Customer Reviews

Fired Up: An Arcane Society Novel (Dreamlight Trilogy)

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I love many of Jayne Ann Krentz's books, but this is not one of them. It features the hero Jack Winters, a descendant of the renegade psychic Nicholas Winters who's descendnts Jones and Jones have been monitoring to make sure they do not use their psychic gifts for harm. When descendants reach their mid-thirties they sometimes pick up a second gift and descend into madness. Jack has now discovered a second psychic gift that he hopes will be eradicated via the Burning Lamp. First, however, Jack has to find the lamp. He turns to Chloe Harper, a private investigator, with a family background of psychics. Her ability is as a sensitive to dreamlight and its psychic imprints. She finds the lamp for Jack and together they end up battling some evil followers of Nightshade.

While I found the story a bit laborious in terms of trying to remember what went on with Arcane, J&J, and the various legends alluded to in previous books, the story did flow. We also get a more indepth look at Fallon Jones who has appeared in most of the Arcane-based books. I am assuming his story will be out soon too. Ms. Krentz does a good job of fleshing out her psychic aspects of her stories and her characters stay "in character" in terms of their abilities.

I struggled with whether to give the book three or four stars. I don't really care for Krentz's deeper journeys into the psychic realm, but do like her writing style. It is my understanding this is the first of a trilogy with the second book going back to the Victorian era (not sure if it is under Krentz or Amanda Quick) and the last set in the future (again not sure if it will be a Krentz or a Castle book). Personally I wish Krentz would write a few more books like Trust Me and Absolutely, Positively rather than focus on the paranormal.

A good read if you like Krentz and the paranormal. An okay read if you like Krentz, but don't care for the paranormal aspects.

Let me preface my comments by saying I am a huge fan of Jayne Ann Krentz/Amanda Quick/Jayne Castle...and in the really old days...Stephanie James (dating myself there!) I just did a quick inventory of my bookshelf and stopped counting at 90 of her books. What has always amazed me about Ms. Krentz is the huge variety in the story lines and (perhaps with the exception of the Stephanie James books) their originality, freshness and just plain sizzle...and not just in the steamy bits. It boggles the mind to think how one person has so many unique stories inside her, and how she can just reach out and suck her readers right into the pages of the book. Her characters just sparkle. So...anyway...you get the picture...I love her books.

But I've got to say about this one -- not so much. I won't summarize the plot, as most of the other reviewers have already more than covered that waterfront. And while the story line on Fired Up is fair enough...the book as a whole just lacks the zippiness of her usual style. Even the "steamy bits" were more lukewarm than steamy. The characters seemed to lack depth -- and I found myself thinking about previous books, story lines...the laundry...all kinds of things when I was reading it. And usually with Ms. Krentz's books, I am so totally immersed in the story that the house could be falling down around my ears and I'm oblivious.

Not to say that I wouldn't have bought this one anyway...but it made me a bit sad...having put it on pre-order in June of last year, I was really looking forward to it. I guess I'll l keep my fingers crossed for the second in this trilogy, and hope that maybe it will pick up there.

And to the reviewer who drove 2 hours and paid 20 bucks...well gee...since you could have had it delivered to your house by Amazon for less than that, inclusive of shipping, I guess you do regret it...

I agree, this book definitely isn't in JAK's usual style. However, having said that, if you are a fan, you will have to read it and the subsequent 2 books that will soon be available. Considering all of the wonderful books she has entertained me w/over the years, I have to stay loyal. I took a break from re-reading Light in Shadow (Zoe and Ethan Truax) to read Fired Up. I wanted to ditch Fired Up and go back to Light in Shadow! But I persevered. Neither Jack nor Chloe are anything like her usual characters. I'm sure there's a lot of pressure from her publisher to push out books. Not every book can be a winner...

Plot Summary: Jack Winters is a direct descendent of Nicholas Winters, the madly brilliant 17th century alchemist who tinkered with his own DNA and passed on a curse. According to the myths, Jack will turn into a Cerebrus - a person with three psi talents - and then go insane. His only hope is to locate the Burning Lamp, one of Nicholas Winter's inventions, and a woman capable of working dreamlight energy. Jack believes he's found the right woman in private investigator Chloe Harper, and he hires her to locate the lamp.

It's been a while since I've read a Jayne Ann Krentz novel, and I thought she was in fine form for Fired Up, the first book in her new Dreamlight Trilogy. However, I do want to point out that I didn't buy this one. I've been waiting patiently to get my hands on a copy from the library, and I might feel a bit differently if I paid full-freight for a hardcover. I'd be willing to pay for the mass market paperback (when it comes out), but no, I don't think the story is worth $17, or whatever it's going for on Amazon right now. Alrighty, with that caveat in place, I'll continue.

If you're wondering how this can be book one and book seven at the same time, well, Ms. Krentz has come up with a complicated idea for this trilogy that only makes sense to her current fan base. Her Arcane Society novels are paranormal-mystery-romances where different couples use their various psi talents to solve mysteries. The Dreamlight Trilogy is being inserted in the middle of her Arcane Series, which is already six books strong. I enjoy them a lot. Things get complicated because Ms. Krentz writes under three different pen names, and each persona writes in a different subgenre. Krentz is reserved for her contemporary novels, Amanda Quick is used for her Victorian-era historicals, and Jayne Castle is used for her futuristic setting. From what I understand, she's split her trilogy so one book is set in the past, the present, and the future. It's a cool idea, but not exactly an easy concept for new readers to understand.

The characters in Fired Up conformed to Ms. Krentz's usual mold. The heroine was self-employed as a private investigator, she likes pets, and she's given up on men. The hero is a self-made, razor-sharp businessman whose frosty exterior is melted away by his lava-hot attraction to the heroine. Ms. Krentz uses these elements over and over in her books, but I cannot deny that it's a tried and true formula. Fortunately she also believes in strong female leads, and the heroine is always someone that I can admire.

Long-time fans of the series will enjoy some tantalizing glimpses into Fallon Jones's life, and I keep wondering when she'll devote a book to the head of the Jones & Jones agency. The next book in the Dreamlight Trilogy is Burning Lamp (An Arcane Society Novel), and since it's based in the past, it was published under her Amanda Quick name. It has just come out, and I'll try to get to it sooner than I did with Fired Up, since I particularly enjoy her historical settings.

I love Krentz books,have all of them,but foung this one disappointing. Not as well plotted or written as her usual Arcane books.Hope the rest are better.I drove two hours and paid $28-sorry I did that.Do wait for the paperdack or library.

This was the first book I read from Ms. Krentz. It took me awhile to get through which is a definite indication that the book is too slow and boring. It just didn't keep my interest.

I have always loved Ms. Krentz's books and have read all the older books but I must say these Arcane Society books leave me cold. I find nothing interesting or amusing about them. As long as she keeps writing these Arcane novels I will not be purchasing any of her books. Come on Ms. Krentz, you're better than this junk.

Another Krentz hit. A exciting mix of the paranormal,romance and suspense. If you love the Amanda Quick(Krentz) Arcane Society books, you'll be eager to read this one.

I didn't care for this at all and I stopped reading halfway through it. I don't care for paranormal, but I do love Jayne Krentz. I wish she would write these books under the Jayne Castle or Amanda Quick name, and keep the contemporary books whether they are Romance or Romantic Suspense for Jayne Krentz.

Another "escape book" and quick read, but action-packed and entertaining. It's vintage Jayne Ann Krentz, who has apparently decided to write lots of books about the Arcane Society, a group of people with unique and varied paranormal skills and abilities.

Chloe Harper is a psychic private investigator and reader of dream energy--the energy vibes given out, and left behind, by everyone when they dream. Jack Winters hires her to help him uncover the truth about his own paranormal abilities and potential. He fears he is falling victim to an old family curse. "The legend says that he must find the Burning Lamp or risk turning into a monster. But he can't do it alone; he needs the help of a woman with the gift to read the lamp's dreamlight."

Jack and Chloe predictably develop a "beyond professional" relationship while battling an evil group, also with paranormal powers, bent on destroying them.

It's an interesting and imaginative premise, and enjoyable if you're not looking for anything too high brow.