Book Review: Breath on Embers by Anne Calhoun

Title: Breath on Embers
Author: Anne Calhoun
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Sensuality Rating: Erotic
Source: review copy from publicist
Published: December 3, 2012 by Carina Press

Christmas is the perfect time for Firefighter Ronan O’Rourke to take things to the next level with his sexually adventurous girlfriend. He knows she has feelings for him—and he’s sure of his feelings for her—but when Thea refuses his invitation to sample Christmas in New York City because what they share is nothing more than sheet-burning sex, Ronan sets out to change her mind.

Deep down Thea Moretti knows she cares for Ronan, but she can’t move past her grief over her late husband. Loud music and sex with Ronan are the only things she’s got that her feel alive, so she takes as much of both as she can get. She knows Ronan wants more, but during the darkest time of the year finding her way won’t be easy.

Ronan gambles everything and challenges Thea: one night of passion with him and another man. Can he prove to her that what they share isn’t just great sex but an emotional connection strong enough to last forever?

Why I Read this Book: The book had me at ‘firefighter’. And the name Ronan O’Rourke is rather sexy, don’t you agree?

What I Liked: This was an intense love story. On the surface, there’s a casual sex thing going on between Thea and Ronan but really, it’s so much deeper that. Thea has barely been making it through life ever since her husband died in a tragic car accident 2 years ago; she's a hollowed out version of her former self. There's this huge void in her life that she fills with loud music and meaningless sex. She has no desire to be in another relationship because she feels that to do so would be unfaithful to her deceased husband. So she keeps herself at a distance when it comes to Ronan and won't allow it to be anything more than just sex.

Roman was a great guy. That guy has perseverance! He didn’t gave up on Thea. He was also was very understanding about Thea’s love for her deceased husband. He never questioned her emotions and accepted that he (the ex-husband) would forever be a part of Thea’s life.

The ménage scene was well done. It served a purpose, one that Thea didn’t grasp at first, but it totally worked. It was a beautiful discovery.

What I Didn’t Like: The one thing I didn’t understand is why Thea didn’t use her iPhone to play music when she was without her iPod for a while. This is a person who craves music, needs it, to make it through the day. The most obvious thing to do would be for her to use her iPhone as a back up. Instead, not only did she ordered an iPod, which would be arriving in a matter of days, she was almost tempted to go to the Apple store to get one in her hands right that very moment. I wanted to scream “use your iPhone!!”.

Memorable Moment:

“How about he comes over, too? I’ve got the right costume,” she whispered.

Overall Impression: Breath on Embers was a quick and satisfying novella that read like a full-length novel. It was a solemn, yet heart warming, story about finding love again.

Brianna’s Rating: