Dangerous Beauty by Melissa Koslin

About the Book

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.

My Review

This is a good novel exploring a very important topic today. It is an emotionally engaging novel as we find out how intense a human trafficker can be in pursuing his desired conquest. We also get a real sense of the emotionally rewarding feeling in frustrating the illegal acts of traffickers and working to rescue women.

I liked Liliana. She is an intelligent and feisty woman. She has courage and the desire to help others. Meric is an odd character. I felt he was overly characterized. Yes, he had hurts from his past and he did not want to fall for the traumatized women he rescued. But it seemed like nearly every look was cold. Every response was cold. He seemed to show no compassion in the early part of the book. I kept on wondering why he would rescue Liliana if he had such a cold heart. We find out in the end but it was a bit much before then.

The plot was okay except I wondered how realistic it would be for the rescue to happen the way it did. There is a good deal of suspense along the way and there was a great twist near the end. An interesting issue Koslin explores is thinking that you have inherited a terrible trait from a parent.

Other than the over characterization of Meric's coldness, I generally enjoyed this novel and I will be looking for the next from her.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

About the Author

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 more information on her books at www.MelissaKoslin.com.

Revell, 352 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)