Review: Instructions for Dancing

Title: Instructions for Dancing
Author: Nicola Yoon
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: June 1, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Evie Thomas doesn’t believe in love anymore. Especially after the strangest thing occurs one otherwise ordinary afternoon: She witnesses a couple kiss and is overcome with a vision of how their romance began . . . and how it will end. After all, even the greatest love stories end with a broken heart, eventually.

As Evie tries to understand why this is happening, she finds herself at La Brea Dance studio, learning to waltz, fox-trot, and tango with a boy named X. X is everything that Evie is not: adventurous, passionate, daring. His philosophy is to say yes to everything–including entering a ballroom dance competition with a girl he’s only just met.

Falling for X is definitely not what Evie had in mind. If her visions of heartbreak have taught her anything, it’s that no one escapes love unscathed. But as she and X dance around and toward each other, Evie is forced to question all she thought she knew about life and love. In the end, is love worth the risk?

Review:

After her parents got divorced and she found out her dad cheated on her mom, Evie Thomas gave up on her belief in love. Then, one day she sees a couple kiss and has a vision of their entire relationship, including how it will end. She has these visions when she sees a couple in love kiss, even if they’re her best friends. Evie is led to a dance school by a book she finds called Instructions for Dancing. She’s partnered up with a boy called X, and they’re trained to compete in an LA ballroom dance competition. As they get closer and Evie starts to believe in love again, she has to decide if love is worth it in the end.

This story was a quick read. The chapters were short and the timeline of the story flew by. Even though it was fast, the story was complete. I fell in love with the characters right away, starting with Evie. She had a valid reason for not believing in love anymore, but I was rooting for her and X the whole time.

I found most of the story fun and light hearted. The parts where Evie and X were learning to dance and getting to know each other were so fun. I used to dance so I could relate to their lessons. I had read in a review that this story was heartbreaking, and I found it hard to believe that until the end. It was definitely heartbreaking but I also want more of their story.

Instructions for Dancing is another beautiful and heartbreaking Nicola Yoon story.

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Have you read Instructions for Dancing? What did you think of it?