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The World Gates #1
Memory of Fire: Book One of The World Gates
Lauren Dane discovers a doorway to another reality in Cat Creek, North Carolina -- and she crosses over, driven by a strange compulsion she can neither resist nor comprehend. Molly McColl is brought there against her will -- kidnapped from her trailer and carried into a realm that traps her, terrifies her...yet offers her a strange and wondrous escape.In an extraordinary universe of magic and monsters, two strangers sharing only pain and loss must now pursue the destiny that has united them. Because worlds are suddenly threatened by an evil beyond imagining -- the world they have entered...and the one the have left behind.
384 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 2002
36 people are currently reading
491 people want to read
About the author
Holly Lisle
108 books449 followersHolly Lisle has been writing fiction professionally since 1991, when she sold FIRE IN THE MIST, the novel that won her the Compton Crook Award for best first novel. She has to date published more than thirty novels and several comprehensive writing courses. She has just published WARPAINT, the second stand-alone novel in her Cadence Drake series.
Holly had an ideal childhood for a writer…which is to say, it was filled with foreign countries and exotic terrains, alien cultures, new languages, the occasional earthquake, flood, or civil war, and one story about a bear, which follows:
“So. Back when I was ten years old, my father and I had finished hunting ducks for our dinner and were walking across the tundra in Alaska toward the spot on the river where we’d tied our boat. We had a couple miles to go by boat to get back to the Moravian Children’s Home, where we lived.
“My father was carrying the big bag of decoys and the shotgun; I was carrying the small bag of ducks.
“It was getting dark, we could hear the thud, thud, thud of the generator across the tundra, and suddenly he stopped, pointed down to a pie-pan sized indentation in the tundra that was rapidly filling with water, and said, in a calm and steady voice, “That’s a bear footprint. From the size of it, it’s a grizzly. The fact that the track is filling with water right now means the bear’s still around.”
“Which got my attention, but not as much as what he said next.
” ‘I don’t have the gun with me that will kill a bear,’ he told me. ‘I just have the one that will make him angry. So if we see the bear, I’m going to shoot him so he’ll attack me. I want you to run to the river, follow it to the boat, get the boat back home, and tell everyone what happened.’
“The rest of our walk was very quiet. He was, I’m sure, listening for the bear. I was doing my damnedest to make sure that I remembered where the boat was, how to get to it, how to start the pull-cord engine, and how to drive it back home, because I did not want to let him down.
“We were not eaten by a bear that night…but neither is that walk back from our hunt for supper a part of my life I’ll ever forget.
“I keep that story in mind as I write. If what I’m putting on paper isn’t at least as memorable as having a grizzly stalking my father and me across the tundra while I was carrying a bag of delicious-smelling ducks, it doesn’t make my cut.”
You can find Holly on her personal site:
Hollylisle.com
You can find Cadence Drake, Holly's currently in-progress series, on her site:
CadenceDrake.com
You can find Holly's books, courses, writing workshops, and so on here:
The HowToThinkSideways.com Shop, as well as on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and in a number of bookstores in the US and around the world.
Holly had an ideal childhood for a writer…which is to say, it was filled with foreign countries and exotic terrains, alien cultures, new languages, the occasional earthquake, flood, or civil war, and one story about a bear, which follows:
“So. Back when I was ten years old, my father and I had finished hunting ducks for our dinner and were walking across the tundra in Alaska toward the spot on the river where we’d tied our boat. We had a couple miles to go by boat to get back to the Moravian Children’s Home, where we lived.
“My father was carrying the big bag of decoys and the shotgun; I was carrying the small bag of ducks.
“It was getting dark, we could hear the thud, thud, thud of the generator across the tundra, and suddenly he stopped, pointed down to a pie-pan sized indentation in the tundra that was rapidly filling with water, and said, in a calm and steady voice, “That’s a bear footprint. From the size of it, it’s a grizzly. The fact that the track is filling with water right now means the bear’s still around.”
“Which got my attention, but not as much as what he said next.
” ‘I don’t have the gun with me that will kill a bear,’ he told me. ‘I just have the one that will make him angry. So if we see the bear, I’m going to shoot him so he’ll attack me. I want you to run to the river, follow it to the boat, get the boat back home, and tell everyone what happened.’
“The rest of our walk was very quiet. He was, I’m sure, listening for the bear. I was doing my damnedest to make sure that I remembered where the boat was, how to get to it, how to start the pull-cord engine, and how to drive it back home, because I did not want to let him down.
“We were not eaten by a bear that night…but neither is that walk back from our hunt for supper a part of my life I’ll ever forget.
“I keep that story in mind as I write. If what I’m putting on paper isn’t at least as memorable as having a grizzly stalking my father and me across the tundra while I was carrying a bag of delicious-smelling ducks, it doesn’t make my cut.”
You can find Holly on her personal site:
Hollylisle.com
You can find Cadence Drake, Holly's currently in-progress series, on her site:
CadenceDrake.com
You can find Holly's books, courses, writing workshops, and so on here:
The HowToThinkSideways.com Shop, as well as on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and in a number of bookstores in the US and around the world.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
June 27, 2009
I'm convinced I was sold on this book because of the galloping horse and rider on the cover. I'd heard of Holly Lisle and wanted to try one of her books. Perhaps I shouldn't have started with this one. One of my problems is that I try to convince myself that I enjoy the fantasy/sci fi genre, but lately I've felt disappointed with everything in that genre--short of LOTR, Dune and Ender's Game--that I've picked up.
The story concept had promise. Molly, a young woman in Cat Creek, NC is kidnapped from her bed into another world where she discovers she has magical healing powers. Lauren, another woman from her same town, discovers she can create bridges between worlds. What neither of them realize is that the use of magic is having dire effects on Earth (interesting idea!) The plot gets wrapped around the Cat Creek Sentinels--seemingly "average" citizens who guard the magical portals--as they track the source of a mysterious flu that threatens to wipe out the world. If only I could have distinguished between the 8+ different Sentinels, then perhaps later revelations about them would have been more dramatic. Perhaps if the "bad guys" had actually been fleshed out with motivations/characteristics/physical descriptions--anything!--I would have cared more. In fact, besides Lauren, Molly, and June Bug, i really didn't care about anyone else. In the other world Oria the leader of a humanoid race of elf-like people (that's my best guess, anyway) develops a very bland and unwarrented romance with one of the humans, but the relationship seemed so flimsy that I could only laugh when I read about it.
I also disliked the style. None of the dialogue sounds less like actual people talking than characters on an after school special. Characters are constantly explaining "duh" things in far more words than a normal person would. Description is mundane and forced. Don't bother unless you love the fantasy genre.
The story concept had promise. Molly, a young woman in Cat Creek, NC is kidnapped from her bed into another world where she discovers she has magical healing powers. Lauren, another woman from her same town, discovers she can create bridges between worlds. What neither of them realize is that the use of magic is having dire effects on Earth (interesting idea!) The plot gets wrapped around the Cat Creek Sentinels--seemingly "average" citizens who guard the magical portals--as they track the source of a mysterious flu that threatens to wipe out the world. If only I could have distinguished between the 8+ different Sentinels, then perhaps later revelations about them would have been more dramatic. Perhaps if the "bad guys" had actually been fleshed out with motivations/characteristics/physical descriptions--anything!--I would have cared more. In fact, besides Lauren, Molly, and June Bug, i really didn't care about anyone else. In the other world Oria the leader of a humanoid race of elf-like people (that's my best guess, anyway) develops a very bland and unwarrented romance with one of the humans, but the relationship seemed so flimsy that I could only laugh when I read about it.
I also disliked the style. None of the dialogue sounds less like actual people talking than characters on an after school special. Characters are constantly explaining "duh" things in far more words than a normal person would. Description is mundane and forced. Don't bother unless you love the fantasy genre.
January 14, 2010
Really I give it 3.5 stars, but that wasn't an option. I'm trying to be more critical with my ratings so I can save 5's for really awesome books. This was a quick read, it pulls you along and is hard to put down. Although the major events are quite predictable, there are enough small details and plot twists to always be surprising and interesting. The overall ideas and world Lisle has created are very thorough and consistent. I remember noticing a few tiny things that weren't resolved or seemed contradictory, but I can't remember them now, so obviously they didn't affect my enjoyment of the book. I also read it rather quickly (2 days), so it was easy to notice those things because my memory was fresh. The characters and connections to the real world are believable which make the book all the more fun. One annoying thing though was Lauren constantly carrying her kid around every where she went. I think she could have found a safe place to put him while fighting battles instead of him constantly begging for "biteys".
January 21, 2023
I read this first a long time ago - probably close to 20 years. I really liked it then, though i think i saw some of the same inconsistencies i saw this time around But they bothered me less because i was caught up in the story. And i was younger and perhaps more idealistic and i didn't know anything about healthy relationships, and the idea of finding someone that makes you whole seemed romantic and hopeful. I read it again, i think, sometime in college. This is my third reading. I think each time i liked it less, the inconsistencies were more glaring. Perhaps even more, i read about the 'love' these characters feel and i can't help but roll my eyes. They are all so unhealthy. Perhaps i am just really extra jaded right now - but no, these people are not whole or healthy and romantic relationships don't actually fix that, sorry.
But the writing is decent and the descriptions of the various peoples are interesting, the magic is interesting, the concepts are interesting. There's enough humor I chuckled, and the less important characters are mostly fleshed out and three-dimensional.
It's a easy read, a fairly fun read, it doesn't demand much of its reader.
But the writing is decent and the descriptions of the various peoples are interesting, the magic is interesting, the concepts are interesting. There's enough humor I chuckled, and the less important characters are mostly fleshed out and three-dimensional.
It's a easy read, a fairly fun read, it doesn't demand much of its reader.
June 29, 2025
This book was a 2.5... there is a enough of an interesting attempt at worlds building and magic to ride out. The characters were rather predictable and I found it riddled with plot holes; the author wouldn't elaborate on a new idea introduced or would just add something new as if it was part of the story all along. Also weirdly predicted Covid? A lot of things were not fleshed out properly and read like a young person trying to write maturely at times, almost as if two people wrote a series of vignettes and pushed them together.
January 16, 2020
A great premise with solid world-building and largely relatable characters. I'll likely read more.
Rated down because I'm terribly confused why a character who knows that Godd are just regular people from an Upworld would still be carrying Christian guilt about being a lesbian.
Also, Molly's military training and refusal yo give in to Stockholm Syndrome lasted....3 weeks and then she fell deeply in love with a guy with zero real knowledge of him beyond a surface story or three?
Rated down because I'm terribly confused why a character who knows that Godd are just regular people from an Upworld would still be carrying Christian guilt about being a lesbian.
Also, Molly's military training and refusal yo give in to Stockholm Syndrome lasted....3 weeks and then she fell deeply in love with a guy with zero real knowledge of him beyond a surface story or three?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 23, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. I liked Molly more than Lauren, especially later on in the book. The only thing that annoyed me was Lauren's son, Jake. It might be just me but I found the kid annoying and completely irrelevant to the story. Perhaps his relevance will materialize in the next two books since it's a trilogy.
April 19, 2018
I have such mixed feeling about this. The world was great, the setup was great, I was really invested in everyone succeeding in saving two worlds. But the ending was very disappointing, and none of the romance really moved me.
September 3, 2017
Very engaging! The plot may not have been the strongest, but storytelling definitely had a pull to it. Kept my interest high. :)
January 26, 2019
I really enjoyed the worldbuilding and characters and the deep intrigue, almost detective like stuff, really hooked me.
December 7, 2020
Slow start, but I enjoyed it in the end.
September 19, 2021
Oh, such a lovely, complex, enticing and seductive yarn!
January 19, 2025
An exciting and adventurous story involving portals to other realms, magic and monsters. Odd romantic development. But other than that a fun read.
Want to read
August 17, 2025no audio
November 20, 2025
Re-read.
November 26, 2012
Memory of Fire is a very interesting start to what looks like an interesting series.
Beyond that, I'm not sure what else to say.
Lauren Dane wants nothing more than to be with her deceased husband. Barring that, not feeling alone would be nice. Yes, she has her son, Jake, but he's two. At that age, you give emotional support instead of receiving it.
She's an interesting character. I admired how devoted she was to her son, and I like how her husband's death is her weak spot. She really would do anything to get him back. However, one of the points in this story is, to paraphrase, death is a gate you don't open. The consequences are pretty staggering. (There's a great scene towards the end of the novel that illustrates this.)
Molly McColl, the other main character, just wants to get back home after being kidnapped by strange beings from another world. I thought her reactions to her new place were well-written, and I sympathized with her. However, it was difficult for me to understand some of her choices because understanding them would mean that she's fairly superficial in some ways. (In thinking about it, superficial isn't really the word. Easily led, perhaps? Either way, I had trouble with her choices.) As her reactions shifted, I found some parts of them hard to believe.
I also liked Eric, the sheriff. He was a very interesting character. I loved watching the back and forth between him and Lauren. Their past history intrigued me.
I really like how actions have definite (and sometimes horrifying) consequences. People who go "downworld" can work magic, but that magic has consequences "upworld". Nasty stuff, too. And when you see what the Old Gods left behind them as they marched toward greener pastures (like upscale folk fleeing inner city sprawl for the country), it made the moral waters nice and muddy. I liked that. I liked how each side was right in their own way and wrong as well. And I'm hoping a third way appears (as hinted in the story) that answers a lot of the questions this story left.
I think that's the biggest frustration I had with this novel. It's definitely first in what feels like a long series, at least as huge as Wheel of Time. Yeah, even though it's contemporary fantasy, it feels like epic fantasy, and that's not bad. In fact, I really like it. But that means a lot of questions were left unanswered by the time I got to the last page.
The ending is just...weird, and makes very little sense. I think I'm going to have to read the next one to see if I can figure out what the heck is happening.
I liked it, that's why I gave it three stars. It's a good series. It examines some very interesting moral ground and makes it very real at the same time.
By the way, if you're hoping for a romance in this, and there are hints of it, you'll be disappointed.
Anyway, I'll see if I can find book #2. If I'm going to stick with a series, book #2 is usually what clinches it.
Beyond that, I'm not sure what else to say.
Lauren Dane wants nothing more than to be with her deceased husband. Barring that, not feeling alone would be nice. Yes, she has her son, Jake, but he's two. At that age, you give emotional support instead of receiving it.
She's an interesting character. I admired how devoted she was to her son, and I like how her husband's death is her weak spot. She really would do anything to get him back. However, one of the points in this story is, to paraphrase, death is a gate you don't open. The consequences are pretty staggering. (There's a great scene towards the end of the novel that illustrates this.)
Molly McColl, the other main character, just wants to get back home after being kidnapped by strange beings from another world. I thought her reactions to her new place were well-written, and I sympathized with her. However, it was difficult for me to understand some of her choices because understanding them would mean that she's fairly superficial in some ways. (In thinking about it, superficial isn't really the word. Easily led, perhaps? Either way, I had trouble with her choices.) As her reactions shifted, I found some parts of them hard to believe.
I also liked Eric, the sheriff. He was a very interesting character. I loved watching the back and forth between him and Lauren. Their past history intrigued me.
I really like how actions have definite (and sometimes horrifying) consequences. People who go "downworld" can work magic, but that magic has consequences "upworld". Nasty stuff, too. And when you see what the Old Gods left behind them as they marched toward greener pastures (like upscale folk fleeing inner city sprawl for the country), it made the moral waters nice and muddy. I liked that. I liked how each side was right in their own way and wrong as well. And I'm hoping a third way appears (as hinted in the story) that answers a lot of the questions this story left.
I think that's the biggest frustration I had with this novel. It's definitely first in what feels like a long series, at least as huge as Wheel of Time. Yeah, even though it's contemporary fantasy, it feels like epic fantasy, and that's not bad. In fact, I really like it. But that means a lot of questions were left unanswered by the time I got to the last page.
The ending is just...weird, and makes very little sense. I think I'm going to have to read the next one to see if I can figure out what the heck is happening.
I liked it, that's why I gave it three stars. It's a good series. It examines some very interesting moral ground and makes it very real at the same time.
By the way, if you're hoping for a romance in this, and there are hints of it, you'll be disappointed.
Anyway, I'll see if I can find book #2. If I'm going to stick with a series, book #2 is usually what clinches it.
September 29, 2011
I have taken part in a lot of Holy Lisle's classes and seminars, and found them so helpful as a writer that I thought it was about time to read one of her novels. You know, to see if the teacher can...well, do. And can she ever! I really enjoyed this book. The characters were fully formed people I'm pretty sure I will run into in the store later today. The setting was awesome. I found the entire premise, that there are layers of worlds up and down and that some can cross over, to be fascinating. I won't ever look at a mirror the same way again! The plot had me guessing from beginning to end, in a good way. I don't want to leave a spoiler here, so I'll just say it's always the little things that come back and bite you in the arse! Loved that, loved the world of Oria. That the layers of worlds is an explanation for all our mythological gods is awesome.
In short, this is a really fun fantasy read, full of mystery and suspense, and a few life lessons. If you like fantasy mixed with your reality, you'll like this. And if you are an aspiring writer, give her clinics and online classes a try. You'll be glad you did!
In short, this is a really fun fantasy read, full of mystery and suspense, and a few life lessons. If you like fantasy mixed with your reality, you'll like this. And if you are an aspiring writer, give her clinics and online classes a try. You'll be glad you did!
August 16, 2009
Lauren Dane, a gateweaver, travels back and forth between Earth and Oria. Her parents erased her mind when she was a child and she is re-learning how to travel back and forth...and why she should or shouldn't.
Molly McColl, a healer of epic proportions, is a hybrid alien/human who is kidnapped by Orians and foribly returned to Oria as their savior.
On Oria, humans have spectacular magical abilities, however, magic used on the alien planet adversely affects Earth. The sentinels are tasked with protecting humans from the feedback of this magical usage. Eric is the leader of the Sentinels and he works with Lauren, as well as the other Sentinels to figure out how a plague on Earth was started and how to contain it.
This is an extremely complex world with numerous dangers and challenges facing all the characers...both the good and the evil ones. I enjoyed the layering of the foundation and the dissection of the characters. I especially enjoyed Lauren and Molly's adventures.
Molly McColl, a healer of epic proportions, is a hybrid alien/human who is kidnapped by Orians and foribly returned to Oria as their savior.
On Oria, humans have spectacular magical abilities, however, magic used on the alien planet adversely affects Earth. The sentinels are tasked with protecting humans from the feedback of this magical usage. Eric is the leader of the Sentinels and he works with Lauren, as well as the other Sentinels to figure out how a plague on Earth was started and how to contain it.
This is an extremely complex world with numerous dangers and challenges facing all the characers...both the good and the evil ones. I enjoyed the layering of the foundation and the dissection of the characters. I especially enjoyed Lauren and Molly's adventures.
July 22, 2009
The start of a rather good fantasy series— there are ‘gates” that lead from universe to universe, and those who keep the gates protect each universe from stray bits of magic, monsters, etc. Some universes are “lower” than our own, wherein we would be gods should we be seen or interact with the individuals on that world. Conversely, there are also universes where the inhabitants there would be gods to us. The Gatekeepers make sure that the gates are kept protected, and closed… but evil rarely accepts rules that would stifle it and when an imbalance occurs between another world and our own, it may mean disaster for both worlds.
The comparison between both worlds was wonderful, as was the description of how magic works and why on both our own world and there. The characters, both good and evil were engaging and I am eager to start the next book in the trilogy.
The comparison between both worlds was wonderful, as was the description of how magic works and why on both our own world and there. The characters, both good and evil were engaging and I am eager to start the next book in the trilogy.
July 20, 2010
This book follows two women, Lauren and Molly, who have recently settled in a small town in NC as they learn about their backgrounds and their roles in saving both our world and the interdimensional worlds linked to it. Both these women are strong heroines that it was fun to get to know. The story clicks along and the book is an incredibly easy read. I would say that the characters and the small town where the story takes place feel a little superficially drawn and I wonder if the fact that Lisle based the setting on a place she had actually lived made her more likely to telegraph some of the descriptions. Additionally, the beginning felt like I was picking up a sequel for which I hadn't read the first book. A more logical introduction to the story and characters would have helped. Still, I look forward to readig the next in the series.
August 1, 2016
I love Holly Lisle, and I wanted to love this book. However, I honestly just didn't connect with Lauren at all. I know she's went through incredibly hard times, but it's hard to feel sorry for someone who acts as selfishly as she acted throughout the book. Being perfectly content to put her needs first and not even truly caring that she murdered her sister- instead of even attempting to listen to her, because why would she?- after forcing everyone else to not do just that- again, not listening- did not really endear her to me either. I also never made up my mind about Erik. I am, however, a huge fan of Jake, and I liked Molly, although again she never seemed to question whether her healing would have consequences when she learned that magic did. I'll probably read the next book, but not immediately.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 22, 2013
A badly written novel with a lot of cliche sentences and easy choices. A enormous lack of creativity deciding to devide universes through mirrors. The main character is hard to identify with or experience as awesome epic protagonist because she has to take care of her son. The death of her newly discoved sister is pointless and only depresses the reader at the end of the story, but that she reincarnates is too much of a joke and does not make me curious to find out why it happened but just annoys me. I will definitely not be reading and sequels and don't recommend this book to fantasy lovers.
April 30, 2008
I bought this one evening after book group on a whim. I'd heard of Holly Lisle, and figured I'd check her out. I enjoyed it, but mainly because it was such a quick read, rather than because I was really into it. I liked the small-town conspiracy aspect, and I liked the idea of the mirror-gates. But the actual other world and the magical laws associated with it were not so inspiring to me.
September 8, 2016
I remember my phase of reading ever Ms. Lisle book. This series I really enjoyed. She's an excellent fantasy weaver. Her worlds are fascinating and the magic rules she creates are different. I don't remember the names of these characters in the book, but I do remember enjoy the story and wanting to know more. Ms. Lisle is an excellent writer.
February 22, 2013
This is one of the best fantasy trilogies I have read. Why? Because of the characters. So rarely do you see protagonists like Lauren: a 30-something adult, with a child and a history. I loved it; so refreshing and different. The story was great as well, and I loved the way magic in this world is used.
March 23, 2016
Another book downloaded for my Nook, and a total winner. I like Holly Lisle's work to begin with, but this collection of characters and world just sucked me right into the story. Better yet, the characters had interesting backgrounds without a lot of exposition, and secrets that were kept secrets while the main 'secret' was explored. Definitely will be looking for the sequel.
August 15, 2016
I loved this science fiction/fantasy novel by Holly Lisle. I was hooked at the opening scene, and the pace of the novel kept me reading to the end. There was a lot of mystery in the back story, and the worlds traveled were easy to visualize. Compelling characters, good plot twists, and fascinating places to explore.
October 17, 2018
now i am hooked. This was such a great, easy and creative book. i was hooked after the first page.
The characters were easy to fall in love with and follow, along with the story. the author made the mental visions so easy and vivid of the surroundings and the characters actions felt so real.
i would highly recommend this author and this book.
The characters were easy to fall in love with and follow, along with the story. the author made the mental visions so easy and vivid of the surroundings and the characters actions felt so real.
i would highly recommend this author and this book.
May 1, 2012
This is not my usual genre.
Holly Lisle definately knows how to create page turning scenes with realistic worlds full of characters that are beleivable and complex.
I had to read all 3 books to find out what ahppens.... enjoy...
Holly Lisle definately knows how to create page turning scenes with realistic worlds full of characters that are beleivable and complex.
I had to read all 3 books to find out what ahppens.... enjoy...
March 28, 2014
This is a solid 3.5. Fun, quick read. Maybe a bit too heavy on the "true love" thing. I liked the fact that the main character had a 2-year-old son that she had to drag around with her while casting spells, shooting guns, and doing other kick-ass things. It was a unique and realistic twist.
June 5, 2019
A fine start to a trilogy. Magic and multi-worlds are out there and this series posits the idea that some people can crossover and magic done on other worlds can have consequences in ours - sometimes with the potential to be catastrophic!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews