⭐⭐⭐⭐ -- Love the cover!

Billed as a <b>"Dare Me meets Black Swan and Luckiest Girl Alive in a captivating, voice-driven debut novel about a trio of ballerinas who meet as students at the Paris Opera Ballet School.",</b> I was excited to dive into this one, and I wasn't disappointed. I mean, I really didn't see the "Black Swan" tie in, but that wasn't a big deal. The story itself was engaging. Told in a dual timeline fashion. It was well written and well paced. This is a story driven by its characters (none of them particularly likable.) A friendship between three flawed dancers. Their secrets. Their struggles. Their hopes and dreams. The only niggle I had was that I wanted a certain situation wrapped up with a tighter "this is what happened" bow, but otherwise I thought this book (especially as this is the author's debut) was a really solid read.

**ARC Via NetGalley**

Rachel Kapelke-Dale's The Ballerinas moves back and forth in time to follow the relationships, successes and failures, of a trio of ballerinas (Delphine, Lindsay and Margaux) who came up through the ranks of the Paris Opera Ballet together. As in many such novels, dark secrets at the heart of the story are very gradually revealed.

The puzzle of what happened in the past (what was done to and by Delphine) pulls reader interest through the story, along with the atmosphere and intricacies of the world of ballet. It's the center of these young women's lives - and ambitions - taking precedence over all else.

The Ballerinas is ultimately about all aspects of female friendship, but also about men who abuse their power over women. It's well worth the read.

This is about a trio of ballerinas who meet as students at the Paris Opera Ballet School. Delphine abandons the school for a new life in St. Petersburg and carries a secret. This follows the ballerinas throughout the years.

This is categorized as a thriller and I would disagree with this and think this is more contemporary. The book started off strong with the characters, but as the story progressed, I just felt bored and didn’t care for the characters. I only kept reading because I want to know the secret. The secret was okay with how it was executed when it comes out. It’s definitely we should talk about when it comes to the topic. For me this book was not my favorite and I had higher hopes for this book.

So this isn’t a cozy (not even close) but the event that precipitates the action in the book is the return of the prodigal daughter to Paris and the place she grew up (not her mother’s apartment or even her neighbor-who-is-like-a-mother) but the Paris Opera Ballet. Delphine left for St. Petersburg 13 years ago and is returning to choreograph a new ballet for the POB’s anniversary season hoping to begin the next phase of her career.

Near the beginning of the book she riffs on the phrase “Paris is always a good idea” because, well, maybe it isn’t, maybe there are things from the past that she doesn’t want to face. But she hopes to reconnect with her two best friends, Margaux and Lindsey.

As another author once said, you can’t go home again. Things change, people change, and maybe the secret from the past you thought was so awful isn’t the worst thing that could happen to someone.

I studied ballet for over 10 years and can't say no to a ballet book. Earlier this year I read The Turn Out by Megan Abbot and was disappointed. There wasn’t much ballet in it, and the story itself was styled as a thriller with a twisty plot and I guess it was but I just didn’t like it very much.

Is there a twist here? YES, a gut wrenching one but this is not a thriller. Kapelke-Dale gives instead what it means to be a female dancer, a female dancer whose only friends are other dancers, who strives and wants only one thing, to be a star but lives in a world where men have the power and even the men who appear to be nice might be something else altogether. There is also a lot here about how growing up in a place that twists and manipulates your body (and let’s be honest, sometimes your mind) might not be growing up at all. And yes, lots and lots of dancing.

In some ways, this reminded me of Megan Collins’ The Winter Sister (which I also did not think of as a traditional thriller). Highly recommend, and the audio performance by Ell Potter serves to enrich and elevate the book. Thank you Netgalley and McMillan Audio for a copy in exchange for my honest review.

I enjoyed The Ballerinas although it wasn’t quite what I expected. I enjoyed the glimpse into the world of ballet and the friendship among the three main characters. This book was a slow burn kind of book but I was satisfied with it.

Ballerinas have always been more than just graceful to me. Their work ethic, dedication and body breaking determination to bring the magic of dance to life has captivated me since I was little. I've found myself drawn to novels that explore the darker side of this world and couldn't resist giving this one a go.

This novel was a mixture of insecurities, hierarchies and backstabbing with hard to like characters and a pretty sad depiction of the male gender in this world. I think I was hoping for just one grain of good salt in the medley of personas that are introduced.

Even with the inability to connect to the characters I was intrigued by the story and harsh reality of this world. The struggles they face in a position where only one can be lead, where age defines your ability to be viewed with value and gender defines your future prospects is horrifying and demeaning. A reminder in fictional suspense form of the fight many women still face in the pursuit of dreams.

Overall I liked this novel and enjoyed the storyline. I'd recommend to readers who enjoy unlikable characters and stories like Black Swan. Thank you St. Martins Press for the gifted digital copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

I was first drawn to this book by the cover and idea of a dance story. After being a life long dancer I can’t turn down those books. I didn’t look much into the storyline at first. It was not exactly what I would have expected but yet I couldn’t put it down. The look into the life of a ballerina trying to make it to the top was intriguing. But the twist of the dual timeline and trying to connect the dots from when they were younger to why and how things were happening in he present was such a thriller and very suspenseful. The author really dove into the inner workings of the main character’s thoughts. The one downfall to me was it felt like two separate styles and books. The first half a suspense and the second half more thought provoking about how we lie to ourselves and what then causes our actions and reactions. I can understand how they were tied together, but it was just a bit jarring to me.

This book is a bit tricky to rate and review. Ultimately I enjoyed it - there were times it was tricky to follow because it jumped back and forth in time and it wasn't always immediately obvious where we were in the timeline. There were times that felt like we were plowing the same field over and over - certain thought processes were repeated a bit too often. BUT - in the end I did enjoy this story of three young women who grow up together at a ballet company and how their friendship and competition evolved and grew. It isn't always pretty, it isn't always happy, at times it's a bit of a soap opera - and there are some truths revealed that make me happy my daughters were never seriously interested in a career in dance, especially ballet. Overall though, I was entertained.
Thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing a copy for an unbiased review.

I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this one. I thought it was going to be more of a thriller, but it is not. To be honest, I was rather bored and had a hard time getting into this one. There is a lot of ballet terminology and you really get a deep look into the world of professional ballerinas. I felt like the author did understand the atmosphere and got that across. The book did start to pick up a lot about half or three quarters of the way through. Delphine is rather unlikeable. She is definitely a narcissist and hard to root for. All the girls are, really. I did start to connect with them a little more in the last quarter of the book. When you find out what they did to Lindsay, you are just like…really???? And that is why this is not a thriller. Not even a little.

Bottom Line: Overall, I did enjoy the second half of the book and would consider it a solid read.

**I received a copy of The Ballerinas from Netgalley in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are of my own.**

I think I’m going through a phase. A ballet phase. I’ve always been intrigued by the dance - the beauty, the discipline, the pointe shoes (yep, always wanted to try them!). Loved the movie Black Swan. Read The Turnout by Megan Abbott this fall. Saw the Boston Ballet’s The Nutcracker at Christmas this year. And now here we are with The Ballerinas by Rachel Kapelke-Dale.

The art of ballet is mesmerizing and beautiful but there is so much more that the audience never sees. The Ballerinas goes there. This novel puts you right into the thick of the raw intensity of ballet. The non-linear timeline was perfect in giving the reader the full picture of the past and present with flashbacks to the characters as teens just starting out in the Paris Opera Ballet where your place in the company is everything - what will you do to ensure your status or to prolong your career? These characters faced extreme personal challenges where every decision they made was centered around their career as a ballerinas. From there, the reader really sees how competitive, cut-throat, and intense ballet can be. I wouldn’t really consider this book a thriller but maybe suspense may be more accurate - I was totally interested in what happened to these ballerinas up to the final page.

This one had a slow start. Once it got going however it was page turning right till the end. I think this would make a great book club/ buddy read!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the eGalley. All opinions are my own.

Completely honest review? This book took me months to finish. I read SO MANY other books during this time frame. But this one...I just couldn't. It did not pull me in, it did not make me want to keep reading. It just sat there in my kindle reminding me that I still hadn't finished it. 2 stars because at least I finished it.

I don't think there was any realistic character development, I just didn't care what happened to any of the characters. The world of ballerinas is a special world but this just didn't ring true for me.

I loved Center Stage when I was in high school, so any book with ballet and I am in! This book moves between the present and the past and keeps you reading until you get the amazing twist!

Full review and links to social will be posted as soon as possible.

I'd like to thank the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Ballerinas was a great read but I thought it would be juicier. It did take awhile to pick up, but then it was full steam ahead and was a delicious and sordid tale.

Set at the fictional Paris Opera Ballet, the Ballerinas by Rachel Kapelke-Dale, follows the lives of three dancers from rising teenagers into adulthood. This character-driven novel unfolds through a dual-timeline mystery narrated by Delphine. In present day, Delphine is trying to find her footing as a female choreographer at the company. She’s also navigating strained relationships with best friends Margaux and Lindsay after returning from Russia after many years away.

The author juxtaposes the present with the girls’ rise through the ballet school. The competitive nature amongst these girls comes to a head with a secret between Margaux and Delphine, something they did to Lindsay. With plans to never tell their secret, the friendship among the three struggles under the weight of the truth.

I love a good ballet book, so I was excited to get my hands on this one. I struggled with the characters, however, so wasn’t as invested in the book as I was hoping to be. Overall, I found myself more invested in the beautiful ballet world the author paints than in the plotline of the story. It felt a little clunky at times.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press and Rachel Kapelke-Dale for an advanced copy of the novel.

This book brings out the ruthlessness that can happen in the dance world from a young age. The competitiveness that occurs is heartbreaking at times. The Ballerinas goes back and forth from present day to the adolescence of the main characters. You see their passion and drive and how it changes and shapes their lives.

Thank you for the advanced copy of this book! I will be posting my review on social media, to include Instagram, Amazon, Goodreads, and Instagram!

The Ballerinas is a complex tale involving the long-time friendship between three women who grew up attending the Paris Opera Ballet and Academy. The main character is Delphine, who returns to Paris to choreograph her own ballet with the POB company. As Delphine treads into the male dominated world of Paris Ballet, she and her friends try to save their careers.

The story alters between 2018 and years between 1995 and early 2018. The main character is a bit narcissistic, and I found myself torn between empathy and frustration with Delphine, Margaux, and Lindsay. The male characters are a bit cliché, weak, and masochistic. The pacing is even and fast, and the conclusion is satisfying.

Triggers: sexual harassment, spousal abuse, abortion, and death.