Winter Fire by Rachel Ann Nunes

Published in 2005. 311 pages.


Entirely by coincidence, I read this book - Winter Fire - after reading Winter Wheat. There is actually some similarity between the books, both about a young woman trying to find her place in the world. But I wasn't intentionally looking for a literary comparison; Winter Fire was the pick for my church women's group book group. I ended up not making it to the discussion this past Tuesday night, as I was frantically preparing to attend and present at a convention this week (from which I just returned home), so I don't know what they talked about. I don't think that there is much in the book to stimulate dialogue, although it was a light, enjoyable read.

LDS romance is not a genre I visit frequently. Actually I don't think I'd read one since I was a teen. (I don't usually read romance novels of any kind, except for Janet Evanovich's screwball comedies and maybe a few other writers - Sophie Kinsella, for example - that might be classified as romantic comedy.) I did enjoy this novel, however - reading most of the book last weekend while on a short road trip to Moab. I sat at the hotel pool and read while my kids swam, and I laid on the bed in our room and read while they watched the Disney Channel. A couple times I found myself laughing out loud, and I did shed a few tears too. On the other hand, there were several times I had to just roll my eyes, such as when the female protagonist choose a beautiful green shirt for her date, one that brought out the color of her eyes, and fitted but not so tight as to be immodest. "Oh brother," I thought.

Apparently this is part of a series, but I doubt I'll be looking for the others. As a book club pick that I didn't know about when I made my Spring Reading Thing list, I will be counting it as one of the "wild cards".

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