Nora Roberts – Reflection

The first book in the Bannion Family series, published June 1983.
Genre: contemporary romance
Cover: sweet



A lifetime pursuing her dreams had left Lindsay Dunne little time for romance. But seductive Seth Bannion is about to give the inexperienced beauty a crash course in the art of love.


From a very early age, Lindsay Dunne has trained to become a ballet dancer, just like her mother, but better. Her mother has encouraged her all her life, and pushed her to keep getting better. Lucky for Lindsay, she loves the dance, and even the hard life of a dancer did not deter her from reaching her goal.
And she achieves her goal, became a star and danced with Novikov. But then her parents had a car accident, her father died, and her mother was in a coma for weeks. She was needed back home, to take care of her mother. And so she gave it all up. At first she kept hoping she would be able to go back to dancing soon, but after a year, she gave up that dream. Instead, Lindsay opened up a ballet school, and started teaching instead. Now, after three years, she is content, but her mother keeps pushing her to go back to New York. Lindsay just knows she won’t be able to compete with the young girls anymore. As a teacher, you just don’t dance like a dancer in training.

And then she meets Seth Bannion, the uncle of her newest student Ruth. Lindsay knows that Ruth is a big talent, and Ruth doesn’t want anything more than dancing professionally herself. But her uncle refuses to consider sending Ruth to New York for schooling. She recently lost her parents, and now he is her guardian. Ruth needs stability first. And although Seth and Lindsay are on opposite sides concerning Ruth, the attraction between them is instantaneous and undeniable.

But Seth is a famous architect, and a real ladykiller, who has no intention whatsoever to settle down and marry. He wants Lindsay in his bed, and thinks that is enough. But Lindsey doesn’t do one night stands, she needs more of a commitment before she gives herself over to a man. And so Seth keeps trying to persuade her, and Lindsay pulls back. Until she knows she is in love with him, and wants him however she can have him. She will treasure the memories of their time together.

And then Davidov shows up. He has written a ballet himself, and he wants Lindsay as his star dancer. Lindsay refuses at first, but Davidov is persuasive. And now that her mother is moving to California with her best friend, to start a new life and a business together, there is nothing keeping Lindsay here … And so she agrees, but only to dance the first night. But Seth just got back from his new job in Australia, and he thinks she is lying. When she is back in New York, she won’t be able to give up the lime light again, and he gives her an ultimatum. This is of course the wrong thing to do, and Lindsay cannot make him understand that she needs this closure for herself.


A really nice little romance by Nora Roberts, who is not called The Queen for nothing. Although I think Lindsey a bit naïve and too trusting, I enjoyed her character. She is dedicated to her dancing, and to her students. She knows what she wants, and she does hold Seth off, until she is ready to become intimate. We never really get to know Seth, just that he is a famous architect, and a man who is in the tabloids a lot, dating beautiful famous women. He does take good care of his niece though, although he is also overprotective perhaps. Seth really is an alpha hero, trying to dominate and sort of bully Lindsay, but he does not cross the line. He is a bit cold and distant in my opinion, but I just liked reading the story for the story itself, not so much the romance.

7 stars.

© 2013 Reviews by Aurian