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The Fire Flower
The kiss was as nothing she’d ever known…the warmth and sweetness of his mouth was so new to her… Beautiful young Mary Monk was trembling when she surrendered her innocence to dashing Cavalier nobleman Gideon Hawkes to save herself from the destitution the Great Fire of London had assured. Gideon took her on a whim, to satisfy a fleeting desire. Yet what began as a coupling of a jaded man’s lust and a desperate girl’s need soon turned into something far stronger and deeper. Gideon had the power and the purpose to make Mary blossom as a woman, with a woman’s passions and a woman’s fulfillment. And in Mary, Gideon discovered something he had never known, even with the most dazzling ladies and captivating courtesan who frequented the lavish and licentious courts of Europe. For what he had set aflame in Mary and what she returned to him a hundredfold—was love…
426 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1989
10 people are currently reading
233 people want to read
About the author
Edith Layton
80 books103 followersEdith Layton wrote her first novel when she was ten. She bought a marbleized notebook and set out to write a story that would fit between its covers. Now, an award-winning author with more than thirty novels and numerous novellas to her credit, her criteria have changed. The story has to fit the reader as well as between the covers.
Graduating from Hunter College in New York City with a degree in creative writing and theater, Edith worked for various media, including a radio station and a major motion picture company. She married and went to suburbia, where she was fruitful and multiplied to the tune of three children. Her eldest, Michael, is a social worker and artist in NYC. Adam is a writer and performer on NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Daughter Susie is a professional writer, comedian and performer who works in television.
Publishers Weekly called Edith Layton "one of romance's most gifted writers." Layton has enthralled readers and critics with books that capture the spirit of historically distant places and peoples. "What I've found," she says, "is that life was very different in every era, but that love and love of life is always the same."
Layton won an RT Book Reviews Career Achievement award for the Historical genre in 2003 and a Reviewers' Choice award for her book The Conquest in 2001. Amazon.com's top reviewer called Layton's Alas, My Love (April 2005, Avon Books), "a wonderful historical." And her recent release, Bride Enchanted, is a Romantic Times 2007 Reviewers' Choice Award Nominee.
Edith Layton lived on Long Island where she devoted time as a volunteer for the North Shore Animal League , the world's largest no-kill pet rescue and adoption organization. Her dog Daisy --adopted herself from a shelter-- is just one member of Layton's household menagerie.
Edith Layton passed away on June 1, 2009 from ovarian cancer.
Graduating from Hunter College in New York City with a degree in creative writing and theater, Edith worked for various media, including a radio station and a major motion picture company. She married and went to suburbia, where she was fruitful and multiplied to the tune of three children. Her eldest, Michael, is a social worker and artist in NYC. Adam is a writer and performer on NPR's Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Daughter Susie is a professional writer, comedian and performer who works in television.
Publishers Weekly called Edith Layton "one of romance's most gifted writers." Layton has enthralled readers and critics with books that capture the spirit of historically distant places and peoples. "What I've found," she says, "is that life was very different in every era, but that love and love of life is always the same."
Layton won an RT Book Reviews Career Achievement award for the Historical genre in 2003 and a Reviewers' Choice award for her book The Conquest in 2001. Amazon.com's top reviewer called Layton's Alas, My Love (April 2005, Avon Books), "a wonderful historical." And her recent release, Bride Enchanted, is a Romantic Times 2007 Reviewers' Choice Award Nominee.
Edith Layton lived on Long Island where she devoted time as a volunteer for the North Shore Animal League , the world's largest no-kill pet rescue and adoption organization. Her dog Daisy --adopted herself from a shelter-- is just one member of Layton's household menagerie.
Edith Layton passed away on June 1, 2009 from ovarian cancer.
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August 7, 2025
1666 England
Britain had a revolution ending in the overthrow and beheading of a king.
That king's son, Charles ll was restored to the throne in 1660.
His Cavaliers returned back from exile to France too.
Charles's people welcomed him back because of their pleasure at being freed from the restraints of Puritanism, the social and political group known for their strict religious and moral beliefs.
Cavaliers, the opposing social and political group, were associated with the monarchy, aristocracy and less religiously strict lifestyle.
One of Charles's Cavaliers was 30 year old Gideon Hawkes, who returned back in 1666 in the midst of the Great Fire Of London that destroyed one third of the city.
Even though he had no family in England anymore, he couldn't wait to see again his one love, lvyclose manor, his family's estate in Kent.
In Kent he learned that Ivyclose was given to a family of Puritans, a brother and a sister.
His loss enormous, he headed back to London.
He got a room at an inn. In the tavern downstairs he decided to find a wench for the night, but none of the many available ones suited him.
And then he saw her standing by the door apart from the others. Her sad eyes staring at him. She looked away. He thought that she was a sad little shy whore.
"What you are selling mistress, l find l am interested in buying "
She blushed and did not answer. He thought that courting a whore was a novelty.
Her name was Mary, and he took her to his room upstairs.
She was Mary Monk, daughter to a respectable shoemaker who owned a shop. The family lived in the rooms above it.
She was 17 and illiterate, not a beauty but pretty enough.
A year ago Mary lost her entire family to plaque.
A few days ago she watched her home burn to the ground along with many others, in what would be known in history as The Great Fire Of London.
She was now wandering the streets, homeless and hungry, alone and scared.
She'd passed the last three nights outside the tavern where whores were trading.
This night Mary made up her mind to make herself a whore, so that she might eat.
She had quite a few propositions, but she only responded to this man. He looked so like the saviour of her imaginings, a born gentleman.
She was a virgin and he asked her "Why", "l was hungry ", "Why me?", "Because l thought you'd be kind ".
She sobbed in his arms. "Stay with me, you're safe now" he said.
The next morning he told her that he was going to get a town-house. As his mistress she would have clothes and food, money and his protection.
He made it clear that he had no intention of wedlock with her, ever.
So they settled in a house he bought and were content. He was gentle, caring, generous, her only friend.
Gideon took Mary along at the palace as King Charles was his friend.
The King told Gideon in a private conversation that the lady who occupied his home, Ivyclose, was Celeste. Unwed and 23 years old, beautiful, virtuous and a Puritan.
If he wanted his home back, he had to wed Celeste.
Gideon said that he would do it if Celeste agreed.
So Gideon travelled to meet his intended.
She was everything he could have hoped for. Beyond beautiful, charming and gentle, educated.
A woman he could speak with, live with, and love with, all in one, and beneath the roof of Ivyclose.
It was all so wondrous as to be unbelievable.
He stayed for days, and when he kissed her, she was offended. She said lust is wicked. She was a Puritan and her faith was strong, while he was a hedonist.
She told him to give her time.
Gideon returned back to London, but he would go back to Ivyclose again and again.
Every time he would return back to Mary, he had an insatiable hunger for her.
He appreciated her warmth after spending time with his Puritan lady, who received the slightest advance with dread and retreat.
Celeste and her brother were to come to London soon.
Gideon and Mary were at the theatre's foyer, when he saw Celeste entering.
He told his friend to take Mary home. Before she left, Mary saw Gideon kissing the hand of a very beautiful lady.
That night Gideon went home and took Mary in the dark, in silence.
He smelled of perfume, and she knew who he was with, who it was that set him afire, and for the first time she knew what it was to be a whore.
Gideon went out and Mary knew he went to meet the lady.
Gideon couldn't help feeling faithless each time he left Mary, and that was often lately, as Celeste was in London. But Mary never complained and he never made excuses.
He liked Mary a lot. A good companion out of his bed as in it.
He decided to take Mary to a ball as he'd neglected her lately.
There Mary was told by a third party that Gideon was to marry Celeste.
Celeste entered the ballroom with her brother. Someone pointed out Gideon's mistress.
Celeste couldn't help but stare at her.
Gideon had seen them staring at each other. He thought that whatever happened Mary would stay with him. But Celeste was free to turn and walk out of his life. Celeste's home had been his home, if she left him he'd never see it again.
He went to Celeste and she was thrilled because he'd chosen her.
Gideon went back to Ivyclose and stayed for three whole weeks.
Yet Celeste was not ready to decide. She wanted to change him, to make him more like herself.
Steer him to salvation and turn him to the service of the Lord.
The King gave a great big estate to Gideon in recompense.
He said now that he was a man of property, Celeste would not deny him.
Gideon travelled to Ivyclose once again, on the King's orders, and Mary found out that she bore a child within her.
Back at Ivyclose, Celeste told him "You've been seen with that harlot everywhere. You must give her up entirely before you walk to the altar with me. Put her aside for all time, Gideon, and I'll be yours whenever you say ".
"I won't put her aside. I can't and l don't wish to. I believe she carries my child and l'd never forsake her. I won't abandon Mary Monk. I couldn't, and won't ".
Celeste believed his guilt would outweigh the sexual side of him. She said:
"To see to your bastard child is honourable, to right a wrong is more than charitable and just. I will marry you "
He took her then in his arms and he was surprised at his lack of passion. He felt that it was Ivyclose he was being permitted entry to.
"No, no Gideon, No! You must give me time "
"Lady, l like you. I might even love you, but it's more than your being a Puritan, less than my being a Cavalier. I am too in love with fire, lady, you are too pleased by ice. We wouldn't heal the rift. No, we'd nullify each other in time. If l melted you, you'd feel weak as water. If you froze me, I'd as surely die too."
"Say rather Gideon, because of how l need my whores in London "
"My whore, it's singular, as she is in London, yes lady "
"Sit with me Gideon, dine with me, stay the evening. I am willing to forget all that's been said "
Thank you, but l've a long journey before me"
And then he bowed. And then he was gone.
Mary was packing to leave, when Gideon returned back to London.
This is a brief summary of what was said:
"Where are you going Mary? You no longer care for me?"
"I sold myself to you, but l am not a whore. I care very much for you. But l would not have a child known as Hawke's bastard. My child will have a name, even if it's a made up one. I wish you joy, Gideon, in your marriage "
"I am not going to wed the Lady, and if you leave now, I'll have no wedding at all. I want you to marry me, Mary Monk"
"I am a common girl you took from the streets. She refused you, didn't she?"
"No. Although she did in a way. So l ended it. Mary, the tree needed only a little more shaking, but l decided to leave off shaking it, although the fruit trembled on the bough. It may never have ripened enough for me, and l think it was too fragile and would've been bruised had it fallen to me. Will you have me Mary?"
"You want her"
"I need you. I defied a King for you. You are no exotic fruit Mary Monk, but you're my plain and steady diet, without which l cannot live. You're as near and necessary to me as my own plain, common, steady, heartbeat. I would wive you and keep you by me always "
"But Ivyclose?"
"...is only a house, a thing of stone and brick. When l am with you, Mary Monk, l am home"
"But Ivyclose...."
"Ah, Mary, who in the world gets everything he ever wanted?"
She closed her eyes and lay against his chest. Her lips were closed over her answer. Because she knew such a person who got everything she ever wanted. Herself! She thanked God and promised silently that she'd thank him all her life for giving him to her.
There is an epilogue that l rather not disclose.
Was Mary second best?
Britain had a revolution ending in the overthrow and beheading of a king.
That king's son, Charles ll was restored to the throne in 1660.
His Cavaliers returned back from exile to France too.
Charles's people welcomed him back because of their pleasure at being freed from the restraints of Puritanism, the social and political group known for their strict religious and moral beliefs.
Cavaliers, the opposing social and political group, were associated with the monarchy, aristocracy and less religiously strict lifestyle.
One of Charles's Cavaliers was 30 year old Gideon Hawkes, who returned back in 1666 in the midst of the Great Fire Of London that destroyed one third of the city.
Even though he had no family in England anymore, he couldn't wait to see again his one love, lvyclose manor, his family's estate in Kent.
In Kent he learned that Ivyclose was given to a family of Puritans, a brother and a sister.
His loss enormous, he headed back to London.
He got a room at an inn. In the tavern downstairs he decided to find a wench for the night, but none of the many available ones suited him.
And then he saw her standing by the door apart from the others. Her sad eyes staring at him. She looked away. He thought that she was a sad little shy whore.
"What you are selling mistress, l find l am interested in buying "
She blushed and did not answer. He thought that courting a whore was a novelty.
Her name was Mary, and he took her to his room upstairs.
She was Mary Monk, daughter to a respectable shoemaker who owned a shop. The family lived in the rooms above it.
She was 17 and illiterate, not a beauty but pretty enough.
A year ago Mary lost her entire family to plaque.
A few days ago she watched her home burn to the ground along with many others, in what would be known in history as The Great Fire Of London.
She was now wandering the streets, homeless and hungry, alone and scared.
She'd passed the last three nights outside the tavern where whores were trading.
This night Mary made up her mind to make herself a whore, so that she might eat.
She had quite a few propositions, but she only responded to this man. He looked so like the saviour of her imaginings, a born gentleman.
She was a virgin and he asked her "Why", "l was hungry ", "Why me?", "Because l thought you'd be kind ".
She sobbed in his arms. "Stay with me, you're safe now" he said.
The next morning he told her that he was going to get a town-house. As his mistress she would have clothes and food, money and his protection.
He made it clear that he had no intention of wedlock with her, ever.
So they settled in a house he bought and were content. He was gentle, caring, generous, her only friend.
Gideon took Mary along at the palace as King Charles was his friend.
The King told Gideon in a private conversation that the lady who occupied his home, Ivyclose, was Celeste. Unwed and 23 years old, beautiful, virtuous and a Puritan.
If he wanted his home back, he had to wed Celeste.
Gideon said that he would do it if Celeste agreed.
So Gideon travelled to meet his intended.
She was everything he could have hoped for. Beyond beautiful, charming and gentle, educated.
A woman he could speak with, live with, and love with, all in one, and beneath the roof of Ivyclose.
It was all so wondrous as to be unbelievable.
He stayed for days, and when he kissed her, she was offended. She said lust is wicked. She was a Puritan and her faith was strong, while he was a hedonist.
She told him to give her time.
Gideon returned back to London, but he would go back to Ivyclose again and again.
Every time he would return back to Mary, he had an insatiable hunger for her.
He appreciated her warmth after spending time with his Puritan lady, who received the slightest advance with dread and retreat.
Celeste and her brother were to come to London soon.
Gideon and Mary were at the theatre's foyer, when he saw Celeste entering.
He told his friend to take Mary home. Before she left, Mary saw Gideon kissing the hand of a very beautiful lady.
That night Gideon went home and took Mary in the dark, in silence.
He smelled of perfume, and she knew who he was with, who it was that set him afire, and for the first time she knew what it was to be a whore.
Gideon went out and Mary knew he went to meet the lady.
Gideon couldn't help feeling faithless each time he left Mary, and that was often lately, as Celeste was in London. But Mary never complained and he never made excuses.
He liked Mary a lot. A good companion out of his bed as in it.
He decided to take Mary to a ball as he'd neglected her lately.
There Mary was told by a third party that Gideon was to marry Celeste.
Celeste entered the ballroom with her brother. Someone pointed out Gideon's mistress.
Celeste couldn't help but stare at her.
Gideon had seen them staring at each other. He thought that whatever happened Mary would stay with him. But Celeste was free to turn and walk out of his life. Celeste's home had been his home, if she left him he'd never see it again.
He went to Celeste and she was thrilled because he'd chosen her.
Gideon went back to Ivyclose and stayed for three whole weeks.
Yet Celeste was not ready to decide. She wanted to change him, to make him more like herself.
Steer him to salvation and turn him to the service of the Lord.
The King gave a great big estate to Gideon in recompense.
He said now that he was a man of property, Celeste would not deny him.
Gideon travelled to Ivyclose once again, on the King's orders, and Mary found out that she bore a child within her.
Back at Ivyclose, Celeste told him "You've been seen with that harlot everywhere. You must give her up entirely before you walk to the altar with me. Put her aside for all time, Gideon, and I'll be yours whenever you say ".
"I won't put her aside. I can't and l don't wish to. I believe she carries my child and l'd never forsake her. I won't abandon Mary Monk. I couldn't, and won't ".
Celeste believed his guilt would outweigh the sexual side of him. She said:
"To see to your bastard child is honourable, to right a wrong is more than charitable and just. I will marry you "
He took her then in his arms and he was surprised at his lack of passion. He felt that it was Ivyclose he was being permitted entry to.
"No, no Gideon, No! You must give me time "
"Lady, l like you. I might even love you, but it's more than your being a Puritan, less than my being a Cavalier. I am too in love with fire, lady, you are too pleased by ice. We wouldn't heal the rift. No, we'd nullify each other in time. If l melted you, you'd feel weak as water. If you froze me, I'd as surely die too."
"Say rather Gideon, because of how l need my whores in London "
"My whore, it's singular, as she is in London, yes lady "
"Sit with me Gideon, dine with me, stay the evening. I am willing to forget all that's been said "
Thank you, but l've a long journey before me"
And then he bowed. And then he was gone.
Mary was packing to leave, when Gideon returned back to London.
This is a brief summary of what was said:
"Where are you going Mary? You no longer care for me?"
"I sold myself to you, but l am not a whore. I care very much for you. But l would not have a child known as Hawke's bastard. My child will have a name, even if it's a made up one. I wish you joy, Gideon, in your marriage "
"I am not going to wed the Lady, and if you leave now, I'll have no wedding at all. I want you to marry me, Mary Monk"
"I am a common girl you took from the streets. She refused you, didn't she?"
"No. Although she did in a way. So l ended it. Mary, the tree needed only a little more shaking, but l decided to leave off shaking it, although the fruit trembled on the bough. It may never have ripened enough for me, and l think it was too fragile and would've been bruised had it fallen to me. Will you have me Mary?"
"You want her"
"I need you. I defied a King for you. You are no exotic fruit Mary Monk, but you're my plain and steady diet, without which l cannot live. You're as near and necessary to me as my own plain, common, steady, heartbeat. I would wive you and keep you by me always "
"But Ivyclose?"
"...is only a house, a thing of stone and brick. When l am with you, Mary Monk, l am home"
"But Ivyclose...."
"Ah, Mary, who in the world gets everything he ever wanted?"
She closed her eyes and lay against his chest. Her lips were closed over her answer. Because she knew such a person who got everything she ever wanted. Herself! She thanked God and promised silently that she'd thank him all her life for giving him to her.
There is an epilogue that l rather not disclose.
Was Mary second best?
April 28, 2025
2024
Никой не може да промени другия. Единствено другият може - съзнателно или не - сам да започне промяната в себе си. Затова, в крайна сметка, в тази книга победи истинската любов - тази, която приема и така променя неусетно отначало, а не тази, която изисква и тропа с крак за промяна.
30.07.2023
Старата поука, че човек не може да стъпи два пъти в една и съща река, важи и в любовта, и е в основата на сюжета. Щастието не се гради с поглед изцяло в миналото, а в настоящето и в бъдещето. Както и не се базира на обществените роли и очаквания, а е доста по-комплексно. Като човешкото сърце.
05.11.2022
В развлекателния сегмент авторите пишат предимно това, което на някаква осреднена база смятат, че ще се хареса на повечето читатели. Ако са сръчни в занаята, това осигурява челни места в разни класации и приходи. Но…понякога сякаш им писва, и се случва да напишат книга заради самите себе си. Обикновено тя рязко се различава от всичко предходно, макар привидно канонът на псзарните ограничения да е спазен. Само дето всъщност не е. И пазарният читател се чуди какво става, каква е тази крачка назад. А читателите, които не харесват повечето от конвейерната продукция, широко отварят очи от възхита при тази глътка въздух. Това явление съвсем не е толкова рядко, като гледам някои заглавия от собствения си списък. Добре, че е така.
14.03.2022
Ето защо ми харесва толкова много - спомен на дъщерята на авторката как си е избрала героите и защо нямат нищо общо с крайно досадните и, лицеприятни други сюжети:
“Mom often picked pop stars for heroes, and pretty waitresses she met to base the heroines on. This was the only time, with us waiting for a ferry, she saw a dude on a motorcycle lean over and kiss the girl on the back of the motorcycle and BLAM! She told us, "LOOK! LOOK! THEY ARE MY NEW BOOK!" “
Първоначално ревю
Прекрасна и романтична история, която даже не е откъсната от реалността на живота, въпреки уж розовия си жанр.
1666 г. Лондон е в руини от чумата и последвалия голям пожар, а Чарлс II е възстановил монархията след Кромуел едва преди броени години. Един от съпътсващите го аристократи-монархисти се завръща за първи път в родината си от 15 години, за да открие, че домът на рода му е даден да друго семейство. Едно бедно момиче, дъщеря на почтен обущар е изгубило близките си в чумата, и подслона си в пожара, и вече няма друга алтернатива освен да се присъедини към най-древния занаят, ако не иска да умре от глад. Срещата им е случайна, но за изненада и на двамата, продължава повече от една нощ в удобния формат на издържана метреса. Докато изгубеното имение изведнъж се оказва напълно възможно за връщане при първоначалния си собственик - в комплект с красива, смела, добродетелна и умна наследница, която е мечта на всеки мъж, който не е сляп и има ум в главата.
В това време кралският двор тъне в декадентство, разврат и интриги.
Всички герои ми харесаха. Бяха верни на епохата и на житейската логика. Класови, религиозни, морални различия бяха прекрасно представени. Както и вечният въпрос дали това, което искаме на всяка цена е всъщност това, от което истински се нуждаем.
Всеки от тях беше адски несъвършен.
Мери - момичето от улицата - бе твърде наплашено от жестоката реалност (мъчително измряло семейство и липса на каквато и да е почтена алтернатива за оцеляване, освен да започне да се оглежда за клиенти), и твърде наясно колко малко полезни ходове има в живота. Поради което приемаше всяка ситуация откъм добрата и страна, дори с усилие да покаже съпричастност и доброта, като винаги се стремеше са открие такава, което за масата съвременни жени би било непонятно и недостойно. Една от бабите ми обаче, подозирам, би го разбрала напълно. Спасението идва под най-неочаквани форми, и Мери го знаеше. Фалшивият обществен морал никога не я пречупи и поквари. Нито пречупи желанието и да се учи и образова. Нито да направи финален и труден избор. За разлика от другите двама герои, тя никога не допусна самозаблуда. И единствена не пожела да променя някой друг, освен себе си.
Гидиън - нашият “герой”. Първо ми идеше да кресна що за егоистичен, отвратителен лицемер е решила да опише авторката, и то в романс. И той беше точно такъв, и същевременно - не. Продукт на надменната си класа, имаща се за цвета на човечеството, както и на успеха, постигнат единствено със силата на собствените му способности и на почти маниакалното желание да си върне отнетото по времето на Републиката, той все пак се заплете в нетипични за възгледите си въпроси и ситуации, продължавайки в същото време упорито на автопилот с набитите щампи и модели (от сорта на “какво толкова, всички правят така”, и “какво толкова, няма вреда”), докато чак съвсем накрая със замах ги прати по дяволите. Колкото и склонен да беше да си затваря очите за неудобни истини, накрая именно проявяната към него доброта, а не предявените изисквания, го накараха да ги отвори. Яростният му опит да постави Мери и Селест на отредените им от обществения морал места в живота му (съответно пренебрежима компаньонка за свободното време и сияйна принцеса от приказките) се провали с гръм и трясък. Мнозина умишлено се пазят да не се взират твърде надълбоко, за да избегнат неприятни истини. И е достойно, ако накрая все пак се изправят пред тях.
Селест - наследницата на имението, и обект на настойчивите ухажвания (направо обсада) на Гидиън, е един от най-симпатичните образи в този жанр. Красива, начетена, изпълнена с вродено достойнство и нетърпимост към фалша на двора и аристокрацията, идеалистка, тя е вярваща пуританка, но същевременно човечна и копнееща за щастие без лицемерие и измама, в което да има доверие и сила. Тя също като Мери е вид аутсайдер. За разлика от нея обаче разполага с много повече полезни ходове в играта на живота. И същевременно - също като Гидиън - упорито се самозаблуждава за истинските си мотиви - гордост, себелюбие, желание да подчини другия и да му наложи своите норми без компромиси. Най-голямата и заблуда беше, че праведници съществуват и за да помогнеш на другите трябва да си безкомпромисен и да ги превъзпиташ на всяка цена. Животът за нея се оказва строг учител.
Краят беше точно този, който исках, и същевременно много по-нюансиран и драматичен от очакваното. Абсолюти в живота няма, но пълноценното щастие е възможно - стига човек да е искрен първо със себе си, и после с другия.
Книгата в никакъв случай не е храна за ума, но прекарването сред страниците се оказа идеално.
⭐️4,5 звезди⭐️
П. П. Другите книги на авторката, като гледам, са далеч по-благопристойно романтични, направо по джейностиновски, и попадат точно в клишетата на regency жанра. Е, тази и книга няма нищо общо! Но пък е реална. Жалко, че е нишова, и българският “романтичен” сегмент няма и да помисли за издаване.
————
💞 “But now she learned the lesson all historians must, because she found that only the living creator of the past she’d studied knew the whole truth of it.”
💞 “pride was the best cosmetic she could have worn.”
💞 “Survival alone never made for greatness. It would take men like Gideon Hawkes to teach the survivors how to keep their souls intact.”
💞 “She could, he thought, get on without him. He could, she thought, do very well without her. But he’d never let her go, he promised himself. But she’d never let him regret it, she vowed silently.”
March 3, 2024
4 Torn Stars (this could be 1 or 5 Stars, love and hate, at any point in the book)
I just finished 'The Fire Flower' and it really fucked me up. This angst should come with a health risk warning LOL Not an issue for an angst addict like me, but let me tell ya, the HEA has me torn, and that epilogue—WTF; that is not what I like to see in a romance book. 💀😭 I think it ruined the book for me. Where do I find the readers' hotline? Someone, please, talk me off the ledge 😂
THIS!! This is why, despite being an angst seeker, I'm very selective about what I read, what story I dive into. Because if I don't choose wisely, a book has the ability to wreck me emotionally (not in a good way), which only shows how invested I can become. I was invested—AF! Completely, hopelessly immersed. But to be honest, it took awhile for me to get there. I almost DNFed several times. The writing style (idk, like awkward poetry?) is an acquired taste, but ultimately it grew on me. Mary and Gideon, hooked me (to my detriment). In the end, I was left asking the burning question: was the heroine second choice/a consolation prize?
My thoughts?
If the other woman (a self-proclaimed Puritan) had said yes to the hero any of the countless times he had asked her to marry him, he would have ended up with her. Even at the end when he asked her for the last time, if she hadn't stopped him from seducing her physically (screwing her?), I believe they would have married. It was only then, with her resisting his sexual advances, for like the 100th time, that he changed his mind. And only then, did he finally realize....well, let me quote him:
"I'm too in love with fire, lady, you're too pleased by ice. We wouldn't heal the rift. No, we'd nullify each other in time. If I melted you, you'd feel weak as water; if you froze me, I'd surely die too. We'd be less than we are, and we both of us are right—for ourselves—as we are. The ancients said the universe consists of four elements, which cannot mix, but must exist. So it is with us. I respect and appreciate you...it well may be that I love you," he said, gazing at her with his sad smile in place, "but for all the love I bear my king and country, still I shouldn't wed you. And for the love of your soul and mine, lady, I'll not."
Well thank goodness the OW was able to resist him once again. Lucky for Mary, right? Obviously I'm leaving out a lot of context and nuances which are crucial in understanding the hero's motives, feelings, and basically, the entire situation. It's a complex story, not easy to explain...but when I finish a book, as a romance reader, I want it to be 100% crystal clear that the heroine isn't second choice, I don't want there to be any room for doubt, and I have fucking doubts.
I'm comparing everything he said/thought/felt about the beautiful OW and about our "PLAIN"—we're reminded repeatedly she's plain—Mary. All his actions and grand gestures, all his motives and intentions. How he almost killed a man to defend Mary's honor. I'm thinking about his epiphany when he's standing in front of the OW for the last time. What transpired after that, what he was willing to give up for a future with Mary. I'm thinking about all of it, like I'm keeping score to see if Mary indeed comes out on top, and I still can't say with complete certainty. When he goes back to Mary, he tells her he can't live without her, he needs her, but doesn't actually tell her he loves her. To be fair, she didn't tell him him either. What kind of HEA is that? I mean, he did reveal to the king that he loves her, but I wish he had said it to her. She deserved to hear it. Actions speak louder than words? I tried really hard to hold on to any consolation I found in the positives...until I read the epilogue and my good feelings died a tragic death. WHAT IS LIFE?! 😂
I just finished 'The Fire Flower' and it really fucked me up. This angst should come with a health risk warning LOL Not an issue for an angst addict like me, but let me tell ya, the HEA has me torn, and that epilogue—WTF; that is not what I like to see in a romance book. 💀😭 I think it ruined the book for me. Where do I find the readers' hotline? Someone, please, talk me off the ledge 😂
THIS!! This is why, despite being an angst seeker, I'm very selective about what I read, what story I dive into. Because if I don't choose wisely, a book has the ability to wreck me emotionally (not in a good way), which only shows how invested I can become. I was invested—AF! Completely, hopelessly immersed. But to be honest, it took awhile for me to get there. I almost DNFed several times. The writing style (idk, like awkward poetry?) is an acquired taste, but ultimately it grew on me. Mary and Gideon, hooked me (to my detriment). In the end, I was left asking the burning question: was the heroine second choice/a consolation prize?
My thoughts?
If the other woman (a self-proclaimed Puritan) had said yes to the hero any of the countless times he had asked her to marry him, he would have ended up with her. Even at the end when he asked her for the last time, if she hadn't stopped him from seducing her physically (screwing her?), I believe they would have married. It was only then, with her resisting his sexual advances, for like the 100th time, that he changed his mind. And only then, did he finally realize....well, let me quote him:
"I'm too in love with fire, lady, you're too pleased by ice. We wouldn't heal the rift. No, we'd nullify each other in time. If I melted you, you'd feel weak as water; if you froze me, I'd surely die too. We'd be less than we are, and we both of us are right—for ourselves—as we are. The ancients said the universe consists of four elements, which cannot mix, but must exist. So it is with us. I respect and appreciate you...it well may be that I love you," he said, gazing at her with his sad smile in place, "but for all the love I bear my king and country, still I shouldn't wed you. And for the love of your soul and mine, lady, I'll not."
Well thank goodness the OW was able to resist him once again. Lucky for Mary, right? Obviously I'm leaving out a lot of context and nuances which are crucial in understanding the hero's motives, feelings, and basically, the entire situation. It's a complex story, not easy to explain...but when I finish a book, as a romance reader, I want it to be 100% crystal clear that the heroine isn't second choice, I don't want there to be any room for doubt, and I have fucking doubts.
I'm comparing everything he said/thought/felt about the beautiful OW and about our "PLAIN"—we're reminded repeatedly she's plain—Mary. All his actions and grand gestures, all his motives and intentions. How he almost killed a man to defend Mary's honor. I'm thinking about his epiphany when he's standing in front of the OW for the last time. What transpired after that, what he was willing to give up for a future with Mary. I'm thinking about all of it, like I'm keeping score to see if Mary indeed comes out on top, and I still can't say with complete certainty. When he goes back to Mary, he tells her he can't live without her, he needs her, but doesn't actually tell her he loves her. To be fair, she didn't tell him him either. What kind of HEA is that? I mean, he did reveal to the king that he loves her, but I wish he had said it to her. She deserved to hear it. Actions speak louder than words? I tried really hard to hold on to any consolation I found in the positives...until I read the epilogue and my good feelings died a tragic death. WHAT IS LIFE?! 😂
February 7, 2024
Read: 2/7/23
Generous 2 stars
RtC
So boring! I need to compress before writing a review
Generous 2 stars
RtC
So boring! I need to compress before writing a review
February 4, 2023
Oh my god oh my god i want to cry😭😭😭😭
I hadn’t liked this book at first, left a bitter taste in my mouth but oh my god how beautiful it turned out be 🥲🥲🥲🥲💔💔💔
And that ending???????????? A stab in the heart ahhh i want to weep BUT THERES NO GIDEON TO TELL ME “SOOTHE SWEETLING”😔😭💔😢😭 screaming crying throwing up
Mary Monks & Gideon Hawkes KAKSKSJSJSKSK I LOVE TJEM SO MUCH IR HURTS 😢😔😔😔😤😤🤬 im so sad makw it stop im terriibbklyyy saddddddd NOW WHAT?????????????? I hate this book because i know it’ll put me in a book slump🤭💔😭 Their story & love will live in my head rent free for the rest of my life brb wna kms<3
I hadn’t liked this book at first, left a bitter taste in my mouth but oh my god how beautiful it turned out be 🥲🥲🥲🥲💔💔💔
And that ending???????????? A stab in the heart ahhh i want to weep BUT THERES NO GIDEON TO TELL ME “SOOTHE SWEETLING”😔😭💔😢😭 screaming crying throwing up
Mary Monks & Gideon Hawkes KAKSKSJSJSKSK I LOVE TJEM SO MUCH IR HURTS 😢😔😔😔😤😤🤬 im so sad makw it stop im terriibbklyyy saddddddd NOW WHAT?????????????? I hate this book because i know it’ll put me in a book slump🤭💔😭 Their story & love will live in my head rent free for the rest of my life brb wna kms<3
March 5, 2024
This story was definitely angsty. I felt so devastated for poor Mary through the whole thing. But Gideon? I'm pretty sure I hate him. I'm sitting here stewing and so frustrated after finishing this story. And that ending was extremely unsatisfying for me. What was this author thinking?
I'm feeling too prickly to write a decent review for this right now, but Lydia wrote an awesome review of this story that sums it up perfectly!
Lydia's review
I'm feeling too prickly to write a decent review for this right now, but Lydia wrote an awesome review of this story that sums it up perfectly!
Lydia's review
June 5, 2020
If you can get pass the cheating hero, this was beautiful.
August 13, 2015
The book was little too descriptive for me. The author didn't know when to stop and just concentrate on the story. Nevertheless, the story concept was good and engaging. However, I believe in the saying "all's well that ends well". Which of course did not happen in this book. The epilogue/last chapter ruined the whole book for me. We read HR with preconceived notion of happily ever after, not happily ever after for sometime and then you get old and then die. I hate it when this happens. It's depressing.
I am giving it 2 and 1/2 stars, would have given at least 3 stars otherwise.
And mainly, why was so much emphasis given to H and other woman's relationship rather than focussing on H and h's. I don't get it.
I am giving it 2 and 1/2 stars, would have given at least 3 stars otherwise.
And mainly, why was so much emphasis given to H and other woman's relationship rather than focussing on H and h's. I don't get it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 21, 2023
Sweet and earnest mistress to lover!
My first Edith Layton romance and how, HOW, have I never read her before? The novel is classic, evocative, and literary prose that makes you savor the sentences.
The novel opens on 2 Sep 1666 on the deck of a ship drifting on the Thames:
OMG?!! I'm hooked and it's page 1.
All of the characters in the novel leap from the page, including the MMC's three best friends, King Charles II, and fellow cavaliers Tristram Jones, and Jamie Beauchamp, Lord Claverly. (I wish both of them had their own books!) The narrative is perfectly balanced between both the MMC (Gideon Hawkes) and FMC (Molly Monk) POVs.
The novel's main theme is "you can never go home again." True happiness does not lie in the past, and there is no atonement for regret. Molly's "rival" for Gideon's affection is symbolic of "what could have been." In this, I disagree with other reviewers who were dissatisfied with the romance because they believe that Gideon spent most of the novel in love with another woman. I think the narrative is quite clear that Gideon was not in love with Celeste Southern, he only thought he was because of what she represented. He learns through the course of his relationship with Molly, and his courtship with Celeste, that what he thought he wanted was not really what he wanted (or needed) at all to experience genuine, lasting happiness.
Gideon and Molly both learn that the secret to life isn't about trying to make up for the bad things that happen to us, but to nourish the good things that spring out of the ashes: the fire flowers.
My first Edith Layton romance and how, HOW, have I never read her before? The novel is classic, evocative, and literary prose that makes you savor the sentences.
The novel opens on 2 Sep 1666 on the deck of a ship drifting on the Thames:
The fire grew through the day into a night that looked like an eerie orange day. If the flames ever went out, the passengers would disembark in London, if there was still a London then. Because it was disappearing before their eyes, as all their other senses verified. The cinders rained down upon them, blown by the same easterly wind that fanned the flames. When the wind veered, they sometimes smelled the city sour, as though it were a burnt-out fireplace. Other times the scent came to their noses woodsy, as if it were a homey kitchen fire. And there were times that the odor was bitterly acrid as hell itself at high noon.
OMG?!! I'm hooked and it's page 1.
All of the characters in the novel leap from the page, including the MMC's three best friends, King Charles II, and fellow cavaliers Tristram Jones, and Jamie Beauchamp, Lord Claverly. (I wish both of them had their own books!) The narrative is perfectly balanced between both the MMC (Gideon Hawkes) and FMC (Molly Monk) POVs.
The novel's main theme is "you can never go home again." True happiness does not lie in the past, and there is no atonement for regret. Molly's "rival" for Gideon's affection is symbolic of "what could have been." In this, I disagree with other reviewers who were dissatisfied with the romance because they believe that Gideon spent most of the novel in love with another woman. I think the narrative is quite clear that Gideon was not in love with Celeste Southern, he only thought he was because of what she represented. He learns through the course of his relationship with Molly, and his courtship with Celeste, that what he thought he wanted was not really what he wanted (or needed) at all to experience genuine, lasting happiness.
Gideon and Molly both learn that the secret to life isn't about trying to make up for the bad things that happen to us, but to nourish the good things that spring out of the ashes: the fire flowers.
December 12, 2009
I enjoyed this book very much. Since it takes place in the year of the great fire of London and the plague, there is plenty of history tied up with a common enough love story developed into something uncommon with depth and believability.
October 28, 2020
This is what I call a slow motion book. It’s like stepping in tar. Slow pulls and not much forward motion.The characters were not engaging enough to hold my interest and I got sleepy reading this one. I hate love triangles unless they are executed to perfection and this one was just tedious.
February 11, 2016
Beautifully written. The character development is superb. Really an excellent portrayal of Restoration England. Edith Layton is always worth reading.
avoid
October 23, 2021Self note
The H is more infatuated with the ow than the h for most of the book.
The H is more infatuated with the ow than the h for most of the book.
March 5, 2024
I liked this one. The ending was thought provoking.
December 3, 2014
synopsis:
mary was left adrift during the fire of london, and agrees to go do gideon's room. gideon has just come back from a voyage, has a sweetheart that he longs to get back to, and promises mary protection for as long as she stays with him. the bonus is that the woman he longs for is in his ancestral home. as gideon comes to know mary, he realizes that looks can be deceiving and sometimes the steadfast support is what you really need.
what i liked: the era was a little different than most books. mary was determined to survive at all costs, and it was admirable.
what i didn't like: gideon's blind devotion up until the very end of the book.
mary was left adrift during the fire of london, and agrees to go do gideon's room. gideon has just come back from a voyage, has a sweetheart that he longs to get back to, and promises mary protection for as long as she stays with him. the bonus is that the woman he longs for is in his ancestral home. as gideon comes to know mary, he realizes that looks can be deceiving and sometimes the steadfast support is what you really need.
what i liked: the era was a little different than most books. mary was determined to survive at all costs, and it was admirable.
what i didn't like: gideon's blind devotion up until the very end of the book.
January 19, 2010
Hate to give anything with a cover that looks like this a four, but sometimes reading trashy books is emotion over mind. Feeding emotion is sometimes more important than feeding the mind.
nevermind
September 1, 2024DNF pg. 177
It's been a while since I picked this up. Not feeling it.
It's been a while since I picked this up. Not feeling it.
July 8, 2024
The first read was interesting but not satisfactory it was only when I read it again paying attention to the words spoken and unspoken that I got the nuances a deeply intense and emotionally satisfying book one of EL best
January 17, 2023
It was a pleasure to read a book that was well edited and had no spelling or grammatical mistakes; but then, this is an old publication! A lovely story set in the aftermath of the Great Fire of London. It is a bit long winded and it is not a fast read but well worth the effort. The MMC is well developed and a self confessed womaniser which is demonstrated when he takes the young FMC as mistress and proposes to the woman suggested by his King. He needs to figure out who it is that holds his heart!
August 28, 2025
Beautiful, thought-provoking book that raises the question, was Mary his second choice?
My two cents worth: no I don’t believe she was.
“I respect and appreciate you…it well may be that I love you,” he said, gazing at her with his sad smile in place, “but for all the love I bear my king and country, still I shouldn’t wed you. And for the love of your soul and mine, lady, I’ll not.”
Celeste was beautiful and while there was immediate and definite attraction, Gideon also came to know and care for her through his visits and though their shared love of Ivyclose. He may have even loved her, but he also loved his king so I don’t put much stock in this version of love he has for her. His goal after all had been to reacquire Ivyclose and to follow his king’s demands to marry her.
“I love her, Majesty,” he said. “I don’t wish to marry my lady Celeste and keep Mary Monk besides, as I suppose I might do, with no shame. Because I am, I discover, a simple man. I’ve room in my heart for only one woman to love, and I wish to love my wife”
In Gideon’s conversation with the King, he says he loves Mary. His declaration, to me is clearer and more sure than his statement to Celeste. Would he have followed through with a marriage to Celeste had she been more forthcoming with her physical affection? Yes, I think he would have. Ivyclose was his great love and he had a king to please. Those are tremendous motivators. But I’ll argue that it doesn’t make her his first choice, only the smart choice for the time period.
As for the epilogue and the key, we know that he had lied to Celeste about the room and that it didn’t really exist, that it was a metaphor for the joys of love emotional and physical.
“It’s small, private as it is secluded, but like the human heart, it contains everything within it. Its riches are beyond your imagination. The pleasures to be found there are exquisite, beyond compare. Trust me, I know,” he went on, whispering now, his gaze locked on hers, “because the thrill of discovering it was beyond my comprehension too. Until I was old enough. And then I went there, and understood. ”
“Celeste,” he said softly, “the hidden room, the heart to Ivyclose—it lies within your keeping, not mine. It always has and will. I opened the door to it for you just now, just before. I showed you a hint of what could be found there for us, with me as your guide. You slammed the door shut fast. Now you’ll have to discover it with another. The key to it is where I left it with you—imprinted on your heart,”
So, why did Gideon, in the end, leave the key for Celeste? Closure: because Gideon at one point offered the room of that key to Celeste which she had rejected. It had always represented the passion he wished her to submit to. Gideon in contrast lived a long, happy, passionate life and he no longer needed the “key”. His room had already been “unlocked”.
My two cents worth: no I don’t believe she was.
“I respect and appreciate you…it well may be that I love you,” he said, gazing at her with his sad smile in place, “but for all the love I bear my king and country, still I shouldn’t wed you. And for the love of your soul and mine, lady, I’ll not.”
Celeste was beautiful and while there was immediate and definite attraction, Gideon also came to know and care for her through his visits and though their shared love of Ivyclose. He may have even loved her, but he also loved his king so I don’t put much stock in this version of love he has for her. His goal after all had been to reacquire Ivyclose and to follow his king’s demands to marry her.
“I love her, Majesty,” he said. “I don’t wish to marry my lady Celeste and keep Mary Monk besides, as I suppose I might do, with no shame. Because I am, I discover, a simple man. I’ve room in my heart for only one woman to love, and I wish to love my wife”
In Gideon’s conversation with the King, he says he loves Mary. His declaration, to me is clearer and more sure than his statement to Celeste. Would he have followed through with a marriage to Celeste had she been more forthcoming with her physical affection? Yes, I think he would have. Ivyclose was his great love and he had a king to please. Those are tremendous motivators. But I’ll argue that it doesn’t make her his first choice, only the smart choice for the time period.
As for the epilogue and the key, we know that he had lied to Celeste about the room and that it didn’t really exist, that it was a metaphor for the joys of love emotional and physical.
“It’s small, private as it is secluded, but like the human heart, it contains everything within it. Its riches are beyond your imagination. The pleasures to be found there are exquisite, beyond compare. Trust me, I know,” he went on, whispering now, his gaze locked on hers, “because the thrill of discovering it was beyond my comprehension too. Until I was old enough. And then I went there, and understood. ”
“Celeste,” he said softly, “the hidden room, the heart to Ivyclose—it lies within your keeping, not mine. It always has and will. I opened the door to it for you just now, just before. I showed you a hint of what could be found there for us, with me as your guide. You slammed the door shut fast. Now you’ll have to discover it with another. The key to it is where I left it with you—imprinted on your heart,”
So, why did Gideon, in the end, leave the key for Celeste? Closure: because Gideon at one point offered the room of that key to Celeste which she had rejected. It had always represented the passion he wished her to submit to. Gideon in contrast lived a long, happy, passionate life and he no longer needed the “key”. His room had already been “unlocked”.
April 11, 2022
she’s a damn pushover and he didn’t grovel at all
can’t help but feel some sort of unholy (ha) glee at celeste’s fate tho. it’s probably what’s going to happen to me too
can’t help but feel some sort of unholy (ha) glee at celeste’s fate tho. it’s probably what’s going to happen to me too
June 17, 2022
Skimmed but I liked it
February 5, 2023
The Fire Flower is enigmatic. I don't get why Mary thinks Celeste is the enemy though. He chose Mary over everything then why would she think that in the end?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 6, 2024
Yuuuuck.
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