It's like a sexy DTWS that made me slightly uncomfy at first (I just can't vibe with "fall fast but you can clearly see he is a terrible person, like come on MC and let me believe in your decision making skills) but it all makes up for it by the end (okay, more like middle, and then there are some shenanigan's and then its all good) but its a perfect quick read for a day on the beach or curled up on the porch.

The Dance Deception was a good book. I love a good dance competition. It always provides a lot of drama and builds tension, but something about this book didn't quite flow for me.

It felt like everything moved so fast that I didn't get the opportunity to feel a connection to some of the main characters. I feel like I would have enjoyed this book much more if I had cared more about the people in the story.

Thank you, Harper 360 and NetGalley, for the advanced copy of The Dance Deception.

While the book was enjoyable, there just wasn't enough character development. It felt like a drawn-out short story. Some of the reviews I've read on this book are a little harsh. Yes, the main character was flawed. I think that humanizes her. It's always fun to read a story revolving around a reality show, but this just didn't hit the mark fully for me. This would be a solid 3-1/2 stars, but I just can't round it up to 4 stars.

Kate has landed a spot on a dance competition reality show. And oops, they do a little more than dancing which leads to the pro's wife not being too happy. When Kate is reassigned to another dancer who dislikes her completely, she'll have to try to win his respect to take her all the way.

The Dance Deception follows Kate after a friend signs her up for a live dance competition after leaving her previous employment for personal reasons. Kate quickly finds attraction in her dance partner that makes her forget the woes of her person issues and her lack of employment. Confident and high on her success at dancing Kate comes out of her shell and finds herself enjoying the process more than she thought. Things come crashing down when she realizes that her dance partner is not the person that should thought and she must learn to adapt if she wants a shot at winning.

I felt that I wasn't really connected to any of the characters. We weren't given a lot of background about the characters and I felt that their personalities fell really flat. I didn't catch myself really rooting for anyone except maybe Merle to get what he deserves. I felt pity for Kate after catching some extreme bad luck, but I neither liked her or disliked her or anyone around her.

The spice was okay and would've been better with perhaps less frequency and maybe more length or build up.
Overall a pretty easy read and definitely has an entertaining plot although a bit repetitive until the end.

3 Stars The Dance Deception is a cute fake-dating romance set against a Dancing With the Stars-inspired reality dancing competition. This was an easy read and I was surprised by the amount of spice in it, though it's not the spiciest I've read. There was a lot of action, which kept it fast-paced and easy to read in one sitting.

Unfortunately, I had to DNF this about 1/3 of the way through. The characters were flat and the plot barely ,moved forward. I tried to keep going after the protagonist's love interest filmed her naked without her consent and she got over it immediately because it was "so erotic."

This was cute, a fun read, but it definitely has some problems for me. I liked the premise of the book. Kate was quite possibly the most ridiculous FMC I’ve had the pleasure of reading before. Our very first glimpse of her has her panting after her dance instructor, and half a second later, they’re kissing. A day later, they’re getting much more “familiar” with each other. My first thoughts were literally “omg, I’ve stumbled into a p*rno in book format.” There was no plot at that point, except Kate had magically ended up on a television show and was doing the dirty with Merle, her instructor. Side note: Merle?? What a name 😬 So anyways, Merle’s a scumbag, scandal, scandal, Kate gets a new partner who hates her, whatever. Kate is still hung up on Merle until she gets into her new instructor. Honestly, she felt like a vapid hussy. She had no depth at all. I was also disappointed in the ending because there was no real comeuppance for Merle. This book could’ve been a bit better had the characters been fleshed out a bit more.

I received an advance review copy of this book, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I'm a big fan of faked relationship (in books, that is) and dance reality show, so I thought it would enjoy this one. However, it just didn't work for me. The sex scenes came way too quickly for me. Instead of feeling hot, I felt turned off. The main character came across as needy, and ready to accept unacceptable behaviors from people (men) she had just met. Some will most likely like it, but it's a pass for me.

3 ⭐️ I would like to thank NetGalley for allowing me to read this book. The Dance Deception was an interesting read and It took me about 2 weeks to finish this book. I love ballroom dancing and I appreciated the detail the author provided when describing the practice sessions. However, the main character has little personality and I felt like the book itself was very rushed. It is spicy! I was floored with the scene with the camera on Kate and Merle. It made me feel disgusted with the lack of consent. It was a fun read but I felt like we didn’t get enough imagery of the dance performances the characters would train hours doing. It was okay 3/5

The premise of this caught my eye, as I've watched reality dancing competitions and they're enjoyable. It was definitely a sexy read, but other than that, I didn't enjoy it. There were so many characters that it was hard to follow, and the writing just didn't do it for me.

Kate finds herself on a ballroom dance reality show (think Dancing with the Stars for normal people) after a really bad breakup with a cheater boyfriend. Things get steamy with her dance partner, but he isn’t the romantic lead he appears to be. Kate has to overcome all the drama to keep dancing and maybe win $25K.

This is not the light, quick read you might expect. There were some pacing issues that really caused all of the relationships to feel unrealistic. The competition show aspect was interesting, but everything felt rushed about it, although the book was not fast-paced.

The FMC’s first love interest is not a nice person, so trigger warning for cheating, blackmail, and ignoring consent. It was actually a sticking point for me that Kate was such an idiot about him. It took me out of the flow of the book when she would think about getting back together with him - he was so horrible, it wasn’t at all realistic.

By about 40% through the book, I was pretty invested, though. I predicted some of the twists, but was very curious to find out if Kate won the dance competition!

Thanks to NetGalley and Avon Books for the ARC!

Spicy! On and off the dance floor!! This book was pure fire! I loved the story line it was so different and the pace of the book was great. This book had some great laugh out loud moments and characters that you really like. This was such a great read! I loved this!!! 5 stars!! Definitely reading more from Becky Ward!!
I just reviewed The Dance Deception by Becky Ward. #TheDanceDeception #NetGalley
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Kate Wareing, a 23 year old who just quit her administrative job, is paired with Merle, a professional dancer, for a dancing show competition called Fire on the Dance Floor. Almost immediately, she is attracted to Merle and it appears that the attraction is mutual - until scandal hits. Then she is paired with Aleksis, another professional dancer from the show, who appears to dislike her so much as to avoid dance practices. But will her attraction to Merle ruin her chances on the show or in life? Will Kate and Aleksis make their dancing mark?

I really wanted to like this book. The spice is so intense and perfect - but almost overshadows the plot. Merle is horrible but Aleksis feels like a cookie cutter good guy who is more British than his Latvian background. Towards the end of the book, I was dying to just finish it because the characters did not have me invested - I didn't believe that Kate believed in her end story relationship.

Some of the dialogue doesn't quite translate to an American audience - "stuck in" was a phrase that is repeated several times but I'm still not 100% sure what it means. In a few chapters, the dialogue seems to be summarized instead of giving actual dialogue - which is okay in some situations but didn't work here.

Thank you so much #Netgalley and Avon Books for the ARC!

Huge thank you to NetGalley for the e-ARC!
Five stars.

I finished this book in less than 8 hours. It was such a fun read! From the first chapter, I was intrigued by the glitz and glam of the Fire on the Dance Floor competition. As a former dancer, I thought I would be a little put off reading a romance like this, but I was pleasantly surprised by the way the author was able to capture what dance shows are like for contestants.

Character wise, I loved the other competitors Kate befriended. At times I wanted to throttle Kate because of her decision making skills, but then I realized that it was a pretty accurate reaction to a lot of the issues she was dealing with. Merle was the sleazy, slim ball I expected him to be, and I found myself wishing for him to not come back. Aleksis and Sophyia were a good brother/sister pairing, and for the quick read this was, their sibling relationship was cute.

This was a quick read, with LOTS of spice in there--if I had to rate it as far as spice levels go, I'd give it a 4 (came for the smut, stayed for the plot) because the first two chapters are a whirlwind of passion between Merle and Kate. With the pacing of the book, I feel like this would be a cute movie adaptation. It read really well and I think this will be a fun re-read.

I enjoyed the unique setting of a dance competition. I hoped to see more technical details of the dance practice to make it seem more authentic. I also feel it would be stronger to lead more gradually into the relationship between the main character and Aleksis to emphasize the change from antagonism to attraction.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read The Dance Deception for an honest review.

"The Dance Deception" by Becky Ward is a delightful novel that takes readers on an uplifting journey alongside Kate, a woman determined to turn her life around. Disenchanted with her job and nursing a broken heart, Kate seizes the opportunity to join the dance competition show, Fire on the Dance Floor, hoping it will provide the fresh start she craves. When paired with the attractive and mysterious Merle, Kate's optimism soars. However, as the story unfolds, unexpected obstacles arise, and Kate finds herself partnered with Aleksis, who seems to harbor a deep dislike for her.

One of the strengths of this book is the engaging premise that combines dance, romance, and personal growth. Readers will be drawn to Kate's relatable struggles and will cheer her on as she discovers her inner strength and regains her self-confidence through the challenges of the competition. The character development for Kate is well-paced, allowing her personal growth to unfold naturally. However, some aspects of the story, such as the progression between Kate and Aleksis, felt a bit rushed and could have benefitted from further exploration.

Despite this minor flaw, "The Dance Deception" remains an enjoyable read, filled with moments of triumph and self-discovery. Becky Ward's writing style is immersive, capturing the excitement and intensity of the dance competition while also delving into the emotional depth of the characters. If you're in the mood for a heartwarming tale of resilience, personal transformation, and a touch of romance, "The Dance Deception" is well worth adding to your reading list.

This gave me “dancing with the stars” vibes for sure! I was super excited about it. This was very much all spice no plot, which is a slippery slope for the fake daring trope. There are so many books out there that offer heavy spice and a decent storyline.

This was such a fun idea for a book but unfortunately I had to DNF because he filmed her naked without consent and that’s a trigger for me.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon Books for an ARC.

This was a cute dancing with the stars enemy to lovers spicy romance novel. I really enjoyed it. When an author can make you hate a character so strongly and love a couple so much you know that the writing is well done! Will definitely recommend.

Awww this was cute. I would have liked an Epilogue of how things are going a year later tho. Cute story. The plot held twists that were alright. *SPOILER* I still don’t feel that the video was deleted because even tho he said that he doesn’t use the cloud, he might have put the video there. Other than that, nice read, I would recommend it to a friend who is a fan of Dancing with the Stars and romance. It had the bare minimum amount of drama to keep me from putting the book down. But overall was not bad. The cover of the book also makes sense but threw me off in the beginning. It gives off that the Aleksis liked her the before they got partnered up, when the plot didn’t seem that way.

There was so much potential with this plot, but unfortunately it fell flat for me. From the get go, Merle gave me major ick vibes. He honestly really creeped me out and I couldn't get over it through the whole book, which turned out to be correct.

There were many punctuation and spelling mistakes that my brain was constantly tripping over reading this story.

I never felt like we really knew Kate, she seemed so shallow throughout this story. We got no depth from her and really only got to see her surface level. The same goes for Alexsis, half the story i was like "who is this?" This whole story was giving a little too much insta love for me, Kate rushed into everything she did and that was honesty a little disappointing for me.