Customer Reviews

Frozen Fire

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

Having enjoyed some of Tim Bowler's earlier work I am always interested when he brings out a new book. He's the kind of writer who never insults a child's intelligence by writing them as weak, clueless characters. This really appeals to me. But, as with his previous novel Apocalypse, Frozen Fire strings you along with an erratic mystery that could never really make any complete sense and then offers no explanation at the end.

I know books don't always need everything explained but this is TWICE now that Bowler has done this and I am not sure I want to be fooled a third time. I think he should stick stories based in reality than reaching for these fantastical twists that add up to nothing.

The story has a young girl in snowy rural England meet a mysterious ghost-like boy who has magical powers. Many people are out to kill him for apparent past crimes but Dusty, still distressed from the loss of her older brother, becomes somewhat fascinated by him and her world fades away into some etheral, dreamlike state as suspicions build and lynch mobs form.

And then...none of it adds up!

'Oh, use your imagination!'

No. That's what YOU'RE supposed to do Mr. Bowler.

I had never read one of Bowler's novels and after this one probably won't read any others. I felt strung along in this vague, rather than suspenseful mystery, that then was abruptly ended with a confusing resolution, with no real explanation. I found the excessive British terminology to be distracting as well. I would not reccomend this book to anyone. There are too many good reads out there to waste your time on this one.

I beilieve this book happens to be one of the most interesting books i've read in awhile. Right when you look at the book, it seems so interesting, and once I started reading, I became hooked. I even stayed up late to finish it! I totally recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a mystery fiction because the ending is so confusing, yet I figured it out. As you read this book, keep in mind that you will probably not get the ending right away. Read this book!

Tim Bowler has written one of the best books that I have ever seen. Frozen Fire is definetly one that you could not stop reading. This philosiphical thriller keeps you reading on, and after reading do you realize how much you have learnt. If you like books from Mitch Albom and Dan Brown, think of this as a combination of their best works. Overall, I think this is a book where you truly should expect the unexpected.

This is probably one of the weirdest books I have ever read, but weird in a good way. I honestly do not know what to think of this book. The story is interesting and thrilling and the premise is exciting and mysterious.

The main character, Dusty, is a very independent and rebellious girl. She keeps where she goes and what she does from her dad, so she is pretty much on her own most of the time. She is such a strong character that I enjoyed reading about. The mysterious boy who is never given a name drove me crazy at times because I really wanted to know who and what he is. Unfortunately, the answers are never given. Many more questions are raised at the end, but I think that was the point.

Frozen Fire is an interesting paranormal thriller. I found the story strange, but I still liked it. It is the kind of book that makes you think. It was well written and many parts will have you on the edge of your seat.

The way Bowler uses his suspicious way of writing keeps you wondering and imaging what could happen next. I was creeped out almost the entire read, and this is not even considered a horror book. I recommend this to anyone who may like solving mysteries or maybe conjuring up a mystery of their own.

This book was a page turner right from the beginning. Most of the books I read have some aspect of romance intertwined even if it is not the main focus. This story did not, or at least I would say that it did.

The story is about Dusty and how she is dealing with the loss of her brother (he has been missing for two years). It starts with a phone call on a late winter night. "I'm dying," a boy's voice says on the other end of the line. Dusty is about to hang up and forget all about his weird call but then the voice starts saying things that only someone who knows her intimately could say. Who is he and how has he gotten Dusty's cell number? Some of the things he is saying are things that only her brother could know. Does this boy know where her brother is? She has so many questions about what really happened to her brother the night he disappeared. Suddenly drawn in, Dusty very much wants to save this boy. Dusty is compelled to help him in the hopes of getting her answers. There is only one problem, she cannot find him. Part human, part spirit, he won't let himself be found because he thinks he is dangerous. Dusty is not the only one looking for this boy. Now she is in a race against the whole town. They all think he is to blame for the recent disturbances in town. A great story about a boy not of this world, and a girl determined to save him.

Some might not like this book because it leaves a lot of things unanswered. While I agree that Bowler could have given the story a little more closure, I also think that the current ending lets the reader decide for themselves exactly what/who the boy is and why he came into Dusty's life. I have my own theories...now make yours.

[...]

Frozen Fire is a very difficult book for me to sum up. There were so many different aspects of it and the overall message of the book was so different from what I had expected. The story opens with a mysterious phone call in the middle of the night. Dusty is home alone when a strange boy phones her and tells her he is dying. Some of the things he says invoke memories of Dusty's missing brother Josh and she sets out to find him. Instead, Dusty comes face to face with a menacing man, his two sons, and their pit bulls. From there Dusty's entire world is turned around and the boy is at the center of it.

I can't really say too much about the plot without giving away any major details, but I will say that it was extremely well written and wrought with mystery and suspense. There are more than a few chilling scenes that may cause goosebumps and raise the hair on the back of your neck. The first few chapters are menacing in the best way possible and I was instantly hooked.

Dusty seeks the mysterious boy out because she yearns to find her brother, and in doing so, she is sucked into the mystery that is the boy. No one knows his name or where he comes from, but everywhere he goes, bad things seem to occur. There are people all over the country who wish to seek the boy out and persecute him for various crimes they cannot prove he was a part of. He appears to be some sort of paranormal being that is able to know intimate details of everyone's lives, including Dusty's. This boy doesn't look normal either. The best way to describe him is almost as an ethereal being. He is pale. So pale that he is as white as the snow. His hair is the same color and his eyes are a striking pale color that people are unable to forget. He is capable of great harm, but Dusty remains unafraid.

Dusty is by far one of the strongest female characters I have ever seen. She is described as a Tomboy and she is more than willing to get into a fight, but it isn't just her physicality that makes her strong. Emotionally, Dusty is a very strong character. She lost her brother and soon after her mother leaves. Her father is a self-described pansy, yet Dusty remains strong. She forges through life and attempts to maintain who she is. The appearance of the mysterious boy shakes up her world and Dusty is forced to summon all the strength she can muster.

Frozen Fire isn't necessarily the paranormal thriller that it is described as, but it is an engaging, mysterious, and interesting story. There are some very slow moments that drag out descriptions of snow and the landscape, but Bowler is able to create such vivid imagery that I almost didn't notice. There were many times when I felt like I was buried in the snow with Dusty. The visuals in the book are absolutely phenomenal and I could easily picture it throughout the book. The mystery surrounding Josh and the boy were compelling, but they were dragged on for too long. The book isn't long, but I wanted to know what was going on. There was so much build-up throughout the novel, but the payoff didn't come until very late on and it didn't fully answer all the questions that were presented. The ending also had me a little confused. The unanswered questions detracted from the impact potential that the ending could have had. Still, Frozen Fire was a thought-provoking read that examines so much more than just the mystery of Dusty's missing brother and a strange boy.

Opening line: "I'm dying," said the voice.

Favorite line: There could be no innocence in a world without justice.

Tim Bowler lays out an intriguing mystery. He yanks you into the story with the very first words and compels the reader to continue into the story as Dusty herself is pulled into the mystery of "The Boy" and the brightness. Although the tale is interesting, Bowler's supporting characters are sometimes unbelievable, particularly Dusty's parents who seem to have had a role reversal with her. One word of caution for readers who like neat conclusions: although Dusty does learn the fate of her missing brother, she does not uncover any information about "The Boy" or the greater mystery of the brightness that seems to take her over at times. What is going on with that?

Late one night while her father is out on a date, Dusty gets a strange and seemingly random phone call from a boy saying that he's about to overdose. They speak for a bit, and he tells her things that only she should know. Like what she's thinking, and mentions names that mean something to her. He even comes pretty close to guessing her name. When he finally gets off the phone, Dusty feels a need to find him and she knows exactly where he is because of a noise she heard while they were talking. She heads out at night, in the snow, and alone to find a stranger. Mostly because the boy mentioned her brothers name, Josh, and she wants answers to where Josh is because he disappeared two years ago. This leads Dusty into the hands of a crazy man, his two sons, and his two evil pit bulls, he threatens her and tells her not to say anything to her father or police. The rest of the story is a lot of Dusty talking to herself, looking for the strange boy, ignoring her dad's rules, and being rude to just about everyone she knows.

At first I was like okay this is pretty good. There's a good mystery going, I'm in the groove. Then the story seemed to go on and on, with Dusty on this endless search for "the boy" and never finding him. The only time she hears from him is when he calls her to save her from something. He seems to see things that no one else can see even when he's not near what is happening. Dusty also gets a visit later in the story. She becomes obsessed with him, and so does the town when they find out he has done some horrible things in his past. Dusty should definitely be scared of this boy, mostly because of all the stories, but also because he seems to have some kind of power that is injuring people, there are also stories of rape, but Dusty continues to want to find this boy.

The problem with this book is that NOTHING is explained. Who was the boy, where is the boy, WHAT is the boy? Does the boy even have a name? Does he even really exist? I didn't find Dusty at all likable, she seemed very dense, and has a major hearing problem. As in she doesn't listen to ANYONE!

A good thing about this was the descriptions of all the places. I've never had such a good vision of snow before, especially since I've never seen it before. One of the most interesting characters is the old man that lives near Dusty and her dad, Silas, he's crotchety and he mostly just hides in his house. I was more interested in why the old man was that way, than why Dusty was doing the things she was doing.

I can see by other reviews that I'm not the only one to feel this way, so at least I know I didn't miss some big profound event that went down in the book.