Bantam, $8.99, ISBN 978-0-553-29317-3
Historical Romance, 1993

Oh boy, where to begin? There is one scene in Dangerous that is so cringe-worthy, it’ll make your toes curl.

Picture this: our intrepid heroine, armed with nothing but a tiny pistol she can’t bring herself to use, confronts a villain alone. Her brilliant plan: trust that the hero will come to her rescue. Spoiler alert: she’s a moron.

Thankfully, our leading lady improves slightly as the hero takes the reins on solving the mystery. She doesn’t land herself in too many more life-threatening situations… well, maybe one or two. But let’s face it, her survival instincts are about as sharp as a butter knife.

The story kicks off when Prudence Merryweather, our self-proclaimed psychic investigator, visits Sebastian, Earl of Angelstone, in his lair. Her mission is to convince this brooding nobleman to call off a duel with her foolish brother. Armed with nothing but a tiny pistol she has no intention of using (because that makes sense), she unwittingly captures Sebastian’s heart at first sight. It’s love at first exasperation, apparently.

Sebastian, bored with the privileged life of being a handsome and wealthy nobleman, moonlights as an anonymous helper to the Bow Street Runners. Prudence, meanwhile, investigates “spectral phenomena” because… well, why not? Their separate quests inevitably collide in a perfect storm of plot convenience, leaving them hopelessly compromised. Sebastian’s solution is the now routine fake engagement that he fully intends to make real. Smooth operator, this one.

Convinced that Sebastian is the quintessential bad boy in need of redemption (spoiler: he is), Prudence takes it upon herself to nag and scold him into being a better man. It’s a testament to the power of love—or perhaps masochism—that her constant lecturing only makes Sebastian more infatuated with her. Apparently, he needed a mother figure as much as a lover. Meanwhile, Sebastian starts meddling in Prudence’s investigations under the guise of keeping her safe, because nothing says “I care” like stalking.

Of course, their individual quests turn out to be linked because the universe loves a good coincidence, especially in romance novels. It’s almost as if some unseen author is pulling the strings to make everything fit together neatly. Who would have thought?

Now, about that mystery. It’s as lackluster as a week-old sandwich. The ghost-hunting premise is more like ghost-of-a-premise. Ms Quick teases us with supernatural potential but delivers nothing more than a fizzled-out sparkler. One can’t help but wish that she’d gone full paranormal, throwing in some actual ghosts and jump scares (beyond the heroine’s repeated bouts of idiocy). This D phase of Ms Quick’s career feels like a collection of half-baked ideas left to cool on the windowsill of mediocrity.

However, there’s a silver lining in this cloud of disappointment: the chemistry between our lead characters. Both hero and heroine are saddled with enough abandonment issues to keep a therapist in business for years, particularly our dashing male lead. Their relationship unfolds in genuinely poignant moments that showcase their obsessive emotions for each other. These dark, complex characters feel oddly out of place in Ms Quick’s typically jovial world, but somehow, she makes it work.

Let’s be honest, Sebastian and Prudence are carbon copies of Ms Quick’s usual suspects. Sebastian is the quintessential tall, dark-haired, brooding hero with thighs that could crack walnuts. Prudence is the typical feisty, unconventional heroine. And yet, they work so well together that you find yourself forgetting they’re basically literary clones.

Sebastian’s tragic past elevates him from mere brooding hero to a melodramatic, possessive stalker-in-the-making—and I’ll admit, it’s sexier than it has any right to be. Prudence, for all her reckless idiocy and overestimation of her own intellect, displays a contradictory emotional maturity when dealing with Sebastian’s angst. This results in genuinely touching moments between them. Her unwavering faith in him, while naively optimistic, is endearing in its own way. It’s like watching a puppy befriend a thundercloud—ill-advised, but oddly heartwarming.

It’s a crying shame that these unforgettable lovers are trapped in a story with all the suspense of watching paint dry. Ms Quick’s formulaic approach to romance—kiss, second base, third base, no she won’t marry him—does little to elevate the tepid plot.

In conclusion, Dangerous is a mediocre romance saved from the depths of forgettability by a pair of lovers who deserved so much better. It’s like finding a diamond ring in a bowl of lukewarm oatmeal. Sure, there’s treasure there, but you have to wade through an awful lot of mush to get to it.