Risk is a novel that genuinely brings suspense in the classic form of scientists creating a top-secret AI program intending to save lives, only to have other parties try to steal and use that device for their gain. With enemies just one step behind them, and one step closer to getting their hands on the program, our heroes must race to uncover who is behind the attack on the lab and who is betraying them from within.

I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of Risk: A Deep 8 Novel, from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for a voluntary review. But all thoughts and opinions are my own.

The genre for this book is Romantic Suspense and Mystery/Thrillers, it’s one of my favourite genres to fall back on when I’m in a bit of a book rut or between books. There is a lot of potential for books in this genre to hook the reader in to continue reading, and there are almost always new ideas, evil groups or intense scenarios for readers to enjoy.

What initially caught my interest at the beginning of the book was the idea that Quinn and Liam were creating an AI that could do more than what we (the general public in the real world) initially thought AI could do/could be used for. It’s both an interesting and spine-chilling thought, to be honest, and the way that Kenzie writes is detailed enough for readers to get the gist of it without being too tangled in info dumping.

I also enjoyed the dynamic between the characters, specifically between the three musketeers, even though the camaraderie between the MI6 team gave me a few chuckle-out-loud moments. Liam and Cam, while they’ve grown apart, seem to take that distance in stride at times. With that being said though, there were a few speedbumps that I encountered in the first half of the book that kind of slowed down the reading process.

I felt that the relationship between Quinn and Cam fed off their history more so than their rekindled attraction to one another, which is alright but I would have liked to hear more about how they dealt with their attraction to each other when they were younger. Trying to keep this part spoiler-free, but there was also a part where there’s an abrupt 180 in emotions on Cam’s part and it kind of gave me whiplash for a moment there. Maybe it’s just me, but I didn’t notice anything leading or building up to that change in feelings before it happened and just kind of went “oh, okay…” and continued reading.

Probably one of the biggest speedbumps for me was the initial info dumping, it’s mentioned several times throughout the first 1/4 of the book that both Quinn and Liam are geniuses. And because this book is told through dual POV, we are told twice about how smart the Donovan siblings are. I assume this was done because Risk is book 8 of the Deep 8 series, and therefore there’s probably a lot of information that Kenzie, as an author, has to ensure new readers get or they’ll miss a lot of key information.

With that being said, aside from the speedbumps mentioned above, I think that this book is worth a read if you are interested in these genres and maybe if you like works from authors, like Toni Anderson. After the initial info dumping, the plot thickens to a point where you can’t help but want to read more and know what will happen next. Then the next thing you know, it’s 2 a.m. and you’ve finished the book and can’t sleep.