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Dancing Priest #1

Dancing Priest

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Michael Kent…
A young man studying to become a priest finds love, and learns that faith can separate.
A university cyclist seeking Olympic gold finds tragedy, death and heroism.
A pastor thousands of miles from home seeks vocation and finds fatherhood.

Sarah Hughes…
A young woman living abroad finds love and loses family.
A university student meets a faith she cannot accept.
An artist finds faith and learns to paint with her soul.

Dancing Priest is the story of Michael Kent and Sarah Hughes and a love, born, separated, and reborn, in faith and hope.

Book 1 in the Dancing Priest series.

381 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 27, 2011

4 people are currently reading
38 people want to read

About the author

Glynn Young

12 books22 followers
Glynn is an award winning speechwriter and communications professional. He is a member of the College of Fellows of the Public Relation Relations Society of America and was inducted into the St. Louis Media Hall of Fame in 2009. He received his B.A. in Journalism from Louisiana State University and his Masters in Liberal Arts from Washington University in St. Louis.

He is the author of five novels in the Dancing Priest series -- Dancing Priest, A Light Shining, Dancing King, Dancing Prophet, and Dancing Prince -- and the non-fiction book Poetry at Work. He serves as an editor at Tweetspeak Poetry (http://www.tweetspeakpoetry.com) and writes a weekly column on new poets, old poets, and literature.

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5 stars
31 (56%)
4 stars
14 (25%)
3 stars
6 (10%)
2 stars
3 (5%)
1 star
1 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
Profile Image for Brian O'Hare.
Author 25 books180 followers
March 3, 2018
The Dancing Priest by Glynn Young is an excellent example of its genre, Christian Fiction. As a reader mostly of secular literature, I was somewhat wary about approaching this novel. In addition, I have to admit that the excessive focus on the characters and their back stories in the early couple of chapters seemed to be setting the scene for a patchy story. But this was just an early glitch. Once the author has his characters established, the story becomes compelling and absorbing.

Glynn Young has an easy writing style and a gift for story telling that raises the novel above its genre. Add interesting, well-developed characters, a romance that has as much grief as joy, fascinating locations all over the world – Edinburgh, London, Athens, Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, and San Francisco – and it is no surprise that most readers have difficulty putting the book down.

Young writes enthusiastically about Michael’s advancement to the priesthood, making the events and elements of priestly formation seem credible, but I would have to question the accuracy of some of the details. However, since most people would probably never notice these things, and since they have no negative impact on the story, I would simply be prepared to let these minor errors go.

That said, this is a story of twists and turns, a story of passion, love, faith and friendship, a story with strongly evangelical undertones that must appeal to the Christian heart, and an ending that some might guess at but will not fully intuit until they have read to the end to see how all falls into place.

In some ways, I would have to wonder about the appeal of this book to the general reader, but within its own genre, Christian Fiction, it has to be right up there. For readers who want a gentle story with an exciting sports element, travel, to exotic locations, and a heart-stirring romance, buy The Dancing priest. You won’t regret it.
Profile Image for Mark Sutherland.
Author 6 books3 followers
December 12, 2011
I absolutely loved the story. I loved it because the characters had depth. They became real to me as I read the book. I felt myself connecting and identifying with them. I returned to my old stomping grounds in Scotland and England as I moved through the pages. I came back across The Pond to my adopted home country of America as the characters did. I identified with their struggles and pain. I went with Michael, one of the main characters, into Buckingham Palace. I rode with him in the Olympics. I sat and listened as he ministered in America. I felt his pain, his joy, his doubt, his assurance. I was surprised by my own emotional reaction to the events as they unfolded, and how I had to fight to keep those emotions in check. (Being British, it's just not proper for a grown man to cry over a book. But boy was it hard not to.) I was inspired. I was challenged. The story came to life within my own head, and I finished the book wishing I could actually meet these people who came to life in the pages of Glynn's book.
Profile Image for Neil Hanson.
137 reviews4 followers
January 4, 2017
I picked this book up because the idea behind it sounded interesting, and I really enjoyed the story. I saw that one reviewer knocked the book for writing style and the double spacing between paragraphs. I suspect the double spacing is a Kindle formatting thing (I read the Kindle version) which was very slightly distracting but not enough to knock the author over - the publisher needs to fix that. The writing style was unique for sure, and I enjoyed it. Sometimes you pick up a book to discover complex characters drawn through unexpected machinations, and sometimes you pick up a book to enjoy a good story told well, which is how I'd describe this one. I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series.
Profile Image for Katherine Coble.
1,371 reviews280 followers
February 19, 2012
The story has interesting components. The characters are well-drawn. I just dont care for the _style_ of writing. I've seen other reviewers laud the style as especially pleasing; I imagine it's a matter of taste. I just found it way too declarative, which resulted in very little atmosphere. This, coupled with the bizarre layout (double-spacing after every paragraph or line of dialogue) made it feel at times as though I were reading the author's story outline from 3x5 cards and that he planned to fill in details later.

Overall it's plain that the author has talent and a love for the elements of the story. I just generally prefer more descriptive novels.
Profile Image for Kathy.
199 reviews
December 5, 2012
Full disclosure: the author is a friend of a friend, and I was fortunate enough to obtain a free copy of the book.

That said, this is a wonderful, rich book. Readrs are taken to numerous parts of the world as they learn about cycling, art, students learning abroad, and especially about. faith. There will be several people who shy away from this story because of the faith factor - that would be their loss.

This is a well-written, insightful book that will be enjoyed by a wide range if people ... even if you didn't know you were interested in cycling or art. Highly recommend!
Profile Image for Renee Abernathy.
98 reviews2 followers
April 4, 2015
absolutely lovely

I thought the book started a bit slow. I thought it may be more about sports or such. It was a beautiful love story. It showed the beauty of waiting onGods timing. This is a special story. Probably will check out the sequel and I usually do not like sequel books.
48 reviews1 follower
January 10, 2015
A Wonderful love story

A real feel good book. The characters were well developed and very easy to relate to. This story combined a love story and love of a sport in a touching way. I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who enjoys a good read.
1 review
February 28, 2015
I couldn't put it down.

How nice to find a faith-based romance without all the smut of typical paperbacks. The scripture and short sermons woven in were just right. To the point, but not overwhelming.
12 reviews4 followers
December 18, 2015
I think this is a typical Christian novel. And well written in that respect. I gave it a lower rating because some of the content was a little on edge for me personally, so I don't feel like I can fully recommend it.
Profile Image for Patricia.
287 reviews
January 17, 2013
Loved this book... Loved the characters...loved the story... There is just so much to it... And you must read the awesome sequel : A Light Shinning.
Profile Image for Darren.
908 reviews10 followers
February 3, 2015
I liked it, because I like sappy romances. But wow, the hero is a Mary Sue! I think the author was seriously in love with Fr. Mike. And everything came together WAY too conveniently.
Profile Image for P.J. Easterbrook.
Author 1 book18 followers
April 14, 2015
loved it!

Couldn't put it down until I finished. It was so fun to see how the story progressed. Lots of tears as well as smiles from me. Can't wait to read the next book!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews

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