Review: A Torch in his Heart by Anna Belfrage
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
A Torch in His Heart by Anna Belfrage Series: The Wanderer #1
on 31 Aug 2018
Pages: 395
Format: eBook
Source: Promotion Company
Buy on Amazon US, Buy on Amazon UK
In the long lost ancient past, two men fought over the girl with eyes like the Bosporus under a summer sky. It ended badly. She died. They died.
Since then, they have all tumbled through time, reborn over and over again. Now they are all here, in the same place, the same time and what began so long ago must finally come to an end.
Ask Helle Madsen what she thinks about reincarnation and she’ll laugh in your face. Besides, Helle has other stuff to handle, what with her new, exciting job in London and her drop-dead but seriously sinister boss, Sam Woolf. And then one day Jason Morris walks into her life and despite never having clapped eyes on him before, she recognises him immediately. Very weird. Even more weird is the fact that Sam and Jason clearly hate each other’s guts. Helle’s life is about to become extremely complicated and far too exciting.
ADULT CONTENT: This book contains explicit sex scenes
Rating ~3.75 stars.Â
When I first read the blurb of A Torch in his Heart, I was very interested, even though I like to avoid love triangles and hate them with a passion of a thousand suns but the premise seemed fascinating enough (along with the supernatural element) that I decided to give it a go and I’m glad I did. Also technically speaking it isn’t a love triangle more a story of a couple and the crazy psycho who wants to possess the girl.
Helle, Jason and Sam are stuck in what seems like an endless loop of reincarnations, where Jason and Sam both search for Helle, find her only for it to end in all their deaths. In their first life, Helle and Jason were best friends and in love before Helle was forced to marry Sam who was as evil then, as he is now. Current Helle Madsen has just gotten a job working under Sam Woolf, who seems to be obsessed with her and Jason Morris who wake up to the knowledge that Helle is near, finds himself searching for her to save her from Sam.
Helle and Jason had great chemistry, from the moment they met Helle was entranced by Jason. Even though Helle might not remember all the details of their previous lives as Jason does, she feels a connection to him which along with the little flashes of knowing make her even more confused of who he is to her. While for Jason, being with Helle is wonderful, regardless of everything else, he loves and wants to protect her.
We get to see their current as well as their previous life story unfold, which added a lot more depth to the story, it makes you understand Jason’s motivation and Helle and Jason’s love which ended in a tragedy due to decisions not of their own. I really liked reading the flashbacks, some were sweet and some were filled with heartbreak. There’s also the element of supernatural, along with the reincarnation Jason, Helle and Sam seem to posses power. I found this to be very interesting and I hope they get more explored in the next book. I would like to know more about being a wanderer.
Quibbles: There are certain bits in the book that made me frustrated, which affected my rating of the book. Firstly, Helle goes through the cycle of I believe him, I don’t believe him, I’m in love with him but also think he’s crazy. I just didn’t understand her behaviour because she did know some things from their past life (esp when she met Jason) but then she’d ask Jason to not mention their previous life/doesn’t believe it. Which was weird because Sam is after them, she knows that yet…I also wasn’t a fan of some of Jason’s behaviour either, in his past life the misunderstanding that led to this, his current relationship with Juliet and the element of guilt that accompanies his quest to save Helle which made me less sold on them as a couple. When I first read the blurb, I wasn’t aware that this wasn’t a standalone but instead part of a series, and personally having read the first book I still don’t understand why the first book wasn’t expanded to conclude Jason and Helle’s story but as it is I’m intrigued to see where they end up.
Overall, it’s very well written, the plot is intricate. I did enjoy the flashbacks to their previous life and how they ended up in this cycle. I did go through a rollercoaster of emotions reading this. The story itself is pretty addicting, the drama, the angst, the crazy villain, the love lost and gained.
About Anna Belfrage
Had Anna been allowed to choose, she’d have become a professional time-traveller. As such a profession does not exist, she settled for second best and became a financial professional with two absorbing interests, namely history and writing. These days, Anna combines an exciting day-job with a large family and her writing endeavours. Plus she always finds the time to try out new recipes, chase down obscure rose bushes and initiate a home renovation scheme or two.
Her most recent release, A Torch in His Heart, is a step out of her comfort zone. Having previously published historical fiction & historical romance, with this first book about Jason and Helle Anna offers a dark and titillating contemporary romance, complete with a time-slip angle and hot & steamy scenes.
I understand what you mean about their behaviors, I really liked the book, but I kept thinking if they just stopped being so wishy washy they could fix what they need to in this life and all would be swell. I’m excited for book 2! Thanks for being on this tour! Sara @ TLC Book Tours
I hope that aspect of their relationship gets better handled in the next one! I’m looking forward to the next one as well 😀