siempreRating: 4 stars
Buy Links: 
 Amazon | All Romance
Length: Novel


Siempre takes place within the world of dance, which is one of the things that first attracted me to it.  Sean is a principal dancer for a New York ballet company, with his best friends Travis and Alana.  When the company brings on some new interns, among them a girl named Lupe, Sean becomes quickly interested in her extremely attractive and seemingly interested cousin.  Sean figures he must be mistaken, though, when it appears the cousin, Jaime, doesn’t feel the same about him.

The real problem, though, is that Jaime is in the closet as far as it relates to his family.  He’s open with his friends in NYC, but since he’s spending his time driving Lupe to and from dance lessons and this is when Sean gets to see him, Jaime has to keep their budding relationship on the down-low.  Sean has strong feelings for Jaime, so he’s willing to be patient with Jaime and their secretive relationship, but sooner or later the news will get out, and Jaime will have to pay the price.  Will their relationship be strong enough to get through the hurdles that are ahead for the two of them?

Sean comes from privilege.  He has a well to do family who has always accepted him for who he is.  He has two best friends who unconditionally support him as well, though Travis is quite the slave driver when it comes to leading him in the dance world.  Sean tries to be patient with Jaime, but so much of it just doesn’t seem to make sense.  Why does Jaime care what his family thinks?  Why is he so influenced by people who are more concerned with religion and tradition than the people who they supposedly love?  It’s a whole new world for Sean and one which he needs to come to understand quickly if he wants to be able to support Jaime.

As I said previously, I’m a big fan of dance, so I was excited to see that this book takes place within that world.  It provided an interesting backdrop for this romance to take place.  Sean, Travis, and Alana are artists, and the level of commitment that they show to their craft is impressive.  It also added something to the plot when the politics of the dance world became involved.  When Lupe must worry about how her personal relationships will affect her chances in the dance world, it becomes all too real how one little decision could change the course of her career, doing something she loves.

It’s always exciting to read a book in which you love the supporting characters as much as the main characters.  Unfortunately, sometimes you end up loving the supporting characters even more, and that becomes a bit of a problem.  I loved Travis.  He was a little crazy, yes, since he was so committed to the success of the dance company.  But he was also doting and protective and sexy, and after awhile I really only wanted a story about him.  Sean was a good guy, but he just wasn’t all that interesting.  He is a self-proclaimed spoiled brat, and while he was still kind and supportive, especially when it came to Jaime and his situation, I started to become a little bored with him.

Overall, though, I was a little bored.  It was a very sad situation and a story that needs to be told — that of an unsupportive family who can make the life of someone who is coming out absolutely miserable — but it just seemed to drag on and on.  The potential for something truly great was there and I was eager to read about it, but instead it became wrapped up in this drama that, while heart-breaking, started to feel a little tedious.  I would’ve loved more about the dance company and, not surprisingly, about Travis as well.

This was a good book.  I would definitely recommend it.  The passion between the two main characters was really strong, and, while there wasn’t an overabundance of sex scenes, the connection between them was intense.  I can’t say it was one of the best books that I’ve read, but if you like dance, especially, give this one a try.

A review copy of this book was provided by Dreamspinner Press.

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