4 Wine Glass ARC #Review for Heart on Fire by Amanda Bouchet
Posting 1/1/18, 8:00 PM

Crystal's Thoughts:
Heart of Fire was an electrifying ending to a series that was beautifully brutal in every way.

In A Promise of Fire, readers were first introduced to the world of Magoi's, a magical race from the north that descend from the Gods, and the Hoi Polloi, a mundane southern race looked down upon because of their lack of magic. Where we met Catalia Fisa, the Kingmaker, and her match in every way, Griffin Sinta. Mysteries abounded, tension sizzled, tempers flared, trust took it's first tentative steps, and a romance bloomed. In Breathe of Fire though, that same trust and love was shattered and rebuilt, friend's were lost, and new beginnings made. Now, in Heart on Fire, Cat and Griffin must unite all of the kingdoms in Thalyria, including Cat's childhood home of Fisa, in order to complete Griffin's vision of reuniting the three realms and fulfilling the God's ultimate plans. Which means confronting Cat's own mother, who is as terrifying as she is powerful, and her own painful past.

Amanda Bouchet, who debuted with this series, excels at weaving a compelling world of magic and myth. The vivid world-building, heart-pounding action, memorable humor, and fervent romance has had me enchanted from the start. Mythology lovers can rejoice with this final installment. Not only do we find out that some of Cat's friends are more then what they seemed, but several more God's, Titan's, and Goddesses grace the pages of Heart of Fire too. Epic quests will ensue and prophecies will be fulfilled. I was on the edge of my seat throughout, just waiting to see what would be thrown Cat and Griffin's way next! The chemistry and passion between Cat and Griffin was intense as ever. The love that they share is beyond sigh-worthy. I am desperately hoping for a spin-off from this series that feature Griffin's family and Alpha/Beta Team. The dynamics between this group of characters was as lively as always, especially with the addition of a new fiery member. The loss of one or two key members, shakes their foundation, but with the support of each of these charismatic characters, there is never any fear of it crumbling.

What I found to be disappointing in this final installment (which is why I am rating this a 4, instead of a 5) was Cat herself. In the first two books she was a bad-ass, take-no-shit, independent woman with an ever-developing soft side when it came to those she loved. In Heart on Fire though, Cat seemed to loose all of those strong, endearing qualities that I enjoyed so much. At times, I couldn't even fathom her thought process and decisions. There were many instances where she would be on the verge of giving up completing and needed rallying from outside sources. This didn't jive with the Cat I've come to know. I could see her character softening up a little, that would have fallen in as part of her natural growth, but this seemed like a whole new character at times and disturbed the flow of the book and series ARC.

That discrepancy notwithstanding, I still found Heart on Fire to be a captivating, satisfying, unforgettable story. I'll be keeping my eyes out for news on more stories from this world in the future! If you're a fantasy and romance lover, the Kingmaker Chronicles is a series not to be missed. You'll definitely want to start at the beginning, as this is not a series that you can jump into mid-way, but it will be well worth it!

What an amazing end to the Kingmaker Chronicles! I am both incredibly happy and sad all at the same time - happy because I got to read the conclusion of Cat and Griffin's story but sad because, well, it's the end of Cat and Griffin's story... However, I suspect we may see more of these two in the future, as other characters were set up in ways to indicate they may get their own spin off books, which would hopefully feature my favourite couple - one can only hope.

As for the book itself, I really enjoyed reading the conclusion of Cat and Griffin's journey but was somewhat disappointed in the ending. Without giving away any spoilers I thought the ending fell flat. I was all ready for the big confrontation/war and ...
Overall, it's a good book and an amazing series, one that I am now going to read back to back again.

Wonderful completion to the series, but I hope there will be more stories to come.

In Heart On Fire we have a stunning finale of the Kingmaker Chronicles and this book was a BLAST of goodness, delights, shocks and terrors and with typical Bouchet flare, keeps you on the edge of your seat. We get more into the head of our daring heroine Catalina Fisa. Catalina we have seen through in the previous two books, as she grows and learns into her powers and abilities with her husband and mate by her side Griffin. And boy did I love seeing Griffin and Catalina together in this book. Their relationship is stronger than ever. I just love how well these two are in tune with each other. This review will be shorter than what you are used to, mostly because I don't want to reveal anything too much or spoil the story for you. I just wanted to share some thoughts and impressions I had on this book. I have become impressed with this series. In this book, Cat and Griffin will need to face up with Cat's mother and also Cat's insecurities. Now Griffin, I ADORED him in this book to be honest. He is so solid and true to Cat, it just makes your heart melt. I love how he believes and trusts in her so much. He never gives up on her succeeding, he knows what she is capable of, and stands by her in everything. You just have to admire a hero like that.

Cat is strong and has many abilities, however in this story we see how she really struggles with herself. We see the way she has to face up to who she is, and to overcome doubts and fear to become who she was born to be. Its not an easy road for Cat----not in ANY way. But she faces it head on, and we see the love she has for her family, her devotion to her people and how much she is willing to fight for them no matter the cost to herself. There are definite moments that this book just about broke my heart. So much emotion was displayed that I had a difficult time keeping my emotions in check. But we also have a book where we see the delights and joys too. The only reason why this book is a four star instead of

Why won't NG allow you to be nice and not rate a book anymore?

I feel really sad about HEART ON FIRE. It just was not as good as books one and two. I thought it was a pale ending for what had been a truly magnificent series up to this point. I came very close to not finishing it several times.

I feel like I still want to recommend books one and two to people (book one especially), but I can't in good conscience recommend this one. HEART ON FIRE just didn't feel true to the way the first two books were set up and executed.

Others may love it. It just wasn't for me, however; and didn't live up to the loveliness of the first two books of the series.