Under A Dancing Star

By Laura Wood

Book Overview

Steal away to Italy for a hot summer, a sexy dare, and a romance that was never supposed to happen. For fans of The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue and Love and Gelato -- this is the escapist... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 140719240X
• ISBN13: 9781407192406
• Release Date: July 2019
• Publisher: Scholastic
• Length: 356 Pages
• Weight: 0.93 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.8" x 1.1" x 5.1"

Customer Reviews

Disappointing read but gave authors other book ‘A Sky Painted Gold’ 5 stars.

After loving A Sky Painted Gold, I was genuinely excited to pick up Under a Dancing Star. Same author, gorgeous setting, promising premise… it felt like a sure thing. But unfortunately, this one really missed the mark. The plot is slow and surprisingly dull, especially for a novel set in 1930s Italy. There’s very little momentum, and what does happen never feels particularly compelling. A big issue for me was the lack of chemistry between the two leads, Bea and Ben. For a book that positions itself as a love story, there’s surprisingly little tension or emotional investment in their relationship. Their dynamic is meant to be witty and oppositional, but it ends up feeling flat and unconvincing. Wood also weaves in heavy political themes (fascism, Nazi ideology, looming war) but these elements feel more like background noise than anything integral to the story. They're touched on, but never explored in a meaningful way, which makes their inclusion feel unnecessary rather than impactful. What’s most disappointing is the writing itself. After the lyrical, emotionally rich prose of A Sky Painted Gold, I expected the same level of depth here. Instead, the writing feels rushed and less refined, with none of the emotional weight or atmosphere that made her earlier work so powerful.