Customer Reviews

Stormfire

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

About the book..."Abducted on her way to boarding school, a terrified Catherine Enderly was brought from England to the coast of Ireland, the prisoner of the angry and powerful young Sean Culhane - a man sworn to vengeance against her family".

I admit I love "Bodice Ripper" books with extreme Alpha males! But this book was such a turn off that I couldn't even finish it! After throwing it against the wall, I quickly looked through my collection for a sweet romance story to stop myself from throwing up!!!

Sean is really brutal! At first meeting, he rapes our virgin heroine was such cruelty that she nearly faints. Because of the time period of the story, I don't mind a little bit of force in the beginning as long as the women secretly enjoys it and starts responding...or at least their "traitorous" body does...but the heroine only feels pain and he rapes her a number of time in the same fashion. When Catherine never responded and he still kept going, and only felt PAIN and NOTHING else, then where is the chemistry/sexual tension in that?

He also beats her brutally for no reason and starves her. At one point in the book after she "betrays" (and I use this term loosely since she owed this animal nothing) him, he decides to give her to a room full of men to do what they want with her. He rips her dress, exposing her breasts and LEAVES her in the room full of men to rape her without a second thought! Luckily one of the secondary characters saves her before they do. That was so disgusting and made me want him to die!!!

And at the beginning the heroine is likable but soon becomes fickle & annoying. She vows at the beginning of the book she wouldn't marry a man without loving him first. Her mother did that and she didn't want to do the same. But then she ends up marring Sean's half brother whom she doesn't love for her own silly reasons. He also ends up raping her after she decides the marriage was a mistake. So not only does the heroine have another sexual partner but one that rapes her too?? Yes I know, very romantic so far, swoon worthy {roll eyes}.

The book had the premises of being a good story but sucked because of the hero's brutality and Catherine's stupidity sometimes!

This is one of those books that you'll either really like, or really hate. It's an old romance, from the early 80s, and reads like one -- so much of what transpires between the hero and heroine is "dated" by today's standards and would instantly qualify the book for "wallbanger" status by many readers. I read this book the first time back in the 80s and fell in love with it then, so I think that's why I have fond feelings for it still. I'm not sure that a person reading it for the first time today would be so forgiving of certain aspects of the story.

The story is plot-rich -- this romance is like many from the early 80s and quite epic in scope, taking us from England to Ireland to France and Napoleon's court. But what drives the story are the characters of Sean Culhane and his beloved "Kit", Catherine Enderly. More than anything else, this is a story about the redemptive power of love. If you're willing to buy into this premise -- that love DOES conquer all...eventually -- then this story may be for you. But be warned that there are numerous plot devices taboo among today's romances: rape, enslavement, brutal abuse, and adultery.

Sean Culhane arranges for the abduction of 17-year-old Catherine Enderly, an English countess. His motivation is vengeance; he has a score to settle with Catherine's father. Catherine is spoiled and indulged -- which Sean despises -- but also intelligent and courageous -- which he reluctantly respects. Still, the very first scene between the two of them is oh-my-god brutal, so be prepared. Catherine is imprisoned and forced into a life of destitution and enslavement, with Sean always trying to break her spirit through means physical or mental, and yet at every turn he is thwarted by Catherine's indomitability. Against his will, he begins to admire her courage and begins to see her less as her father's daughter and more as her own person. Vengeance turns to lust, and lust turns to something akin to love, but still Catherine resists him. The more he continues to try to force her...to force her affection for him...the more she resists giving him what he wants, even though she DOES begin to love him as well, and her continued denial hurts her as much as him.

An act of betrayal, the finer details of which elude Sean for quite a while, leads Catherine to marry Sean's brother, Liam, a man forever in his younger brother's longer shadow and resentful of it. Catherine is recaptured, and re-imprisoned, and Sean's love turns to hate. An injury to Catherine aggravates another pre-existing condition -- one unknown to Sean -- and sends Catherine into a type of madness. When Sean realizes the extent of his own culpability, he devotes himself completely to her recovery.

Things progress in similar fashion for much of the book, as Sean and Catherine are brought together by their fierce love and devotion to one another, but then separated by Fate, time and again. When they are finally united at the very end of the book, it's incredibly poignant: a hard-won triumph, out of the ashes of great tragedy.

As I said, this most definitely is not the book for everyone, but if you have a fondness for meaty historicals you may enjoy Stormfire. They really don't publish historical romances like this anymore, and part of me wishes they did. Not many of today's author's would take the chances that Monson did here, although at the time she wrote the book, perhaps the risk was not so great. Certainly this type of romance seemed fairly standard for that period. I know that there are many readers who would be so put off by Sean's violence, they'd be unable to find any good in him whatsoever. How do you make a sympathetic character out of someone who seems so despicable? But I think the author does a very good job at painting the complexities of Sean's personality. Is this the type of man I'd like to know in real-life? No, not necessarily. But that doesn't mean I can't appreciate who he is within the pages of this book. He and Catherine are memorable characters and I have sustained my memory of and affection for this book for twenty years or so -- which is more than I can say for many of today's romances which are largely forgotten the moment the last sentence is read.

I hated this story. I was so excited about reading it after reading the glowing reviews by the others. I searched it out and bought it through auction. I sat down to read it eagerly and was completely disgusted. He not only hits her so hard she is bruised and bleeding, but he rapes her BRUTALLY; not once, but MANY MANY times. He never feels remorse; he doesn't question his motives, or regret hitting someone weaker than himself. Gamely, I tried to continue reading with the hope that it would get better (again, based on the wonderful reviews). It only gets worse. He starves her to the point that she faints and is ill for several days, he makes her work like a slave, he threatens to give her to his men for gang rape, etc, etc. Then to my horror, she finds herself fighting mentally to keep from responding to his advances and begins to care for him. I was insulted that the author would make her so stupid and weak minded. It is NOT healthy to love an abusive man. I'm sorry, but I just cannot understand that. Then, to add insult to injury, the maid who's the authority over Katherine has the nerve to try and use reverse psychology on Katherine. "Of course", she says, "not just anyone can love him. It will take a strong, loving, caring woman to change him." Katherine's main concern should be getting away from a monster, not trying to "change" him. I could not finish the book. I was terribly angry and I cannot read a story that makes me want to reach in the book and kick the hero in his privates and slap the heroines face. I just couldn't imagine how their love could be considered healthy. Granted, I did not finish the book, so maybe at some point Sean changed and was remorseful, etc. I simply did not care for him enough to hope he'd change and become a happy person. His actions were too atrocious to be forgiven in my opinion.

"Stormfire" is arguably the most controversial book in romance fiction and after finally securing a copy and slogging my way through it I can understand why. I'm a historical romance reader in large part thanks to the Woodiwiss books I read in the late 70s and so I thought I was prepared for the style and story that makes "Stormfire" a classic bodice-ripper. I enjoy stories featuring dark, intense, tortured heroes but I was taken aback by the appalling cruelty of the hero to the heroine and tempted more than a few times to put the book aside. I could only continue with the understanding (the hope?) that his behavior could be explained away as the actions of a person traumatized by personal experience with violence and war. For anyone considering reading this book, understand ahead of time the abuse is graphic and very hard to take.

I admit that Sean and Catherine's relationship is compelling, at times heartbreaking, but the story overall I found surprisingly tedious. I've never been one for epic stories and this one certainly goes on, and on. I found myself watching how close I was coming to the end and oftentimes it was not close enough. I was also put off by the many infidelities; I think as readers we all look for a certain "fantasy" zone in books and for me, no matter how turbulent the hero/heroine's relationship may be, I prefer when they remain faithful to each other throughout the story. These quibbles don't make it a bad book, just a book that was not for me.

I understand this is a hard book to get hold of and I was fortunate to get a copy through interlibrary loan. So another caution to readers would be before purchasing it at an exorbitant price make sure it sounds like something you will like; if I had paid $50.00 for it I'd consider it money wasted.

I painfully read the entire book hoping that this so called "love story" between Catherine and Sean would somehow rear it's "fluffy" head, however, It did not. This is a type of read that you will love or simply hate and all I could do was nod my head and say, "what the hell was the author thinking"? There were many times when I actually felt guilty reading this book and hoped it was all a bad dream for poor Catherine. I swear after reading this book I was so depressed that I needed a glass of wine to unwind. I won't even bother getting in to the details about the book because there are no words to explain the negativity and cruelty of this story. All I can say is, Connie Mason, Johanna Lindsey, Kinley McGregor, etc.. I will never take you guys for granted ever again!!!! Give me all the fluff you want!!!!

I agree 150% with previous reviewer J.Bergin. This book is not for those who want light fluff and a happily-ever-after without any work. This book is emotionally demanding and requires a bit of maturity from the reader. It requires the ability to see a situation from more than one side; to place themselves in the actual mind-set of the period; to see Sean and Catherine's characters as products of the world which they inhabit and the deep-seated hatred that existed (and in some places still exists) between the English and the Irish. It then requires the ability to see it through to its end and not give up on it because of an unpleasant beginning - like Catherine and Sean's relationship.

Here we have two characters not just from opposite sides of the tracks - but opposite sides of the battlefield. Where the English had been brutalizing the Irish for generations and Sean's character had been reared seeing this utter destruction on a regular basis. Catherine represented everything he fought against. She was not a person - she was English. To feel anything tender for her was a betrayal of his people and it meant that he had to defile her/destroy her (or try) so that he wouldn't care for her because how could he come to love one of the people who had been rampaging through his country and leaving thousands of dead and broken, raped women behind. So what if she was raped, too? He was driven by revenge - to the utter depths of his soul - in a time period that was not very gentle to begin with.

This was the era of the slave trade - and not just of Native Americans and Africans. Until the late 1780s 75% of all European inhabitants of the Americas were slaves - called indentured servants. This was the era of the galley slave. This was the era of the hook, the stocks and the rack and numerous other bloody tortures which were used on a regular basis throughout European society. It was not a very civil period. Raping the women of the enemy was actually somewhat expected.

Now, I make no excuses for Sean's character but I do say this to point out that I think that Ms Monson did a wonderful job of following the evolution of these two characters. How through their sorrows - mostly brought upon themselves - Catherine was able to grow into a mature woman and find her peace while Sean found the ability to let go of the hatred that had ruled his life. How, in the end, "love" was able to redeem both of their souls.

So many of today's romance novels are pure fantasy without any attempt to delve into the psyche and emotional complexity let alone the historical reality of the time period (and I don't just mean the cut of the gowns). If you remove the sex from many of them then they would read like a tv episode of Xena. They're funny and diverting but they have no true substance - no "meat". Granted this book is disturbing on many levels but it is also moving and it's so memorable that I can write a review after 20 years.

This book wasn't nearly as shocking as all the hype surrounding it would suggest. In fact, it's pretty conventional in many respects. For example, the pat incest resolution, as well as the pretty quick thawing of Sean's resolve to beat down and kill Kit. I was prepared to have a couple hundred pages of abuse, but imagine my surprise when Sean's attitude towards her turns to love & protection (well, of a sort) by page 85 and lasts for well over 200 pages until Kit acts according to her conscience and brings it all crashing down into a short-lived loop of hatred and revenge, followed by the rest being selfless acts of devotion and sacrifice. I think this book has gotten the reputation it has from people who didn't read past page 50 (if they got that far) and hearsay and groupthink took over like it usually does. Read it for yourselves, if you can get a copy or find it online.

The book lost steam around page 450, when Kit and Sean wind up in France as Napoleon's ambitions and intrigues and counter-intrigues take center stage. Monson was unable to make these big picture machinations nearly as interesting as the intense personal struggle that consumed the first 2/3rds of the novel with just Sean & Kit and the dark, dysfunctional little world of the Culhane keep of Shelan. It was atmospheric, close, and terrifying. Excellent stuff. I felt it should have ended by pg 450, as neatly tied up as it eventually was on pg 568. The extended epilogue in France was so at odds with the rest of the book and, well, frankly boring. So much was thrown into it that by this point I thought it was overstuffed. The final chapter was rushed, indicating four years had passed with Sean at Austerlitz, that I wondered why Monson hadn't paced herself and kept it for a sequel. (Separation over the battlefields of Europe as they fight to reunite! I'd have read it.) The overall feeling I had by the end was that it was very ambitious, overdiligent, and half-successful. Even the typos started getting heavier by the end, as if the editor gave up. But it was a first novel. I have some others of hers that I'll read to compare.

I was glad to finally finish it, as the end kept dwindling down and got more ponderous. It's not a keeper, that's for sure, but I'm happy to have read it and actually seen for myself what the big whoop was all about. Overblown hysteria in the current pablum romance era, IMO.

As you have read in other reviews many people love, or really hate this book. It is worthy of those feelings. He is extremely harsh, he does rape and beat her...that was hard and even to the end while I understood him better I could never really *like* this man. She makes one stupid choice after the next they both do, I kept thinking it can't get worst for these two and it DOES ! really, it keeps piling on :(
However as you can see I gave this book five stars because it was extremely entertaining, it captivated you and yeah probably ticked you off a bit. I think by putting this into historical context I was more forgiving/understanding of some of cruelty. In this time period/context such behavior isnt so uncommon...even today when there is war and hate, intolernace,oppression, cruelty such behavior can be quite norm.
It took me a long time to get my hands on this semi rare book and it was worth it. It will stay on my keeper shelf simply for its bold and controversial take on romance.
GREAT read!!

I have just gotten done reading this book for the first time. In fact I was up all night. I have to admit that in the begining of this book I was ready to throw the book across the room...more than once. I was so upset that anything like this could be considered a romance. I'm not one to start a book and not finish though, and I'm very glad I didn't start with this one. This has to be one of the best books I've ever read. It made me feel overwhelming emotions of love and despair. Any book that can make me feel that strongly about it is a keeper, and I plan to keep this book forever. Hopefully her other books will prove to be as outstanding.

I didn't even bother thoroughly finishing this book, but felt so strongly about it that I had to write a review. There are 31 chapters and I read about 25 of them and skimmed to the end. The story drags on and is way too long. It is also so very depressing and covers just about every vile thing you can think of. Rape, abuse, incest, abduction, starvation, imprisonment, cheating, etc. The number of times the heroine Catherine was raped, almost raped, almost murdered, beaten, almost beaten to death and humiliated was just too many to count! It is somewhat traumatizing. I felt BAD after reading it and regretted that I had read all that I had. It stays with you and not in a good way.

As to why I even bothered reading it, this book is notorious and being the curious person that I am, I gave it a try. Curiosity did kill the cat....

The only redeeming quality about it is that it invokes emotions and is page turning. I couldn't stop reading. It was written well, but that is not enough to overcome the gruesomeness and filth that makes up almost all of the novel.

I don't even know why this is classified as a romance or even called a "bodice ripper." If you think this is romance, then you need a shrink! I've read bodice ripper novels by Catherine Coulter and Rosemary Rogers, and they are much tamer and in no way can compete with Stormfire. Stormfire is in a category all it's own, which I suppose is why it is still so popular after all these years.

Every woman likes a bad alpha boy once in a while, but this was just too much. The "hero" Sean was a psychopath. He was a rapist, sadistic abuser, a cheater, overly promiscuous, a vile murderer and a very unsavory character. He put the average "villain" to shame. To think that a woman would fall in love with him is beyond comprehension. Stockholm Syndrome?


So, if you are one of those like who me who has heard so much about this very novel, and are contemplating reading it, DO NOT BOTHER! It's horrible and will upset you. Yes, it's a work of fiction, but very upsetting nonetheless. -5 stars