I enjoyed reading about Raymond de Guise in his first outing and had been looking forward to this follow up, however this second novel felt somewhat rushed and I didn’t feel much for any of the characters this time around. I was absolutely thrilled to be offered the chance to review Anton du Beke's new novel Moonlight Over Mayfair. Raymond is away, exploring the possibilities of America and the new dance crazes which will transform his whole view of dancing.

It follows on from the successful “One Enchanted Evening”, but it stands alone in terms of a very readable novel. Dangerous secrets, forbidden love and illicit passions are always on the menu at the Buckingham Hotel, but will they deter the staff and its inhabitants from reaching for the stars? Meanwhile stubborn and principled Lancashire born and bred chambermaid, Nancy Nettleton, has found a home at the Buckingham, and a year on is welcoming her seventeen-year-old brother, Frank, to life as a hotel page. I enjoyed it because I already knew the characters, but someone coming into this novel 'cold' would get very little idea of what the main players looked like or their backstories/personalities.

He draws you into the story from the first word on the first page and keeps your attention through the story. Shaken by the Great Depression and withtalk of another war coming, the Buckingham Hotel is trying to regain some stability. Anton is not just a talented, suave and debonair dancer and a respected television personality but is also now a very sophisticated, intelligent and creative author.

The first 30 pages promised an elegant follow up to Anton’s first novel, but I struggled a little with this second instalment. With an author like Anton Du Beke, dancing was going to feature heavily in the story, along with music (particularly the “dance bands” that were so popular at the time, and the often black saxophonists that starred in them).The difference in social classes within the Buckingham Hotel and political references all made for an Authentic and Intriguing read. They also provide the most wonderful monthly subscription to my Mum - a cosy crime novel each month. Shaken by the Great Depression and with talk of another war coming, the Buckingham Hotel is trying to regain some stability. Interspersed with some really great uplifting times despite some heart in mouth moments along the way, this was a cracking read that I thoroughly enjoyed.

I absolutely love what is happening to Miss Edgerton as she ropes Nancy into her night-time shenanigans!

I would have liked to know more about Helene, our of all the characters she seemed the most real, with an interesting past and a history of an interracial relationship during a time when this was still somewhat taboo. Although she desperately hopes that her brother will also begin to share her enthusiasm for London with her, there is another fly in the ointment which is making Nancy rather blue: the absence of the man she has grown to love, demonstration dancer Raymond de Guise, who is noticeable by his absence from the Grand Ballroom of the hotel. I have not read the first book in the series, and perhaps if I had this would have been more enjoyable, as often with a series there is a lot of enjoyment in seeing the characters develop. Santa MontefiorePrepare to be swept off your feet by the romantic and irresistible new novel from Sunday Times bestselling author and Strictly Come Dancing star Anton Du BekeLondon, 1937.

Raymond knows that keeping his budding relationship with chambermaid Nancy secret is now more important than ever.Opening in April, 1937 with former male principal dancer, Raymond de Guise, temporarily absent from the ballroom, all is not well with hotel director, Maynard Charles. Meanwhile, she finds herself embroiled in upper class Vivienne Edgerton's scheme to help the less fortunate of society. Although I felt the novel got off to a slightly slow start, and I feared that this second book would be a reprisal of the first when chambermaid Nancy Nettleton, took her first steps into the hotel with the lead character replaced with her easily embarrassed brother and page, Frank, this did not prove to be the case. If you haven't already read the first in series, I would recommend you do that before starting this one - character development and backstory and all that!