A DANCE WITH DANGER (Tang Dynasty #5/ Lovers and Rebels #2) by Jeannie Lin-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date April 21, 2015

A promise sworn on the edge of a sword…

After a failed assassination attempt on a corrupt general, Bao Yang is a wanted man. Taking refuge with an ally, Yang accidentally compromises the man’s daughter when they’re discovered alone. To save her honor, he must marry the beautiful Jin-mei immediately!

In Yang’s arms, Jin-mei feels alive for the first time. She’s determined not to lose him, even if it means joining his perilous mission… But when she realizes just how destructive Yang’s path could be, can she convince him that their life together could be so much sweeter than revenge?

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REVIEW: A DANCE WITH DANGER is the second installment in Jeannie Lin’s Lovers and Rebels historical, romance/adventure series set in the Tang Dynasty of China. This is outlaw/ merchant Bao Yang, and the magistrate’s daughter Jin-mei’s storyline. A DANCE WITH DANGER can be read as a stand alone. Some of the previous storyline characters play secondary and supporting roles throughout the story.

Told from third person perspective, the storyline follows the ill-fated wedding and marriage of Jin-mei and Bao Yang. Bao is an outlaw, with a price on his head, and he has been forced into a marriage with the magistrate’s only daughter. What ensues is an attempt on Bao’s life, leaving the newly married Jin-mei without a husband and too many questions. As Jin-mei begins to unravel the mystery surrounding the presumed death of her husband, she will begin to suspect that her father has something to do with the attack. Jin-mei will go in search of her husband, only to discover that there is more to the story than she could ever have known. Bao Yang and Jin-mei will begin a cross country trek as Yang plots revenge for the death of someone close.

The relationship between Bao Yang and Jin-mei is one of immediate attraction but Yang knows his reputation as an outlaw places Jin-mei in a precarious position. The building romance finds Jin-mei in need of comfort and reassurance, thus allowing for the love and dance of sexual attraction to begin. The sex scenes are romantic and intimate without graphic description or language. We are introduced to Bao Yang’s brother Tien and his wife Shou-yun, and reunited with Hao Han, Lin Feng, and Lin’s brother Liu Yuan from Sword Dancer-book one. There is a potential storyline building for Liu Yuan.

Jeannie Lin’s exotic and breathtaking world building takes the reader through the jungles, waterways and outlying areas of China where we meet charismatic characters and controversial players. Bao Yang and Jin-mei’s journey follows a path of self-discovery, personal revelations, and blossoming love. The plot twists and revelations add an interesting perspective when the truth is finally revealed.

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley.

Reviewed by Sandy