Customer Reviews

Ring of Fear

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This was not at all what I expected from a McCaffrey book, but it was an excellent read! There are no SF elements at all--this is a romantic suspense novel. Also, this is most definitely an adult book--a bit racier than her SF books. However, the characters were as captivating as any of her SF books.
This is the story of a woman on the run with only her horses and cat. She travels from horse show to horse show barely getting by, living in fear. Finally her past catches up with her, and she is nearly killed trying to rescue her beloved horses from a suspicious barn fire. Rich and mysterious Rafe, a fellow horseman, rescues her and helps her to face her enemies and uncover her past, even as he finds himself falling for her.

Jennifer Crusie and Janet Evanovich fans--you should like this one!

Nialla has been on the run since she found her horse-trainer father murdered. The police didn't seem to be interested in finding her father's killer and everyone else took advantage of her naivete, including her father's ex-employer, who brutally raped her. Terrified that someone will find her, she dyes her red hair a mousy brown and keeps on the move, traveling from horse show to horse show. Her greatest loves are her horses, Orfeo & Phi Bete, and her coon cat, Dice, until she meets Rafe Cleary. Rafe is unlike any other man she has ever met and she finds herself falling in love with him before she can stop herself. Without Nialla knowing it, Rafe does some digging into her background and realizes that she is in desperate need of his protection, whether she wants it or not. He quickly marries her and sweeps her off to his beautiful country estate. Nialla is happier than she has ever been, but will her all too-perfect storybook ending last?

This is a quick, fun read written in an old-fashioned romantic style. All of McCaffrey's characters were great: Nialla is a strong woman, but not afraid to lean on someone else for help, Rafe is a fascinating, mysterious man whom readers will want to learn a lot more about, Mr. Marchmount is the villain who the reader actually begins to feel sorry for because he is so pathetic, but the animals are the best characters and have so much personality, especially Dice, that it is worth reading the book simply to read about them. This book is a far cry from McCaffrey's popular Pern series, but is very well written and enjoyable all the same!

This is NOT a science fiction, but a contemporary mystery based on the world of show horses. The heroine works hard to support herself and two horses--one of them a notorious rogue with a past of his own. When she runs afoul of her father's murderer, she gets unexpected help from an old family friend. Mystery, action, and more than a bit of romance. A keeper.

I have read Ring of Fear as part of another book called Three Women, but in itself, this story is a charming, colourful, description of a woman alone in this world - except for two horses and a 'coonie' cat. The story enters the racing world with all the various types of people and characters, the dangers but also unexpected warmth, help and support.

I've been reading and loveing Anne McCaffrey since I was 12 years old. Now 24, I've found one of my favourite! This tale of a naive girl who has to grow up quickly when her father's violent death casts her into an untenable situation with horrible consequences, who then meets a saviour in one who by reputation is anything but, is charming, and fascinating. Definitely a keper!!!

I quite liked this book at the beginning, but I began to get tired of the old-fashioned plot of a young woman in danger who turns to an older, more experienced man who takes care of her completely, down to picking out her clothes. I can understand that plotline in a Regency romance, but surely in 1971 women were more interested in a partnership than a sugar daddy? I was truly appalled, however, when (*SPOILER ALERT*) she realized that he truly did love her when he flipped her over and spanked her for disobeying his orders (and putting her life in danger). Yeah, when he hits you, it means he really loves you...
I read another romance by Anne McCaffrey from the 1970s which was much better - The Kilternan Legacy - about a woman picking up the pieces after a nasty divorce. She inherits a property in Ireland and takes her children to check it out. Less suspense, danger, and sex than Ring of Fear, but more fun and romantic. I have also liked many of her fantasy novels.

If you like romance and horses, this is the book for you. Anne McCaffrey writes about the world of horse showing as is really is and included a romance and mystery as well. This book was the Janet Evanovich book for me in the Seventies. It combines laughter, romance, the horse show world and mystery all in one volume. Three cheers for Short men.

This was a fun read, different because it's not fantasy/science fiction, but a romantic fiction book about people in the horse show world.

Exciting, sexy and can't put the book down read. You can read it over and over again. I read it in 1979 and I have read it again over the years. I lost the book awhile ago and will be buying it again soon. Please make it an e-book for Kindle. So I can add it to my collection.
Nialla is strong yet traumatized, Rafe is sexy and muy macho whom readers will fall in love with but you will wonder at times if he is on the up and up, Mr. Marchmount is the creepy villain whom the reader may actually begin to feel sorry for because he is so pathetic, but I love the animals the most because they are the best characters and have so much personality, especially Dice. The book is seriously good.

This is quite unlike Anne's other books, especially as it is not science- speculative- or fantasy-fiction. It is relatively simple in plot, but enjoyable all the same. It's nice to read something set on Earth and in modern times to see the difference in styles. Personally, while I do enjoy reading this, I prefer the Pern and the Crystal Singer series, and others in the speculative-fiction style.