaches the various types of martial arts. His teaching staff consists of a great cast of characters who interact with each other wonderfully. At one point Cinder looks around and thinks of them as family and it makes sense. Hubbard has crafted them as a cohesive group that work with, laugh with and squabble with each other like a family.

Hands down, though, the absolute best secondary character is Cinder's friend Zae. She needs her own book stat! She is a great construct who has the best lines and a fully formed personality that is fun to read. She steals every single scene she is in.

And finally, if you are looking for a true multicultural romance it is here. Cinder is Black and Gian is Italian. But the book is populated with characters from the entire spectrum. Chip, one of the instructors is a sunny blonde from the deep south, Sionne is Samoan, Aja the weapons master is Japanese, there is a Russian/Ethiopian/Japanese character and Cinder's ex husband is Thai/Irish. The novel has a very Eastern feel as much of it is infused with Gian's philosophy of martial arts. And there is even a great scene where they participate in a Brazilian capoeira session.

The books loses a star because while I loved Cinder's empowerment, I found a scene or two where I felt the level of her martial arts skills were a bit advanced given the amount of time she had been learning. And I needed an epilogue in the worst way!

Great book. Highly recommended!(less)

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Jan 01, 2011 Shawnette rated it 4 of 5 stars

Once again, Crystal Hubbard's writing talents are in FULL bloom...she crafts an intelligent, emotional, HOT & spicy romance...with an INTRIGUING mixture of martial arts, sexy intimate encounters, a variety of YUMMY foods, and a BIT of suspense throughout...with Gian's private training lessons and his UNEXPECTED love, Cinder grows from a frightened, scarred, and helpless woman into an independent defender for others and herself...I also ENJOY watching Cinder's mental & physical growth thr...more

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Dec 05, 2011 Tony rated it 4 of 5 stars

This novel is full of great characters in realistic situations. Though Ms. Hubbard brought attention to domestic abuse, random violence against women, and sexual harassment she did a great job of showing how women overcome the violence even when it takes a while (years). Serious topics for a romance novel and yet Ms. Hubbard did a great job of balancing the negatives with positives. A great read!

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Mar 27, 2011 Reading Deva rated it 4 of 5 stars

I enjoyed this book, it toook me longer to read it then normal, but I received my copy of She's the one by J.J. Murray and had to keep fighting with myself not to put this down and start reading it. but like I said I enjoyed the book..

I want to read about Zae and Chip now.. Everyone needs a friend like Zae. and Karl turn out not to be so bad, so I would really like to hear more on him also. Cinder and Gian were good characters, you wanted to see this couple succeeds, the scene with his aunts h...more

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Jan 06, 2011 Lorice rated it 5 of 5 stars

Cinder Wyatt has gone through a lot. She was nearly killed by her ex-husband. She decides to on a new start in Webster Groves to hide away from her ex-husband before he is released from prison. Gian helps her found herself again at the same time awaken feelings she thought she would never feel again. I love the book. It was very heart felt. A wonderful read.

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May 08, 2011 Shannon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Liked the characters, especially Zae--she cracked me up. It's great when an IRR doesn't use race at all as an issue the characters are struggling with, so bravo for that. The only things that bugged me were the sexual euphemisms and purple passages used during the love scenes. Plain speak works just fine for me. :-) So kudos to Ms. Hubbard for a great story. Burn was my first by her but definitely won't be my last.

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May 30, 2012 Staci rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: do-not-own

This was a good novel although the character of Sumchai Wyatt feels a bit misdeveloped. The novel tries to use Karl as a sort of red herring but it never really comes off that well. Still the passion between Cinder and Gian is there and quite fiery so it makes up for it pretty well.

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Sep 28, 2012 Didichan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: best-romance, interracial-romance

What a beautiful crafted story... the fact that the two characters actually talk and establish a relationship is amazing and so very rare in IR romance. I liked that a lot about this book... I am fan for a well put together love story... and that is what Cinder and Gian's story was ...a captivating tale .. Miss Hubbard i officially a Fan of you writing... Thank you for this beautiful love story...

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Apr 23, 2012 Las rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: romance

I liked the characters a lot, but the plot just didn't work for me. The romance went from hesitant to "Let's get married!" way too quickly (and Hubbard missed a prime opportunity to build sexual tension by not writing a few private lesson scenes), and this book already had an evil ex-husband; why did we need an evil karate instructor, too?

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Jul 10, 2011 Trickiegyrl rated it 5 of 5 stars

An excellent story of a woman running from her past. While healing in a small town, she learns the past is never far behind. Loved Cinder and her strength and Gian is a hero I'd want to know. Ms. Hubbard scores a winner with this tale.

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Oct 20, 2012 Hasien rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: int-romance

I loved this story because it shows a woman's strength. It also shows what a difference family make. This story also contains one of my favorite things...martial arts. Loved it.

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Jan 28, 2011 Tara (box5angel) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: interracial-romance, 2011-finished-in

It was a really good book. Not only did I love the romance between Gian and Cinder. I also loved the small town they lived in, their friends, and Gian's martial arts studio, Sheng Li.

I learned a lot about martial arts and that world.

This was a very good book. I really enjoyed it.

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Jan 02, 2011 Cherry rated it 2 of 5 stars

I rated it a 2, not because I didn't like it, but because it's a typical Indigo Love Spectrum story. It's rather stereotypical.

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Feb 17, 2011 Trina23 rated it 5 of 5 stars

I love it i wish it would have been longer can you make a part 2 to it i would 2 read it

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Jan 23, 2013 Sonya Sherow rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was much better then expected. I knew where this was going to end but don't let that stop you from reading it. Sexy fun with a big bang at the end. Keep reading B-)

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Jun 30, 2012 Venisha Ready rated it 4 of 5 stars

This was really good, exciting even. I learned a few things about self defense and got a good romance along the way.

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Jun 24, 2011 Melissa h.r rated it 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed it but sometimes dif taste makes you enjoy other books more.

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Jan 15, 2012 Dhaverma rated it 1 of 5 stars

Little romance more about the sex. Hard to get into.

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Aug 26, 2012 Onie Thomas rated it 4 of 5 stars

unique storyline

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Jul 11, 2012 Lolita rated it 4 of 5 stars

really loved it.

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Aug 16, 2011 T rated it 5 of 5 stars

Awesome!

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Jul 12, 2011 Akeisa Abercrombie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, interracial-romance, interracial-erotica, erotica, romance, inspirational

Just finished this book, and I am really sad it is all over. This story is truly heart felt and empowering story for women who are stuck in a violent relationship.

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May 25, 2011 Shannon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: crystal-hubbard

Cinder Wyatt (AKA Cinder White) was a strong lady and Giancarlo Piassanti was the perfect man to stand behind her. Gian taught her how to fight her own battle. Karl was a true angel at the end.

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Feb 03, 2011 Cyndi rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: really-liked-it, not-for-everyone, recommended, love-this-author

Well done. Nice supporting case. I'd visit again.

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