Ratings2
Average rating4.5
The second book in Alexis Daria's Dance Off series finds one playboy charmer falling for his new roommate. Natasha Díaz is having a day. She’s trying to prove she can make it as a professional dancer, but she’s overworked, out of cash, and her roommate has just moved out. When she comes home to find a hole in her ceiling and her bedroom flooded, she’s desperate enough to crash with the one guy she can’t quit. She accepts his offer with one condition: no sleeping together while she’s living with him. Dimitri Kovalenko has never lived with a woman before. But when Tasha’s in need of a place to stay, he suggests she move in without a second thought. He accepts her condition, hoping she won’t stick to it. They’re good together, both in the ballroom and the bedroom. Since their first dance, she’s never been far from his thoughts. Sure, she’s a pro and he’s one of her show’s judges, but they’re not currently filming, so no one needs to know. Living in close quarters shows Dimitri a side of Natasha he’s never seen before, and he likes it. A lot. Too bad she’s doing everything in her power to keep him at arm’s length. When an injury forces Natasha to take it easy or risk her ability to dance, it’s his chance to show her that the rules have changed, and she can trust him with her heart.
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Thanks to Swerve/SMP via NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. It has not influenced my thoughts or opinions.
Take the Lead, the first book in this duology, focuses more heavily on a Dancing with the Stars-inspired plot between a dancer and a guest competitor. In Dance with Me, Daria explores the on-again-off-again relationship between a dancer and a judge, but it deviates pretty considerably from the first book.
I loved this book because it explores the family you find, the maturity of a regular hook-up to a relationship, and what it means to care for others. It's also ultra steamy, so if that's something you like in romance novels, definitely pick it up. Daria is also very skilled at navigating tough subjects like making difficult decisions to achieve one's dreams, fear of failure, and – oddly enough – personal finance. Both Natasha and Dimitri are likable in different ways, even as they err, and I found myself rooting for them.
Daria is a fresh new voice in romance, and I can't wait to see what she writes next.
3.5-4 stars.
It would have been an easy 4 star but a part of me is a bit uncomfortable that the resolution to the heroine's problems involved a job from the hero. That has probably more to do with my own issues surrounding independence though.