"Sizzles with romantic tension"

Lady Cassandra St. Ives looks forward to her correspondence with Count Basilio Montevarchi in Italy. They had been corresponding for two years and had become best of friends. At his invitation, she decides to go to Italy. She pictures Basilio as a middle aged balding gentleman and he imagines her as an older matron. What a surprise to both of them when they see each other. He is a handsome man of thirty and she a beautiful young widow.

Cassandra has vowed to never marry after her first disastrous marriage and Basilio is affianced to a young Italian woman chosen by his parents. Their love affair is short but so beautiful that they both know they can never find the same kind of beauty again in their lives. They are true soul mates in mind, body and spirit. Basilio arrives in London to be feted for his romantic poetry. He finds it very difficult to stay away from his beloved Cassandra but he is an honorable man. A resolution is found with a very unusual ending to this sensual book.

Barbara Samuel has written a novel filled with romantic tension and tender love. Basilio is so sensitive, so perfect, that I had a difficult time believing him to be real. Even though he is a bit over the top, the story is everything a reader could possibly ask for in a romance. The hero, Basilio, takes central stage and is the man of a romantic's dream. Cassandra is an intelligent and strong- minded woman who is determined to rule her own life. Ms. Samuel is a master of creating tension and this book has it in spades. NIGHT OF FIRE is a character driven story that romance readers will thoroughly enjoy.

Reviewed July 3, 2001 by Marilyn Heyman.

Reviewed by Marilyn Heyman
Posted July 9, 2001