Crystal Fire

Imperium (Chronological order) #3

by Kathleen Morgan

Planning to offer Brace Ardane to her sister's captors in exchange for the latter's freedom, Marissa rescues the warrior from prison and keeps her intentions secret until she unexpectedly falls in love with Brace. Original.

Genres: Romance, Science Fiction, Paranormal, Futuristic, Science Fiction Romance, Paranormal Romance

448 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1992

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Kathleen began her career writing contemporary romances and soon moved to historical and futuristic romances. She sold her first book, a futuristic romance, in April 1990 while stationed in Korea as an Army nurse. Additional romances soon followed, until she had sold a total of fifteen books in the general market, establishing a loyal readership along the way.

Since that time, she has received numerous awards for her work, including a Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice award and Career Achievement award, and The Literary Times award for Literary Excellence in the Field of Romantic Fiction. She was also a Romance Writers of America RITA finalist.

Kathleen now focuses her writing talents in the area of inspirational fiction, offering readers characters who struggle to redefine their growing faith in everyday life.

Reviews

[Chels · Rating 2 out of 5]

Look, I know it's not Dune but it might as well have been Dune, because I was lost. It's a fairly simple plot and there aren't that many characters, so yes it's not Dune. Nobody but me will ever compare this to Dune. But now that I've started I can't stop. Fear is the mind-killer.

Marissa's twin sister is captured by a Big Bad called Ferox, so she rescues Brace (who is in the midst of being politically tortured) with the intent of getting his help. Brace reluctantly agrees, but the real reason Marissa wants Brace's compliance is because she knows she can use him as leverage for Ferox. Why? I didn't quite understand. (Dune!)

There's also the Knowing Crystal, which is a sentient Crystal that... gives people nightmares and has power to be harnessed. Can you ever really know a crystal though? Like, truly know?

I can't, it seems. I was confused.

[Nancy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A classic futuristic romance, this story finds Marissa rescuing Brace from prison to exchange him for her kidnapped sister. But the wily criminal Ferox has plans for Brace and the sister that involve the Knowing Crystal. An evil and sentient entity, the crystal won’t allow anyone to control it even a Crystal Master such as Brace. Can Marissa and Brace achieve their goals despite heavy odds against them?