Shadow Dance: A Romantic Suspense Thriller Where a Detective Protects a Showgirl with Secrets from a Serial Killer

by Susan Andersen

What Lurks in the Dark Shadows of the Heart?

Most men who see Amanda Charles dance worship her from afar. But one "admirer" is getting too close to the glamorous showgirl...perilously close. The looks, style, and grace that make Amanda sparkle on stage have now made her something else: the target of a serial killer.

Detective Tristan MacLaughlin has drawn the case that is pulling him deep into a world of pageantry and dazzle -- and closer to the stunning, violet-eyed beauty who keeps her secrets and emotions locked tightly inside. Tristan never thought he'd be bewitched by Amanda's charms, never though he'd care. And he never imagined that by wanting her, by trying to protect her, he'd place her in the gravest danger of all.

Genres: Romance, Romantic Suspense, Contemporary, Suspense, Contemporary Romance, Mystery, Fiction

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1989

About the author

I grew up in a household with two brothers, a daddy, and my grandfather. Too many men, in other words. They diluted M'ma's influence by diverting my attention to things like the danger of answering nature's call in the dead of the night. I've got a hint for those of you raised in a less spit-and-scratch world: check before you sit, because chances are that seat is gonna be up. And they don't even have the grace to be embarrassed about it. According to my sweet baby boy, if you're the minority sex in the household, you oughtta be putting it up for them. Sigh.

Having brothers was a mixed bag. When anybody messed with me they were always quick with an offer to beat them up. That was sorta nice, although I personally believe it had more to do with the fact that guys just like to fight than with any towering concern for my welfare. You might think that's cynical but guess who the target was if no one else was around and they were tired of fighting each other? I must've spent half my childhood locked in the bathroom, screaming, "Dad's gonna get you when he gets home." I know, I know, nobody likes a stoolie. But it was either that or have my block knocked off on a regular basis, and trust me, Daddy was the best deterrent going.

A smart woman probably would've gone away to an all-girl school or moved in with some girlfriends at the first opportunity. Me, I got married to my high school sweetie. And the tradition continues. Our only kid (who hasn't been a kid for quite some time now) is the aforementioned sweet baby boy, and except for an Irish setter we had for eleven years a long time ago, even our pets have all been male. I just try to stay afloat whenever I find myself in the deep end of the testosterone pool, and if you don't think that isn't a trial sometimes, I'm here to tell you- it can be hell.

Then again, it can also be heaven. In fact, it mostly is. But listen, don't tell my guys I 'fessed up to that, okay? Trust me, it's difficult enough already, just trying to stay one step ahead of the game.

Reviews

[Elizabeth · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is just bloody awful and boring to boot (could not care who was the serial killer and I still did not give a shit when he was revealed, having being lobotomised by the tedious stupidity of it all) . Heroine not only TSTL but also a rude pig. Her appalling social skills and manners earn her the love and admiration of thousands (there must be many desperate dicks out there). Amanda Charles is a stale and terribly executed melange of the cliche bickering Gorgon and the below zero IQ leggy blonde heroes are supposed to be crazy about. The fact that she is insufferably rude becomes spectacularly obvious by the writer's annoying habit to state, every second paragraph, the opposite of what we actually see. She keeps shouting from the rooftops that her heroine is a daughter of the haute-bourgeoisie and good manners are ingrained in her. Well, you could have fooled me!

The whole hero/heroine affair comes about by some extremely clumsy wave of a broken magic wand. Who could possibly be convinced by this pairing? The bulk of the book is spent with the heroine being a rude pig and an ungrateful b*tch to the hero. Not that he is any better. For some reason, he assumes the authority of ten Freuds and effortlessly spouts nonsense about suicide and suicides (his offensive kind of stupidity and ignorance, couched in the entertainment industry's manufactured language of 'strength', will make you reach for the sick bag more than once).

Another puzzling and impossibly annoying feature of this joyless disaster of a book is that the hero is written as a Scotsman! If you have steam come out of your ears every time you read historical romances full of, 'Ohai lass' and 'dinna ken' (like I and my GR buddies have) then wait until you read this contemporary, it will freak you out and have you running for the hills! Every other line is 'lass', 'mon' and 'dinna'. All the things American writers in the genre think the Scots say (but they don't). And let me not start on the hero's thriftiness! Aiuto, aiuto, as the Italians would scream.

[Jena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reread 2021

[Nancy H · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an exciting story! This page-turner will have you on the edge of your seat as you try to find out who is killing the dancers at the casinos in Reno. With great characters, lots of action, and some steamy heat, this book is an excellent 'get-away-from-it-all' read.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great read! Susan Anderson absolutely nailed the ping-pong emotions between women and men. Her characters are totally authentic and the plots worked really well too. Thanks Susan!

[Sheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shadow Dance (Susan Andersen)
Is a romance/thriller. Amanda Charles is a beautiful Reno Showgirl. When dancers are being murdered, detective Tristan MacLaughlin is called in from Seattle to solve the crime.

Amanda soon becomes the target of the serial killer, and while Tristan tries to protect her, his presence in her life seems to put her in more danger. A good who-done-it with romance on the side.

[Cindi · Rating 2 out of 5]

This could have been a really good book but the back-story was so boring that I found myself wanting to skip over most of it. I didn't because I kept hoping it would say more about Tristan's back-story. But of course it only went on and on about Amanda's. Tristan's character was great. Amanda's was like "Oh my God, enough already!" What a brat. I had a hard time getting through this book. I could not stand Amanda and that just ruined the whole thing for me.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty good suspense-romance. I actually liked all of the characters and thought the hottie cop, Tristan MacLaughlin, was yummy. I do feel that the author missed the opportunity to also have a side-romance with the BFF of the main character, Mandy, with Rhonda and Joe. But, the suspense part was enough to keep me focused.

I did not guess who the bad guy was - I like it when the author is able to keep me guessing.

This is my second book within a month with a psycho-killer after a showgirl dancer (this one is set in Reno, the other was set in Vegas). This leads me to ask - is it really dangerous to be a showgirl? But I learned a lot about the effort and work ethic it takes to be a dancer. Interesting side knowledge.

[Cynthia Marcus · Rating 1 out of 5]

I hated this book. I could not wait to finish it. It was incredibly boring.

It starts with a murder. OK, that's promising. Then nothing happens for 150 pages. Finally, someone gets attacked and you think the action will pick up. Wrong. There is another 75 pages of dull blather until eventually the very obvious killer makes his move. That is followed by another 50 pages of filler.

One of the main characters is a Scott and the author writes him with a really bad accent. The accent was very affected and annoying. If I heard "lad" or "lassie" one one time I was going to barf.

Also, you are almost 150 pages into the book before there is a sex scene.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of Susan Andersen’s earlier books and I really enjoyed the storyline. Amanda Rose Charles was raised a socialite but her dream was to be a dancer and after leaving home at eighteen, she worked very hard to achieve her goal. Unfortunately, after the third dancer was killed in the Reno, Nevada area, Detective Tristan MacLaughlin was called in from the Seattle Police Department because he was use to setting up task forces to find serial killers but he becomes too close to Mandy and that put her in the crosshairs of a killer. Great read.

[Donna Hulsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a pretty intense read. A serial killer is killing dancers in Reno. The killer was a total surprise to me.

[Pille Puškina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lugesin eestikeelset versiooni Varjutants.

[Ally · Rating 1 out of 5]

Super problematic relationship/power dynamic. Murders aren't sexy, Susan!

[Tina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. Aside from pacing issues early on, this is a really great read. The characters are great. Believable, endearing. They all did some questionable things, but I feel that that made them more human for me. They weren't perfect, or too-good-to-be-true.

The writing — hello? Susan Andersen? — is excellent. Even though Shadow Dance was originally published in 1989 it was brought enough up to date where it's not noticeable at all. And being Andersens first novel, I'm blown away at how well it's written. Love it!

Overall, I love this book. This is one of my yearly re-reads. I've read it every year for the past 9 years. And I plan to continue that tradition. It's like a giant bowl of chicken soup for my soul, constantly reminding me of what I really enjoy in a story. Definitely one of my comfort reads. The suspense is raw, the "bad guy" chilling. An intriguing, smart, gripping novel that never fails to deliver for me. I highly recommend this one to fans of Andersen or romantic suspense novels dealing with a psychotic serial killer.

[A'ndrea (Auni) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Geeze, I get why I put this book down twice before starting it a 3rd time. It was tough to get through, however more then half way through it picked up a bit. I liked the characters ok, but I wasn't a fan of the best friend Rhonda, who constantly referred to Amanda as "Kiddo". Amanda was a year older then you Rhonda. I just don't see someone saying that non-stop to their younger friend. Anyways, it was a slow go for me. I'm usually a big fan of Susan Andersen books, this one just didn't do it for me.

[Georgiann Hennelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most men who see Amanda Charles worship her from afar.But one admirer is getting to close to the glamorous showgirl. There is a serial killer out there who is killing showgirls and he is getting perilously close to Amanda. Detective Tristan MacLaughlin has drawn the case. He is falling in love with Amanda, He never imagined that by wanting her and trying to protect her he,d place her in the gravest danger of all. Can he catch the killer before its to late.

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

TBR Reading Challenge 2011

Not a bad effort early effort by Andersen. Her writing is good, but she adds extraneous details that, while not badly written, don't forward the plot. I couldn't quite put my finger on why it doesn't work, because I've read descriptive books that I've enjoyed immensely. But the details here were mostly unnecessarily wordy back story.

The main characters were great, and the mystery was decent. Overall a good book.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

A serial killer is working his way through the dancers in Reno. One of them happens to be a fellow dancer, friend, and tenant of Amanda. Enter MacLaughlin, a very self-contained police detective from Seattle. She's sad and on edge, he's grumpy and single-minded in trying to protect. They seem to shatter each other's composure on a regular basis, but can they survive the search for the killer with their bodies and hearts intact?

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read almost every other book that Susan Andersen has written and loved almost all of them. Shadow Dance was her first book and I'm glad I didn't read it until now or I might have never read another. Excess verbiage is a major problem with book. Not that she says the same things over and over, but that there is just so much description and so little of it moves the plot along. I also spotted the villain right off and I really hate that.

[Donna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another book from Ms. Andersen's "accent" period...Actually this one was pretty good. The suspense was better than the romance and someone raised in an American orphanage would NOT have had a thick Scottich accent and a vocabulary sprinkled with Scottish dialect! The ending was kind of sweet, though.

[Jeri · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read about a Las Vegas dancer and a police detective hunting a serial killer who preys on showgirls. This is one Susan Andersen's earlier titles and it shows somewhat in a less polished writing style. But the mixture of earthy sexiness, real emotions, and a reasonable amount of suspense really works for me.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was wonderful, one of the first books I ever read by SA. The suspense was top notch, the characters were well developed and Tristan...yum. I can still conjur up his Scottish broque in my head. I loved their interactions, I loved the background on the characters, I loved the emotional honesty. Loved it.

[Miranda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh. Typical late 80's romantic suspense with some updates for the re-release. Poor little me rich girl meets macho cop. Insert typical dialogue here, here, and here. I hated the heroine, the plot was stop and go and there were some holes that weren't filled in. I would have liked to know more about Tristan's past since it seemed more interesting than Amanda's.

[Betty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Different type of stalker story, characters are interesting and the story flows. Amanda does not seem to realize (or ignores) the danger she is in. I enjoyed the book, it was a little different than most stalker stories, gentler. Leans more toward a cosy than a thriller.

[Tracey Risebrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book – 4.5 stars. This is one of her earliest books and is a romantic suspense. I absolutely loved loved loved the hero and the build up between him and Amanda. There was a good suspense plot going on but for me the interaction between the protagonists was the highlight.

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again another steamy one! Love it!

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I actually bought this book by mistake but it was a good one just the same!

[Shawna · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars – Romantic Suspense

[Lynn Calvin]

Romance

[Gamatst · Rating 3 out of 5]

My least favorite of the Romantic suspense books written by Susan Andersen.

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the back story was dreadfully dull and long winded however everything else was GREAT!!! My only disappointment was they never explained how Tristan manage to have Scottish accent.