Medically retired after a mission gone horribly wrong, Shane Redstone was once a Strike Specialist or commando for the Calderan military, leading her team against enemies who wanted to destroy their country. A native of Caldera City, the capital of her nation and a metropolis named for the fact that it is nestled in the center of an active volcano’s caldera, Shane’s power is fire magic. This magic is so strong that she is what is known as an Elemental: a magic wielder who has very, very fine control the element she wields. Due to her native magic being fire, she bears the title or rank of Flame.
Allen Helleson is from a traditional, well-known religious family in the countryside who serve the Sunlit Lord, the God that the Calderans alone worship. His family are Spirit-Workers; they wield Spirit and thus can detect lies, heal wounds of the soul, and even teleport if they have enough power. Allen had a falling out with his traditionalist family after he joined the local Watch (police force), which led him to leave his hometown to become an Inspector in the Caldera City Watch.
Shane and Allen are very different individuals from two entirely disparate backgrounds. But they call one city home and have one bomb in front of them, and there is no time for questions. Other than: “Can you tell me how close the fire is to the trigger mechanism?”
Because among the other things, Shane’s disastrous last mission as a Strike Specialist left her blind.
The Story
Sensing the remnants of “heavy” or weapon’s grade magical fire on a Riparian man, Shane surreptitiously followed him to a warehouse to discover he was not alone any more than he was out for a Sunday stroll. When the City Watch arrives, poison water bolts and rod (gun) fire starts flying. Shane sneaks up to the bomb and sets up a shield of fire around herself as well as the device, allowing her to study the thing using her Fire sense so she can learn how much time they don’t have until it goes boom.
Allen takes stock of the situation as he arrives to help with the firefight and decides to get the civilian out of this mess so the Watch can handle it. Teleporting to Shane’s side, he tries to dissuade her from staying, only to realize that she is bleeding fire from the bomb. She needs his help to accomplish even more delicate work, because she cannot see the trigger. He gulps but acts as her eyes, watching her send some of the bomb’s expended fire to kill and/or wound their attackers. Allen then stands aside as the Bomb Squad arrives – and eeps at the sight of the bomb.
That is never, ever good. Bomb Squads eep-ing like that mean they are in BIG trouble. But Allen is more surprised to see the Bomb Squad leader show deference to the woman keeping the device stable. She is a civilian – albeit a civilian who is literally dancing to control flames that apparently the head bomb squad guy, a Master of Fire, cannot handle.
Shane continues to dance as the Bomb Squad gets to work. She nearly slips on her cane, dropped earlier in the fight, and Allen’s attempt to prevent that almost doesn’t help matters. But Shane manages to keep the fire controlled long enough that the Bomb Squad can bag the device before it explodes. They all end up skidding across the floor when it goes off, but no one dies. Oh, and the magical Lava-ward beneath their feet that allows Caldera City to stand in the heart of an active volcano remains intact, too.
This is pretty much the only good news. Shane is taken to the Watch station for questioning, but she cannot navigate the station because she cannot see, so Allen goes to get her a cup of coffee. While he is gone his female Watch partner, Callie Freeport, takes issue with Shane for no apparent reason and almost draws her rod on the retired Striker. Allen barely gets that mess sorted out before he learns that Army Intelligence is taking their case, a wound to any honest policeman’s pride.
But Allen’s captain has a plan to get around this obstacle: Shane was there when the fight started and she defused the bomb. Was that a set up? The Watch just thwarted a terrorist attack. Military intelligence can’t keep the Watch from investigating cold cases, and Shane’s aunt is a retired inspector. Allen’s job is to keep an eye on Shane under the pretext of working on cold cases with her aunt, because if there was one terrorist attack, then more are likely to come.
Will Shane and Allen be able to work together despite getting off on the wrong foot? Or will Caldera City go down in flames?
The Characters
Shane is a rough, hard, and impolite woman who insists on remaining independent. This is her natural personality, but since she just lost her team and her sight, these attributes have all become more pronounced due to her grief. Add in a terrorist attack by people she knows want her nation and especially her to die a long, torturous death, and she is not willing to play polite society games. Especially since she is now, technically, useless because she has been rendered blind. Or so most people think; Shane has other ideas, and she is as capable as she is determined in her pursuit of them.
Allen is a good cop who wants his city and his people safe. He has a firm belief that the law needs to be followed – and his own family, from the farms of Waycross, didn’t follow the law. While Allen cannot prove it, he also cannot approve it. Although he left the country for the city, he kept the pastoral values of his youth close to his heart, and he is determined to protect everyone he can even if it kills him. A Journeyman Spirit-Worker, he has nowhere near as much power as Shane to throw around. So if he isn’t careful, he just might get himself killed!
The World
Ever wonder what it would be like to build a city in a volcano’s caldera, especially if the people who built it could wield the elements? Pearl of Fire took that idea and ran with it, then added dragons allied with the Calderans for good measure. Though they are not seen often, since they generally live on the Elemental Planes, the dragons consider Caldera as much their home as the humans do; a threat to one is a threat to both. For a world focused primarily on a single city, Pearl of Fire has hints of a much wider universe just waiting for its day in the sun.
Politics
The religion of the main antagonists in the series is a strong reflection of a real-world religion, which has a history of violence and terror. That is as political as the novel gets.
Content Warning
Sex slavery, mutilation, torture, human sacrifice, cannibalism, and some hints of sexual immorality are discussed. There are also a couple of f-bombs and discussions of decomposing bodies in the story. Beheadings are seen as well and the risk of rape is mentioned several times. None of it is described in an above PG-13 manner, but if you are worried about children reading it, wait until they are teens. They will appreciate Pearl of Fire more at that age than they will if they try it earlier.
Who is it for?
Fans of epic fantasy will enjoy this book for its broad scope and worldbuilding, which will leave them clamoring for more. Those who like fantasy or magic-empowered tech will also want to read Pearl, as the elemental powers wielded by the characters trickle down into how the technology they use every day is made, forged, and mass produced. Urban Fantasy fans will appreciate the street level view of life in Caldera City while working through the mystery and puzzles alongside the heroes, giving them plenty of mental candy to chew on. Readers who want clever protagonists, fantastic elemental combat, and characters who heal despite or in spite of their enemies will also enjoy it. Andre Norton readers and Harry Dresden fans will nod with approval while anyone who wants to vicariously experience the excitement of throwing fire around will be unable to turn the book down. Those who want high-flying thriller type action in a fantasy setting should read the novel at their earliest convenience.
Why buy it?
Pearl of Fire is epic fun in a too-short package. It is smart, thoughtful, good writing in a world rife with possibility. Why not buy it and have a good time?