Fire Within

Island Fire #8

by Amy Knupp

Environmental engineer/architect Sophie Alexander’s life blueprints have always centered on being solo, professionally and personally. Thanks to a less-than-stellar (aka majorly dysfunctional) family, she trusts no one and prefers to be alone…until she nearly dies alone.

Firefighter and eternal bachelor Nate Rottinghaus falls for Sophie the minute he lays eyes on her—while rescuing her from a burning building. Her defenses are down, but are his feelings enough to help her move beyond her past and embrace the Fire Within?

Genres: Romance, Contemporary Romance, Firefighters

111 pages, ebook

First published December 14, 2013

About the author

Amy Knupp is a USA Today Best-Selling author of contemporary romance and a freelance copy editor. She loves words and grammar and meaty, engrossing stories with complex characters.

Amy lives in Wisconsin with her husband, and has two sons, four cats, and a box turtle. She graduated from the University of Kansas with degrees in French and journalism. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, breaking up cat fights, watching college hoops, and annoying her family by correcting their grammar.

Reviews

[Angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sophie is minutes away from death when Nate, who is a firefighter, rescues her. He is really drawn to her and visits her in hospital. Sophie is drawn to him, too, but this scares her because of her past. I’m not going to tell you Sophie’s story, because you really need to read it and let the layers peel away as the story progresses. I loved Sophie’s bravery in trying to let go of her past to embrace her future – and what can you say about Nate. He has so much patience and compassion (as well as being totally hot!). We all need a Nate in our life. I absolutely loved this novella. I hope Sophie & Nate get a mention in future Island Fire books so we can see how it all works out.

[Yvonne Cruz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have come to love this series and this story reminds me why.
Rest assure that even though it’s part of a series, this book is a stand alone. That said, I highly recommend you read the previous stories. Each one is special and very good.
The main characters Sophie Alexander and firefighter Nate Rottinghaus meet when he rescues her from near death during a fire in her office. He felt drawn to her and goes to visit her in the hospital. He is surprised that no family is there with her .
Nate is drawn to Sophie and wants to see if they can have a relationship with her, but Sophie’s walls are high and mighty. Her childhood was not idillic and she has never felt she’s good enough to be loved.
It’s a heartbreaking but also heartwarming story that will touch your hearts. Will Sophie risk her heart to Nate or will fear hold her back?
Looking forward to more stories by this author.
I was entrusted a copy of this book. The opinions expressed are solely my own.

[Irene S · Rating 4 out of 5]

Opening up to Love… Sophie is used to repressing her feelings and letting her business consume her. Almost dying and being rescued by sexy firefighter, Nate, has Sophie starting to open up and look at her life differently. Though I found Sophie's actions frustrating at times, I understood her. Nate is a sweet man who wants to really know Sophie. The romance is sweet but there is some steamy scenes. I received a copy of this novella from the author. This is my honest and voluntarily given review. I enjoyed reading it.

[W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Saved from the fire

This is a very interesting, if shorter the typical story about a youung woman, Sophie, who was caught in a targeted arson fire at her office amd the firefighter who saved her life. I loved Nate's kindness and caring in the aftermath of his rescue of Sophie. It was really interesting the way Sophie made some fundamental changes to her life in the wake of the fire that offered true character growth opportunity.

I purchased a copy of this story and voluntarily chose to share my review.

[Barbara Murrin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Walking Wounded

It's amazing how many "walking wounded" there are--people who appear perfectly normal, but whose past experiences or damaged self-concepts prevent them from being willing or able to reach out for happiness. Sophie is one such, but Nate--wonderful (borderline stalkerish!)--Nate is able to help her. The story kept me balanced on the edge of trying to get Sophie to overcome her fears and worrying about Nate becoming a "creeper"! Very happy with the way it ended.

[Naomi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sophie is rescued from a burning building by Nate the firefighter. He has an attraction to her an is compelled to visit her in the hospital and wants to form a relationship with Sophie. She has repressed her feelings for so long due to family trauma, she shuts down on Nate's feelings from the beginning. Despite all he does to be there for her, she remains a wall and shuts him out at every turn. I couldn't really get into this one.

[Laura R · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my, who could resist a hunky firefighter who rescues you from a fire? I absolutely loved this story - the main characters were very believable and each had their own baggage to deal with as their relationship developed. Who doesn't have family issues that follow them in their dealings with other people? I also loved the camaraderie among the firefighters and the humor in the story.

[K B · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars
I received a free copy of the short novel Fire Within Island Fire series book 8 by Amy Knupp and this review was given freely.
Sophie and Nate is sweet and a little steamy. Oh to see Nate finally fall was glorious! This novella set around Thanksgiving has a dramatic opening,contains irony, a dysfunctional psychotic family and just a mention of the San Amaro firefighters.

[WB · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fire Within by Amy Knupp is a thoroughly enjoyable read.
This story shows how a life threatening event can change your way in the blink of an eye & this sometimes emotional story shows an amazing couple working through that whilst also dealing with the past & manages to fall in love.
I was gifted a copy of this ebook & leave my review so that others can read this amazing story.

[Evonne Hutton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learning is growing in this story as a singular woman finds her hot firefighter
Good characterization

[Rita · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved Nate but I found Sophie hard to relate to. Her experience is so different from mine and her reaction is diametrically opposite to what mine would be. I tend to over share.

[Susan Lovett · Rating 3 out of 5]

As good as the others

This Island Fire books are nice, quick reads, and this book is no exception. Handsome hero, romance, with a HEA. This series would be a great vacation read, and I do mean all 10 books, not just this one.

[Feija · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5 ⭐️ I really liked this book!!

[Wendy Keel · Rating 5 out of 5]

A good read

This one was my favorite of the three. Each can be read alone,but I'd read them together just because. Amy Knupp is a wonderful author and I can't wait to read more. This story felt fuller, more like a full novel than a novella.