Fanning the Flame [Mass Market Paperback]

Kat Martin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 30, 2002

BESTSELLING AUTHOR KAT MARTIN TURNS UP THE HEAT IN A SEXY NEW REGENCY-ERA ROMANCE FILLED WITH INTRIGUE

The London ton is abuzz with the latest scandal. Jillian Whitney, well-born but penniless, has been living under the roof of a wealthy nobleman old enough to be her father. When Adam Hawthorne, the mysterious Earl of Blackwood, meets the lovely rebel, he's intrigued enough to want to lure her into changing protectors.

Suddenly, Jillian's beloved guardian is murdered, and she is the only suspect. Forced to flee, she falls into the arms of the earl, who offers refuge from the law but no escape from an intoxicating passion. Although Jillian swiftly loses her heart, she knows that the eligible earl would never marry a woman tainted by scandal. But is Jillian underestimating the strength and depth of a man's passion?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Love's flame sputters rather than rages in this nicely paced but forgettable Regency-era romance. Adam Hawthorne, the earl of Blackwood, admits to being intrigued by laughing, lovely Jillian Whitney, but unexpectedly finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation when Jillian dashes into his arms to avoid being arrested for allegedly shooting the man who London gossipmongers speculate was her protector. Uncertain of her role in the killing, Blackwood knows he must prove Jillian's innocence if he's to save her from the gallows and woo her into his bed. But Jillian is innocent of more than murder, which puts the marriage-averse Blackwood in a quandary when they finally succumb to mutual seduction. There's little to make this relationship between a nobleman who has been burned before by deceitful women and a lady who's fearful of the hero's "hard, ruthless" attractiveness stand out among the current onslaught of similar historical romances, and the lovers' final obstacle is one that could have been easily surmounted with a little forethought. Although couples from Martin's earlier works, The Fire Inside and Heartless, help Blackwood in his quest to prove Jillian innocent, even these familiar faces aren't sufficient to spark this damply smoldering romance into a bright, memorable read.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review

Publishers Weekly The sex scenes sizzle....an assured winner. -- Review

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books (July 30, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743419162
• ISBN-13: 978-0743419161
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #650,380 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Currently living in Missoula, Montana, Kat Martin is the bestselling author of over fifty Historical and Contemporary Romance novels. Before she started writing in 1985, Kat was a real estate broker. During that time, she met her husband, Larry Jay Martin, also an author. Kat is a graduate of the University of California at Santa Barbara, where she majored in Anthropology and also studied History. "I love anything old," Kat says. "I love to travel and especially like to visit the places where my books are set. My husband and I often stay in out-of-the-way inns and houses built in times past. It's fun and it gives a wonderful sense of a by-gone era."

To date, Kat has over twelve million copies of her books in print. She is published in twenty foreign countries, including Germany, Norway, Sweden, China, Korea, Bulgaria, Russia, England, South Africa, Italy, Spain, Argentina, Japan and Greece.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Most Excellent, September 30, 2002

By 

M. Rondeau (West Springfield, MA United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fanning the Flame (Mass Market Paperback)

Adam Hawthorne, Earl of Blackwood, was a man haunted by nightmares that drove him to seek solace in the early morning hours galloping horseback in the park. It was here that he first spied Jillian Whitney, a young lady whose quiet countenance intrigued him. Some mornings later he rode with a friend who introduced him and gave him the latest gossip that Jillian was living with the elderly and much older nobleman. Given the period, she was labled a fallen woman and snubbed by the ton.

The night Jillian's beloved guardian is murdered - she ran from the house - right into the arms of Adam who decided then that he would have her. Under the guise of hiding her from the authorities, he brought her to his home and became her protector and defender. Primarily, this was to eventually bed her, but he finally came to believe in her innocence and set out to help her prove it. Women had been his downfall, he would never love again, but his body ached for her - he had to know the truth before he would take her.

The story is really quite good and the sex is hot! It is suspenseful and keeps you guessing right up to the end! (I thought it was the butler!) There is also a secondary love story that evolves here in this book which is also quite good.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars boring..., November 26, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Fanning the Flame (Mass Market Paperback)

This book was boring. I like some of Kat's books. For me, they are hit or miss. Frankly, the tortured hero and the virgin but passionate miss are getting boring. The "issue" at the end of the story should have been settled early on. Extreme sub-par story.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another bestseller for Kat Martin, July 31, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Fanning the Flame (Mass Market Paperback)

Ms. Martin has another bestseller under her belt. Fanning the Flame is the heart-warming, romantic tale of Adam Hawthorne, Clayton's friend in The Fire Inside, and Jillian Whitney.

Adam finds himself attracted to the mysterious Ms. Whitney when he sees her every day during his morning rides in the park. As he is drawn to her, he wonders how the innocent angel feeding the ducks could be the same woman rumored to be the mistress of the ancient Earl of Fenwick.

When the Earl of Fenwick is murdered, Jillian becomes the primary suspect. She finds herself in the custody of Adam, and she must prove to him and everyone else that she did not murder the Earl of Fenwick. Adam is the one man who could be her saving grace or her fall from grace.

This story offers sensuality, romance, and intrigue from page One. You will be pleased by Ms. Martin's writing talents. I actually give this book 4 1/2 stars. I guarantee that you won't be disappointed.