Falling for Mr. Dark & Dangerous

Reviewed by VincePlato on July 8th, 2008, 4:00pm

by Donna Alward

Format: eBook

Series: Harlequin Romance

Book  Eighty-Seven:  “Falling for Mr. Dark & Dangerous”,  Donna Alward,    Harlequin Romance,  August,  c 2008 ,#4044,  eBook, Adobe Format, 181 pages   Revised Review

Dark & Dangerous  & Moving & Emotionally Challenging  -- Excellent Story   

     "Dark & Dangerous" is a good title for this story. It seems each of the last three books by the author has become darker and more serious.  

     "Falling for Mr. Dark & Dangerous” takes place in a small town in the Edmonton area of Canada. The heroine, Maggie Taylor, owns and runs a B&B called Mountain Haven which is very far out in the country. It is winter and there are no guests when her daughter Jennifer books a room for the hero, US Marshall, Nate Griffith. The heroine is not happy about this as she planned to use the off season to take her first vacation in years. Jen is old enough to be off at college and the B&B could close. Maggie wants a nice warm Caribbean vacation as a reward for seventeen years of tireless work.  

     The hero is dealing with a great deal of stress because of his last botched assignment. He was on enforced leave when the Marshals needed him for undercover work in Canada.  Therefore, he is at the B&B in part for recuperation but also on assignment to capture a rapist murder.  

     The heroine is 9 years older than the hero at 42 and she sure does not want to have another child. Her husband was shot and killed 17 years ago while on the job. She has not had any romance since then. She loved her husband deeply and hates guns and dangerous jobs. She is about as emotionally barren as the local landscape in winter. 

      The hero is not a happy person at 33 years old. He has not had good experiences with girlfriends but he is really attracted to the heroine. The two are so “wrong” for each other that a romance seems to make little sense. The hero’s job is a big problem. Their age difference is also a problem because at his age he should be starting a family. (The heroine does not want any more children). The hero is not even Canadian. Added to these problems is the fact that both the hero and heroine are keeping secrets from each other. These are secrets that would threaten any honest relationship. 

     "Falling for Mr. Dark & Dangerous”, gets more serious and more depressing as it develops. I’m a little worried that the author may be moving over to the “dark side” and that it is possible she might write a genuine “downer”. A “downer” is a story which is always depressing until the arrival of the HEA.  A romance can be very serious and depressing if the “down” emotions are balanced with ‘up” emotions. These are “small victories” along the way. They are the happy moments between the drama and the trauma.    

       I recommend that Donna take the Mexican seaside vacation that Maggie Taylor had planned to take and think happy thoughts for eight days in a row and then come back and write a whimsical “Runaway Bride” or “Magical Wedding Dress” theme romance.   ( I bet you never read this in a review. )   

“Falling for Mr. Dark & Dangerous” has one of the most heartwarming and apropos dedications I’ve ever read in a Romance. See it below:

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Dedication

            My paternal grandmother was an avid reader. 

Even bringing up several children during the Depression and beyond, her attachment to Harlequin romances is legend in our family. So much so that at one point or another, we’ve all been called “Myrtle,” after her—my mother, my sisters, even me. Now my own children have taken on that tradition; this summer found my girls on a bunk with a book more often than not. And at one point or another they were dubbed “Myrtle.”

     My Gram passed away when I was seventeen, but I think of her often these days as I’m now writing the stories that she loved so much.

     I dedicate this book to my Gram, for passing on her love for books to all of us, and hope that in some small way I have done her proud.

     This is for you, Grammie.

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 Right on the Edge of Excellent – Very Serious 

Thanks, 

Vince

“Romances are the emotional vitamins of the soul.” Vince