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shealivs2read 's review for:
A Dance of Lies
by Brittney Arena
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Spice: 🌶️
This was a book that I expected to blow me away but kinda just didn’t deliver unfortunately. I still enjoyed myself but there were some things that I didn’t love that keep me from rating it higher.
For the positives of this book, the story itself if amazing, I was hooked right away and the FMC was someone I found myself admiring a lot. I really enjoyed the way that this book approached disability/injury not as something to be “fixed” but instead something to adapt to and thrive with. Her attitude throughout the book had many ups and downs, moments of hopelessness followed by moments of determination and I think that was just really spot on.
I also really loved the descriptions of her dances, how the excitement built and intensified to the point it was almost disorienting, showing how she lost herself in her art. It really drove home for me not just her skill but her passion, it went much further than the author just saying “she was a good dancer” and the reader just needing to trust in that.
Now for the couple not so positives. These things weren’t deal breakers for me but they were definitely things that slowed down my reading and reduced my enjoyment a bit.
Firstly, this is a BIT of a love triangle, which I generally hate, and when I realized that I almost stopped reading completely. I will say it was handled relatively well and I’m glad I pushed through, but if you’re like me and your automatic reaction to love triangles is to run in the opposite direction… you might struggle.
The second thing that bothered me throughout was the politics. I still could not tell you the political structure of this world, and that may be entirely my fault for missing some things, but it felt really confusing and all over the place to me. There were many interesting aspects and conflicts within the political sphere but I fear many of them went over my head or lacked impact because I was trying to figure out how it was all interconnected in the grand scope. I think there’s a lot of potential in the world though so I have hopes that book two will clear some things up for me.
Overall it was a good read, I would likely still recommend it to those who love a fantasy with political intrigue and some solid romance, but there is definitely some room for improvement. I look forward to seeing how the world builds in the next installment!
Spice: 🌶️
This was a book that I expected to blow me away but kinda just didn’t deliver unfortunately. I still enjoyed myself but there were some things that I didn’t love that keep me from rating it higher.
For the positives of this book, the story itself if amazing, I was hooked right away and the FMC was someone I found myself admiring a lot. I really enjoyed the way that this book approached disability/injury not as something to be “fixed” but instead something to adapt to and thrive with. Her attitude throughout the book had many ups and downs, moments of hopelessness followed by moments of determination and I think that was just really spot on.
I also really loved the descriptions of her dances, how the excitement built and intensified to the point it was almost disorienting, showing how she lost herself in her art. It really drove home for me not just her skill but her passion, it went much further than the author just saying “she was a good dancer” and the reader just needing to trust in that.
Now for the couple not so positives. These things weren’t deal breakers for me but they were definitely things that slowed down my reading and reduced my enjoyment a bit.
Firstly, this is a BIT of a love triangle, which I generally hate, and when I realized that I almost stopped reading completely. I will say it was handled relatively well and I’m glad I pushed through, but if you’re like me and your automatic reaction to love triangles is to run in the opposite direction… you might struggle.
The second thing that bothered me throughout was the politics. I still could not tell you the political structure of this world, and that may be entirely my fault for missing some things, but it felt really confusing and all over the place to me. There were many interesting aspects and conflicts within the political sphere but I fear many of them went over my head or lacked impact because I was trying to figure out how it was all interconnected in the grand scope. I think there’s a lot of potential in the world though so I have hopes that book two will clear some things up for me.
Overall it was a good read, I would likely still recommend it to those who love a fantasy with political intrigue and some solid romance, but there is definitely some room for improvement. I look forward to seeing how the world builds in the next installment!