Ria has worked most of her life to become a true priestess of the Temple of Fyre and she is about to undertake her final test.  Recently, however, she discovered a scroll that leads her to begin to wonder if all that she has been taught is actually the truth.  Ria also wonders that if the scrolls are right, then what is the truth about the powers of those at the Temple and her own powers?  When the high priestess, Malera, requests something of Ria that is so wrong and evil as her final test, Ria rebels and is forced from the Temple and left for dead.  But it seems that the fates or someone has more in store for Ria and she is found and saved by a stone seeker.

Ari was found as a small child by stone seekers and has done that his entire life.  When leaving the temple after selling his stones for a great amount, Ari discovers Ria's body, and believing the person to be a small boy he could train as an apprentice, Ari takes Ria back to his room to heal.  Ari gets a big surprise when he discovers that the boy is really a small and desirable woman. 

Ari and Ria begin a kind of relationship that moves in starts and stutters while trying to merge their paths of discovery.  With their greatly, or believed greatly, different backgrounds, Ari and Ria escape the temple town and begin their journey towards the mountains and discovery.  Various battles and misunderstandings appear along the way.  When the final battle between Ria and Malera comes, will Ari and Ria have the love and trust to join together in the ultimate way to defeat her?

The Temple of Fyre is an extremely intense story and takes you beyond even the realm of fantasy.  Ria is trained to believe in one true way and a happenchance discovery starts her to wonder if things are really supposed to be the way they currently are.  Ari has always wondered why he was abandoned as a child and recently he has received a clue to discover what actually happened.  Ria and Ari soon learn that they have much more in common then anyone would have believed.  I will not say I was able to read this in one sitting, but it was worth the time it took.  I was absorbed by the battles and the slowly evolving relationship between Ria and Ari.  While The Temple of Fyre is ultimately a book of good and evil battling for everything, the many details and the interesting plot has made it one story I will be re-reading just to see what I missed the first time, and I’m sure there was something.  For sci-fi and fantasy fans, this is a must read.