DANGEROUS BEAUTY

by

MELISSA KOSLIN

Fiction / Christian / Romance / Suspense

Publisher: Revell

Pages: 352 pages

Publication Date: September 6, 2022

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What is the price of freedom?

Liliana Vela hates the term victim. She’s not a victim, she’s a fighter. Stubborn and strong with a quiet elegance, she’s determined to take back her life after escaping the clutches of human traffickers. But she can’t stay safely in America–unless the man who aided in her rescue is serious about his unconventional proposal to marry her.

Meric Toledan was just stopping at a service station for a bottle of water. Instead, he becomes the key to Liliana’s rescue. If he can keep his secrets hidden, his wealth and position afford him many resources to help her. But the mysterious buyer who funded her capture will not sit idly by while his prize is stolen from him.

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Praise

“Do not start this book until you have the time to read it in one gulp. This is a really fresh twist on a marriage of convenience with the potential for pages of suspense. The hero and heroine are each hugely compelling, and I just wanted to protect them both. It’s also a sweet story of the healing power of hope. Highly recommend this novel for those who adore romantic suspense with a fresh twist.” —Cara Putman, award-winning author of Flight Risk and Lethal Intent

“Koslin brings the underworld of human trafficking to life in a gripping yet redemptive plot.” –Booklist

We are not bound by our circumstances; life is what we make of it.

This tale is one of courage, strength, love, and understanding. Liliana has all of these in spades, and it shines throughout the book. Yes, she may have arrived in the US under some harsh conditions, but she doesn’t let this bring her down. Meric has his own demons he is battling that make it hard for him to recognize that life doesn’t have to be mired in the past.

This book addresses a difficult topic, trafficking. This happens more than we probably realize, and possibly in our own neighborhoods and cities. However, we see that there are people out there that try and stop this from happening when they can. Meric just happened to be in the right place at the right time and was able to extract Liliana from a potentially harmful situation. His actions at the beginning and throughout the book reflect the type of man he is. But these are also his weaknesses because he saw Liliana and fell in love with her beauty right away. But because of his own history, he holds himself back, knowing that Liliana needs to heal from her ordeal. But holding back sends mixed signals, and if I were in Liliana’s shoes, I know that I would be confused as she was.

Liliana is more formidable than Meric gives her credit for. She is not afraid of much and is willing to fight for what is right. She dives head first into helping rescue other trapped women so they don’t endure a fate that might be worse than death. I was in awe of her character and wondered if I could do the same if I were in her shoes. I think Meric’s past held him back, and while he wanted Liliana to heal, it was apparent that he had his own issues that he wasn’t addressing, and it took nearly the entire book to fully understand his position.

The story encompasses approximately a month, but a lot happens during that time; it kept me wondering what could possibly happen next for these characters. Will they stop others from trafficking women? Will they stay safe and away from harm? The story is like an onion, and each chapter peeled back layers of the characters and the various situations. The various characters will either endear you to them or despise them.

I was surprised at the number of characters that thought Meric was holding Liliana captive. She was free to roam about as she pleased, which was not the case for some others we discover later in the book. Their hearts might be in the right place, but they couldn’t have been further from the truth.

This book may not be for everyone, but I enjoyed it and look forward to this author’s next book.

We give this book 4 paws up.

Melissa Koslin is a fourth-degree black belt in and certified instructor of Songahm Taekwondo. In her day job as a commercial property manager, she secretly notes personal quirks and funny situations, ready to tweak them into colorful additions for her books. The author of Never Miss, Melissa lives in Jacksonville, Florida, with her husband, Corey.

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GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!

TWO WINNERS:

Each receives copies of Dangerous Beauty and Never Miss

+ $25 gift card to Bookshop.org

(US only; ends midnight, CDT, 9/24/22.)

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