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seeinghowitgoes's review against another edition
1.0
After a promising debut novel, it's a rather confusing and if I'm honest somewhat boring 2nd offering from SK Tremayne. Rachel has in a whirlwind had a romance, a marriage, gained a stepson and now lives in beautiful remote Cornwall where her husband David commutes weekly to and from London. The shadow of David's past wife hangs over them, having died on the property grounds and in mysterious circumstances. It's when her stepson Jamie starts insisting that his mother is back and predicting the future that Rachel begins to wonder what exactly she's become a part of.
I jumped in without knowing the plot, it's passable and enjoyable as a holiday read, but the main problem is that all of these characters are just really crappy people. Rachel is shrill and invasive, David a brute and the pair of them together terrible.
I jumped in without knowing the plot, it's passable and enjoyable as a holiday read, but the main problem is that all of these characters are just really crappy people. Rachel is shrill and invasive, David a brute and the pair of them together terrible.
marsetta's review against another edition
3.0
Thank you to Harper Fiction and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book for an honest review.
When Rachel marries dark, handsome David, everything seems to fall into place. Swept from single life in London to the beautiful Carnhallow House in Cornwall, she gains wealth, love, and an affectionate stepson, Jamie.
But then Jamie’s behaviour changes, and Rachel’s perfect life begins to unravel. He makes disturbing predictions, claiming to be haunted by the spectre of his late mother – David’s previous wife. Is this Jamie’s way of punishing Rachel, or is he far more traumatized than she thought?
As Rachel starts digging into the past, she begins to grow suspicious of her husband. Why is he so reluctant to discuss Jamie’s outbursts? And what exactly happened to cause his ex-wife’s untimely death, less than two years ago? As summer slips away and December looms, Rachel begins to fear there might be truth in Jamie’s words: ‘You will be dead by Christmas.'
I have read the Ice Twins and really enjoyed it and I loved the start of this book, and had great expectations for it. The descriptions of the landscape and the details of the history of the mining industry and the area were very interesting. But overall the actual story wasn't great. It was too similar to The Ice Twins, the eerie atmosphere, the quiet unusual child, the remote location, the storm coming in, the mysterious back story. The ending was just to weird for me too. I found the whole thing were unlikely.
I would definitely read more by S K Tremayne but she needs to head in a different direction for the next book. Something different please
http://crimeandmysterybookreview.wordpress.com
When Rachel marries dark, handsome David, everything seems to fall into place. Swept from single life in London to the beautiful Carnhallow House in Cornwall, she gains wealth, love, and an affectionate stepson, Jamie.
But then Jamie’s behaviour changes, and Rachel’s perfect life begins to unravel. He makes disturbing predictions, claiming to be haunted by the spectre of his late mother – David’s previous wife. Is this Jamie’s way of punishing Rachel, or is he far more traumatized than she thought?
As Rachel starts digging into the past, she begins to grow suspicious of her husband. Why is he so reluctant to discuss Jamie’s outbursts? And what exactly happened to cause his ex-wife’s untimely death, less than two years ago? As summer slips away and December looms, Rachel begins to fear there might be truth in Jamie’s words: ‘You will be dead by Christmas.'
I have read the Ice Twins and really enjoyed it and I loved the start of this book, and had great expectations for it. The descriptions of the landscape and the details of the history of the mining industry and the area were very interesting. But overall the actual story wasn't great. It was too similar to The Ice Twins, the eerie atmosphere, the quiet unusual child, the remote location, the storm coming in, the mysterious back story. The ending was just to weird for me too. I found the whole thing were unlikely.
I would definitely read more by S K Tremayne but she needs to head in a different direction for the next book. Something different please
http://crimeandmysterybookreview.wordpress.com
nannyf's review against another edition
3.0
I honestly wanted to enjoy this story as I did the first book by this author. Unfortunately, for me at least, it fell short in many ways.
The idea behind the story is a good one - a young boy who has lost his mother believes he is being haunted by her ghost, a family trait which may back up his beliefs, and a new fairytale marriage destined to be challenged.
The author uses a lot of descriptive work to bring the reader into the story, and normally I love this kind of thing. With this story however, I feel that it took away from the storyline itself at times, spoiling the read for me.
The story is a good one in theory, but with the amount of description throughout it just didn't seem to achieve its full potential.
A copy was provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Please remember this is purely my personal opinion, and other readers may feel totally differently.
The idea behind the story is a good one - a young boy who has lost his mother believes he is being haunted by her ghost, a family trait which may back up his beliefs, and a new fairytale marriage destined to be challenged.
The author uses a lot of descriptive work to bring the reader into the story, and normally I love this kind of thing. With this story however, I feel that it took away from the storyline itself at times, spoiling the read for me.
The story is a good one in theory, but with the amount of description throughout it just didn't seem to achieve its full potential.
A copy was provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Please remember this is purely my personal opinion, and other readers may feel totally differently.
samuelson_obi's review against another edition
3.0
“The sense of loss throbs, in this study, like a reopened wound at the heart of Carnhallow. And I feel like I am the shard in the flesh. Renewing the hurt.”
― S.K. Tremayne, The Fire Child
This is the first ever psychological thriller I've read. And I found it to be a memorable experience.
S. K. Tremayne's writing was a darkly atmospheric, poetic and haunting voyage into the darker side of a human's mind.
For the duration of the novel, I felt my emotions manipulated, moved up and down at the behest of the author, like a roller-coaster.
The narration provided by Imogen Church and Peter Noble, added that extra layer to the stories melancholy allure. Through IC's emotional delivery, spectacular voicework, (there were times when the voices of the characters sounded so different, they were almost like a totally different person) added to PN's wistful and expressive performance it brought the characters and Carnhallow house to vivid existence.
This was a 3.5 stars for me.
And if you want to experience the thrills to dip into the haunting darkness of a manor full of dark history, this is the one for you. Get the audiobook too, if you can.
― S.K. Tremayne, The Fire Child
This is the first ever psychological thriller I've read. And I found it to be a memorable experience.
S. K. Tremayne's writing was a darkly atmospheric, poetic and haunting voyage into the darker side of a human's mind.
For the duration of the novel, I felt my emotions manipulated, moved up and down at the behest of the author, like a roller-coaster.
The narration provided by Imogen Church and Peter Noble, added that extra layer to the stories melancholy allure. Through IC's emotional delivery, spectacular voicework, (there were times when the voices of the characters sounded so different, they were almost like a totally different person) added to PN's wistful and expressive performance it brought the characters and Carnhallow house to vivid existence.
This was a 3.5 stars for me.
And if you want to experience the thrills to dip into the haunting darkness of a manor full of dark history, this is the one for you. Get the audiobook too, if you can.
chromatick's review against another edition
4.0
I'm not sure I liked this one better than the Ice Twins, but it's at least a very close second.
This was a great thriller with lots of twists and turns and some very chilling, creeping moments within. It keeps you on edge where you never quite know what is really happening, or even if what is happening is real or not.
The story follows a young woman who has recently married a widower and become step-mom to his little eight year old boy. She loves them both. The problem is that the boy seems to be able to see the future and has told his new step-mom that she will be dead by Christmas.
I really liked this one.
This was a great thriller with lots of twists and turns and some very chilling, creeping moments within. It keeps you on edge where you never quite know what is really happening, or even if what is happening is real or not.
The story follows a young woman who has recently married a widower and become step-mom to his little eight year old boy. She loves them both. The problem is that the boy seems to be able to see the future and has told his new step-mom that she will be dead by Christmas.
I really liked this one.
kjelu1022's review against another edition
4.0
Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author for allowing me to read an advanced reading copy of The Fire Child. This is the 2nd book that I have read by S.K. Tremayne. The first book was The Ice Twins.
Rachel is a young photographer who meets the man of her dreams in David. David, a widower, comes with an 8 year old son, Jaime, and the mystery of his first wife Nina's death, whose body has never been found. Rachel gives up her single life to move to David's secluded family home that includes Jaime, Cassie (the housekeeper) and David's elderly mother.
Rachel, alone often due to David's job, starts to wonder about the sanity of Jaime who is still grieving from his mother's death two years prior. Rachel questions what actually happened to Nina and why Jaime claims to see and hear his dead mother.
This book was slow for me until about 50% in. At first, I could not connect with the characters because it seemed typical of many "thrillers" that I have read in the past. However, at 50%, the story takes you on an excellent ride of suspense to the point that you can not put down the book because you want to find out what happens next and how everything connects.
Overall, this was a great read. However, I will have to say that I enjoyed The Ice Twins better. I do look forward to reading more psychological thrillers from S.K. Tremayne.
Rachel is a young photographer who meets the man of her dreams in David. David, a widower, comes with an 8 year old son, Jaime, and the mystery of his first wife Nina's death, whose body has never been found. Rachel gives up her single life to move to David's secluded family home that includes Jaime, Cassie (the housekeeper) and David's elderly mother.
Rachel, alone often due to David's job, starts to wonder about the sanity of Jaime who is still grieving from his mother's death two years prior. Rachel questions what actually happened to Nina and why Jaime claims to see and hear his dead mother.
This book was slow for me until about 50% in. At first, I could not connect with the characters because it seemed typical of many "thrillers" that I have read in the past. However, at 50%, the story takes you on an excellent ride of suspense to the point that you can not put down the book because you want to find out what happens next and how everything connects.
Overall, this was a great read. However, I will have to say that I enjoyed The Ice Twins better. I do look forward to reading more psychological thrillers from S.K. Tremayne.
leannaaker's review against another edition
4.0
Another great book where you really wonder...is someone crazy or did something bad really happen? :-)
wanderaven's review against another edition
4.0
I have a tendency, whether a book is given to me by a publisher (as in the case with The Fire Child, by HarperCollins UK) or whether it's one I buy or borrow from the library, to just dive in, heedless of the author.
I mean, of course sometimes I'm exceedingly familiar with the author already or, even if I've never before read them, I do typically have a passing knowledge of their general sort of work and backlist. But sometimes I know nothing at all, particularly in the case of debut authors, and typically I prefer that ignorance. Sometimes reading the reviews of others, or hearing hints in the bookish world of what I'm getting myself into can colour my reading and response. It's typically after I've read the book, if I'm curious, that I look about for information about the author.
When I read The Ice Twins sixteen months ago, the only thing I - and most readers - knew about the author was that the name was a pseudonym, and that of an already established writer. We know, now, who that writer is (I haven't read anything else by them; I suspect much of their following is UK-based), and you can, too, if you click on the author's linked name above.
While reading The Ice Twins, I was, in fact, inclined to believe that the writer was a woman. And I still knew nothing for certain when I read The Fire Child... until I read a particular sex scene in the novel; that was when I felt this male writer showed his hand.
Yeah, so, don't get me wrong. I am definitely not one who feels like male writers can never authentically portray a female character (or vice-versa), and on the whole, I am certainly in agreement that Tremayne does quite well with his female protagonists. But I'm telling you, I read just those couple of lines in that particular scene, and I knew with certainty that a woman didn't write those lines. I immediately googled Tremayne and confirmed my suspicion.
But apart from those telling couple of lines? Tremayne works the same sort of magic with The Fire Child as he did with Twins. I was angry every moment I wasn't reading the book, anxious to know what was going on. I felt addicted to the story, and both anxious and pleased with the (once again) included photographs.
Tremayne is excellent is setting the scene, at instilling a claustrophobic, sharp world that is at once hellish and lovely.
"'There was a square of light on the flagstones of the Old Hall, this morning, when I came downstairs, and I found a young fox, standing in the middle, trembling, in the light from the leaded windows. I would have once told Jamie.'"
"Topping the hill, the north coast comes into a view: the distant tumult of the Atlantic. There are no ships today. But the waves plough on, silently and very fast, As if they have some grim but important job to do, further up the coast, perhaps someone they have to drown off Port Isaac."
I felt a bit of repetition, throughout the novel, though I'm always pitiful at determining when repetition is intentional, used as a literary device, or when it's an example of the author subconsciously recycling a favourite image or phrase. Also, there were a lot of elements and it felt like at least a couple of them were abandoned along the way and never explained. Again, I wasn't sure how much of this was intentional and how much was not retrieving all the threads (a couple of things were clearly either explained or clearly left to the reader's own devices). This isn't to say that it's a novel where you'll end up frustrated by the ending (giving the stink eye to In the Woods), just that there were ragged bits and pieces.
So, there doesn't seem to be a release date slated for The Fire Child, yet, in the States. If you read Twins (which was released here) and enjoyed it, I feel assured that you will enjoy Fire Child as well. So keep an eye out for it or, if you're really wanting that lovely, desperate let-me-get-back-to-my-damn-book-stuff-is-happening-! feeling, you can also buy it through the book title link above, at the Book Depository.
I mean, of course sometimes I'm exceedingly familiar with the author already or, even if I've never before read them, I do typically have a passing knowledge of their general sort of work and backlist. But sometimes I know nothing at all, particularly in the case of debut authors, and typically I prefer that ignorance. Sometimes reading the reviews of others, or hearing hints in the bookish world of what I'm getting myself into can colour my reading and response. It's typically after I've read the book, if I'm curious, that I look about for information about the author.
When I read The Ice Twins sixteen months ago, the only thing I - and most readers - knew about the author was that the name was a pseudonym, and that of an already established writer. We know, now, who that writer is (I haven't read anything else by them; I suspect much of their following is UK-based), and you can, too, if you click on the author's linked name above.
While reading The Ice Twins, I was, in fact, inclined to believe that the writer was a woman. And I still knew nothing for certain when I read The Fire Child... until I read a particular sex scene in the novel; that was when I felt this male writer showed his hand.
Yeah, so, don't get me wrong. I am definitely not one who feels like male writers can never authentically portray a female character (or vice-versa), and on the whole, I am certainly in agreement that Tremayne does quite well with his female protagonists. But I'm telling you, I read just those couple of lines in that particular scene, and I knew with certainty that a woman didn't write those lines. I immediately googled Tremayne and confirmed my suspicion.
But apart from those telling couple of lines? Tremayne works the same sort of magic with The Fire Child as he did with Twins. I was angry every moment I wasn't reading the book, anxious to know what was going on. I felt addicted to the story, and both anxious and pleased with the (once again) included photographs.
Tremayne is excellent is setting the scene, at instilling a claustrophobic, sharp world that is at once hellish and lovely.
"'There was a square of light on the flagstones of the Old Hall, this morning, when I came downstairs, and I found a young fox, standing in the middle, trembling, in the light from the leaded windows. I would have once told Jamie.'"
"Topping the hill, the north coast comes into a view: the distant tumult of the Atlantic. There are no ships today. But the waves plough on, silently and very fast, As if they have some grim but important job to do, further up the coast, perhaps someone they have to drown off Port Isaac."
I felt a bit of repetition, throughout the novel, though I'm always pitiful at determining when repetition is intentional, used as a literary device, or when it's an example of the author subconsciously recycling a favourite image or phrase. Also, there were a lot of elements and it felt like at least a couple of them were abandoned along the way and never explained. Again, I wasn't sure how much of this was intentional and how much was not retrieving all the threads (a couple of things were clearly either explained or clearly left to the reader's own devices). This isn't to say that it's a novel where you'll end up frustrated by the ending (giving the stink eye to In the Woods), just that there were ragged bits and pieces.
So, there doesn't seem to be a release date slated for The Fire Child, yet, in the States. If you read Twins (which was released here) and enjoyed it, I feel assured that you will enjoy Fire Child as well. So keep an eye out for it or, if you're really wanting that lovely, desperate let-me-get-back-to-my-damn-book-stuff-is-happening-! feeling, you can also buy it through the book title link above, at the Book Depository.
k_west1984's review against another edition
3.0
This book was ok, it's a slow start but a very good twist which I didn't guess.
teekraenzchen's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Domestic abuse
Minor: Racism and Ableism