Heaven's Fire

By Patricia Ryan

Book Overview

The author of Falcon's Fire tells the story of a young medieval woman who finds refuge with a man intent on becoming a priest, who struggles against the constraints of honor to follow his ineluctable... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451406990
• ISBN13: 9780451406996
• Release Date: October 1996
• Publisher: Topaz
• Length: 347 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

Where have I been and how did I overlook Ryan?

This book was absolutely fantastic. Great character development, sexual tension, angst, history and, most rarely, a genuine friendship between the hero and heorine. Crolis/Constance was a truly unique heroine and Rainulf was unlike any hero I have ever encountered in a romance novel. The villian Pigot was truly menacing. A swell read. I will be hunting down other books by this exceptional writer.

4.5 Stars... What Great Story Telling....

I must admit, I mainly get on here to write reviews when I've finished a totally awful book, mostly to warn people so they do not waste their time. However, then there are times like now (rarely) where I'm just amazed at a book and I just want to tell EVERYONE how wonderful it was. This is one of those how-spectacular-I-found-this book moments. HEAVEN'S FIRE, is a emotional, angst filled love story about a low-born peasant girl falling in love with a high-born devouted priest. Great writing, wonderful character development, highly sexual when they do end up in bed and just "interesting"... To add further info to this very unusual love story, the heroine is 23 yrs old, by this time she's already berried a husband (older man)... been a mistress to another priest for 4 years.... The hero is very devout, a true hero in every sense. If you're looking for a romance book where you see the H/H in bed every 5 pages, skip this... what you'll get from reading this is a great love story. They do have passionate sex, but not until much later ( then they go at it like rabbits lol ).... and then, you'll cry some, then cry some more because you'll be happy for them. I haven't been this impressed with a romance book in SO long.. THIS book was absolutely wonderful.

You cannot miss this one!

I loved, loved, loved this book. The story itself is described above, so I won't go into the details other than saying it's about a woman (Constance/Corliss) who is hiding from an evil man who wants her for his own sadistic purposes, and the struggling priest (Rainulf) that protects her. Both main characters in this book are exquisite. I loved their humor, their sincerity, their honesty, their complexity, and the sweet love that develops between them. Constance/Corliss (she changes her name and poses as a boy to hide) is one in a million. She is not the typical romance heroine. She is smart and intellectual, has a wonderful sense of humor, and is refreshingly honest and open. Rainulf - as the priest who is suffering a crisis of faith - is equally wonderful. He is gentle, caring, and surprisingly innocent in comparison with most virile, sexual, aggressively male characters in this genre. Yet he still possesses passion, desire, strength, and masculinity. The two do not consummate their love until after almost 200 pages, but once they do, it is sensual, romantic - some of my absolute favorite scenes I've read. Usually I am impatient for the hero and heroine to make love because it seems that in most romance novels, that's where the intensity of the plot really grabs you and the emotional investment you have in the characters escalates. However, I found myself so caught up in this story and the evolution of the sweet love between Corliss and Rainulf that I knew things could only unfold as they did. And when the two finally give in to their love and their desire for each other, it is all the sweeter for the journey it took to get there. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. I enjoyed every word on every page. The scene in the church when Corliss and Rainulf sneak in to hear the music and must hide from the abbot made me laugh out loud. The night that Corliss is attacked and nearly raped and killed, Rainulf gently tends to her and as she sits in the tub and sobs, he comforts her. I literally cried with her. That was one of the most beautiful scenes I've ever read in any novel. I will be keeping this book on my shelf and going back to it often.... You must NOT miss this wonderful story....

Hunt this one down - it's worth the trouble to find it!

Excellent medieval fiction, wonderful storyline. For those of you who want stories written about how women would have really behaved during these times - well, this isn't your story. But Ryan has a wonderful knack for taking characters from this time, making then adapt some "modern" characteristics - but in a way that melds them seamlessly into medieval society. I'd read two others by her - Sun and the Moon and Silken Threads (both wonderful) and tracked this one down. It was worth the effort. Corliss and Rainulf are spectacular, two individuals who need to be their own person but also need each other. The supporting characters create a fascinating story that will keep you up late at night, not wanting to put the story down. Ryan also does a fabulous job of building the passionate tension between Corliss and Rainulf and bringing them together in a memorable fashion.

Can't Believe It's Out of Print!

This is one of the best books I have ever read! I am baffled at the news that it is out of print. What is wrong with the reading public? The story was so touching, so filled with emotion and tenderness. I loved it and hope I did not give away my copy.