Julia Klassen is in my top 5 authors. The Dancing Master was a great read. It started a little slow, but I realized she was laying the ground work for some great character development in her hero and heroine. Julia and Alec both struggled with family secrets that shaped their lives. Julia grew from a insecure, selfish girl into a young lady who learned to take responsibilty for her own actions and to care for others. The character who drew me the most was Julia's mother, Amelia. Klassen uses great skill as she slowly unravels the 20 year-old story of deception and heartbreak that was still shaping the lives in the community of Beaworthy. I liked the story very much because this is my first time reading J. Klassen and I was surprised it was much more complex than a boy-meets-girl story.I think each character had a lot of emotional baggage to work through. This time it is about the hero's over-developed sense of family loyalty and the heroine's murky birth origins and not knowing her adoption story.More complex psychological layers than one finds in a typical Jane Austen story!
This was such a waste of time. Not very "Regency," not much "romance."
—Sofie
I've read almost all her books...really liked this one.
—kathryn
The main girl bugged me - self-centered
—secretcirclelover
excellent for the genrepg for adults
—saimbeau23
3.5 stars
—Harmony
