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Seize the Fire

Laura Kinsale (Goodreads Author)

3.95 · Rating details · 1,950 ratings · 224 reviews

Olympia St. Leger is a princess in desperate need of a knight in shining armor. Sheridan Drake, amused by Olympia's innocence and magnificent beauty, but also intrigued by her considerable wealth, accepts the position of white knight. Unaware that Sheridan is a notorious scoundrel, Olympia willingly allows herself to submit to his protection and his potent embrace. Theirs ...more

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Mass Market Paperback, 453 pages

Published October 2nd 1989 by Avon Books

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Oct 17, 2009 Wicked Incognito Now rated it it was amazing

I am often reall embarrassed to be a lover of romance novels. I don't tell everyone, because I don't want them to think I am simple-minded because I just like reading about love stories and happy endings.

Then, I feel irritation at myself and anyone who would judge my reading choices. I am more intelligent than the average bear. I have just as much (or more) capacity for deep, intellectual thought as the next person. And I DO enjoy excellent literary fiction. I just ALSO enjoy romance novels :-)

A I am often reall embarrassed to be a lover of romance novels. I don't tell everyone, because I don't want them to think I am simple-minded because I just like reading about love stories and happy endings.

Then, I feel irritation at myself and anyone who would judge my reading choices. I am more intelligent than the average bear. I have just as much (or more) capacity for deep, intellectual thought as the next person. And I DO enjoy excellent literary fiction. I just ALSO enjoy romance novels :-)

And I'm still a discerning reader.

What chaps my hide the most is the assumption by most literary snobs that romance novelists write trite drivel.

In fact, the truly great romance novelists are better authors than many of the critically acclaimed, award-winning authors of general fiction that I have read. These authors (the good ones) have just as much capacity for symbolism and social commentary as the latest Booker Prize winner. The only difference between a genre writer and these other authors is that genre writers must uphold the rules of their genre. For instance, a romance most focus on the hero/heroine relationship and end with a "happily ever after."

My long and drawn out point is that Laura Kinsale is one of the truly excellent romance writers who I refer to. Her writing is truly extraordinary. When I discovered her about six months ago, I promptly went out and bought every novel of hers I could find, then stashed them like nuts to be brought out slowly and with relish.

This Kinsale novel, Seize the Fire, is one of her better ones. Not quite as stunning as Flowers from the Storm or For My Lady's Heart, but darn good.

This is a story of PTSD and it's long-suffering effects.

I have a few problems with the heroine. She was kind of annoying in a Pollyanna, gullible indominadable spirit sort of way. But her character needed to be so darn silly in order to fall so far, and then to truly understand the hero's internal demons.

The story goes in many unexpected and odd directions. But it works in a way that only Laura Kinsale can pull off.

Altogether great. ...more

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Apr 02, 2012 Blacky *Romance Addict* rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 5-stars-for-enjoyment, bestest-of-the-best, favorite-historical, read-historical, best-of-the-best, review, read-mee, read-2014, favorites

This is one of the BEST historicals I have EVER read! Bravo!!!!!

The second half of the book:

My fav quote:

"He shrugged. "I suppose I'm a fairly downy bird when it comes to hoaxing dragons. But when one of 'em ties you down and punches you in the stomach, not to mention beating you over the head and drowning you by degrees, it's high time to retire from the field with what grace you can muster." He looked at her, his dark lashes swept low over the silver firelight in his eyes. "I'm sorry you we

...more

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Mar 27, 2016 Preeti ♥︎ Her Bookshelves rated it really liked it

Shelves: bad-boys_ex-or-not, hero-dibs-worthy, h-stupid-but-likable, p-royalty, h-bbw-zaftig-amzn, hero-endearing-delicious, g-hx-rom, hero-w-older-ex, funnies-n-lols, ow-involved

Anti-hero is too glamorous a label for him. He is a scoundrel, a lying low-life, a common thief, a blackguard, a cad and he should be boiled in a vat of hot oil for his self-serving ways. Only his fallen angel charm, devilish wit and bad boy sex appeal lets him get away with it. Of all the cheating, lying Hs I’ve read about, he has to be the worst but at the same time the most lovable and the most swoonworthy!
He dares you to not like him despite his repeated transgressions and acts of treachery ...more

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Oct 22, 2015 Alex Morrison rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: reread-worthy, historical-romance, adventure, pirates, book-boyfriends

Actual Rating: 4.5

I am so glad I didn't give up on this book. More coherent thoughts later.

Edit:

This book isn't perfect - let's get that out of the way first. After having read three novels by Kinsale, I'm coming to understand that she tends to shove A LOT into 400 pages. I read this after My Sweet Folly which really suffered under the weight of the twists and turns she introduced, but that was not the case here - despite global adventures, pirates, a revolution, and a pet penguin.

I almost DNF' ...more

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Feb 19, 2016 Zoe rated it really liked it · review of another edition

What a crazy book!?

The plots are crazy, the characters are crazy. They travelled from Europe then the Americas, stranded on an island, then to Turkey and there was a sultan. A princess, a revolution, a un-heroic hero. This book is ce-razy!!

What I loved about the book (and what earned this book 4 stars in my book):

CHARACTERIZATION all the way

Sheridan (38) and Olympia (24?) are by no means the usual character types you see in this genre. Sheridan is a handsome scoundrel with no principles. He wa What a crazy book!?

The plots are crazy, the characters are crazy. They travelled from Europe then the Americas, stranded on an island, then to Turkey and there was a sultan. A princess, a revolution, a un-heroic hero. This book is ce-razy!!

What I loved about the book (and what earned this book 4 stars in my book):

CHARACTERIZATION all the way

Sheridan (38) and Olympia (24?) are by no means the usual character types you see in this genre. Sheridan is a handsome scoundrel with no principles. He was a selfish coward and did not have a noble bone in him. Olympia is a pudgy and naive princess who was constantly down on herself because she had been told that she was too fat. Who wants a coward who abandoned the damsel in distress for a hero? And who wants a naive Her Highness who berated herself for being fat for a heroine? How do you portray such characters in a realistic way but positive light?

Laura Kinsale did it. She made Sheridan and Olympia dear and sweet in their own authentic ways. I could not be mad at Sheridan for being the ass that he was. He was a survivor, not a hero, and never claimed to be one. He was not mean-spirited. He just did what he believed necessary for his survival, and that had usually excluded the possibility of being noble. Olympia the character really owed everything to Sheridan. She thought herself fat and unattractive. But Sheridan made her beautiful and as a reader I saw Olympia through Sheridan's eyes. She was his love. Her appearance wasn't relevant. I could not NOT see Olympia as Sheridan saw her: his princess.

For any writer who wants to write a "plain" heroine, please take a lesson from Laura Kinsale. I have always said, I do not need my heroine to be Helen of Troy, but it is enough already with all the "she knows she is not attractive" and all the attempts to paint the woman in less flattering ways. It is ok if you want to write about a plain girl, but please let me see through the hero's eyes. She must be pretty to him. Show me how she looks like, as perceived by him.

This is what Laura Kinsale did. I saw Olympia through Sheridan's eyes, a woman of his own heart. She was what was beautiful to Sheridan, and that was all that mattered. I was entirely captured by the endearing characters and their relationship. They were not anywhere near perfect but I loved them despite their imperfections. Now that, is fantastic characterization.

The story itself, for most the time when I was reading this book, I thought: am I too stupid to appreciate the mastery in storytelling and writing or is this book that crazy? I struggled with the nonsense and the incredulity of these 430 pages of lunacy. But like a lunatic I held on to it. If Sheridan and Olympia were crazy, I went a little nuts going on the wild ride with them. It didn't make sense, what was happening. I wanted to scream out of frustration because I didn't know where Laura Kinsale was going with what she had going on. One outrageous event after another, I watched Sheridan and Olympia pull themselves through this muddy book. Now I got imaginary mud on my hand because I couldn't stop myself from getting into the mud with Sheridan and Olympia. And I am sitting in the mud after the fight, wondering as much as I had despised getting mud on my hands, why the hell did I enjoy it so much?

Someone please read this book and tell me I have not gone mad. I am completely lost at how I feel about this story. I can only say I couldn't have stopped reading if I wanted. ...more

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Oct 01, 2018 Mei rated it did not like it

Shelves: no-books, historical

I humbly ask for forgiveness, Caz… but I just couldn’t go on…
DNF at 41%... ...more

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Jul 01, 2012 Glamdring rated it liked it · review of another edition

Recommended to Glamdring by: Blacky *Romance Addict*

Shelves: stand-alone, 2014, historical-romances

The best asset of this book is Sheridan, the hero. He alone is worth a 4 stars. But then we have the heroine and the story.

Sheridan
Sheridan is not your standard bad boy or gamma hero, he is a anti hero plain and simple and doesn't apologize about it. Also, he is honest and clear about it with the heroine. I enjoyed him a lot.

Olympia
I have nothing against naive or/and idealist heroines in historical romances. But let's face it, Olympia wasn't only that. At one point of the story, Sheridan went to ...more

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Mar 12, 2015 Caz rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 2015-mt-tbr, 4-and-5-star-books, romance-1800-1850, favourites, oldies-but-goodies

I read this a while back and haven't had time to write a full review. I did, however, write this mini-review for AAR.

I felt emotionally exhausted by the time I’d finished reading this book. There’s no way to do it justice in couple of paragraphs, but there’s no question that in Sheridan Drake, Ms Kinsale has created one of the most complex, compelling heroes – should that be anti-heroes? – I’ve ever read.

A decorated naval officer, widely regarded as one of the nation’s heroes, Sheridan knows he’ ...more

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Jan 12, 2016 Melissa rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

The first time I read Seize the Fire was last year, shortly after finishing my first (and still favorite) book by Laura Kinsale, Flowers from the Storm, and I have to admit -- I just didn't get it. It was so weird! Flowers from the Storm had been unusual and full of heartrending emotions and high angst, but it was grounded in a setting I recognized in historical romances. The whole story takes place in England, and its concerns -- health, finances, religion -- were fairly domestic, if far from p The first time I read Seize the Fire was last year, shortly after finishing my first (and still favorite) book by Laura Kinsale, Flowers from the Storm, and I have to admit -- I just didn't get it. It was so weird! Flowers from the Storm had been unusual and full of heartrending emotions and high angst, but it was grounded in a setting I recognized in historical romances. The whole story takes place in England, and its concerns -- health, finances, religion -- were fairly domestic, if far from prosaic.

Then I read Seize the Fire, with its exiled princess heroine, its cynical sea captain hero, its high seas adventures and pirates and desert islands; with its long treks across Middle Eastern deserts, its sultans, slaves, and harems, its Ruritarian coup d'etat. I was very puzzled. What the heck was I reading? It all seemed so far-fetched and out there. And then there was the plump, extremely naive heroine, Princess Olympia of Oriens, who for the first part of the book I almost despised for her stupidity.

There were parts I liked. The hero, Captain Sir Sheridan Drake, wasn't a rogue in name only, but a genuinely self-centered liar and thief, and he was pretty intriguing. The stretch of the book set on an island in the Falklands was exciting, romantic, and full of wonderful character development. (Plus, Napoleon the penguin!) But overall I felt let down and confused. This was no Flowers from the Storm. Where were Maddygirl and Jervaulx? A duchess inside!!!!

Since that first reading, I've read other books by Laura Kinsale, and it didn't take me long to realize that a.) no two of her books are alike or cookie-cutter in any way, and b.) Flowers from the Storm is more the anomaly in her oeuvre, not Seize the Fire. Many of Kinsale's books take plots, characters, and settings to wild extremes -- that's kind of her thing, and in truth it's pretty wonderful. In fact, it grew to be one of the things I loved most about her stories, that unpredictability, and the grand adventures that accompanied the romances of heroes and heroines as they swept from the sands of Arabia to the Hawaiian islands, from Provence to Tahiti, from pirate ships to English country manors.

So, I read this book again -- listened to the audiobook narrated by Nicholas Boulton, actually -- and this time I liked it much, much more than I had before. The crazy twists and turns of plot and setting seemed like good things, not bad, and I got completely wrapped up in the emotional journey of Olympia and Sheridan. Olympia still bugged the heck out of me during the early part of the book, but I think she's supposed to. She annoys Sheridan, too. But as she grows and changes, becoming stronger and less silly, she becomes a heroine worth admiring.

As for Sheridan Drake, in him Kinsale created one of the most complex, multi-layered, fascinating, funny, maddening, and heartbreaking of all her heroes -- and Kinsale writes some amazing heroes, so that's saying something. He really made this book for me. The story of him coming to terms with the horrors he experienced during his time in the Navy, and the guilt, self-loathing, and post-traumatic stress that came along as a result, is told with depth, beauty, and empathy. He's a great character, and Nicholas Boulton's portrayal in the audiobook is unbelievably moving.

I do still have some quibbles. For one, the character of Mustafa veers too close to Middle Eastern stereotype for me at times and makes me a little uncomfortable. The end of the book, while very touching, felt a bit abrupt; I would've appreciated spinning out the story of what happened to Sheridan and Olympia just a little bit more. As it is, their "happy ever after" is a tenuous and bittersweet one. Though maybe that's okay. It's very realistic, at least. These are two damaged and broken people, and even though they've both seemed to reach a turning point by the story's end, I can't help feeling that they have a long, hard road ahead of them in order to find some normalcy and peace.

Overall, though, what a story! All written in Kinsale's elegant, sophisticated, stylish prose that paints incredibly vivid pictures and evokes such strong emotion, too. She is, in the words of Tina Turner, simply the best -- better than all the rest. ;) ...more

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Feb 05, 2014 Corduroy rated it really liked it

Shelves: 4-5-star-romances-historical, plump-heroine

Well, I had some feelings about this book, which seemed like it was really multiple adventure-romances Vulcan mind-melded together into one totally next-level insane adventure-romance.

Heroine is Olympia, a princess of "Oriens", a tiny kingdom in the Alps. Hero is Sheridan, an outwardly heroic Navy dude. Olympia is on fire with democratic longings and wishes to get back to the kingdom she's never actually seen, to lead her people to a peaceful democratic revolution. Sheridan just got out of the Well, I had some feelings about this book, which seemed like it was really multiple adventure-romances Vulcan mind-melded together into one totally next-level insane adventure-romance.

Heroine is Olympia, a princess of "Oriens", a tiny kingdom in the Alps. Hero is Sheridan, an outwardly heroic Navy dude. Olympia is on fire with democratic longings and wishes to get back to the kingdom she's never actually seen, to lead her people to a peaceful democratic revolution. Sheridan just got out of the Navy and is totally broke. Through various complex plot mechanisms, they wind up jaunting about the globe together, heading (with many accidental side journeys) to Oriens. Also, toward LOOOOOVE.

Okay, things in no order:

*Man, the parts where Sheridan is obsessed with Olympia's body totally worked for me. It's weird how rarely you actually get this in historical romances - there's a lot of the hero thinking that the lady is very attractive, but not as much of him feeling compelled to bite her flesh as you'd think, you know what I mean?

*In the beginning, Olympia is extremely silly, extremely naive. By the middle she's less silly but still very idealistic. By the end she is less idealistic. I wasn't sure while reading and am still not totally sure how I felt about this progression. I mean, in the beginning, she is EXTREMELY silly. Not stupid, but totally naive and kind of foolish.

*Sheridan is initially revealed to be a knave, and then revealed to have crazy intense PTSD from all of his crazy melodramatic backstory issues (not just the military stuff - it turns out that he was also enslaved, and that his dad was a totally loopy trickster figure. Oh also, he was captured by Thugs and forced to become a holy assassin for a time. Oh yeah. Sheridan really got around.) - I wasn't sure about this, either. Sometimes I didn't understand why he needed so much melodramatic Action!Backstory, when it seemed like maybe just being a Navy dude who'd seen a lot of brutal action would be enough.

*All of that said, I totally liked Sheridan and Olympia, and I'm not really sure how Kinsale pulled this off. I think she may be some kind of romance wizard.

*If you have ever wished that historical romances really exploited the slow burn of having sexual dalliance while also needing to preserve someone's technical virginity, then this is the book for you. Phew! Um, I found it effective. Also the parts where Sheridan is explaining to Olympia why people want to have sex and why it feels good. Why don't other authors play with this trope? Because it was an awesome scene.

*I can't even describe the insane adventure melodrama. You've got pirates, maroonings, houses full of trap doors, assassins hot on your trail, slave caravans, revolutions, forced marriages, spies, it just went on and on and on. I felt kind of like maybe it would have worked better for me to have about a third of the adventure and save the rest for other books, but what do I know, I am not a romance wizard.

*I completely failed to understand the whole situation with Sheridan's dead dad and why he was a crazy person who loved to "prank" his son by enlisting him in the Navy at 10 years of age and so on, and his relationship with Julia, Olympia's governess, and why (and how) the British government was involved with all of this. It was probably in the book, I just couldn't focus any more because of all the SULTANS SLAVE TRADERS PIRATES ORPHANED PENGUINS and so on.

*I kind of felt at a couple of moments like this book had weird feminist elements. Sheridan is Olympia's protector and so on, and he is very hot and tough and violent, but there are also a couple of moments where he demands that Olympia behave like a grown woman and help save them/herself, and is first flabbergasted ("But I'm a lady!") and then actually gets it together and does it, and it was kind of moving to me. And really surprising, for a historical romance.

This book was crazy and outlandish and ridiculous and I also really loved it. Kinsale's prose, as always, is gorgeous, and she can sell you characters, no matter how odd they are, like nobody's business. I also totally believed in the chemistry between the two by the time anything started to happen. ...more

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Jul 02, 2019 Shannon rated it it was amazing

Shelves: romance, audio-books, read-again

Once again I'm confused how to rate Laura Kinsale. Her writing is emotional and thought provoking, that alone deserves high praise. But there are elements of her stories that can be disturbing, but one could never say they're dull. While our H/h were stranded in freezing weather, I froze with them in the middle of summer. Kinsale creates true landscapes.

This story was hard to read. At times I was little lost for the political revolutions. But the love story, as unusual as it was, settled into my ...more

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Aug 03, 2015 Caz rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 4-and-5-star-books, favourites, romance-1800-1850, audiobook, audiogals, oldies-but-goodies

I've given this an A+ for narration (well, duh!) and an A for content at AudioGals.

Even though I have eagerly snatched up every single audiobook from this hugely talented author/narrator team as soon as they’ve appeared, Seize the Fire is one I’ve been waiting for ever since Laura Kinsale and Nicholas Boulton began their collaboration. The prospect of hearing Sheridan Drake brought to life in all his tortured, roguish, f**cked-up, delicious glory by such a wonderfully skilled narrator made this ...more

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Feb 10, 2019 ☾ Dαɴιyα ☽ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: books-i-loved, romance, m-f, my-precious, english-original, historical, laura-kinsale, read-in-2019

How strange it is that of the princess in need of a knight in shining armor and the notorious scoundrel pretending to be a white knight, it was the scoundrel who won my affection first, and who had me rooting for him for over 400 pages. Or perhaps it isn't. When have I ever not liked a hero from Laura Kinsale's books? Even the one who thought being a hero was hell couldn't be the exception. It seems so silly now I was a little worried I wouldn't like this hero before I started reading. Ridiculou
How strange it is that of the princess in need of a knight in shining armor and the notorious scoundrel pretending to be a white knight, it was the scoundrel who won my affection first, and who had me rooting for him for over 400 pages. Or perhaps it isn't. When have I ever not liked a hero from Laura Kinsale's books? Even the one who thought being a hero was hell couldn't be the exception. It seems so silly now I was a little worried I wouldn't like this hero before I started reading. Ridiculous even!

Princess Olympia and Captain Sheridan Drake were an unusual pair. One was a member of a royal family of a small, but important country who had lived a sheltered life away from her family and home country. The other was a navy man life hadn't been kind to, who had been through a lot, and seen too much. One was dreaming of one day doing something important like leading a revolution and bringing democracy to her people. The other knew all too well what bloody business that is in reality. One was unbearably naive. The other was realistic and cynical. And they were put together to go through one ordeal after the other.

Laura Kinsale's characters have all been memorable. What I appreciate most about them is that whatever they do, it is true to that character. Even when they're being irrational and stupid, I can always say that it makes sense, though sometimes it can be frustrating. Olympia was frustrating for a good part of the book. She is the third princess I've read about in Ms. Kinsale's books, and she made me appreciate all the more Melanthe and Elena. After 24 years of being sheltered from any harm, real life came knocking at her door, and she was unprepared, but didn't know it. She did one stupid thing after the other, causing serious trouble in the process. For that, and many other reasons I was on Sheridan's side. That tortured cynic who was called every bad name in the book is the one I stood by. I could go on and on as to why I loved his character so much, but that would exhaust me, so maybe another time.

By the end, after mutinies, shipwrecks, months on a desert island, captivity, separation, revolution, and whatnot, Olympia had matured a lot from the overly naive princess she was at the beginning, and Sheridan.... Oh, Sheridan... His walls crumbled, and the man who appeared was a ruin. It was heart-breaking.

The ending was both heart-breaking and heart-warming. I wish there was an epilogue. Oh, how I wish there was an epilogue! And a book about a side character who would make a great main one. I doubt there's a chance for either of those. Seize the Fire is thirty this year, after all. Ah, that epilogue deficiency again... ...more

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Oct 30, 2015 Ashley rated it it was amazing

Shelves: bookboyfriends, favorite-hrs

How do I describe my love for this book? Laura Kinsale had me nearly in tears when I finished it last night. (view spoiler) How do I describe my love for this book? Laura Kinsale had me nearly in tears when I finished it last night. (view spoiler) This book is on par with Flowers from the Storm for me; it really is that good. Sometimes I feel like nostalgia or general giddiness causes me to over-inflate my rating for a book, but that is not the case here. The first thing I woke up thinking this morning was, That was a fucking amazing book.

Thank you to everyone who recommended it to me. Yes, it ticks a lot of my boxes--almost the entire story takes place outside of England, the heroine grows into a capable, wily, independent person, and the hero is an asshole who is more of an anti-hero than anything--but it's also just a really fantastic, beautiful, well-written novel.

I loved how this was so much a coming of age story for the heroine; it took place over the course of a year, perhaps slightly longer, and Olympia grew and changed so much. She is a heroine truly worth taking interest in, not a blank slate for readers to project themselves onto, and seeing every one of her illusions about herself and the world she lives in shattered was oddly gratifying, and quite relatable for most readers, I'm sure.

Sheridan Drake, the hero, is maybe my all time favorite Historical Romance hero. He's Jamie Fraser levels of amazing. I like him even better than the Duke of Jervaulx.

Ignore the fact that I chose an edition of this book with a godawful cover. It is a wonderful novel that deserves better than a ridic cover like this.

Basically Alex wrote a much better, more coherent review of this book here, and you should definitely read it.

Oh, and I totally think Kinsale was inspired by the Moldavian Wedding Massacre. Just saying. ...more

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Sep 22, 2014 MomToKippy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, historical-fiction-romance, own, high-seas

Kinsale is a master story teller. Do not be misled into thinking that her work fits neatly in the romance category. Kinsale succeeds on all levels again. We have complex character development, a demanding plot with twists and turns, important psychological subject matter, a roller coaster ride taking us around the world to unexpected places, and ability to convey love/grief that transcends all. Full of tragedy and angst and nail biting adventure. I am spent. 4.5

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Aug 01, 2020 Victoria (Eve's Alexandria) rated it it was ok · review of another edition

I didn't think I would see the day that I gave a Laura Kinsale novel 2 stars but, wow, this book was a steaming pile of colonialist fantasies that made me deeply uncomfortable. The central romance has some powerful moments - generally when the couple are 1000s of miles away from anyone else - but overall their story reads like a vehicle for messaging about white victimisation at the hands of people of colour. ...more

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Mar 06, 2017 Kid Disaster rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, memorable-hero, memorable-heroine, historical, romance, assassin, england, egyptian, politics, colonial

New book for the reread pile.

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Sep 19, 2020 nastyako rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, dnf

man, you need to watch out for small objects around our Olympia or she’ll choke on something. there is naivety and then there is a grown woman behaving like a helpless child. but with sexy curves and big green eyes of course. jeez.

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Nov 19, 2007 Madeline rated it it was ok

Shelves: colonialism, revolution, charming, love-story, novels, historical-fiction, errol-flynn, orientalism, depression, 2014

I think Laura Kinsale puts together some great sentences, and this makes me forget that I really only liked one of her novels (the delightful Lessons in French) even though I've respected others (For My Lady's Heart). Okay, so I guess Seize the Fire is only the fourth of her books I've read. Details. They do all have very nice sentences!

And I thought I was going to like Seize the Fire a lot, at the beginning. It starts out like a Ruritanian romance: fictional European countries, a stranded princ I think Laura Kinsale puts together some great sentences, and this makes me forget that I really only liked one of her novels (the delightful Lessons in French) even though I've respected others (For My Lady's Heart). Okay, so I guess Seize the Fire is only the fourth of her books I've read. Details. They do all have very nice sentences!

And I thought I was going to like Seize the Fire a lot, at the beginning. It starts out like a Ruritanian romance: fictional European countries, a stranded princess, a secret whore, a naval hero for a leading man, the promise of democracy, and ACTUAL WICKED UNCLE . . . So far, so frothy. But if this book has a problem it's that there's too much of a good thing. Or, rather, there are too many kinds of good things. Our hero and heroine basically travel the world on their trip to Rome. They are placed in peril. Not the "music by Erich Wolfgang Korngold" peril that the book starts out with, either. Like, actual peril. With PTSD and stuff.

And here is the thing. The book doesn't handle that stuff that well, actually! First of all, it's poorly integrated - like, learn to read the room, you know? (The room you wrote, so.) Second, horrible stuff happens to other people and it's treated very lightly. (Trigger warning for the spoiler, I guess?) (view spoiler) I don't mind reading about bad people, particularly. But I do mind when the narrative seems unaware of the problems.

The book does end up where it started - only after a needless exercise in Orientalism, of course (actually, like seven needless Orientalist tropes, what is this, The Mystery of Edwin Drood?) - except by then everything's gone Very Serious but without any work done to earn that transition.

Ugh, what a mess.

Also, for a book where preserving the heroine's virginity is a big issue, you'd think there would be more oral sex. ...more

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Nov 09, 2010 Melanie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: villain-hero-or-antihero, virgin-heroine, to-reread, historical-romance, jealous-heroes, bad-boy-heroes, betrayal, curvy-heroine, favorites, romance

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I really didn't think I'd like Sheridan Drake, especially after reading the first 100 pages... He had his moments, where I could maybe understand why Olympia, naive that she was, would fall for him.. And I was still surprised when he abandoned her in Madeira, especially after that sweet "Greensleaves" moment.. Then, when they met up again, if I'd been her, I'd have killed him, no kidding! I only started falling in love with him when they were shipwrecked, and by the time they were rescued (yes, ...more

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Nov 04, 2011 Mary B. rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, romance-historical-european, kindle-books-i-own

I'm not quite sure what to say. This is my second Kinsale book, the first being "Flowers from the Storm." Like FftS, Seize the Fire was a long, arduous and often convoluted plot which ended in a powerfully emotional, tear-inducing, grab-you-by-the-gut-type of ending. The difference is that... with Flowers from the Storm, I felt as though the ends justified the means. In other words, as the reader, I really understood why it was absolutely necessary for Kinsale to take the readers along for the d ...more

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Jan 25, 2015 puppitypup rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-romance, favorites, plump-heroines

Historic Romance I thought this was going to be another silly romance. I was wrong. Not since Jamie sent Claire back through the stones has a book hurt this much to read. This book deals with PTSD with such realism, I could hardly breathe.

The author put her dedication at the very end, understandably so. It reads "This book is dedicated to the combat veterans of Vietnam. With respect, and love, and hope for healing."

This is one of the most romantic books I've read, in a class with Tale of Two Cit ...more

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May 19, 2011 AliciaJ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-stars, historical-romance, favorite-romances, all-time-fav-heroes, own-it-in-hc

This is my favorite of Laura Kinsale's books. The cover is stunningly beautiful ( on the first edition hardcover), the characters are fantastic, and the story hits every romantic button in my body. I've read this book over and over and it's still fresh every time. I never get tired of it. ...more

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Apr 17, 2014 Jennifer rated it liked it

Shelves: historical

Wow. There was a lot going on here. Regency, Gothic,Julie of the Wolves/Island of Blue Dolphins survival porn, pirates, Arabian slavery, plus a very serious case of post war PTSD. I am way too confused to write a review.

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May 28, 2010 Jessa ♥dhanger♥ EvilDarkSide rated it it was amazing

Recommends it for: historical romance lovers, epic love story

Recommended to Jessa ♥dhanger♥ EvilDarkSide by: Danielle The Book Huntress (Back to the Books)

Shelves: all-time-favs-way-above-5-stars, historical-romance

Oh man, I almost missed out on a precious gem of a book. I got about 50 pages into Sieze the Fire and started thinking that it wasn't my type of story. I put it down and moved on to something else. For the next few days it kept bothering me that I didn't give it more of a chance, so I picked it back up and tried again. Boy, am I glad I did.

One of my initial reasons for disliking the book was the hero (or I should say more appropriately the anti-hero) of the book. Sheridan is a bastard at worse ...more

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Apr 24, 2009 Errolyn rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, favorites

So Unexpected. So good. It is always a joy to go into a book expecting a certain type of entertainment...and get something all together different, but in a good way. This was my experience with this book. And it made me appreciate it even more.My re-introduction into historical romance continues.

From the blurb I expected a nice lighthearted, and humorous adventure with the usual romance staples: they meet, they hate each other, they fight, they kiss, they fight some more, love, love, love, they ...more

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Aug 09, 2013 Jane rated it really liked it

I have cleared my rating and review.

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Feb 24, 2012 Regan Walker rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 5-star-reads

Masterful, Absorbing Storytelling

An intriguing, well-written tale of a tortured hero who must come to terms with his past, and a brave young woman who must face reality. Kinsale's dialog is snappy, her humor dry and fitting and the characters' inner thinking terribly witty and appropriate for the times. The twists and turns are clever and the angst believable. Very well done!

Set in England, the Falkland Islands, the Middle East and Europe, beginning in 1827, this is the story of Olympia, Princ ...more

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Jan 27, 2013 A.B. Gayle rated it really liked it

Shelves: regency-romance

Before I started reading m/m I used to devour Regency Romance, beginning with Georgette Heyer and progressing through Eloisa James, Julia Quinn, Loretta Chase and Laura Kinsale. The last four were my first foray into ebooks, as I discovered authors who were rarely seen in print in bookshops and libraries in Australia. (We are a deprived lot and rely heavily on female librarians who managed to sway the purchasing power of their male counterparts who believe romance is BAD and would much prefer to ...more

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Oct 25, 2015 Sally rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-romance, ebook, read-2015

I don't think I can accurately describe my love for this book (I even think I prefer it to Flowers from the Storm!). I almost don't want to think about it too much just in case I find some issues that I can't get past.

I think that Laura Kinsale is becoming one of my favourite authors. I've now read three of her books over the last month or so and I've really enjoyed all of them. Her writing is so beautiful and it brings up such vivid pictures in my mind without being overly descriptive and her c ...more

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About Laura Kinsale

Laura Kinsale

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Laura Kinsale is a New York Times bestselling author and both winner and multiple nominee for the Best Book of the Year award given by the Romance Writers of America.

She become a romance writer after six years as a geologist--a career which consisted of getting out of bed in the middle of the night and driving hundreds of miles alone across west Texas to sit drilling rigs, wear a hard hat, and at ...more

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Quotes from Seize the Fire

“Then you came and I started to feel again. I started to think there was a reason I survived, that you were my reason. But nothing's so simple, is it? I didn't protect you. Here you are hurting so bad, and I can't even help. I'm just here and I need you. That's all it comes to. I need you to be brave when I haven't been. I know how hard it is. Look at me. Look at what's happened to me. Jesus, I feel like I'll be crying for the next century." He bent his head, pressed his tear-wet cheek to her dry cold skin. "But I'm here. I'm not hiding anymore. Princess, I'm asking you. Come back to me. You're my life.” — 38 likes

“I think,' Olympia said slowly, 'that I know you quite well.' She looked down at the deck and added in a carefully mild voice, 'You can be a scoundrel; I know that. You stole from me and betrayed me and lied to me. You have no morals and no ideals; you think of yourself first and you're a coward sometimes on that account.' She hesitated, chewing her lip. 'What people call a coward, anyway. I don't know what cowardice is anymore. I don't know what heroism is.' She looked up. 'But I know one thing, and I learned it from you. I know what courage means. It means to pick up and go on, no matter what. It means having a heart of iron, like they say. You have that.” — 7 likes

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