When Evie’s dad left her mom for another woman she stopped believing in love. When one day when dropping all of her romances at a Free Little Library she develops a special power of being able to see a couple kissing and “see” their story it only seemed to confirm what she already believed. Love doesn’t last, so why put yourself in the way of heartbreak? There has to be a reason she has this power, right? Searching for it she picks up the book she took out of the library. It has a return to sender stamp which is just around the corner from her house. Taking the book to this dance studio might make these powers go away. Instead she finds herself signed up for a dance contest with a partner named X. A partner who makes her smile and her fingers tingle. But she doesn’t believe in love, right?

At first glance this story felt like it was going to be a magical bit of fun, and in a way it was, but it also pulled quite a punch! Evie was pretty cynical about love and she had good reason after all, but after she met the two elderly owners of the dance studio who were so obviously in love I thought she’d snap out of her cynicism. It i mathematically impossible for 100% of all couples to end in heart break. Underlying her cynicism was a deep resentment towards her father for how things ended with her mom, and the fact that he was obviously very much in love with his new lady. When she meets X and feels this connection she gives him such a hard time but they have to spend time together to build a connection for their dance competition that his spirit seeps into her soul.

Despite Evie’s heartbreak and anger I did like her, but out of the two X was the smooth charmer and easier to fall for. You could see how as they got closer she really wanted to believe love could last and people could be true to each other. Setting their romance in a story where ballroom dance was the power that bound them read so true. My husband and I took ballroom dance lessons many moons ago and to this day I still remember how connected I felt to him. You have to pay attention to your partners body to know where to step next. Knowing this I could see how X broke down Evie’s defenses. Add good looks and charm to the mechanics of learning the tango? Whew! She didn’t stand a chance.

I’ve liked all of the Nicola Yoon novels I’ve read. This reads slightly lighter than her others but I think if she wrote it during the pandemic she may have needed a subject matter that would be fun to write and for the readers magical to read. ❤️❤️❤️❤️

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