Book Review: Flirty Dancing by Jennifer Moffat
Release Date: May 27, 2025
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ / 5
Explicitness: 🔥🔥🔥 / 5 or PG-13 (fade to black sex scenes)
Archer has always wanted to dance on Broadway; unfortunately, at 27 he keeps being told he is too old. When he’s almost at the end of his savings, he gets offered a job dancing at a queer resort in the Catskills all summer. When he arrives, he finds out that his teenage Broadway crush is one of his coworkers and the leader of the troupe. Mateo has a chip on his shoulder and doesn’t appreciate that Archer’s a fan – and they have to dance several duets and a pas de deux together. Worse still, their chemistry is off the charts, at least on stage.
This was a fast-paced, compelling read. Though I was a little annoyed with Archer at first, I ended up really rooting for him and it eased my earlier frustration. The main characters are pretty well fleshed-out, convincingly having inner lives. Narration alternates between the two, but Archer feels like the real protagonist. Some of the supporting characters, like Betty and Eileen, are well-developed and have nice relationships with the main two. One thing that bugged me is that Caleb, who Archer dates for a significant chunk of the summer, is kind of flat and incredibly immature.
I’d recommend this for fans of dance rom-coms (like Save the Last Dance) and for readers who love a grumpy/sunshine dynamic. I received an advance copy of this book for review; all opinions are my own.
