Amazong! Alexis Daria never disappoints me! I can’t believe this is actually her debut novel! All the magic and feelings of her beautiful storytelling is encapsulated in this beautiful book. And the steam🔥🔥🔥🔥dear Lord it was to die for! 100% recommended!

Take the Lead gave me strong Dancing with the Stars and Strictly Come Dancing vibes. From the partner meet and greet to the in studio training sessions, it is an easy comparison. Gina and Stone make a nice couple who have a lot of chemistry. Gina is hard working and determined. She is a professional dancer and an amazing choreographer. Stone is part of a reality series with his family. Usually quiet and reserved, it will be up to Gina to get him out of his shell and dance.

This is a nice story and the author has an engaging writing style. I became invested in Gina and Stone easily.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press/Griffin and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

I received an eARC from NetGalley and St. Martin's Press in exchange for an honest review. Gina Morales has been a pro dancer on The Dance Off for 4 seasons. She's flying to Alaska to meet her celebrity partner for season 5, hopeful it'll be a winter Olympian. She is dropped off in the middle of nowhere to find a big, bearded, shirtless, wilderness reality star, Stone Nielsen. It quickly becomes obvious the producer wants to stage a fauxmance between the two. Gina has a very clear "no showmance" policy as well as a "don't get involved with dance partners" rule. But when the two are in a room together, and Gina is working on getting Stone express emotions through dance, and Stone is listening to Gina with respect, and the physical attraction is undeniable... Is it worth it? Should they even try since they live worlds away when they're not dancing on tv?

I was hooked from the start of this book. Did not want to put it down! The emotion, the tension, the steam! I love strong Latina characters and Gina is just that. She is an amazing performer who is constantly striving to meet her goals. And Stone is the sweetest cinnamon roll. He has the role everyone sees on his show, the strong silent protector, but with Gina's help and the distance from his family he comes into his own. This book will make you want to ballroom dance! I was looking up a lot of the dances just to get a visual taste of what they were doing week to week. It is absolutely going on my reread list. I recommend this to fans of reality show tropes, forced proximity, Latinx representation, and steamy romance.

2 Stars

This one fell flat for me. I always love a good reality TV trope but the execution on this one was lacking. The book is from two POVs but the male character doesn't have a distinctly different voice from the female character which was frustrating to read at times. In my opinion, if you are going to write duel POVs, they need to be unique. However, my understanding is this is a reprint of the author's debut novel. With that being said, she has potential and I wouldn't write off her other works that have published since this one first came out.

I love dance competition shows so when I saw the description of Take the Lead, I knew I had to read it.
Gina Morales, the professional dancer has spent years fighting Latina stereotypes and wants to win with her talent alone. Her partner this season is Stone Nielson, an off-the-grid, wilderness survivalist who has a reality show with his entire family. From their first dance their chemistry is off the charts.
They don't want to be in a forced showmance and as their connection grows it gets harder to hide their feelings and secrets they have. Their dances provides lots of steam to the show and gives the producer plenty to work with to create a showmance.

It's a classic opposites attract set in a reality tv world. I've read a few books by Alexis Daria and they are always entertaining and quick reads. I give Take the Lead 3.5 stars.

This was unexpectedly fun and I really enjoyed this story. Take The Lead follows Gina and Stone, each from a very different background, now partners on a celebrity dancing reality show.

SO MUCH about this book worked for me. Overall, the novel is paced nicely and I never felt like it was dragging or needed to get a move on. Gina and Stone have a clear and immediate chemistry and physical attraction, but the emotional side of their relationship grows in a way that feels authentic. No instant unbelievable emotions here. I also loved the added dynamic of constantly being followed by cameras/mics - it added interesting layers to how characters interact and communicate (someone is always watching) without feeling creepy.

The one thing that fell short for me was that once the actual dancing part of the show began, the story lost some of the interpersonal dynamics that were set up early on. I would have loved to read more of the friendships, rivalries and eliminations all the way through. With such a large cast, this would have made it easier to remember who was who.

Overall this was a fun and flirty read that I really enjoyed!

Published on
Goodreads 2/1/23
Instagram ashlie_overbooked 2/1/23

This one was really cute! There’s so much chemistry and I loved the dancing aspect of the story. This one is perfect for Valentine’s Day

A fabulous love story that follows the bonfire burning between a reluctant lumber snack hero and his equally reluctant dance partner.

Full review to come on my blog on release day.

If you're a fan of Dancing with the Stars or other reality TV dance competitions, you won't want to miss out on Take the Lead, a vibrant, energetic, and contemporary romance by debut author Alexis Daria. This book is sure to keep you entertained! The reality TV element is so well-crafted that it's almost as if the author has been backstage at these competitions. The drama, personal relationships, and weekly eliminations had me eagerly turning the pages to see what would happen next. With its captivating plot and characters, Take the Lead will keep you on the edge of your seat as you experience the highs and lows of the competition and the characters' lives.

read Alexis Daria’s Take the Lead after seeing it on Entertainment Weekly’s best romances of 2017. Take the Lead was Daria’s debut novel and has now been somewhat reworked for a rerelease. While I did not have the time to reread the earlier version, my impression is that she’s taken an already good book, tightened it up, added a little, and made it better.

Gina Morales is a professional dancer on the reality dance competition. Going into her fifth season on the show, she has never made the finals. This season she wants to win. Stone Nielson is already on an Alaskan wilderness reality show with his family. He hates it, but his family needs the money. He’s agreed to be a celebrity contestant on Dance Off to help with his mother’s medical bills, and maybe pay off his student loans (relatable). His family’s reality show is based on a lie, which puts Stone under additional pressure. Gina and Stone are paired to take advantage of the drama their differences will create, and capitalize on a possible romance. Neither wants to feed into a fake romance storyline, but as their real romance grows the balance between being honest and being private becomes difficult.

One of the things that struck me on this read was how deftly Daria builds the relationship between Gina and Stone. There is an instant attraction, but they don’t know each other. Daria deftly shows them getting to know each other in the crucible of a reality show. The forced proximity and need to become a team on camera fosters the friendship and affection off camera.

The ending of the first published version was, by far, the weakest part of the book. With a small change and an epilogue, Alexis Daria gives Stone and Gina and ending that’s fully consistent with their characters. This was a great read. I’m so glad she got the opportunity to rework and expand her debut novel.

I received this as an advance reader copy from St. Martin’s Press and NetGalley. My opinions are my own, freely and honestly given.

Hmm....

I really hope this doesn't deter people from this author because You Had Me at Hola was a 5 star read for me but it is NOT surprising that this was Daria's first novel.

Our plot surrounds contestants in a celebrity dancing competition, the celebrity and his pro dance partner. Calling this "inspired by" DWTS would not communicate how much this felt like I was just reading a season of Dancing with the Stars.

Also, the writing and storyline felt like something I could have come up with at 15 years old, which is not a compliment.

Thanks to netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

I love Alexis Daria! You Had Me at Hola, and A Lot Like Adios were so good, and I can’t wait for Along Came Amor. So I totally jumped at the opportunity to read the ARC of Daria’s remastered debut novel Take the Lead. No surprise, I adored it. It was such a fun, steamy, dance filled romance.

The story focuses on Gina Morales who wants so badly to finally make it to the finals on the hit show, the Dance Off. Her newest partner Stone, the sexy star of an Alaskan reality TV show, could just be her chance to end the four year losing streak. Joining a celebrity dance competition is the last thing he wants, but he will do whatever it takes to help his family.

Gina and Stone were 🥵! The tension and chemistry between them was outstanding, and it kept me more than entertained. I was pulled into the well written story right away and the in-depth descriptions by Daria allowed you to feel totally immersed. Not only in the story, but also in every single dance.

So much to love here;
💃 Opposites Attract
💃 Slow-burn Romance
💃 Celebrity Dance/Reality TV
💃 Forced Proximity

The new edition of Take the Lead is available 2/14 and I’d recommend for fans of romance who enjoy DWTS and reality tv!

Thank you to SMP Romance and NetGalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest options. I can’t wait to see where this series goes.

If you like shows like Dancing with the starts and wish it was a romance novel then this is the book for you. I loved Gina and Sloane. Gina is the dancer and her celebrity guest and duo partner is Sloane. I personally love books that have a dance element to it. I don’t get to read them very often, so this was a very nice change of pace into my current to be read pile. Definitely recommend giving it a read!

Alexis Daria has become and auto-read for me. First with her amazing Primas of Power series, so of course I jumped at the chance to read her re-release of Take the Lead. This book was an absolute delight--fun, sexy, great character growth, and a ton of emotion. Highly recommend to all romance readers. This book made me want to get up and dance, even though my skills are not on par with Ballroom but more in the Zumba-at-the-gym level. Excellent, excellent. Eagerly awaiting what's next from Daria.

I loved this book so much! If you are a dancing with the stars fan, then you probably will too!

I loved the whole story line, the way Gina and Stone meet and how they have an instant attraction to each other that only builds and builds! They had insane chemistry and connection. I loved how Gina brought Stone to life and opened him up and how he helped her as well. It was beautiful.

This book seriously has me wanting to go salsa dancing now! The dancing aspect was so fun! It was such a wonderful read that gives you all the warm fuzzies, but also brings the heat!

Gina is a dancer who performs on the "reality tv" show that would be IRL Dancing with the stars and Stone is her celebrity dance partner. I liked Gina, she wanted to be recognized and rewarded for her dance abilities and not for anything else. Stone has been living a lie in his family's reality tv show. I liked the way the author portrayed the producers who would do anything for ratings and that the product seen on TV is manipulated and scripted. I liked how the relationship between Gina and Stone developed. It was a good read and I'll admit I was hesitant to read about another TV show but I'm glad I did.

Four and a Half Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭒
Take the Lead by Alexis Daria is the first book in her Dance Off Series. It's a story of a reality tv show about ballroom dancing.

Story Recap:
Dancer Gina Morales has been on the hit dancing show, The Dance Off, for four seasons and has yet to make it to the finals. She’s surprised when her new partner, Stone Nielson, star of an Alaskan Wilderness show, has some good moves and could be good enough to get her to the finals this year.

Stone’s family stars in an Alaskan wilderness show and his family needs him, so he agrees to go on The Dance Off to help his family. He misses the wilds of Alaska, but can’t help feeling attracted to his professional dance partner, Gina.

When Gina finds out that the producers of The Dance Off want a showmance between Stone and herself, she’s angry because the last thing her professional reputation needs is gossip about her relationships.

My Thoughts:
I’m not a fan of reality TV books unless they are like Take the Lead where the books show off the less glamorous side of reality TV. Take the Lead gives us a romance with a lot of chemistry and a lot of problems and the characters are realistic and likable. I loved the dance scenes as there was clearly a connection between Gina and Stone.

I loved the author’s take on reality tv. I like that she doesn’t pull any punches and lets the readers know about the behind-the-scenes manipulations of the stars. However, the heart of the story is Gina and Stone, and not the dance competition.

Recommendation:
I highly recommend Take the Lead to anyone who enjoys romance. I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Take the Lead by Alexis Daria tells the story of Gina Morales, a talented dancer and professional star of the televised dance show, The Dance Off. She has been on the show for many years and wants this to be year she wins so she can advance her career, hopefully all the way back to Broadway.

Stone Nielsen, is a literally Living Wild in the back bush of Alaska along with his parents and siblings. Their show, Living Wild, is successful and his business-minded father is hoping Stone's appearance on a national dance show will drum up even more success.

The two are an unlikely pair, made even more awkward by a scheming producer Dana, hoping for a show romance or "shomance" to boost ratings. The question on every viewer's mind now is are they or aren't they?

I love Dara's previous works, Primas of Power, and this new book does not disappoint. Her dialogue is witty and full of life but she's also capable of bringing real emotion to her characters as well. Both Gina and Stone have things they need to work through and that journey is big part of this book's heart. I can't wait to read more by Daria and this series in particular.

Note: I received a complementary copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

Take the Lead by Alexis Daria is a steamy rom-com set during a season of a celebrity dance competition show.

When Gina is paired with the sexy star of an Alaskan wilderness show, Stone...she finds that all the rules that have gotten her through the past 4 seasons have gone out the window.

A fast and fun read that will have you wanting someone to dance with 💃

4.5 stars rounded up!

This was such a fun story. I loved the premise of a tv dance competition, the opposites in dance partners, and the focus on Gina’s career ambitions. Stone and Gina, both separate and together, were great characters and played off of one another so well. Their chemistry was electric and I rooted for them from the start! Considering this is a re-release, the book felt very up-to-date!

A couple of things are keeping this from being a full five stars for me. I was really happy to see a diverse cast of characters included- from different ethnicities as well as the LGBTQ+ community, but I do wish they were more a part of the story and not just blips on the page. The main thing that felt uncomfortable for me- but wasn’t necessarily a deal-breaker- was how the sexual harassment between two contestants wasn’t addressed at all. Sure they were separated in tactful ways, but the behavior itself was never called out and I think that could have been a good teaching moment in the book.

I’m definitely recommending this book to my friends because there is just so much to love about it. It’s fun and light, but also addresses how complicated relationships can be when the woman is the one with major career ambitions.