Review On: Born in Ice by Nora Roberts
Series: Born in Trilogy (Book 2)
Rating: 4/5
Where Born in Fire ends, Born in Ice begins. In Born in Ice we tackle the second of the Concannon sisters, Brianna. Unlike her sister Maggie, Brie is the cooler and calmer of the sisters. If Maggie uses her hands to make glass art, Brie uses her hands to build a cozy bed and breakfast with delicious food that has travelers coming from all over the world.
At the start of the story, Brie discovers a few things while cleaning out her late father’s belongings in the attic, she discovers letters that prove her dad had a one-time affair with a visiting American woman…one that bore him a child. She is tormented by the fact that her father had an affair outside of his marriage to their mother, and the possibility of a sister or brother of whose existence they were completely unaware of for the last 25 or so years. She finds herself unable to immediately tell her sister Maggie so as not to worry her, especially in her very pregnant state. It is also at the start of the story that Brie finds herself welcoming a guest, an American writer named Grayson Thane, who has come in the middle of winter to write out a story that takes place in Ireland. He is a wandering writer who never stays longer than finishing his manuscript; yet finds himself captivated by the beautiful Brianna who is cool on the outside but very passionate on the inside.
In the first book, we discover that Maggie is independent and doesn’t want a family of her own, or marriage, but she eventually finds herself in such a situation. Brie on the other hand is the woman who has always wanted a family and a warm home, but finds herself something of a spinster when she was abandoned by the man that she loved a week before their wedding. Brianna notices her attraction to Grayson Thane, and him to her, over the few weeks (and later months) that he is a guest at her B&B. But unlike her want of a family, Grayson Thane is a loner and a traveler who doesn’t want to settle anywhere and finds himself unable to build lasting relationships. Brianna later finds herself in a physical relationship with Grayson, despite her knowing that he will probably leave when his book is finished. Grayson on the other hand finds himself bonding with Brianna, her family, and even the people of County Clare. He becomes so attached to her and to them that he helps Brianna with her family issues. Through the course of the story, Grayson is faced with the realization that he has very strong feelings for Brianna, but is he willing to admit it to himself, enough to stay by her side?
I personally preferred the first book to this. In Born in Ice, we see the martyr Brianna, willing to give up everything for the happiness of everyone but herself. Unlike her sister who is very open about everything she thinks and does, Brie is more closed-up and unwilling to show others what she truly feels. She is torn by the fact that her sister is having a family of her own, something she has wanted ever since she was little, especially since her fiancee suddenly left her. She thinks so little of herself and devotes all her time to her business, the only thing that keeps her happy. And then there’s Grayson, the rich influential writer with a (secret) shady past. Good-looking, and well famous, he is in a mystery wrapped up in another mystery. He is also quiet and reserved and doesn’t share much about himself with others, choosing to show a facade of gaiety when he’s around other people. But around Brie, he finds himself opening up about himself, which he dislikes because it leaves room for him to be hurt.
Brianna has accepted earlier on that despite her attraction to Grayson, and later their physical relationship, she will have to say goodbye to him once he decides to leave. But being her martyr self, she decides to enjoy the time that she has with him, without burdening him about what she truly feels. Grayson on the other hand is obviously attracted to Brianna, and doesn’t hide this fact from her. He accepts their physical relationship and later on the fact that he will leave her once his book is done, but as the weeks go by, he finds it harder and harder to uproot himself from the place and people that he has grown to care for. What adds more to the conflict of his emotions is seeing Rogan and Maggie (from book 1) and their relationship with each other and later on with their child, something he never had growing up.
Here’s Brianna, who gives her everything to Grayson. And Grayson who accepts it all, except the reality that she can say goodbye to him when it’s all done. Brianna is something like the caring mother to the wounded child – which is Grayson, and Grayson is the avenue by which Brianna can finally be more open about herself and what she wants. I loved this theme in the book, where both need someone to care for them, someone whom they can really talk to about anything. Both Brianna and Grayson needed each other and you could really see throughout the book how they complimented each other, which is a little unlike Maggie and Rogan who though complimented each other in many ways, also had very conflicting personalities.
I think the reason why I preferred the first book to this is that I couldn’t agree with Brianna’s being such a martyr and giving up love because she couldn’t bear to tell him to stay. And I also couldn’t understand Grayson who after leaving, comes back out of nowhere. I understand how Brianna is able to sacrifice her happiness for the sake of someone else, but it was frustrating to watch how much she wanted a family and she wanted Grayson, but she wasn’t able to convey the depth of her feelings to him. And then Grayson leaving but coming back soon after, it didn’t turn out the way I had wanted it too, though I already expected the ending was going to be something like that.
One of the things that I liked about this book though was that you can see the continuing presence of Maggie and Rogan, as being an integral part of Brianna’s family-centered values. Book 2 doesn’t completely ignore the fact that Maggie as Brianna’s sister, exists. You see her and Rogan, popping in and out of the story, characters who later on help Brianna and Grayson discover their feelings for each other. It is wonderful to see that Rogan and Maggie are there to guide both Brianna and Grayson, allowing them to decide for themselves, but sometimes nudging them in the right direction. I love how Nora Roberts doesn’t alienate her books from each other, so you really see how the stories flow from one book to the next.
Of course, you see more of the County Clare characters in this book, which I think is for the benefit of one – Grayson Thane the loner, and two – for the third book (Born in Shame). In this book, you can also see that Maggie and Brie’s mother has to some extent, a better relationship with her daughters, and you discover more about her and her history and how it has affected their family. It tries to resolve the problems, while leaving some bit of conflict for the following book to contribute to.
There is really a reason why this story is three novels long.
Oh Ireland.