reclusivereader's review
4.0
I'll admit that I requested this book solely because of the 'escaped the harem' plotline. I had hoped to discover a book not unlike THE DUKE OF SHADOWS by Duran that explored non-English elements of historical romance but was maybe a little less dramatic and angsty. The fact that DANGEROUS had a true blue Fabio-esque bodice ripper cover was also entertaining as hell and I had hopes that same kind of fun would translate into the story. And, spoiler, it did.
Lady Euphemia Marlington is thirty two and finally having her debut. Recently returned to London under mysterious circumstances, her father is hoping to marry her off before tales of her misadventures for the last seventeen years become any wilder than they already are. It's bad enough that her age makes her unsuitable but the scandal that surrounds her reappearance means the only real options left to her for a husband include deviants or men twice her age. Ultimately, however, Mia is less concerned over who she marries because she knows she'll be escaping England at the first opportunity. She left something behind when she left the harem, something dear to her, and she has no problem ditching an unwanted husband in order to retrieve it.
That is until she meets Adam de Courtney, Lord Exley. Why this handsome, and age-appropriate, man is interested in her, she doesn't know. But he needs an heir, she needs a husband to grant her independence from her father, and so they get married. But the more she spends time with the complex Lord Exley, the longer she delays her plans to leave. Soon she is caught up in a romance when all she wanted was a marriage of convenience.
As for Adam, infamously known as The Murderess Marquess, he has resigned himself to never again marrying, never having an heir, for who would trust their daughter to a man who had lost his two prior wives under suspicious circumstances? But then he meets Mia and is both intrigued by her father's desperation to marry her off to him and intrigued by the woman herself -- not the least for the fact that the story about her absence doesn't seem to be truthful. But it doesn’t take long for his intrigue to turn into obsession, not just for her body but for her company, as she works her way under his skin. He doesn't want to care for her, doesn't want to long for her, and yet she consumes every thought in his head, his body burns for her, and soon they are sharing confidences, playing cards, falling in love, when all he wanted was to wed her, bed her, and then go about their separate ways.
For the first fifty percent or so of this story, I honestly couldn't believe Spencer's DANGEROUS was a debut. This book is fun, witty, sexy as hell, and has just enough mystery surrounding Adam's backstory to make him a legitimately broody, hard to read, and hard to open up, hero. Mia, on the other hand, has endured life in a harem, snatched up at the tender age of fourteen, and yet lives her life to the fullest. She is full of joy, delight, and ridiculously sensual for a woman who has been trained to please others while never experiencing her own pleasure. The chemistry between these two is fantastic and watching them spark off, and against, each other is great fun.
Where the story fell apart for me, though, was near the climax. Circumstances arise where we have Adam and Mia traveling to Oran, where the harem is located, in a civil war-like setting and.. I just felt the story had too much happening and the characters became reactionary and stupid. Mia specifically, I'm sad to say, had a few TSTL moments that made me shake my head because throughout DANGEROUS she's.. well, dangerous. Dangerously clever, dangerously smart, dangerously calculating. I suppose the argument could be made that she lost her head because of the high stress situation, and I think perhaps the author tried to backtrack that into the narrative by way of a certain comment that shows how overwhelmed Mia is after everything settles down, but it felt a little too late by that point. There also might have been one too many sex scenes, especially near the big build-up; though I might be criticizing that because sex was deliberately used to avoid talking about a certain issue which happened to be right around the time I thought the book was the weakest. Personally I’m not a fan of the sex-sleight-of-hand distraction tactic but if you're a reader who loves it steamy, I think you'll be very satisfied.
That being said, I enjoyed the lighthearted, fun, and -- on the surface -- perhaps ridiculous nature of this book; which, side note, appears to be less ridiculous and more grounded in fact than I initially thought it to be. I feel the strength of the unexpected romance to be really strong, and believable, and appreciate that even though Adam helped to 'rescue' Mia and assist in a dangerous situation, Mia rescues him right back by offering insight into his past and insight into his present. As far as the wrap-up, I really enjoyed the epilogue, which seems to be hinting at a future romance for later in The Outcasts series that I would be very interested in reading. Jibril and Eva for book three? Please?
If you're wondering which debut author to take a risk on, or looking to try something different for your next historical romance, I would definitely suggest giving this one a go. I, for one, am definitely going to read more from her.
3.75 stars
Lady Euphemia Marlington is thirty two and finally having her debut. Recently returned to London under mysterious circumstances, her father is hoping to marry her off before tales of her misadventures for the last seventeen years become any wilder than they already are. It's bad enough that her age makes her unsuitable but the scandal that surrounds her reappearance means the only real options left to her for a husband include deviants or men twice her age. Ultimately, however, Mia is less concerned over who she marries because she knows she'll be escaping England at the first opportunity. She left something behind when she left the harem, something dear to her, and she has no problem ditching an unwanted husband in order to retrieve it.
That is until she meets Adam de Courtney, Lord Exley. Why this handsome, and age-appropriate, man is interested in her, she doesn't know. But he needs an heir, she needs a husband to grant her independence from her father, and so they get married. But the more she spends time with the complex Lord Exley, the longer she delays her plans to leave. Soon she is caught up in a romance when all she wanted was a marriage of convenience.
As for Adam, infamously known as The Murderess Marquess, he has resigned himself to never again marrying, never having an heir, for who would trust their daughter to a man who had lost his two prior wives under suspicious circumstances? But then he meets Mia and is both intrigued by her father's desperation to marry her off to him and intrigued by the woman herself -- not the least for the fact that the story about her absence doesn't seem to be truthful. But it doesn’t take long for his intrigue to turn into obsession, not just for her body but for her company, as she works her way under his skin. He doesn't want to care for her, doesn't want to long for her, and yet she consumes every thought in his head, his body burns for her, and soon they are sharing confidences, playing cards, falling in love, when all he wanted was to wed her, bed her, and then go about their separate ways.
For the first fifty percent or so of this story, I honestly couldn't believe Spencer's DANGEROUS was a debut. This book is fun, witty, sexy as hell, and has just enough mystery surrounding Adam's backstory to make him a legitimately broody, hard to read, and hard to open up, hero. Mia, on the other hand, has endured life in a harem, snatched up at the tender age of fourteen, and yet lives her life to the fullest. She is full of joy, delight, and ridiculously sensual for a woman who has been trained to please others while never experiencing her own pleasure. The chemistry between these two is fantastic and watching them spark off, and against, each other is great fun.
Where the story fell apart for me, though, was near the climax. Circumstances arise where we have Adam and Mia traveling to Oran, where the harem is located, in a civil war-like setting and.. I just felt the story had too much happening and the characters became reactionary and stupid. Mia specifically, I'm sad to say, had a few TSTL moments that made me shake my head because throughout DANGEROUS she's.. well, dangerous. Dangerously clever, dangerously smart, dangerously calculating. I suppose the argument could be made that she lost her head because of the high stress situation, and I think perhaps the author tried to backtrack that into the narrative by way of a certain comment that shows how overwhelmed Mia is after everything settles down, but it felt a little too late by that point. There also might have been one too many sex scenes, especially near the big build-up; though I might be criticizing that because sex was deliberately used to avoid talking about a certain issue which happened to be right around the time I thought the book was the weakest. Personally I’m not a fan of the sex-sleight-of-hand distraction tactic but if you're a reader who loves it steamy, I think you'll be very satisfied.
That being said, I enjoyed the lighthearted, fun, and -- on the surface -- perhaps ridiculous nature of this book; which, side note, appears to be less ridiculous and more grounded in fact than I initially thought it to be. I feel the strength of the unexpected romance to be really strong, and believable, and appreciate that even though Adam helped to 'rescue' Mia and assist in a dangerous situation, Mia rescues him right back by offering insight into his past and insight into his present. As far as the wrap-up, I really enjoyed the epilogue, which seems to be hinting at a future romance for later in The Outcasts series that I would be very interested in reading. Jibril and Eva for book three? Please?
If you're wondering which debut author to take a risk on, or looking to try something different for your next historical romance, I would definitely suggest giving this one a go. I, for one, am definitely going to read more from her.
3.75 stars
chelleyrenee's review against another edition
4.0
4.5
One of my favorite historical romances I’ve ever read. Will be reading the rest of this series.
One of my favorite historical romances I’ve ever read. Will be reading the rest of this series.
ceridwyn's review
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
melodicfate's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars.
Action, steam, and two characters I really liked made this book awesome. What made it stand out was the plot about the heroine having been in a harem. That was intriguing. Both Mia and Adam were in their thirties. I found that I really liked both of their maturity. I hated the secrets, but as people in the book pointed out how dumb the lying was, I can forgive them.
I found a few typos, and I was a bit confused on some of the minor details of the plot. Overall, though, this was unputdownable. Adam was reserved but ultimately loving. Mia was very lively and intelligent, and also had layers to her character. The two together were just something else. I loved them.
If you need a new historical romance in your life, look no further than this one. It's one of the most unique I've read. I bought this on sale and don't regret it one bit. I now need book two!
Action, steam, and two characters I really liked made this book awesome. What made it stand out was the plot about the heroine having been in a harem. That was intriguing. Both Mia and Adam were in their thirties. I found that I really liked both of their maturity. I hated the secrets, but as people in the book pointed out how dumb the lying was, I can forgive them.
I found a few typos, and I was a bit confused on some of the minor details of the plot. Overall, though, this was unputdownable. Adam was reserved but ultimately loving. Mia was very lively and intelligent, and also had layers to her character. The two together were just something else. I loved them.
If you need a new historical romance in your life, look no further than this one. It's one of the most unique I've read. I bought this on sale and don't regret it one bit. I now need book two!
daniela_endless_tbr's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this so much! I listened on Anyplay and the narrator was awesome, the accent was great, the story amazing and I loved Mia and Adam and Mia’s son.
5/5 stars.
5/5 stars.
alexiachantel's review
5.0
Dangerous is a wonderfully executed historical romance with adventure, banter, pirates, and steamy sex. Spencer’s writing brings her characters to life and will have you laughing and cheering them on as they risk both their hearts and their lives.
smithmd's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
ctsquirrel's review against another edition
5.0
4.5/5
Was 4/5, but added a half star for originality: the age/maturity level of the MCs (him 37 3ish daughters/her 31 1 son) and the locations of not just London and Hampshire, but Istanbul, Turkey inspired Oran.
Abuse/Rape tag -
Was 4/5, but added a half star for originality: the age/maturity level of the MCs (him 37 3ish daughters/her 31 1 son) and the locations of not just London and Hampshire, but Istanbul, Turkey inspired Oran.
Abuse/Rape tag -
Spoiler
The heroine and her nurse are kidnapped. Her nurse was brutally raped and killed by corsairs and Mia was sold into slavery and raped at 14 by the sultan.nelsonseye's review
3.0
Dangerous was a rather interesting read. Mia was quite unique among romance novel heroines, and it was enjoyable to read something so different. I liked the secondary characters of Adam's friends, daughters, and Mia's "friends" from Oran. The epilogue definitely leaves things open for more of the new family dynamic, and I will probably also check out Ramsey's story later this year.