After Liliana Vela’s family is murdered and she is trafficked from Mexico to Texas, she escapes at the first opportunity and is rescued by the mysterious Meric Toledan. Meric then offers a marriage of convenience as a way of keeping her safe, so she doesn’t have to return to Mexico where she fears she’d just be kidnapped and trafficked again.
(I’m fairly sure that it takes more than marriage to a stranger to be allowed to stay in the USA, but we’ll let that minor detail pass. The “billionaire marrying a stranger” did remind me of Streiker’s Bride by Robin Hardy, if you’ve been reading Christian fiction long enough to remember that one.)
I initially hesitated to request Dangerous Beauty for review because the topic was human trafficking. I read for entertainment, and there’s nothing entertaining about forcing women into sexual slavery.
But after reading Melissa Koslin’s debut novel, Never Miss, I decided to give Dangerous Beauty a chance and I’m glad I did. While trafficking provides the main tension in the plot, there is nothing explicit about trafficking (although there are a couple of well-written fight sequences).
Liliana is an excellent character.
She’s strong, intelligent, and determined. She’s also brave – she’s not afraid to trust Meric, to leave the apartment, to learn new things, even when that will potentially put her at risk.
Meric is more of a mystery, one that is uncovered slowly as the novel progresses. It’s obvious he’s hiding something from Liliana, but it’s also clear that she trusts him. It’s a credit to Koslin’s writing that she convinces me that because Liliana trusts Meric, I should as well.
The story is fast-paced to the point where I didn’t stop to ponder the logic or possibility of plot points like the marriage of convenience or even Liliana’s feelings towards Meric. It swept me along to the inevitable yet satisfying conclusion that answered all my questions, including one I hadn’t even realised I had.
Recommended for romantic suspense fans who enjoy authors such as Dee Henderson and Dani Pettrey.
Thanks to Revell Books and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.
About Melissa Koslin
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.
Find Melissa Koslin online at:
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About Dangerous Beauty
Meric Toledan was just stopping at a service station for a bottle of water. Assessing the situation, he steps in to rescue Liliana from traffickers. If he can keep his secrets at bay, 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.
Melissa Koslin throws you right into the middle of the action in this high-stakes thriller that poses the question: What is the price of freedom?
Find Dangerous Beauty online at:
Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong
