Book Review and GIVEAWAY: In His Keeping (Slow Burn #2), by Maya Banks {ends 10/20}

Review by: Rachel Gonzales

Maya Banks is the author of over fifty novels, including multiple New York Times and USA Today bestsellers. In His Keeping is the second novel in her “Slow Burn” series of romances with “psychic elements.”

Official synopsis:

Arial knows the rules that keep her safe. She’s been following them since she was a little girl: Do not tell. Do not show. But in a moment of terror, facing an attacker intent on taking more than just her life, Ari has no choice but to unleash the psychic powers she’s been hiding since childhood.

Now, with her abilities revealed, a bigger threat looms - something that makes her question everything she thought she knew about her parents and her secretive upbringing. But this isn’t a fight she can face on her own.

As the head of Devereaux Security, Beau Devereaux is not stranger to the strange. But when he takes on a new client - a beautiful young woman with an extraordinary gift - Beau isn’t prepared for the extent of his attraction to her. What began as a simple assignment, just another job, quickly turns personal as Beau discovers he’ll do anything at all to protect Ari. No matter what it costs him personally. Even his heart and soul.


Here is an unusual start to a book review: This synopsis is one of the worst I’ve ever read. There, I said it. I admit that I am writing this review based on a proof version of the novel, but sweet cracker sandwiches - I really hope they changed things for the “official” version, because this synopsis sounds like the book is some kind of Little Mermaid - Frozen fanfic.

This is unfortunate, because I really liked the actual book, which only vaguely resembles the synopsis on the back cover. The character names are the same, but that’s about all (and even then, “Arial” goes by “Ari” for most of the book). Yes, there are attackers and powers and threats and attraction, but there is so much more here that might be overlooked if you judged this book by its back cover.

As a romance novel, this is pretty standard fare. You have a delicate heroine, a rugged hero, a mysterious bad guy, a motley band of friends to help save the day. But there are elements that elevate this story above the average. Without the romantic entanglements, this would still be an enjoyable book. The characters, while tropes (because romance), are still well-written and beyond basic, and I enjoyed the “psychic elements” (even though Ari’s powers basically make her one of the X-Men, although in all honesty that could be actually be why I like her so much).

I am not at all familiar with Maya Banks’s other work, but I liked this title, and I will definitely be checking out others, starting with the rest of the “Slow Burn” trilogy. I give this book 3.5 stars out of 5.

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About the reviewer:

Rachel Gonzales is a wife, mom, theatre geek, and substitute high school teacher (not necessarily in that order) from Pennsylvania. She reads anything and everything, including bizarro comic books that she finds on dusty old shelves in the back of the toy store near the mogwai. Her favorite color is purple and her favorite punctuation mark is the Oxford comma.

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GIVEAWAY:

One lucky reader will win a paperback copy of In His Keeping.

Enter via the widget below. Giveaway will end on Tuesday, October 20th at 11:59pm EST, and winner will be notified via email the next day and have 24 hours to respond, or an alternate winner will be chosen.

U.S. and Canadian residents only, please.

Good luck!

In His Keeping