CURSED BY FIRE is book one in fabulous Jacquelyn Frank's
new
Immortal Brothers series. It is a fantasy set in
an
alternate world with gods and a light touch of magic. The
gods feel similar to the Greek pantheon- fighting amongst
themselves, and with all-too-human deadly sins and
foibles.
The kind of gods I really love to despise. Our hero,
Dethan, and his three brothers have been punished for
centuries
for their hubris in tracking down and snatching the gift
of
immortality. Dethan and his brothers were all plunged
into
separate hells for their eternal punishment. Dethan has
been condemned to burn alive over and over in an endless
cycle after his body regenerates from his last fiery
torment. Frank is pretty creative in the gruesomeness,
right?
Dethan has lost all hope of salvation, until the Goddess
of
Conflict, Weysa, arrives in his hellfire. She offers him
escape from his punishment if he will raise an army to
defeat her rival gods and restore the people's worship of
her. Dethan is returned to his world centuries after he
was banished for punishment, and must find a way to build
another army to follow him. Dethan is a very manly man,
with gorgeous muscles and a firm mien. I expected the men
around him to burst into song like Gaston's firends in
Beauty and the Beast, "I'm especially good at
expectorating!" Dethan is only a jerk at the pre-torture
beginning of the book, though, and then transforms to a
competent and ultimately a loving man. It's wonderful to
read as he goes through his metamorphosis.
Selinda is heir to the throne of Hexis. Her father is
uncaring and frankly nincompoopish parent and an
incompetent
king. He traps Selinda into betrothal with a truly
heinous
man, Grannish. Grannish finds Selinda distasteful, but
agrees to marry her in order to usurp the role of ruler
over
Hexis. Grannish never quite tips over into a caricature
of
a villain, and heightens the drama considerably. Dethan
agrees to enter a pragmatic bargain to save Selinda's city
from a warring tribe hovering outside the city's gates in
exchange for Selinda in his bed. This bargain allows
Frank
to showcase her well-honed skills in writing bedroom
scenes!
From New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Frank comes the scorching hot first book in a thrilling new series featuring four warrior brothers who have the power—and the curse—of immortality. For centuries, Dethan has been trapped in a fiery inferno for defying the gods and snatching the power of immortality. Condemned to have his battle-hardened body licked by flames only to regenerate and be consumed all over again, Dethan has lost all hope—until the Goddess of Conflict appears. She will release him from torment—if he’ll use his power and strength as a warrior to raise an army and defeat a fierce enemy faction of gods. Free to live as a man once again, Dethan meets Selinda—heir to the throne of Hexis—and his thoughts quickly turn from the conquest of cities to the conquest of this headstrong beauty. Betrothed to a cruel, calculating powermonger, Selinda needs a champion, and so Dethan enters into another bargain: If she will share her bed—and her body—with him, Dethan will save her city from destructive forces within and without. As the lovers ignite a searing passion, Dethan will risk all—even the wrath of the Goddess of Conflict—for a chance to make Selinda his forever.