I read "Take the Lead" by Alexis Daria on NetGalley. As a fan of Dancing with the Stars, this book made me think of that. The main characters, Gina, a professional dancer on the show The Dance Off, and Stone, a reality TV star on a show based in Alaska, become partners on the show. Gina needs to win the show...she has been told if not she may lose her job. The producers try to set them up for a showmance, but unknown to them, Gina & Stone are immensely attracted to each other. This was a fun story to read.

4.5 stars rounded up

What a delightful romance! I requested Take the Lead because a romance set on a show similar to Dancing With the Stars sounded like fun, but this offers so much more. The hero and heroine are both nuanced, fleshed out characters with their own arcs of growth, the relationship is both sexy and romantic, AND it's a novel tackling the stereotyping of Latine people in the media as sexy and promiscuous. I'm so impressed this was originally Daria's debut novel.

Gina Morales is a talented dancer and choreographer who has spent her career fighting against stereotypes of who she is. Four seasons into The Dance Off, she wants to finally win and prove herself in a difficult industry. She is paired with Stone- a burly man from Alaska where his family has a survivalist reality TV show. But there's a lot more going on with his life that you see on the surface. And of course, producers want Gina and Stone to stage a "showmance" for views, which Gina absolutely refuses to do. But secretly, they can't resist the growing friendship and crackling chemistry between them.

This was an excellent book and a great example of what romance, even light and fun romance, is capable of when done well. I felt the lack of communicating through problems at the end dragged out a tad too long, but my complaints are very minor. I received an advance copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

A reality dance show with a romantic twist. A cute read with some spice, buf I just found that this setting didn't entice me as much as I would have liked and probably set myself up with an unrealistic expectation. It just became a reality show mashup with a slightly predictable storyline.
Thanks Netgalley for the chance to read this book and give my honest opinion.

Honestly was not sure what to expect with this book. I had read one book by alexis daria and was not a fan but I wanted to try again because the cover and description of the book. I am really glad I decided to try again because I really enjoyed this book and the romance had me kicking my feet in the air.

Super fun read. Lighthearted, yet emotional, with awesome chemistry and spice. I loved Gina and Stone together. The reality dancing competition was so much fun to read about, and these two were perfect together. *I received an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This read was a fun and flirty dance competition romance. I loved that this friends to lovers story included some juicy drama and gossip and spicy moments. If you are a fan of reality tv shows, than this a read for you.

This is a fun and steamy read! Set on a fake version of a certain dancing competition show, the story follows a set of partners who have more than a little chemistry. I loved how strong and ambitious Gina is. She knows her mind and how to play the game of reality TV while staying true to her deep values. Stone is a delightful hero, closed off, but not overly so. There are oh so many sparks between the two leads and I loved it. I’m so glad this got reissued and I could read it!

Alexis Daria is one of my comfort read romance authors. I've read her newest series and adored it and was so excited to see that her first series was getting re-released. I'd tried to access this before but was unable to get a first edition from my library.

I would recommend this romance to fans of Dancing with the Stars, Dirty Dancing, etc. Gina and Stone take the DWTS setting and their romance flourishes amidst the pressures of stardom, life, and being themselves. This novel was steamy and the perfect read for Valentine's Day. I could definitely tell that this was Daria's debut and even with a re-release, there were some phrases during the spicier scenes that could have used an edit. All in all this was enjoyable and fun and exactly what I needed to get out of a book slump.

This was a fun and steamy book set in the sparkly ballroom of a celebrity dancing reality show.
The detailed descriptions of the choreography, the performances, the costumes, and of course, the manipulative production packages were fantastic. I really liked Stone and Gina separately and together. The ensemble of dancers and family members was also solid.

Since this is a re-release, I'm very much looking forward to the other books in the series.

*I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and I am required to disclose that in my review in compliance with federal law.

I grabbed this book on NetGalley because of the cover. It was so extremely pretty and I couldn't resist.

However, I should have read the synopsis first. When I got into the story and realized that we are basing the entire plot around a show The Dance Off - which is basically Dancing with the Stars I was inwardly cringing. My mom used to make me to watch this show with her and I just do NOT enjoy it. But I was determined to give this book a chance.

This story is set on a reality TV show and Gina is the professional dancer who has been on the show for 14 seasons but has never made it to the finals. And she needs to win to keep her job, dang it!

She's paired with Stone, an Alaskan mountain of a man, who is GIANT. Wow, so original. He is also in a reality show with his whole family. So 2 different kind of reality show stars. This is really not my thing, deep breath, we are going to give it a chance.

I liked both Gina and Stone--individually and together. I really liked Stone and his quiet, generous, loyal personality. Gina was a take-no-prisoners kind of character but she grew on me. The characters had great chemistry, and them getting together in the story felt like a natural progression. However the third act conflict had me shaking my head. Both characters acted incredibly out-of-character. Stone, who is normally so understanding and patient, acted against Gina’s wishes. When she found out, she reacted so bitterly despite never lashing out verbally toward others when they messed up.

Overall, this was enjoyable enough, but I don't feel like it will stick with me.

I will have to check out the library book for this sometime because the date expired on my Kobo. Thank you for the chance to read and review.

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and Alexis Daria for an arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

From page one I was hooked. The characters sprang to life on the page and I was sucked into their story from there. It was so fun and fresh and sexy it genuinely was a blast reading. The chemistry between the two characters, all the dance terminology and moments made my heart sing. Alexis is an incredible storyteller and her books fill this void in my heart I hadn’t realized was there. The Latina representation also is incredible and brings me so much joy :)

If you’re a fan of Dancing with the Stars, this book is for you! It follows Gina, a dance pro, and Stone, star of an Alaskan wilderness show, as they pair up in a celebrity dance competition.

The book was a bit slow for me to get into as it didn’t feel like they had a lot of chemistry and were only relying on instant attraction. The pair grew on me over time as they developed a deeper connection and got more vulnerable with one another.

Full of steamy scenes and the drama of meddling producers on reality tv, this was a fun read overall.

Thanks St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley for my copy!

I am in a dancing mood. Lately I've been watching clips of dancing shows and so Take the Lead was the perfect read. If you love those dancing reality TV shows and are looking for a romance book, Take the Lead is for you. Told through Stone and Gina's eyes, we are able to not only see their instant attraction, but also their secrets and vulnerabilities. How they're both torn between their relationship, but also their careers, their family.

Alexis Daria writes some of the best contemporary romance and Take the Lead is no exception. A funny, steamy, emotional exploration of passion and love, Take the Lead offers a beautiful look at the meshing of personalities and the risks we're willing to take for love.

This was a cute read! A little slow in the beginning & felt a little insta lovey. But their chemistry was so sweet! Overall a good debut! I would definitely check out more from this author!

Take the Lead was Alexis Daria’s debut novel back in 2017 and has now been updated and republished!

What I loved:
- The setting! Hello, romance meets dancing with the stars!
- Diverse characters
- Guy falls first; opposites attract
- Perfect amount of spice & romance, but SLOW burn

What I didn’t love:
- The ending felt rushed
- Miscommunication

I do not watch a ton of reality TV. My one guilty pleasure is to watch OPLive on Reelz on Friday and Saturday nights, and that’s it. I stopped watching after seeing how rude the stars were (Real World Boston’s cast and crew would come into where I worked every week). I also stopped watching because, to be honest, it became mind-numbing. So, I surprised myself when I decided to accept the invite for Take the Lead. I figured reading about a fictional reality TV dance competition would be slightly better than watching it. And I was right.

Take the Lead is the first book in the Dance Off series. Since it is the first book, you don’t have to read previous books to figure out past characters and storylines. You can go in cold and enjoy it.

Take the Lead is a fast-paced book that mostly takes place in New York City. There are brief scenes in Alaska and Los Angeles, but most of the action takes place in NYC.

The plotline for Take the Lead was over the top. Stone, one of the stars of an Alaskan wilderness show, is chosen to dance on the celebrity dance show, The Dance Off. Gina is the dance pro who is paired with Stone for the show. Gina is desperate to win The Dance Off. In the four seasons she has been on, she hasn’t even come close, and the producer is threatening to cut her, even though she is popular. Gina believes that Stone, with his mountain man persona and ripped body, is the key to her winning. Stone also wants to win but for different reasons. From day one, the sparks are immediate between Gina and Stone, but Gina refuses to act on them. As they progress through the show, the pressure and chemistry between Gina and Stone grow. But Stone has a big secret that could ruin everything. What is Stone’s secret? Will Gina and Stone give in to their attraction? Or will everything explode and become reality TV fodder?

When I started reading Take the Lead, I didn’t know what to expect from the characters. I did expect them to be over the top and maybe dramatic. So, it was refreshing when the main characters didn’t act like that. The secondary characters gave the drama (mainly the figure skater and Stone’s family).

Gina— I loved her from the first paragraph. She was sassy, and my mental image of her was akin to J-Lo. I loved how professional she was with Stone, and I loved seeing her stand up for herself (and her image) when meeting with her slimy producer. I also loved that she went all in when she decided to throw caution to the wind (her relationship with Stone). I also liked that while she thought she was being sly with seeing him, she wasn’t.
Stone—Where do I start with him? I thought he was terrific to go to the lengths he did for his family. But I also felt awful. He was uncomfortable being on The Dance Off and his family’s show. I thought what his family and the producers (for their show) asked him to do was pretty awful. I also didn’t like how scripted his family was. His attraction to Gina was refreshing too. He didn’t care that they were on a reality show or that their romance would feed gossip mills; he wanted to be with her.
Take the Lead fit perfectly into the romance genre. It was a mix of forced proximity and opposites attract tropes, and they worked perfectly. While I didn’t like that the background was a reality TV show and everything was filmed, I thought the author did a great job of allowing the romance to mature. This wasn’t an Instalove situation but more of an Instalust that turned to love.

Gina and Stone had fantastic chemistry from day one. I liked that the author didn’t temper it and allowed it to be expressed differently (mainly through dancing). Plus, Gina and Stone genuinely liked each other, and that helped to make it more realistic. The sex, when they did have it, was hot and steamy. Every sex scene after that was comparable to the first one, which I rarely see in romance novels. Usually, the main characters have sex, it’s wonderful, and then it falls flat every other sex scene after that.

The storyline with Stone, his reasons for being on The Dance Off, his family, and everything else that goes with that had me low-key raging at points in the book. I was so angry on his and his siblings’ behalf. Stone went into each sibling’s different issues, and I wanted to cry. I also wanted to smack his parents for putting the kids through that. I wasn’t surprised (actually expected it) when the nasty figure skater let the secret spill. What I wasn’t expecting was how his family reacted—no wonder he didn’t talk much.

The storyline with Gina, Stone, the show, and their eventual relationship was well written. I loved seeing Gina and Stone progress from two people who wanted each other to being in a secret relationship to being in an actual one (sorry for the spoilers). Their relationship made reading about the show and the different types of dances easier to read. I was expecting more catty competition between the dance pros and was a little surprised (a happy surprise) when they all seemed to get along. Even the contestants were friendly (which we know never happens in real life) except for the blonde figure skater girl. She was nasty.

The end of Take the Lead was your typical HEA. I liked that it was Gina who realized what she was missing and it was Gina who went to Stone. And the epilogue!!! I loved that!!!

I would recommend Take the Lead to anyone over 21. There is language, mild violence, and semi-graphic sexual situations.

Many thanks to St. Martin’s Press, St. Martin’s Griffin, NetGalley, and Alexis Daria for allowing me to read and review Take the Lead. All opinions stated in the review are mine.

I absolutely loved Take the Lead by Alexis Daria! Gina was such a confident and passionate character, and it was great to watch her career blossom. Stone was a gentle giant, and it was so beautiful to see him come out of his shell through the dance competition. The book also captures some of the crazy production antics that happen behind the scenes - I was definitely here for all of it! The chemistry between the MCs was palpable from the moment they met, and the dance just added to the tension. If you're looking for forced proximity, backstage romance, secrets, producers being shady, and are ok with having multiple open door 🌶️  scenes, then this book is definitely for you - and it's out now! Many NetGalley for the eARC.

My thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an ARC of this re-release from Alexis Daria. I loved the Primas from You Had Me a Hola and A Lot Like Adios and have wanted to check out Daria's backlist.

This was a good debut -- the funny, sweet characters doing their best and strong family connections that appear in her books. I liked the setting and side characters, who could all use their own HEA.

My only hesitancy in recommending this book is that it felt too long. Maybe I wasn't in the right frame of mind, but for a hetero couple with no real problems outside of the paparazzi, I don't know why it took 362 pages to resolve. There was not saving-the-world subplot. It maybe that it was a first in a series set up, so there were a lot of people to get some backstory on?

Again, this could complete be a ME thing, so if you love reality shows, opposites attract or giant outdoorsmen, this may be the book for you.