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Dreams On Fire
Dreams On Fire by Kathleen O'Brien released on Mar 23, 1990 is available now for purchase.
192 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 1990
41 people want to read
About the author
Kathleen O'Brien
146 books91 followersSince the day Harlequin bought her first novel, Kathleen has published more than 30 titles with them- everything from hot, sexy contemporaries to dark, brooding suspense. Read in more than 30 countries and 29 languages, she's a five-time finalist for the prestigious RWA RITA Award, a winner of the Maggie Award, and a three-time finalist for Romantic Times' Reviewer's Choice.
Kathleen comes from a family of writers, poets, and journalists- though she may be the one shameless romantic in the bunch. A true Cancer, she values home and family above everything and wouldn't dream of ditching a single friend, memory, gift, or love letter. Consequently, her office is a mess, full of books, colored cut glass, photo albums, Madame Alexander dolls, and a cockatiel who whistles the theme from "The X Files." She is addicted to Mozart and Elvis, Dancing With the Stars, Dorothy Dunnett novels, and sugar-free Popsicles.
Kathleen comes from a family of writers, poets, and journalists- though she may be the one shameless romantic in the bunch. A true Cancer, she values home and family above everything and wouldn't dream of ditching a single friend, memory, gift, or love letter. Consequently, her office is a mess, full of books, colored cut glass, photo albums, Madame Alexander dolls, and a cockatiel who whistles the theme from "The X Files." She is addicted to Mozart and Elvis, Dancing With the Stars, Dorothy Dunnett novels, and sugar-free Popsicles.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 29, 2017
Re Dreams On Fire - Kathleen O'Brien's third HPlandia offering takes us to New Orleans and Mardi Gras. The h is an illegitimate orphan who has been running a bookstore owned by the H's estranged mother for five years. The H is a big NYC businessman who inherits the rare bookstore when his mother dies, he feels the bookstore doesn't look good on his profit and loss statement, so he wants to turn it into a boutique.
This one is a bit complicated on the backstory, so I am going to put the details out there and then go over the plot. The h is 23 and as noted, an orphan. Her mother died when she was 7, but she had been placed in a Catholic New Orleans boarding school before then. This was paid for by the h's unknown father.
After the h turned 18 and her mother was gone, she hired a detective to find out who her father was and the detective came back with the news that she was the daughter of the H's father's business partner. The man is now dead, but he left behind a legitimate daughter and a widow.
The h also learned that her father's business partner's estranged wife was living in the Big Easy and running a rare bookstore. The h went to meet the woman in order to learn a bit more about the man who fathered her.
She starts working for the woman, who hated or feared her husband (the reasons she left are never really explained,) and the woman told the h that she had to leave her son as well, because she feared her former husband would hurt the H, her son, if she stayed or tried to take him, (this is a mystery that is never solved during the book.)
The woman does say that both her former husband and the h's father were obsessed with making money, and may not have been too choosy how they did it. When the woman died, she wrote into her will that the h will always have a job at the store but the store itself is to go to the H.
So when the book opens, the h has just gotten a plane ticket and a summons to NYC to meet her former boss's son, the H about the fate of the store. In actuality the guy in New Orleans she has been dating and is falling for hard over the past week is the H under a different name. He lied to the h about who he was to check things out. The h finds out right before she is supposed to go to NYC that the H, who lurve mojo she just turned down at a very under dressed moment causing him an unspeakable amount of frustration, gave her a false name.
The h goes to see the H in New York. She and the H are having a few eyeball battles and the h is pretty snarky, but she maintains her composure. Then the h's half sister and the girl's mother walk in and the h is disturbed, but interested to meet the only relative she now has alive. (The h never tells the half sister they are related for the whole book, she is sure that she was her father's dirty secret.)
The H, the h's half sister and the h all go to the theatre together and then the H and h go back to the H's penthouse for dinner and to talk about the store. The H wants to turn it into a clothes boutique, but the h is passionate about rare books and the other historical things in the store. She feels the H is too quick to put profit before people and their history.
She makes a deal with the H that if she can make a $10,000 profit in two months - a figure comparable to what his clothes boutique profits should be- the bookstore stays a bookstore and she runs it. If she fails she agrees to work in the clothes store for an unspecified amount of time. The H tries to seduce her again, but she is pretty sharpish in pointing out her body and unicorn handling status are not forfeit in the deal.
The h goes back to New O and starts finding ways to promote the bookstore. She is working hard, but big sales are rare and then the H shows up to live in his mother's house. The h rents a little garden cottage in the back of the house, and it soon becomes clear the H has shown up to finish his seduction of the h.
Eventually with some time together and propinquity, the H succeeds in swinging his club. The h is definitely mellowing in her attitudes about pump and dump rich guys and she knows she is in love and thinks the H is loving her back.
Then the H literally gets out of bed to go help the h's half sister, who suddenly shows up in New Orleans. The implication is that the h is the H's tart on the side and the half sister is the woman he will probably marry. The h figures out that she has been had and takes off. She does a great job of not sobbing hysterically, even tho she is srsly shattered and manages to give the H a very cold shoulder and polite thanks for playing stud toy on her way out the door.
The H is little perturbed by the h's brush off, but the h knows full well that men like him are cheap and tacky and she just feels used. At least the unfortunate incident helps her get her brain in gear to come up with some really inventive ways to sell the books and memorabilia that the store carries.
The H continues to pop up with the h's half sister in tow and hanging on him like a limpet. The h manages to be cordial and is well on her way to winning the contest. The H tries to drop the h's sister off at the main house and sneak into the h's for little boudoir bouncing on the side, but the h wisely keeps her door locked and the H goes away.
Eventually the big day arrives and the h's sales need to be totaled. It is Mardi Gras in New Orleans and we get some HP Mardi Gras scenery and the h gets some beads. The H takes her out to dinner to celebrate the end of the contest and the h forgets herself and confides to the H about her father. The wine must have gone to her head along with the H's attempts a romance, because the h has never told anyone who her father was.
The H reacts badly and accuses the h's mother of basically being a lying tart. The h does not take that well AT ALL, and she verbally lashes the H to his knees. The h leaves to go back to the bookstore and when she gets there, the bookstore is on fire. One of the customers was smoking a cigar and did not get it fully extinguished and everything is burning. The h tries to get into the store to save a really precious Civil War diary, but the H won't let her go in and instead tries to rescue the diary himself.
They are all saved by firemen, but the store burns down completely - along with the h's diary. The next day the H is at his house and doing okay, tho he is a bit singed around the edges. The h feels horribly guilty and like everything is her fault. She goes to apologize to the H and meets her half sister on the way out the door, the half sis is going back to NYC and the h figures the H will soon follow.
This seems to be verified by the pink lipstick the H is sporting on his face. The h apologizes to the H for putting him in a position where he felt he had to risk his life over a book and the H tells her that she won the contest. The h doesn't care, she doesn't want to see the H anymore and the H then explains that he and the half sister are just friends, he loves the h. At first he was shocked that his father's partner would abandon a child, but the h looks like her dad and he is sorry for doubting her. The h declares her true love back and the h and H lurve it up for the big HEA and with wedding bells on the after-boudoir bounce agenda.
This one was great in intensity and drama but really bad on explanations. Plus the H and h aren't together enough to really believe that he actually loves her or really does see her as anything other than a Mardi Gras fling. There is no H pov or any talk of their future.
Most of the book is the h emoting about this or that, but there is relatively little interaction between the H and h except for almost seductions and then a few actual seductions. KO is a great writer in terms of atmosphere, but she did not put enough plot answers in the story to make it a really satisfying read. I wasn't sure the H really did love the h and the whole interrelated family bits are never revealed to either the half sister or anyone but he H and h.
I liked this, and if I had my rosy glasses turned up, I could almost buy the HEA. But the story needed more plot resolution and more H and h time. Cause as it was, the H was with the OW far more than the h in the book, and while the h was great and the OW was nice, I wasn't sure what or who I was supposed to be rooting for and that is never a good way to leave HPlandia.
This one is a bit complicated on the backstory, so I am going to put the details out there and then go over the plot. The h is 23 and as noted, an orphan. Her mother died when she was 7, but she had been placed in a Catholic New Orleans boarding school before then. This was paid for by the h's unknown father.
After the h turned 18 and her mother was gone, she hired a detective to find out who her father was and the detective came back with the news that she was the daughter of the H's father's business partner. The man is now dead, but he left behind a legitimate daughter and a widow.
The h also learned that her father's business partner's estranged wife was living in the Big Easy and running a rare bookstore. The h went to meet the woman in order to learn a bit more about the man who fathered her.
She starts working for the woman, who hated or feared her husband (the reasons she left are never really explained,) and the woman told the h that she had to leave her son as well, because she feared her former husband would hurt the H, her son, if she stayed or tried to take him, (this is a mystery that is never solved during the book.)
The woman does say that both her former husband and the h's father were obsessed with making money, and may not have been too choosy how they did it. When the woman died, she wrote into her will that the h will always have a job at the store but the store itself is to go to the H.
So when the book opens, the h has just gotten a plane ticket and a summons to NYC to meet her former boss's son, the H about the fate of the store. In actuality the guy in New Orleans she has been dating and is falling for hard over the past week is the H under a different name. He lied to the h about who he was to check things out. The h finds out right before she is supposed to go to NYC that the H, who lurve mojo she just turned down at a very under dressed moment causing him an unspeakable amount of frustration, gave her a false name.
The h goes to see the H in New York. She and the H are having a few eyeball battles and the h is pretty snarky, but she maintains her composure. Then the h's half sister and the girl's mother walk in and the h is disturbed, but interested to meet the only relative she now has alive. (The h never tells the half sister they are related for the whole book, she is sure that she was her father's dirty secret.)
The H, the h's half sister and the h all go to the theatre together and then the H and h go back to the H's penthouse for dinner and to talk about the store. The H wants to turn it into a clothes boutique, but the h is passionate about rare books and the other historical things in the store. She feels the H is too quick to put profit before people and their history.
She makes a deal with the H that if she can make a $10,000 profit in two months - a figure comparable to what his clothes boutique profits should be- the bookstore stays a bookstore and she runs it. If she fails she agrees to work in the clothes store for an unspecified amount of time. The H tries to seduce her again, but she is pretty sharpish in pointing out her body and unicorn handling status are not forfeit in the deal.
The h goes back to New O and starts finding ways to promote the bookstore. She is working hard, but big sales are rare and then the H shows up to live in his mother's house. The h rents a little garden cottage in the back of the house, and it soon becomes clear the H has shown up to finish his seduction of the h.
Eventually with some time together and propinquity, the H succeeds in swinging his club. The h is definitely mellowing in her attitudes about pump and dump rich guys and she knows she is in love and thinks the H is loving her back.
Then the H literally gets out of bed to go help the h's half sister, who suddenly shows up in New Orleans. The implication is that the h is the H's tart on the side and the half sister is the woman he will probably marry. The h figures out that she has been had and takes off. She does a great job of not sobbing hysterically, even tho she is srsly shattered and manages to give the H a very cold shoulder and polite thanks for playing stud toy on her way out the door.
The H is little perturbed by the h's brush off, but the h knows full well that men like him are cheap and tacky and she just feels used. At least the unfortunate incident helps her get her brain in gear to come up with some really inventive ways to sell the books and memorabilia that the store carries.
The H continues to pop up with the h's half sister in tow and hanging on him like a limpet. The h manages to be cordial and is well on her way to winning the contest. The H tries to drop the h's sister off at the main house and sneak into the h's for little boudoir bouncing on the side, but the h wisely keeps her door locked and the H goes away.
Eventually the big day arrives and the h's sales need to be totaled. It is Mardi Gras in New Orleans and we get some HP Mardi Gras scenery and the h gets some beads. The H takes her out to dinner to celebrate the end of the contest and the h forgets herself and confides to the H about her father. The wine must have gone to her head along with the H's attempts a romance, because the h has never told anyone who her father was.
The H reacts badly and accuses the h's mother of basically being a lying tart. The h does not take that well AT ALL, and she verbally lashes the H to his knees. The h leaves to go back to the bookstore and when she gets there, the bookstore is on fire. One of the customers was smoking a cigar and did not get it fully extinguished and everything is burning. The h tries to get into the store to save a really precious Civil War diary, but the H won't let her go in and instead tries to rescue the diary himself.
They are all saved by firemen, but the store burns down completely - along with the h's diary. The next day the H is at his house and doing okay, tho he is a bit singed around the edges. The h feels horribly guilty and like everything is her fault. She goes to apologize to the H and meets her half sister on the way out the door, the half sis is going back to NYC and the h figures the H will soon follow.
This seems to be verified by the pink lipstick the H is sporting on his face. The h apologizes to the H for putting him in a position where he felt he had to risk his life over a book and the H tells her that she won the contest. The h doesn't care, she doesn't want to see the H anymore and the H then explains that he and the half sister are just friends, he loves the h. At first he was shocked that his father's partner would abandon a child, but the h looks like her dad and he is sorry for doubting her. The h declares her true love back and the h and H lurve it up for the big HEA and with wedding bells on the after-boudoir bounce agenda.
This one was great in intensity and drama but really bad on explanations. Plus the H and h aren't together enough to really believe that he actually loves her or really does see her as anything other than a Mardi Gras fling. There is no H pov or any talk of their future.
Most of the book is the h emoting about this or that, but there is relatively little interaction between the H and h except for almost seductions and then a few actual seductions. KO is a great writer in terms of atmosphere, but she did not put enough plot answers in the story to make it a really satisfying read. I wasn't sure the H really did love the h and the whole interrelated family bits are never revealed to either the half sister or anyone but he H and h.
I liked this, and if I had my rosy glasses turned up, I could almost buy the HEA. But the story needed more plot resolution and more H and h time. Cause as it was, the H was with the OW far more than the h in the book, and while the h was great and the OW was nice, I wasn't sure what or who I was supposed to be rooting for and that is never a good way to leave HPlandia.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 13, 2011
I really enjoyed this older Harlequin Presents by Kathleen O'Brien. It took place in New Orleans during Mardi Gras. Great fun!
pback-to-read
May 27, 2020Love was such a dangerous game
In less than a week, in the dazzling blindness of first love, Megan discovered she wasn't immune to passion. But passion held danger for a woman who'd spent most of her life branded by illegitimacy.
Forget love! she told herself. Concentrate, instead, on how to cope with Ashton Hartford Chadbourne III and his plans for her little New Orleans rare book shop. Correction, his shop now--inherited from the mother he'd ignored for twenty years.
Megan had felt safe at memory Lane--until all her firm ideas about herself--about love and passion--were torn asunder....
In less than a week, in the dazzling blindness of first love, Megan discovered she wasn't immune to passion. But passion held danger for a woman who'd spent most of her life branded by illegitimacy.
Forget love! she told herself. Concentrate, instead, on how to cope with Ashton Hartford Chadbourne III and his plans for her little New Orleans rare book shop. Correction, his shop now--inherited from the mother he'd ignored for twenty years.
Megan had felt safe at memory Lane--until all her firm ideas about herself--about love and passion--were torn asunder....
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews