Review: An intercultural romance
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 22, 2012
"Winter Fire" was a touching story of two emotionally wounded people who came together and healed each other through the alchemy of a deep and abiding love (even though Ethan fought against loving Zara).After being captured as a child, Zara was adopted into an Indian tribe and was completely assimilated into their world until she was forcibly expelled for the crime of being a witch. (This was necessary to the story but didn't fit in with what I know of many Indian cultures, who would have honored her for having visions.)  She was given over into the custody of her uncle who was a cruel, greedy man who planned to force her to marry his son to get a hold of her inheritance. After attempting to run away, Zara was severely beaten and almost raped by her uncle and ran away again. Ethan saved her when she fell through the ice, learned that she was an outlaw but decided to help her escape anyway. I don't want to say anymore and risk spoiling the story. There are a lot of twists and turns in the storyline as well as a surprise (a happy one) ending.The writing was very well done with only a few editing mistakes that didn't interfere with the smooth flow of the story. I liked the fact that all the talk in the Indian's language was translated right after it was written. Too often when author's use sentences in a foreign language they are not translated and I find that extremely aggravating. The imagery was exceptionally good and I found that it was very easy to immerse myself in the story.Reading this book was a very enjoyable experience and I definitely recommend it.