A review by queerafictionado
Second Night Stand by Fay Stetz-Waters, Karelia Stetz-Waters

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

First of all, the cover for this book is AMAZING!! I was very much looking forward to this book - a romance between a prim and polished black ballerina and a curvy and quirky blue-haired burlesque dancer with forced proximity, opposites attract, and rivals-to-lovers vibes! What’s not to love! The personalities of these two could not be more different, but underneath the personas they project to the world, they are both a lot more alike than it first appears. They have an amazing one night stand when they meet in a bar. And that was supposed to be it. No full names (or even real names in Blue’s case). No numbers. Nothing. But then they both end up on the same reality TV dance competition. They both feel something between them. Something that wasn’t left behind in that hotel room. But they both have a lot at stake in this competition too. Lillian is trying to save her ballet company from going under, leaving all her dancers unemployed. Izzy/Blue is trying to save the theater she bought to give her queer burlesque troupe a safe space to perform. 

Both Lillian and Izzy are incredibly fleshed out characters with unique personalities - and as different as they might seem, it somehow just works. They feel safe with each other. Safe enough to share pieces of themselves they don’t show the rest of the world. And it’s beautiful. There are also some really amazing side characters and I loved getting to see all the friendship and family dynamics that were part of this story, too.

All the black and queer joy, body positivity, and messages about loving yourself were the biggest positives of this book! We need more books with those things in them!! These themes were woven throughout the whole book - through the performances, the conversations, the relationships, and everything in between. And it was incredible. Absolutely loved it! I also adore that this was written by a married interracial lesbian couple! 🥰

All that being said though, this story didn’t quite live up to my high expectations. It was sweet and sexy and beautiful, but it just didn’t “wow” me like I was hoping it would. I did enjoy it though and recommend it, especially if you like sapphic romance and found family stories with amazing characters and lots of queer joy and body positive fat representation!

🏳️‍🌈Rep: Black, Lesbian/Sapphic, Plus Size, Queer

📝Tropes/Themes: Interracial Couple, Sapphic Romance, Rivals to Lovers, Dance Competition TV Show, One Night Stand, Opposites Attract, Forced Proximity, Stranded Together, Only One Bed, Found Family, Family Relationships
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