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A review by fringebookreviews
One Dangerous Night by Cathy Maxwell
4.5
✨It Happened One Dangerous Night…✨
Am I completely certain this book was at least a little bit inspired by It Happened One Night? No, I’m really shooting for the moon hoping to land amongst the stars here BUT listen…
They’re on the run (to and from things), they get stranded together, and it’s an absolute delight of a road-trip romance. So yes, while I’m not willing to bet any amount of money on being right…the It Happened One Night argument ~compels me though~ and should be correct, if I do say so myself.
All that to say, I’m so glad I picked this one up!! The cover got me so good that I didn’t even read the summary before requesting the ARC or reading the book. It was one of those where I knew I was going to have a good time from page one. I sure do love me a road trip, and dare I say this could be a good comp for A Week to Be Wicked?? I think I dare!
I was laughing in public and smiling at my kindle, so yeah it had me acting foolish out on these streets! It was pretty low angst because it contains the super fun micro-trope that sometimes results from mistaken/hidden identity: Dramantic Irony. Is this a real term? No, but hear me out… Since they were both pretending/appearing to be lower/working class, for most of the book they both thought that they couldn’t end up with each other. Meanwhile—this is where I kneel at the feet of dramantic irony—WE know that they’re actually perfectly suited for each other in real life too!!*
So basically, the whole conflict that they thought was coming, simply didn’t come. Other things happened to derail some plans and separate them for a bit, but it all felt so *safe* as a reader? Like I knew I wasn’t going to have to fight a battle late in the book just to get to their HEA. They’d already slayed their dragons, so it was just a matter of tying up some loose ends (and healing some bruises lol). Simply, the book was a lot of fun and developed tension very creatively. There was also a vagabond dog tagging along for the ride. Ya LOVE to see it.
I also just really loved Elise and Kit, which is great for me since they were in the same room, on the same page for practically the entire book. Neither character was perfect—they both actively grappled with their flaws and past wrongs—but a more endearing pair of hot messes you’ll never find! There’s a part where Elise just gets to unleash her rage and flail around on the ground that…spoke to me so viscerally. She also got to ugly cry it out and to that I applaud! I too would be feeling very sorry for myself, such a relatable queen.
I do want to note that I did pause halfway through my ARC to go read book one. I’m not ~quite~ sure if I’d have connected quite so quickly with Elise if I’d have fully read book one before starting this one. Because Elise wasn’t very likable in book one. I actually think having read part of her book before that one made me like that book better as well. Do with that what you will.
Overall, if you want a classic road trip romp absolutely full to the brim with unfortunate travel mishaps and only one beds, definitely give this a try. I’m very excited for book three and now have the urge to read more from Cathy Maxwell’s backlist to fill the void 😃
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5**/5 🌶️🌶️/5
*Note: This happened in Love Letters from a Duke by Elizabeth Boyle as well. The heroine wanted to marry a duke and was REAL sad she was falling for her new footman…who happened to be a duke in disguise lol.
**There were a few villains/bad guys in the book that weren’t fully dealt with for reasons that made sense, but also made me sad. There was a part with two nasty men in the middle in particular, and I really wish there would’ve been a throwaway comment saying that they were arrested or something. It just made me a bit queasy because they implied that one of them was intensely violent to a woman in the past, while attempting to hurt the heroine in the present. While Elise got away pretty unscathed, I can’t help but feel a bit unsatisfied knowing that they still exist in that world to hurt more women. This is def a me thing, but I really fixate on situations like this!!
Thanks to the publisher for an eARC via NetGalley. All opinions are honest and my own.
Am I completely certain this book was at least a little bit inspired by It Happened One Night? No, I’m really shooting for the moon hoping to land amongst the stars here BUT listen…
They’re on the run (to and from things), they get stranded together, and it’s an absolute delight of a road-trip romance. So yes, while I’m not willing to bet any amount of money on being right…the It Happened One Night argument ~compels me though~ and should be correct, if I do say so myself.
All that to say, I’m so glad I picked this one up!! The cover got me so good that I didn’t even read the summary before requesting the ARC or reading the book. It was one of those where I knew I was going to have a good time from page one. I sure do love me a road trip, and dare I say this could be a good comp for A Week to Be Wicked?? I think I dare!
I was laughing in public and smiling at my kindle, so yeah it had me acting foolish out on these streets! It was pretty low angst because it contains the super fun micro-trope that sometimes results from mistaken/hidden identity: Dramantic Irony. Is this a real term? No, but hear me out… Since they were both pretending/appearing to be lower/working class, for most of the book they both thought that they couldn’t end up with each other. Meanwhile—this is where I kneel at the feet of dramantic irony—WE know that they’re actually perfectly suited for each other in real life too!!*
So basically, the whole conflict that they thought was coming, simply didn’t come. Other things happened to derail some plans and separate them for a bit, but it all felt so *safe* as a reader? Like I knew I wasn’t going to have to fight a battle late in the book just to get to their HEA. They’d already slayed their dragons, so it was just a matter of tying up some loose ends (and healing some bruises lol). Simply, the book was a lot of fun and developed tension very creatively. There was also a vagabond dog tagging along for the ride. Ya LOVE to see it.
I also just really loved Elise and Kit, which is great for me since they were in the same room, on the same page for practically the entire book. Neither character was perfect—they both actively grappled with their flaws and past wrongs—but a more endearing pair of hot messes you’ll never find! There’s a part where Elise just gets to unleash her rage and flail around on the ground that…spoke to me so viscerally. She also got to ugly cry it out and to that I applaud! I too would be feeling very sorry for myself, such a relatable queen.
I do want to note that I did pause halfway through my ARC to go read book one. I’m not ~quite~ sure if I’d have connected quite so quickly with Elise if I’d have fully read book one before starting this one. Because Elise wasn’t very likable in book one. I actually think having read part of her book before that one made me like that book better as well. Do with that what you will.
Overall, if you want a classic road trip romp absolutely full to the brim with unfortunate travel mishaps and only one beds, definitely give this a try. I’m very excited for book three and now have the urge to read more from Cathy Maxwell’s backlist to fill the void 😃
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5**/5 🌶️🌶️/5
*Note: This happened in Love Letters from a Duke by Elizabeth Boyle as well. The heroine wanted to marry a duke and was REAL sad she was falling for her new footman…who happened to be a duke in disguise lol.
**There were a few villains/bad guys in the book that weren’t fully dealt with for reasons that made sense, but also made me sad. There was a part with two nasty men in the middle in particular, and I really wish there would’ve been a throwaway comment saying that they were arrested or something. It just made me a bit queasy because they implied that one of them was intensely violent to a woman in the past, while attempting to hurt the heroine in the present. While Elise got away pretty unscathed, I can’t help but feel a bit unsatisfied knowing that they still exist in that world to hurt more women. This is def a me thing, but I really fixate on situations like this!!
Thanks to the publisher for an eARC via NetGalley. All opinions are honest and my own.