Silver Flame

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review. Also my tags may have spoilers in them so be forewarned before checking out full review.

Book Evaluation:
Plot: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️
World Building:🌎🌎🌎🌎🌎
Cover:📔📔📔📔📔
Hero: 🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻
Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️
Intimacy Level: 🔥🔥🔥
Relationship Building: 💒💒💒
Heart & Feels:💞💞💞
Witty/Banter/Reaction of Laughter: 😂😂😂
Page Turner Level:📖📖📖📖
Ending:🧧🧧
Overall View: ✨✨✨.5

First Impressions
Silver Flame is the second book in the "Braddock Black" series and this is part of her western based series. Silver show more Flame came as a recommendation as I had been focused on some of her other series but I hadn't even finished up some of her other books. Silver Flame is a story that has a great premise of an auction, some tender caretaking, a conflict that breaks this couple apart for a time and some drama in the third act that will remind the reader of old school romance angst. I always forget how some of this authors writing is super angsty in the old school style because her writing is so easy to read and doesn't age like other old school romances do...

First Line
Valerie Stewart saw him first when he walked into the music room, and her eyes opened appreciably in surprise.

The Main Protagonists
The Hero: Trey Braddock-Black
The Heroine: Empress Jordan

Summary
Empress Jordan is the guardian for her siblings after their parents died from a sickness. And they are running out of funds and food. So she buys as much food for her siblings with the last of their funds. And then heads across the state so that she can auction herself for sale to get as much money as possible to provide for her siblings. She is purchased for three weeks by Trey Braddock-Black. Trey is a bit of a rake in many ways but never reckless about it. But when he sees a bad associate bidding on Empress, he takes charge of the auction. They spend a beautiful few days together until he gets shot and almost dies and its Empress's talents that saves his life. But there is a plot to destroy what they have and to take over the Braddock-Black fortune....

What I Loved
Their connection was really brilliant. I loved the premise of the story that features a auction. I just love a good auction in a romance. It just adds the right type of tension I love in a beginning of a relationship. I loved both characters so deeply. The hero is your typical alpha rake in the American West. He has lost a lot in his life and holds his family very precious. Then we have our heroine who has such heavy burdens on her shoulders to care for her siblings. These kids won my heart so quickly. And how they respond to Trey was so tender and poignant. He is so patient and plays with them in such a real way. And loved that they had such a strong bond that even they write to him even when the heroine isn't treating him write so he knows what is happening to them. I really appreciated that the author hadn't that bond in the story. I adored seeing the couple from the first book and still being in so much love but wow they have lost so much too. Made my heart break for them. I did love the redemption on the last page.

What I Struggled With
The third act ......basically everything after the heroine flees to France is pretty toxic and it literally doesn't get worked out until the last page of the book. I forgot how much I don't like that type of angst in a romance because these two are so abusive of each other and its a bit shocking to the reader as the first half of the book you don't sense that in their relationship in any way. So its like being shocked with ice water. I especially didn't understand why the heroine felt the need to flee to France, hide her pregnancy from the hero or why she was so cruel to him. And I really wish the ending had been longer. There wasn't really a true epilogue for them but focusing on another couple and I would have preferred seeing them in their HEA a bit to be honest.

Overall View
Silver Flame is a high tension filled romance that will dig deep into your heart, it awakens the senses with the vivid exploration of old west in Montana, it doesn't shirk on the greed of the people of the time. Its historically rich, sensually focused and vibrant in the angst...

Book Details (also in my shelves)
Sub Genre: Historical Romance-American West
Character Types: Rake/Rogue, Single Parent, Alpha Male
Themes: Auction, Angsty, Kids/Children, Human Trafficking
Tropes: Secret Baby, Forced Proximity

Book Perspective
3rd POV

Relationship Conflict vs Plot Conflict
Both

If you like these authors, I recommend This Book
Virginia Henley
Johanna Lindsey
Marsha Canham

Recommendation For Reading Order
You can read as standalones or in series order

Steam/Spice Explanations

Warmin' by the fire- a medium level of sexual tension, a balance of sexual and emotional intimacy, lighter on the details in the sexual moments. show less