An attention-grabbing prologue, with a young boy being forced to witness the public hanging of his flamboyant highwayman father.

Sadly, that's about the high point of this book. From here on it's all downhill, with cardboard cutout characters going through the predictable motions of hundreds of other substandard historical romances. Like so many pulp romance heroes, Colin suffers from serious emotional traumas brought on, not by the hanging of his father, but by being the illegitimate issue of his father's brutal rape of the wife of the Earl of Haverwood, who brings up the boy as his heir, crippling him for life with humiliating verbal and physical abuse.

What does it take to release poor Colin from his emotional hell? Why, the love of a good woman, of course. That would be Sarah, daughter of a card-sharping commoner who has left her an exclusive and very profitable gaming establishment.

Colin seeks comfort in fantasies of being a 'Dragon Slayer'. This theme is revisited so often that he begins to seem more a modern comic-book nerd than a cold-blooded Regency spy. His conviction that he's an evil man, tainted by the blood of his natural father, is also revisited again and again, soon becoming very tedious indeed. Neither Colin nor Sarah have a clear idea of what they want, and no idea how to achieve it. They stumble from one confrontation to another whilst being pursued by mysterious hired killers.

About two-thirds through the book the author reveals the identity of the person behind the murder attempts. This is where I decided that enough was enough and stopped reading. With a hundred pages left to go, it's possible that there were a few unexpected twists and turns still left, but I'd lost what little interest I had in the leading characters.

Wooden prose littered with modern idioms (sheesh, it's the beginning of the 19th century, already) didn't help.

Didn't finish; didn't rate.

Colin Westcott had an unfortunate beginning. Though acknowledged as the legitimate child of the Earl of Haverwood, in truth he was the product of his mother's rape by a highwayman. The book opens with a nine year old Colin on the hill with the old earl to see his highwayman father's hanging, while the earl told Colin how blood would tell, and that he has that monster inside him.

Colin is now nearly 28, is the current Earl of Haverwood, and has until his birthday in a few months to marry, or his pet project - an orphans' home - will leave his control. How? Plot hole, my friends, plot hole. But continuing on, Colin has completely abstained from women his whole life, fearing he was a latent violent rapist like his father. Consequently he's determined to marry a woman who will not test his resolve to remain celibate. He'll certainly not think of marrying the beauty he literally bumps into at the opera. He wanted to kiss her more than a little bit.

It took some time for the characters to grow on me. Sarah Banks' character perplexed me. I know she was the daughter of a gambler who ran a gaming hall, but I had no idea why she was of any consequence at all to the bon ton, for good or for ill. There were a number of straight-up altercations between her and aristocratic ladies, when it seemed indifference would have been the more natural snub. I got the feeling that it was only because indifference wouldn't have been as much fun for Colin to avenge. Neither could I make much of her dogged persistence in pursuing him. So she dreamed of "sherry colored eyes" for six years, and his eyes are that shade, is that a good reason to go throwing yourself at someone?

For his part, Colin's determination to not marry Sarah grew wearying. Yes his overly-familiar butler did much of the matchmaking, but come on man! Her name's been dragged through the mud, everyone thinks she's his mistress, he enjoys her company - man up and marry her. That it took an abduction, a (near?)rape and a coaching accident to bring him up to scratch irked me.

His constant reference to dragons and being the "DragonSlayer" was exasperating. Every time I saw "DragonSlayer" I swear I heard someone holler "METAPHOR! COMING THROUGH!" I mean, beat me over the head with it much?

So now you're wondering how this book I obviously hate gets 4 stars. Well, reading this book was a lot like watching a play in a theater but constantly seeing stage hands, strings and bits of backstage. The plot was just sort of there, staring at me, being conspicuous, preventing me from buying into the fantasy completely. Didn't mean the play sucked.

I think the issue may have been that O'Reilly is an author of contemporaries, because it felt like she was uncomfortable with the setting, and so the atmosphere of Regency London was complicated and distracting. Though I point the above flaws out, I see where she was going with them, the execution just sorta spun me around a bit.

When she focuses on Colin and Sarah, the book is a joy. Colin's pain and worry wars with his feelings and desires. He's so desperate to do the right thing, to atone, to avoid being his sire that he can't see when he's doing more harm than good. Watching him gradually come to an understanding with himself is satisfying.

Sarah gives as good as she gets. She has all the self-confidence that Colin doesn't. She's the voice of reason for Colin. She won't let him get away once she realizes he wants her as much as she wants him. She won't let him doubt himself. After all, she thinks the world of him, and she's never wrong.

The sex was as awkward as it should have been for two virgins. Had there been mutual, simultaneous orgasms first go, my Sony reader would be in pieces right now. All of the love scenes, from the touchless one in the theater hallway through the bedroom scenes after their wedding are sensual, organic and blessedly free of turgid tumescences.

The emotions are right in this book, somehow, despite the awkward delivery. I couldn't help but enjoy it. ( )

I love fairly tales, and Touched by Fire was a novel with a sweet fairy tale quality to it. The hero, Colin, has dreamed of being a DragonSlayer since he was a mere boy, and the heroine, Sarah, has been dreaming of a “gallant knight” with sherry-colored eyes who would come whisk her away from her loneliness and love her for who she is. Colin and Sarah had a magical first meeting and an instant attraction, which is something I usually don't care for much, but it really worked for me here. I think my liking of it was partially due to the enchanted atmosphere, but mainly because although they may have been instantly in lust with one another, they took the time to build a relationship instead of heading straight for the bedroom. I love the way that Colin and Sarah were always looking deeply into each other's eyes. I thought it was very romantic and helped to build that magical attraction even more. It also became a primary mode of communication between them. Sometimes it was difficult for them to communicate verbally, especially Colin, but their eyes always spoke volumes to each other. Both Colin and Sarah tend to hold back quite a bit, especially early on, because neither one really feels worthy of the other. I usually prefer for one character to be a bit more overt and persistent, and Sarah finally started actively pursuing Colin about a third of the way into the book but still doubted herself at times. It was definitely a difficult, uphill battle for her, but one that was well worth the fight.

Colin's biological father was a notorious and violent highwayman who had raped his mother. The old earl had claimed Colin as his son to preserve some dignity for his wife and spare her further disgrace, but he despised Colin and made sure that he knew his real parentage by constantly telling him that he carried the same evil that was in his father. Having had these lies drilled into him from the time he was just a boy and seeing the fear and grief that his mother suffered, left Colin fearful of himself and determined that he should never marry or have children. In fact, he had spent the better part of the last ten years as a soldier and spy in the Peninsular War, in hopes that he might die a hero's death and end his bloodlines. Now he is back in England and being forced to marry to save the beloved orphanage of which he is the patron, and that he felt was the only way to redeem himself. I really liked Colin's hobby of studying dragon lore, and how the dragons became a metaphor not only for the physical dangers in his life, but also for his emotional demons. Initially, I thought that Colin was a beta, because he is such a sensitive and wounded individual who truly believes that he will hurt the woman that he marries. As I read further though, I could definitely see alpha tendencies as well in his extreme protectiveness of Sarah and others. He was willing to sacrifice himself to save the orphanage, and didn't hesitate to rescue a young girl who had been sold into prostitution. He also has the heart of a lion and the courage of a warrior to have put himself on the line as a soldier. It takes Colin a long time to realize the truth and understand that his fears of propagating evil are unfounded, but when he finally does it's a beautiful thing.

Sarah is the daughter of a gambling hell owner who has her own share of demons to battle. She is a wealthy woman, but has lived with the censure of society all her life because of who she is. All she has ever wanted is be a part of the glittering social set, but girls like her don't get invited to balls and parties. After her father died, Sarah became very lonely, but the only men who come to call on her are nothing but fortune hunters. She dreams of a man who will simply love her for herself. When Sarah meets Colin she is convinced that she has found that man, but when Colin seemingly rejects her at every turn or sends her mixed messages, Sarah doesn't know what to think. She spends quite a bit of time going back and forth between thinking she isn't good enough for him but not being able to stop dreaming about him. Sarah sees something in Colin's eyes and actions that tell her there is more to him than he lets others see and that he truly does care for her. The one thing that Sarah's father, the consummate gambler, had taught her was that a Banks never looses, so she finally sets out on a determined quest to win his heart.

I loved that Colin and Sarah were both virginal characters, a rarity in romance. Their first love scene was far from idealistic, but it was realistic considering that both of them were very inexperienced. Colin also allowed his fear of himself to get in the way, causing him to make a highly unusual and unromantic request of Sarah which made the scene all the more uncommon. However, the experience changed Colin's whole outlook on life, and made him absolutely determined to pleasure Sarah the next time, and him taking the time to learn what he needed to know was quite romantic as were their remaining love scenes together. Another thing I thoroughly enjoyed about the story was Colin's butler, Giles, who was more of a father to him than a mere servant. It was hilarious how he was trying to covertly play matchmaker, and then coerced Sarah's funny little maid, Iris, to get into the act as well. Giles was probably the most well-rendered secondary servant character I've read since George Kemball from Liz Carlyle's books.

I honestly didn't realize until about halfway through the book that Touched by Fire was essentially Kathleen O'Reilly's debut novel (she had previously authored only one short story in a Harlequin Duet that was released one month earlier), and in my opinion, it was a very worthy early effort. There were a few minor things here and there such as wording and transitions that showed a bit of greenness but nothing that really detracted from my overall enjoyment. Ms O'Reilly has a very subtly emotional writing style that seems to speak volumes. It moves a little slowly in places, and I can see how it might not be for everyone, but her writing really pulled me into the story and wouldn't let go. It was rather like watching a richly drawn dramatic indie movie, punctuated with moments of humor and levity. Touched by Fire was my first read by Kathleen O'Reilly, but I enjoyed it so much, it earned a spot on my keeper shelf. I'm a little disappointed to say that it is her only historical romance to date, but in spite of that, I'm eagerly looking forward to diving into her contemporary backlist soon. ( )

I just finished Touched by Fire. I'll have to agree with the comment from Julia London on the cover:

A wonderfully charming and poignant romance.

To start at the beginning, I was so angry with the old earl, and just wanted to take 8-year-old Colin home with me. Then seeing how his cruelty had affected the grown-up Colin, I wanted to dig him up & strangle him.... er.... I don't know where this bloodthirstiness comes from, really I don't.

Anyway, Colin was such a tragic figure, determined to do right and to live without love.

Sarah was perfect for him. Both were outsiders because of their fathers, but she was less willing to accept what fate had given her. Rather than use her fortune to make a socially acceptable marriage, she waits for the man of her dreams--a man with "sherry-colored" eyes. Colin, on the other hand, resigns himself to marrying a woman he's not attracted to so that he can save the orphanage without unleashing the beast he's sure lives within him.

I like the twist that makes the man the one who's afraid of his own passion. You seldom see virgin heroes, especially without them being emasculated, but Colin managed to seem even stronger for being able to deny himself, because he was doing it to (as he believed) protect others.

Sarah says that she wants someone to take care of her, but she's stronger than that. She takes care of herself, and when she sees what she wants, she goes after it, braving social censure and risking her heart.

I loved watching these two go back and forth. He's fighting his attraction for her, but at the same time he won't hurt her, even to protect her from himself, so his growing attraction to & affection for her is more & more evident. She keeps thinking he's pulling away because of her position in society.

Fortunately, Giles & Iris are there to nudge things along. Giles in particular was very entertaining. I loved his sarcastic, insubordinate remarks to Colin. I thought I saw sparks between Iris & Giles---

And of course there's nothing like a couple attempted murders to force a couple to admit how much they care for each other.

All in all, an entertaining, engrossing read. Thanks, Kathleen!