This was actually a three star novel until about 20% before the end, where it started plummeting rapidly. I’m about to get pretty spoilery, so if you haven’t read The Fire Child yet and don’t want spoilers you should definitely keep on scrolling…

The Fire Child begins very strongly. Rachel and David have recently gotten married, and he’s just moved her in to his ancestral family home in Cornwall. They are completely smitten, and despite the fact that David has to work in London all week and only spends weekends at home Rachel has never been happier. That is, until her stepson Jamie warns her that she’s going to die at Christmas. There have always been stories that the Kerthen children can see the future so Rachel believes her stepson’s prediction. This causes David to believe Rachel is going crazy and that his son is in danger, so he beats Rachel, getting himself slapped with an exclusion order which means he can’t go within five miles of his home.

His burst of anger makes Rachel wonder whether the story regarding David’s first wife’s death is genuine. Nina plummeted to her death down a mineshaft on Christmas day eighteen months before, but Rachel begins to investigate her death.

What she finds is completely unbelievable, unrealistic, and so goddamned stupid that I’m surprised this book even managed to get published.


Turns out, Nina was barren, so David anonymously paid a young college student to accept his sperm donation and give birth to his child. And that college student was, drum roll please… Rachel! Out of EVERYONE IN ENGLAND, David just happens to meet and fall in love with the woman who he paid to carry his child! That’s TOTALLY believable! I completely buy it!

Rachel works this out because she sees a picture of Nina and David with Jamie and recognises the photographer’s style – Jamie’s face isn’t visible, as he’s turned towards his mother – and she knows that the photographer is the one who first introduced her to the concept of being paid to carry a child. Now, I don’t know about you, but I’ve seen loads of different photographers taking pictures of new parents with a baby whose face isn’t visible as that can give them a little bit of much needed privacy, so that’s pretty flimsy in the first place.

Add that to the fact that Rachel is suffering from an extremely rare case of prepartum psychosis, and I would have believed it much more if Rachel had ‘figured out’ that she was Jamie’s mother and then gotten herself sectioned because she was experiencing delusions and actually hadn’t been his mother, because it’s just so convoluted.

Rachel believed that the child she gave birth to was a girl who died, as she gave birth so prematurely that the nurses told her the baby died to make the separation easier. In what world does thinking your child is dead make it easier that giving that child to the family who paid you to give birth to them?! And why would the nurses also bother to lie about the gender when Rachel would never know either way? So many questions, so many unanswerable questions which tear this plot apart as soon as you ask them.

Not only that, but Rachel lied and claimed that the reason she was pregnant was because her father raped her, and she said that she lied like that to protect her mother? Rachel is sexually abused by her father as a child and that is horrendous – and also rather graphically described, another good reason to avoid this book – but I can’t see the logic of telling everyone that your father raped you and believing that you’re doing your mother a favour. Also, if your father is also the father of your baby, where are you explaining the sudden influx of money you’ve received from the man who paid you to carry his baby? Again, more unanswerable questions.

Honestly, the terrible ending isn’t the only reason I knocked stars off for this book. There’s also a brilliant line where the snowy landscape is described as ‘autistic’ and I just??? What the fuck? Who in their right mind describes as landscape as autistic? That’s not even the only time this is used as a negative descriptive word in this novel. Gross.

I loved the descriptions of Cornwall – I spent a day in Truro last year for some work training and S.K. Tremayne does a brilliant job of bringing the location to life – and the photography of the mines throughout adds another layer to the story and sets up the historical context of the Kerthen family very strongly. That being said, if I’d been anywhere near a fire while reading this one it would have been chucked straight in.

In The Fire Child, Tremayne succeeds in terms of atmosphere (those mines, the haunted, sea-ravaged landscape) but, for me, does slightly less well in other regards. I'll start by saying I enjoyed this novel - in these corona lockdown days, it delivers. I spent many happy - or at least, forgetful - hours curled up and reading. But I didn't quite believe in the characters or, even, care that hugely much about them. The story starts by leaning slightly on Du Maurier's Rebecca - apparently naive young bride, successful and handsome (but obviously also suspicious, with a dark side) new husband, but then deviates, naturally, to become its own thing. And, like I said, in terms of setting it delivers - brooding, gothic, the whole escapist works. The addition of the stepson adds something, but I'm just not really sure what. Again, I didn't totally believe in him. So I devoured the novel - it was extremely well written and compelling - but finished without feeling I'd gained much. As others have mentioned, the coincidences are piled on thick and thin. An entertaining but not, for me, convincing read.

I absolutely loved The Ice Twins so couldn't wait to start this. I started it, couldn't get into it so put it down thinking it was a case of wrong book, wrong time. I picked it up again some time later and again, I've shelved it at just less than 50%. It feels as though it is trying too hard. Apologies, but not for me this time.

When Rachel follows David to live in the beautiful family estate in Cornwall, she feels she has everything she could wish for. Her life is about to change though and she will uncover some dark and disturbing family secrets. Her stepson Jamie displays some worrying behaviour and she will have to do whatever she can to protect the child.
A twisting plot keeps the reader guessing and intrigued. This is a unique mix of (almost) paranormal mystery, historical fiction and thriller. The author goes to great lengths to describe the scenes and the reader is transported to the untamed country that is Cornwall.

This book was very gothic in nature and was quite suspenseful

This book was very sinister and quite dark in places

The story was tense and did not disappoint

Atmospheric. Gripping. Haunting.

An unmissable psychological thriller that will consume you from start to finish!

What do you do when the perfect life you have constructed starts to unravel?

Rachel who has recently married the man of her dreams, uproots her whole life and makes the decision to move to the stunning estate of her new rich, successful husband David, in Cornwall along with her new stepson Jaime, who despite having recently lost his mother is a sweet affectionate boy.

But then Jaime’s behaviour changes. He begins making predictions, claiming that he is being haunted by his late mother and with that Rachels dream life begins to unravel…

This author literally had me in the palm of their hand the whole way through this story. The intrigue, suspense and chills this book gave me are why I love a good psychological thriller. The twists and turns left me greedy for more and one scene in the book gave me the worst chills, but in a good way, I have ever read…even now just thinking about it gives me goose bumps!

This was my first novel by S.K. Treymayne but I can’t wait to peruse other titles by him.

I highly recommend The Fire Child in all its dark, chilling beauty!

I didn't love this one as much as The Ice Twins but it's another great read. Really well written with characters you feel like you know.

Absolutely fantastic. I love all S. K Tremaynes books and this did not disappoint. The gothic, creepy feeling of her books are brilliant, especially as this is set around the tin mineshafts of Cornwall.
The character of Jamie is so well written - and she repeats this in Just Before I Died with Lyla - and the reader can imagine this sad, troubled young lad perfectly.
The only criticism is that sometimes the author begins describing something in such detail that you forget where you were in the dialogue or story.
All in all though I loved it.

I have read this author's previous books and enjoyed them - this one was good too. The characters were well drawn, the atmosphere and sense of place excellent (although I LOVE Cornwall!). I look forward to more of his books.

Um livro muito interessante e me fez virar as páginas com uma grande velocidade; Me entreteve e foi um ótimo passatempo, além de uma leitura agradável.

5 Words: Secrets, lies, families, trust, history.

Content Warnings: Sexual Assault, Domestic Violence, Self Harm, Postpartum Depression.

I feel like I'm missing something listing the content warnings there, like there's something else I should mention, but I can't figure out what it is. But basically this book is hella unsettling, and I was very much shocked by the content as it comes out of nowhere and I wasn't expecting it. That said, it was still a good book.

I liked the dual narrative, how despite the two perspectives I was always unsure of what was going on, always on the edge of my seat. Both narrators are unreliable, and that is one of my favourite things to read. I love how sure and unsure Rachel was. I love how David became almost a different person as the story progressed. The narrative really showed how the thoughts and feelings of teh characters changed, and their voices drove the pace. Whether it was Rachel's fear or David's anger, everything got faster and more intense.

The story itself is rather far-fetched - a lot of unlikely coincidences and some things that just feel like too much. I get that life can be stranger than fiction but there is So Much that it feels a little too much.

This is one of those instanced where I liked the epilogue. It was lovely to see what happened to the characters after the story ended.

The Fire Child is a tough read, but fast paced and surprising. Recommended to fans of dark thrillers.

This book has been out for over two years, so I was surprised that reviews I looked at before hand didn't mention such content. Because it really is brutal.

Really enjoyed this book, it reminded me of those old black and white films like Gaslight & Rebecca. If you like those you’ll like this. Most of my holidays as a youngster were spent in Cornwall and I have family in Devon so I loved the setting. Very atmospheric, gripping and keeps you guessing as to what’s really going on.

Very atmospheric, interesting characters and excellent writing. The story line is built up slowly which really hooked me in.

Very enjoyable and a strong 4 stars.

really enjoyable read. was great descriptions worth a read

A challenging fantasy thriller about a ready made family which at first seems normal and loving but things do not remain that way........

The Fire Child is one of those books where I feel like I’m missing a trick. The reviews are really positive. But I had a reading session just to get through it because I was bored and thought it was working too hard to be a thriller.

Let’s begin with the characters. Rachel has a traumatic past. That being said, my initial thoughts of her was that she was shallow. She loves David, but loves his house, the sex and the escape he offers more. This is also another female character that spends the entire book desperate to have his child, even when she stops trusting him.

We know from the beginning she is hiding something. Only this feels like a plot done a thousand times now – hints that something is being concealed dropped throughout before unravelling at a crucial time. But we also know Rachel lies and its apparent she has a history of mental illness. This made her an unreliable narrator, to the point where I couldn’t trust any of her narration. This distanced me from the main character and stopped me being emotionally invested in her.

David is controlling in his own way; their sex life is a power play (which really surprised me considering what is revealed about Rachel) and at one point, he tries to order Rachel to do something. But after an incident (no spoilers) for which he is entirely to blame, David plays the “woe-is-me” card and acts like Rachel orchestrated the whole thing to fleece him for his money and house. The whole event was his fault!! Absolutely no sympathy for his character whatsoever.

There is a lot of description about Cornwall and the mines. It slowed the pace and lost my interest on multiple occasions, to the point where I had to force myself to keep reading just for things to move on. Juliet (David’s mother) suffers from dementia and is prone to rambling speeches. While this is a symptom of the illness, it did make it a struggle to remain engage with the conversations when they were quite literally adding nothing to the plot. The tension would have been far more extreme if it didn’t feel like there were several detours to look at the scenery along the way.

While I have no knowledge of the industry, there were also a few occasions where the medical professionals were involved. Personally, I didn’t think their actions were strictly professional, which undermined their realism.

This novel didn’t have a satisfying conclusion for me. The answer to all the problems seemed implausible and a little too much of “oh-what-a-coincidence!”. But while this answer did explain a few things, it did not explain how two characters who teetered on the edge of madness for the entire book suddenly accepted that this explanation solved everything. I wasn’t buying it.

The tension did increase at the end and I did genuinely want to know how the book would resolve. But this one didn’t work for me.

This isn't as good as the Ice Twins but it's still good and really gripping and creepy in parts. Jamie especially is really creepy and written well. The Cornwall setting adds to the atmosphere too

Rachel marries David, a widower and moves into his Cornish house with her new Stepson. You would think that Rachel's life is perfect living in the family's lovely, yet crumbling manor house. However, Rachel's world doesn't stay ideal for long. The book is very well written and the plot well thought out. I understand how the subject of mining was such an integral part of the book, but it kept distracting me. I feel that it went into too much detail and I found myself skipping sections. It neither grabbed me or encouraged me to continue reading.

I loved this dark and atmospheric psychological thriller. Set in the very tip of Cornwall amongst the derelict copper and tin mines with the cliffs and sea on one side and the moors not far away, it’s almost Gothic in feel.

The novel starts in the summer and all is happiness and light. Rachel, from a tough working class background has married David, a wealthy lawyer with an ancestral home in Cornwall founded on the success of the copper and tin mines. David’s first wife, the beautiful and elegant Nina died 18 months ago leaving him a 6 year old son, Jamie, a beautiful child, who Rachel fell in love with at first sight. Once Jamie returns to his job in London, commuting to Cornwall on the weekends, Rachel and Jamie are left alone in an 18-bedroom partly restored mansion with only the housekeeper and David’s mother for company. Rachel looks forward to learning about house restoration and getting to know Jamie better but as the boy starts to make strange premonitions and talk about his dead mother, the isolated house starts to feel creepy and eerie and Rachel starts to wonder what really happened to Nina.

As the evenings close in, the psychological tension starts to build up, with the chapters counting down the days to Christmas as the weather closes in and Rachel becomes more fearful for herself and Jamie caught in a web of lies she doesn’t understand. As the fear builds, events start to spiral out of control coming to a stunning conclusion on Christmas Day. I did feel the surprise twist at the end was just too much of an unnecessary coincidence, but otherwise it was a thrilling read and I shall certainly be looking out for S.K. Tremayne’s next novel.

I did enjoy this book and the sinister, atmospheric feeling I picked up on. It was a good read, but.... not as good as the I've twins was.