A review by jesshale
Sword Dance by A.J. Demas

3.0

A thoroughly solid read. It took me a little while to get a bead on the main characters - what their personalities and angles were - but once I was about a third of the way in I was caught up and powered through.

I liked the solid world-building, competence porn (people being good at things! It’s attractive!) and the way the banter and relationship developed.

The main mystery seemed a little convoluted, and I wished that it was maybe a either simpler or a more complex whodunnit. I also would have liked a bit more comeuppance at the end for some truly unlikeable characters!

I also wish the book had been paced a little better - there were some long, VERY detailed espionage scenes dragging down the middle (less exciting than you’d think) and I would have adored more time at the end with the happy couple.

I enjoyed this read enough to check into the author’s other books, and will look forward to the next in the series.