I try to hold ARCs gently and treat them with tenderness. After all, these are someone's book babies, and I recognize that!

My first impression of this book was that it was simply not ready for the public yet. It's very short, more of a novella, and while it has a an intriguing plot line, there's just not enough room for any development of the characters, the plot line, or the romance. Additionally, there was a lot of telling versus showing, some very stilted and cringy dialogue, and a lot of unnecessary detail. This was a great idea, it just needed a lot more fleshing out. My assumption based on the writing was that this was an unexperienced writer.

Imagine my surprise when I read about the author at the end of the book, and realized that she has been writing for decades and has won several awards! I have no idea how to explain this. Either this is not her best work or I am not this author's target audience.

I received an arc in exchange for my honest opinion, which I have provided here. My thanks and best wishes to the author, publisher, and #netgalley. #RareDanger

With an exciting plot description (love an adventuring librarian) and a big name author, I was really excited for Rare Danger, but it ended up being a DNF for me. It might be a novella, but if I hadn't been given an ARC, I probably would have quit even sooner.

The premise of Rare Danger is a great draw--a librarian makes her living gathering precious antiquities is thrown into the adventure of a lifetime when an old family friend (and business associate) get sent *a pair of human hands* (his murdered business partner's hands to be exact) and has to go on the run. She happens to fall straight into the path of a private security contractor who is also tied up in this mess and they have to dive into the dangerous and clandestine world of private book dealings? Yes, please yes.

The book stopped firing for me after that. The romance felt rushed and too coincidental (she happens to meet a rich dreamboat, who happens to be her next client, who happens to be tied up in this mystery? Handy. No pun intended.) In the 5o pages I read, the book seemed allergic to any interpersonal conflict. Whether it was in the relationship or in the heroine's friendship, fights were glossed over to get back to loving descriptions of how fantastic these people were and how great hanging out together was.

The romance also felt rushed along with a side order of "not like other girls." Torr and Jas were immediately head-over-heels-I-can't-think-about-anyone-but you in love. On her side, it seemed to because he was rich and hot and not utter trash. On his side, it was because she was so much smarter than other girls he dated. Which would be fine if his bar for swooning wasn't literally 1. She knows what the word Kelvin means 2. She called sex "the beast with two backs" so he assumes she's a Shakespeare expert. That's a weird jump to make for a phrase that's deep into common use, but also, yes she knows some Shakespeare and basic scientific trivia, she's a librarian. If that's enough to make this guy swoon that this girl is different, I have a lot of questions.

That all might be forgivable if the writing was better but this felt unedited. I don't know what happened here, because I know this isn't all of Beverly Jenkins's stuff, but the text here was just...odd. Everything was told, not shown. Sentences repeated information in the last sentence, Unnecessary exposition was everywhere. Maybe this is normal for KU, but for my first read from there, it was jarring.

Others might enjoy the book based on the premise and the chance to read about a hot ethical, rich boy with a dark past, but that wasn't enough for me to keep pushing on in this book.

An ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Don't come for me, the stars are subjective based on how much I enjoyed it, which was: not much. I know this author has hordes of fans and I can understand, to some extent, the appeal. I am simply not the right reader for this author.

I have tried this author once before, and it's not the right fit for me. I find the descriptions too full of irrelevant details: the main character steps out of a car, we get info about her shows, the car's make and color, the driveway, what type of trees are lining the street, the wind direction, etc., none of which are relevant to what's about to happen in the plot. For some readers who are hyperphantasic and can be immersed in the story, this is probably the draw. As a reader with aphantasia, it's unnecessary detail and in the way-- not that I don't love detail, but I like the kind that helps get under the character's motives, into their history; wind direction, not so much.

Again, I recognize this is largely about me as a reader, and not every writer is right for every reader. Don't @ me. :D

Rare Danger is a romantic suspense novella from Beverly Jenkins. I've read her historical romances but nothing contemporary. She packs a lot of story in roughly 100 pages. Jas procures books and sets up private libraries in and around her hometown of Detroit. She meets Torr, who owns a contract solider company, when she goes to set up a library in his new home. Next thing her aunt and uncle are missing as is a valuable old book. And someone is following her, demanding the uncles location. It is a fast paced adventure with smooth talking Torr trying to romance Jas along the way. I love when she calls him Torr the Brave and he calls her Lady Librarian. Everyone happens in just a few days so it's going to be very insta. But the characters are great including sides like parents and siblings. I would have loved this as a full novel and recommend it as a novella. Thank you Montlake and NetGalley for the ARC.

Beverly Jenkins is an absolute legend among historic romance writers - we all know this - but reading her as a contemporary author was all new to me! And I definitely loved it! I do think that the novella format held her back from her usual perfection. Despite the length of the book - I laughed, I was on the edge of my seat and I rooted for both Torr and Jasmine from page one. I did think this is the first time I read something that was both insta love AND slow burn... it was a wild combination. In the end it all felt very rushed and I was sad that it was over.

Stars: 3.5 rounded to four
Steam: one scene - slow burn lead up
Tropes: insta love, solve a crime, everyone is over thirty
For Fans Of: a short suspenseful story light on love scene
Subgenre: contemporary romance - suspense
CW/ TW: some violence on the page, fat phobic comment

Thank you to the author and publisher for my complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

I haven't picked up a Beverly Jenkins novel in quite some time and hate to say that I won't wait the duration that I did to read another one of her novels. Wow what a story! "Rare Danger was a fast-paced story with an action filled plot.

The story is of Jasmine Ward who is a curator for an elite clientele. It starts when a collector of rare books goes missing after his business partner is murdered, she finds herself pulled into fray. She is assisted by Torr Noble who captures Jasmine's attention and who also is a security consultant. As they work together in this mystery, their relationship grows into something more but later is threatened by an enemy of Torr. Jasmine and Torr's relationship is at state as well as their lives. I thought the heroine, Jasmine was a smart and resourceful woman while Torr was confident and a charmer. Although there are times when I love insta-attraction, I do like a slow build between the in order for them to get to know one another. In this case, I think Ms. Jenkins did a wonderful job of developing their attraction although it was a bit quick. I do love steamy between the H/h and the intimate scenes were on point for my liking.

This was a quick read for me as the plot was quicker than anticipated. I chalk it up to being a shorter novel than the norm I typically read. If you like a fast-paced, romantic suspense story, then I would recommend you read this one. It is worth it and I enjoyed it very much. Kudos Ms. Jenkins...looking to reading more from you.

Thank you NetGalley and Montlake for this ARC in exchange for my fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.

Jasmine and Torr had quite the attraction going on!! I loved how spunky Jasmine was. She was a little demure with firecracker attitude! Then we get Torr who just had this presence when he was on the page. He had me smiling at whatever he was going to say next. The romance—sooo darn good! The suspense bits were great too, just realize going in that this novella is a romantic suspense and the romance is definitely the main focus, not the suspense.

Considering it’s short length, Ms. B packed a lot of tiny details in this story and I loved every word! One neat highlight that stuck out were Black detective writers and Michigan authors. The side characters were as colorful as the main cast and I loved the interactions! I am also hoping Jasmine’s bestie, Terri, and Torr’s brother, Kelvin, get a turn too!

I voluntarily read an advanced copy of this book Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

4.5 Stars I finally did it and read my first Queen Bev!! This was a gripping, fast paced and fast action romantic suspense featuring a book curator, a former military man and a frankly bonkers plot that I couldn't get enough of, quite frankly. The formatting threw me because there wasn't any clean breaks between POV's and I'm really not used to that, but that and the fact it's not several hundred pages longer are the only flaws I can find in this. Thank you to Netgalley and Montlake for the opportunity to read and review an early copy of this. All opinions are my own.

Rare Danger was a fantastic read with a fast-paced and exciting plot.

Jasmine Ward is passionate about her business, curating custom libraries for high-end clientele. When one of her contacts for rare books goes missing after his partner is murdered, Jas finds herself drawn into the mystery. Assisting her is private security consultant Torr Noble, a man who instantly intrigues Jas. As the connection between Jas and Torr deepens, an old enemy of Torr's returns threatening their newfound relationship and their lives.

Jas was an amazing character and I enjoyed her immensely. She's intelligent, confident, and doesn't put up with fools. We first meet Jas when she's on the blind date from hell and I thoroughly enjoyed her putting her date in his place. Torr was an absolute charmer and I loved how confident he was. The connection between Jas and Torr was immediate and their chemistry was off the charts. Their relationship develops fairly quickly but the connection between them was so believable that I was ok with how quickly things developed. When their relationship turns physical it is so well done and I really enjoyed the scenes.

The mystery in Rare Danger was very fast-paced and immediately captured my interest. The POVs in this book alternate between Jas, Torr, and the missing book dealer. The addition of the book dealer's chapters made things interesting as we see another side to what's going on compared to the limited information that Jas and Torr have. The plot is resolved much quicker than I was expecting it to but that may be because the book itself was shorter than I expected. The suspense picks up quite a bit as we get closer to the end of the book and there's a fair amount of action as well.

Overall Rare Danger was a very enjoyable read and a great first experience for me with the author's work. I highly recommend this if you're looking for a quick romantic suspense to pick up.

I don’t usually read romantic suspense but I will for Beverly Jenkins. In this novella Jasmine, a book curator, finds herself in the midst of an international smuggling scandal involving one of her book dealers. She keeps running into the mysterious Torr, who works in private security, and the heat between the two is undeniable. When someone from Torr’s past makes an appearance, the pieces fall into place and everyone is in danger.

Like I said, I don’t usually read romantic suspense, mostly because I don’t care. I want a book with people longing for each other and then kissing and that’s it. However, this 100ish page novella was short enough that it had to move quickly and didn’t get too convoluted. I really like that Ms. Bev is first and foremost a romance author so the chemistry between Jasmine and Torr is absolutely wonderful. I adore Beverly Jenkins writing style and her love of her home town, Detroit, really came through in the book.

Thank you to Montlake and @NetGalley for the ARC.


Bookstagram post will be posted before the release date, I will update the review with the link when it is posted.

Love it so much.
It’s way shorter than I was expecting and I while I wanted to see a bit more of the story, to have a bit more insight into the characters development over the time, their interaction and actions kept me intrigued throughout the story and finished it in one sitting.


Very grateful to the publisher for my review copy