Thoughts: Fired Up - Ani's Book Abyss

Fired Up
by Jayne Ann Krentz
Book 7 of Arcane Society
-- Book 1 of Dreamlight Trilogy

More than three centuries ago, Nicholas Winters irrevocably altered his genetic makeup in an obsession-fueled competition with alchemist and Arcane Society founder Sylvester Jones. Driven to control their psychic abilities, each man's decision has reverberated throughout the family line, rewarding some with powers beyond their wildest dreams, and cursing others to a life filled with madness and hallucinations.

Jack Winters, descendant of Nicholas, has been experiencing nightmares and blackouts--just the beginning, he believes, of the manifestation of the Winters family curse. The legend says that he must find the Burning Lamp or risk turning into a monster. But he can't do it alone; he needs the help of a woman with the gift to read the lamp's dreamlight.

Jack is convinced that private investigator Chloe Harper is that woman. Her talents for finding objects and accessing dream energy are what will save him, but their sudden and powerful sexual pull threatens to overwhelm them both. Danger surrounds them, and it doesn't take long for Chloe to pick up the trail of the missing lamp. And as they draw closer to the lamp, the raw power that dwells within it threatens to sweep them into a hurricane of psychic force.

I'm starting to think I'm unable to dislike anything written by Jayne Ann Krentz. It's probably safe to say I've had pretty high praise for all of her contemporary books I've read so far, even if I have little else to say.

True to form, a JAK book is exciting, lots of fun, steamy hot, and constantly forward moving. And although her historical and futuristic counterparts (Amanda Quick and Jayne Castle), always seem to reuse the same romantic themes, the contemporary sets always feel different, despite the still quite formulaic set up.

Fired Up is a great start to the sub-trilogy that officially interconnects the three worlds JAK has built between Arcane Society and Harmony. Set during the contemporary times, it also manages to build up the stage for the next book, Burning Lamp, that takes place in the Victorian era. Krentz is always giving us more, and new, and constantly evolving aspects of her Arcane Society world, as well as her Harmony world, and I always look forward to seeing what she comes up with next.

In previous books of both series, the concept of dream psi had been brought up, even if briefly, and so now it is explained in a center-stage sort of way. While I hardly understand half the psychic explanations and discussions going on, the book moves forward so quickly that I just find myself enjoying the story as it progresses.

Meanwhile, Chloe and Jack are great characters, with a great sense of partnership that mirrors almost every other JAK couple I've read since I first discovered her books last year. Nothing outstanding, really, but fun and sexy nonetheless. Add onto that, the little author's note at the beginning of the book, and a few suggestive lines of dialogue as our main couple try to solve their conflict, and it almost sounds as if the book is advocating hot, passionate, steamy sex as the means to save lives... well, at least to save the life of Jack Winters.

Sure, there's the concept of the Burning Lamp, and the whole dream psi spectrum, and all that. But what better reason to get our main couple all hot and bothered than implying that an intimate, passionate bond is also part of the whole ordeal.

And interesting concept...

Anyway, I also like the small foray into Fallon Jones, and love that we get to see more of him and his strange, paranoid quirks than just reading him as a background character who's ruthless and kind of a jackass. I especially love that we make Fallon and Jack a sort of best friends relationship, because it DOES give use more of an insight into Fallon, which brilliantly sets us up for the next contemporary Arcane Society book in which out elusive J&J Investigations leader gets to set himself front and center.

Once again, as per normal Jayne Ann Krentz standards, I very much enjoyed this book!

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