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andrea_1892house's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
amxgomex0624's review against another edition
5.0
AMAAAAAAZIIING!!!!!! my goodness. From the very first sentence of the book, to the last word, I was hooked and so thoroughly involved. I will admit, the story up until before they are married, is rather simple and average. But when they leave for America and move in and everything settles in/down, then the excitement begins!
1: Louisa - scummy little whore, I h.a.t.e.d her. I was literally like the whole time "kill yourself!!"
2: I loved loved loved! Brandon's character soo much. I actually thought, as much as he could be quite cruel, the fact that he actually stayed celibate for sooooo dammed long when he quite clearly was dying with want of Heather...I found 'twas very sweet and most accommodating of him XD
3: Heather's personality was okay, I think. She didn't particularly stand out for me, except for the fact that she nearly killed William Court.
4: Jeff (Brandon's brother) was OMG hilarious! I really really liked him; verily, he was the amusing one.
5: Heather's auntie, oh my word kill yourself you little ?!#@. How it's even possible to be that cruel hearted, evil and jealous I will never know.
Overall, I love the book!! One of my favourites! XD
1: Louisa - scummy little whore, I h.a.t.e.d her. I was literally like the whole time "kill yourself!!"
2: I loved loved loved! Brandon's character soo much. I actually thought, as much as he could be quite cruel, the fact that he actually stayed celibate for sooooo dammed long when he quite clearly was dying with want of Heather...I found 'twas very sweet and most accommodating of him XD
3: Heather's personality was okay, I think. She didn't particularly stand out for me, except for the fact that she nearly killed William Court.
4: Jeff (Brandon's brother) was OMG hilarious! I really really liked him; verily, he was the amusing one.
5: Heather's auntie, oh my word kill yourself you little ?!#@. How it's even possible to be that cruel hearted, evil and jealous I will never know.
Overall, I love the book!! One of my favourites! XD
charlote_1347's review against another edition
1.0
0.5 stars.
Any enjoyment I could have garnered from plot, characterisation or writing style was completely tarnished by content. Even Jeff, my favourite character, lost every ounce of my respect when he found out Heather's backstory and did absolutely nothing to help her. As a matter of fact, he found the whole thing hilarious!
Obviously Brandon needed the difference between rape and consensual sex clarified because he very clearly DID NOT know the difference. Add to that the fact that he LAUGHED when he realised Heather wasn't a prostitute playing hard-to-get but rather a virgin who he'd just forced himself on and it was very difficult to feel anything but hatred for him as the book progressed. As if to test the reader further, he then painted himself as the VICTIM because he was forced to marry the woman he'd RAPED and IMPREGNATED to save her from a life of disgrace and poverty. He was a complete brute towards her as a consequence, both physically and emotionally, well into the second half of the book. Everything about him was despicable and sickening. I literally felt sick reading the novel's final pages because Woodiwiss had the 'couple' joke that the rape that started their 'relationship' was actually a good thing.
The thought that this was one of the first historical romances to be published, the first 'bodice ripper', fills me with dread and complete relief at how far the genre has come since. Brandon made Christian Grey look like a knight in shining armour.
Any enjoyment I could have garnered from plot, characterisation or writing style was completely tarnished by content. Even Jeff, my favourite character, lost every ounce of my respect when he found out Heather's backstory and did absolutely nothing to help her. As a matter of fact, he found the whole thing hilarious!
Obviously Brandon needed the difference between rape and consensual sex clarified because he very clearly DID NOT know the difference. Add to that the fact that he LAUGHED when he realised Heather wasn't a prostitute playing hard-to-get but rather a virgin who he'd just forced himself on and it was very difficult to feel anything but hatred for him as the book progressed. As if to test the reader further, he then painted himself as the VICTIM because he was forced to marry the woman he'd RAPED and IMPREGNATED to save her from a life of disgrace and poverty. He was a complete brute towards her as a consequence, both physically and emotionally, well into the second half of the book. Everything about him was despicable and sickening. I literally felt sick reading the novel's final pages because Woodiwiss had the 'couple' joke that the rape that started their 'relationship' was actually a good thing.
The thought that this was one of the first historical romances to be published, the first 'bodice ripper', fills me with dread and complete relief at how far the genre has come since. Brandon made Christian Grey look like a knight in shining armour.
pammie823's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, and Slavery
Minor: Fatphobia
justinkhchen's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars
A sub-genre starter still worth visiting, as long as one's aware going into The Flame and the Flower knowing there will be sprinkles of dated concept and language (the excellent audiobook was produced in 2023, and as far as I can tell nothing has been re-edited. The introduction was a nice touch providing context on its relevance in the history of publishing). In term of narrative and trope, it's amazing how much it has shaped the historical romances 'formula'—because the same structure is still being used relatively unchanged today.
'Epic' is the first word coming to mind; with its story spanning across continents, as well as the surplus amount of settings (small English town, on a ship, landed in the US, etc.), The Flame and the Flower leans heavily towards adventure. As a fan of Amanda Quick's plot-driven historical romances, I can trace the influence in this novel as well—as there's a heavy mystery element woven throughout—a very pleasant surprise that satisfies the thriller enthusiast in me (there is more body count here than some of the proper thrillers I've read recently).
You definitely will sense the length of this novel, especially around the 60%-70% mark, where there's a significant lull in plot progression (fortunately it picks itself back up with the mystery subplot). And the hero is not someone readers will be swooning over by today's standard (though the story tries very hard, and almost makes him redeemable). But as far as a melodramatic historical romance goes—this is among one of the older historical romances I really enjoyed.
***Historical Hellions Book Club | November 2023 Selection***
A sub-genre starter still worth visiting, as long as one's aware going into The Flame and the Flower knowing there will be sprinkles of dated concept and language (the excellent audiobook was produced in 2023, and as far as I can tell nothing has been re-edited. The introduction was a nice touch providing context on its relevance in the history of publishing). In term of narrative and trope, it's amazing how much it has shaped the historical romances 'formula'—because the same structure is still being used relatively unchanged today.
'Epic' is the first word coming to mind; with its story spanning across continents, as well as the surplus amount of settings (small English town, on a ship, landed in the US, etc.), The Flame and the Flower leans heavily towards adventure. As a fan of Amanda Quick's plot-driven historical romances, I can trace the influence in this novel as well—as there's a heavy mystery element woven throughout—a very pleasant surprise that satisfies the thriller enthusiast in me (there is more body count here than some of the proper thrillers I've read recently).
You definitely will sense the length of this novel, especially around the 60%-70% mark, where there's a significant lull in plot progression (fortunately it picks itself back up with the mystery subplot). And the hero is not someone readers will be swooning over by today's standard (though the story tries very hard, and almost makes him redeemable). But as far as a melodramatic historical romance goes—this is among one of the older historical romances I really enjoyed.
***Historical Hellions Book Club | November 2023 Selection***
madmcginnis's review against another edition
challenging
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
e_asw_97's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
0.5
gamz's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0