I've been enjoying this series since the beginning. Now she's aged kids from characters from the beginning. Very cool. Enjoyed this one as well. Hope there's more! ( )

This is the 13th novel in the Celta series although there is also an anthology of four shorter stories. Heart Fire is about average for these stories and has Antenn and Tiana, both of whom we've met in other stories, as the hero and heroine. The Turquoise House also has an important role to play. As with any long running series, starting at the beginning is a good idea as a lot of background is assumed. While I enjoyed Heart Fire I wasn't overly fond of Tiana's newly acquired Fam, RatKiller, a feral cat who decides he wants to be part of a Family and chooses Tiana to bond with. However, his antics did shake up her orderly life.

Good book - not quite as good as the first Celta books, but right up there. I like Tiana, and it's great to see Antenn find his place and his footing and his HeartMate. I missed the last two books, so I don't know her well - she may have shown up a couple times in passing before (Owens likes to do that). The structure is well-done - the Cross Folk are an interesting contrast to the worshipers of the Lord and Lady, without being simple caricatures. They're individuals - the four Chief Ministers, Lady Mugwort, and each of the others we encounter in passing have their own viewpoints on their own and the other religion(s). The villain is a trifle obvious - and just why _wasn't_ he dealt with long ago? If everyone had to apologize to the Mugworts, why were they left stripped of their title? Seems odd. Whatever, it makes for an exciting story now. The sex is quite explicit, but not clinical, and love is by far the more important aspect. The love between the two of them takes a while to bloom (though it's still blistering-fast - less than a week, I think). But love is also an important factor with Tiana's new Fam, and Antenn's Pinky, and especially Turquoise House. Nice to see him/it growing up a bit. Fun story, and very rich. Now I want to read the two Celta stories I missed, and go back to the first few books as well. I do like Owens' work. ( )