#BookReview: Don’t Mean a Thing by Renee Conoulty

Cute cute cute! Those were my first thoughts upon finishing Don’t Mean A Thing by Renee Conoulty. Set in Australia, we follow Macie Harman, who is new town after joining the Royal Australian Air Force. Macie is a bit like myself – a quiet introvert who loves to read and also discovers her love of dance. Being new on base and only knowing Rachael, the loud extrovert who Macie can only take in small doses, she decides to check out a swing dancing group – and finds more than she bargains for. She finds a love for the jazz music and swing steps, but also takes a liking to Matt, a fellow swing dancer. While their romance is slow to start, it quickly turns serious. But military life isn’t for everyone, and could Matt be happy in a relationship where his other half deals with trips away and deployments for months at a time? At can Macie, who joined the RAAF after ending a stifling relationship, compromise her promising career for a man?

I found this to be a very unique chick lit read, and was intrigued from the beginning. From following a military career-woman to the lovely (and HOT!) setting of Darwin, it felt like I was learning while reading, and I just loved that about this read. Macie was a great heroine, relatable and likeable, and I took to her right away. It was so interesting reading about the RAAF and what her role was, and at the same time, I loved the swing dancing scenes and learning about a dance I really don’t know much about. The romance between her and Matt is cute and even a little quick, and the end scene was just lovely. I will say I didn’t think there was quite enough conflict in this book to create some drama. Each time there seemed to be a plot twist it was easily fixed and moved on from, but that is my only critique of Don’t Mean A Thing. A very fabulous debut from Renee Conoulty.

4.5 stars

Reviewed for Readers Favorite