I started this one and really had trouble getting into it - I couldn't quite follow all of the timelines bouncing around and didn't feel connected to the characters.

I adored this book. I grew up dancing and this book truly hit home for me. It gives amazing insights to the world of ballet, not just dance. Highly recommend.

The good and the horribly bad in the life of a dancer

The opening sentence of “The Ballerinas” hints at the entire book. “You start out as potential energy and then you fall.” Delphine Léger narrates, and readers know immediately that unusual events will be recounted because she states that many things happened “before I killed anyone.” What did she do so long ago that changed lives? The past hangs ominously over everything, every action, every encounter, every moment. Readers find out bit by compelling bit as the narrative goes back and forth in time between 1995 and 2018.

Delphine is a dancer because her mother was a dancer, not just any dancer, but a star ballerina with the Paris Opera Ballet. Delphine has also been part of the P.O.B. since she was a child. Through her first-person narrative, readers learn that she was not just one of the little dancers; she was so much more. Gradually Delphine’s past advances as her role changes from student to corps member, quadrille, principal dancer, solo dancer, star étoile, and finally to a choreographer in the present. The full impact of those years becomes evident as details of impact of what happened emerge. Ballerinas are like pointe shoes — you have to break them down before they are of any use.

“The Ballerinas” is a startling story of both the good and the horribly bad in the life of a dancer. It is about both the purpose of life and what defines it. I received a review copy of “The Ballerinas” from Rachel Kapelke-Dale and St. Martin’s Press. As Delphine so aptly states, “Dancers are like violins. Handcrafted, unbelievably beautiful, their whole bodies joined only by fine slivers of wood. Likely to crack at any time.” As a bonus, readers get a chance to imagine a ballet to the music of Janis Joplin.

I love the cover on this book - it is beautiful! My daughter danced for fifteen years, so I was very interested in the behind the scenes of the ballet world. This book is in the thriller genre - I didn't really see it fitting in that category. I see this as a women's fiction - it was more about the friendship of her and her fellow ballerina's.

These three friends didn't feel like friends to me. They were not very supportive of each other. I like strong women who lift each other up - I don't think they did this. I felt like too many issues were trying to be dealt with in this book.

For a while, my daughter wanted to be a ballerina: be in productions and get her toe-shoes, but we never got her in the right school or classes, nor did she have the drive. It was interesting to read a novel about girls/women that did have that drive. THE BALLERINAS by Rachel Kapelke-Dale was an interesting, character-driven look at the life of ballerinas at an elite level.
Delphine grew up surrounded by the ballet, her mother was an “Etoile” or star, and she was expected to be as good. Groomed from a young age at the Paris Opera Ballet School, Delphine and her friends work hard to be perfect and continue to get chosen to move forward. Perfection, competition, teen angst, and friendships. What happened to make Delphine give it all up and go to Russia for 14 years? She’s returned as a choreographer with hopes to pick up her friendships where they left off and right a wrong from her past.
Told in a dual timeline, moving from present to past, Kapelke-Dale gives us a behind-the-scenes look at the life of ballerinas in an elite company, warts and all, and the female friendships that are tested even without the stress of the ballet. It also gives us a look at how the women are treated in the ballet, despite being a big part of it, and how it dominates life choices, knowing the limited time they have to be successful, with a specific age for retirement and how some will do whatever it takes to get as far as they can.
The characters were interesting and the dynamics of both the friendships, relationships, and the ballet kept me turning pages.
Thanks to the publisher for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of the book. All opinions are my own and freely given.
#TheBallerinas #RachelKapelkeDale #StMartinsPress

Like many other reviewers, I felt like this book was mis-marketed as a thriller. It was not, even a little bit. Once I got over that disappointment, I did mostly enjoy the story. It was slow-moving but not slow enough that I felt the desire to DNF. Margaux was woefully underdeveloped despite being perhaps the most interesting character in my opinion. However, the feminist elements were really well done - this is a story about women in a setting where they are treated as property, objects to be manipulated for others’ enjoyment even more so than how women are treated just in normal everyday circumstances. It’s also about friendship, and ambition and it crosses generational boundaries. I wish there had been more diversity, but as it was pointed out within the book, there really just isn’t enough diversity in ballet period. The Ballerinas wasn’t what I’d call a favorite but it was thought-provoking and I liked it.

Thank you NetGalley, author and publisher for the copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Though the writing in this book is great, the story just didn't do it for me. It is too slow and took forever for something to actually happen. I didn't find myself needing to get back to these characters to see what was going to happen next. It is a character driven novel. I believe someone who enjoys ballet and character driven stories would enjoy this book.

Thank you Netgalley for a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
What can I say? I loves this book and highly recommend!

Delphine, Lindsay and Margaux started doing ballet as kids and became fast friends. As they proceeded to climb the ranks as successful ballerinas, their bond continued to grow and they became best friends. When Delphine turns 22, she decides to leave ballet behind her, including her prestigious solo spot at the Paris Opera Ballet, and moves to St. Petersburg. She find her way back several years later and becomes a choreographer. There’s a secret that lies among these women, one that could ruin everything.

I don’t have an knowledge of dance and perhaps this story would be of more interest to someone with that background. I found the story to be a little clunky and it definitely didn’t end up to be as suspenseful or interesting as the synopsis made it sound. I was hoping for a little more of a thriller. This one missed the mark for me.

Thank you to St. Martins Press + NetGalley for the ARC.

Whatever I thought I was going to get from this book is not what I actually got. And for once, I don't particularly mean that as a compliment. The Ballerinas had all of the drama I was expecting as the dance world is known for it's ruthlessness and the strain it places on the girls. But what I didn't expect was not liking any of the characters. At all.

Told in alternating timelines from the POV of Delphine, we get the story of her and her two best friends, Margauz and Lindsay, as they navigate their years with the Paris Opera Ballet. The present day timeline is the women at 35-36 as they are in their careers in dance and the flashbacks start at 9 years old and eventually catches up to present day. Delphine is not a choreographer after quitting the company to move to St. Petersburg to be with her boyfriend who ended up cheating on her, causing her to move back to Paris to start her choreography career.

I had the absolute hardest time getting invested in this book. I think the timelines alternated too quickly for me to keep up with or get invested in either storyline version of Delphine. I just... wow did not like her. Yes, I'm sure she's written in this way purposefully, but I don't find anything redeemable about her except the decision she made regarding Jock. All of the characters were extremely flawed (again, pretty sure that's the point) but in a way that I could not relate to or get on board with. Nothing captured my attention about this book and it was a slog to get through.

But if you find yourself really drawn to the ballet, if you loved the Black Swan movie, and if you jam out to alternating timelines, this book will be for you. It wasn't for me, but my 3 stars is someone else's 5 stars.

**Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review**

This book took me back in time and the cover was absolutely stunning. I did not find the characters as likable as I wanted them to be.

This was a dark and twisted tale of what it takes to become what you have always dreamed of and the lengths some people go to to achieve that.

I am disappointed with this book. I was expecting one thing and received another. It had potential but it was not well written.

“This is the promise we dancers make to each other: the world might not remember you, but other ballerinas always will.”

THE BALLERINAS is an atmospheric novel about three ballerinas in the Paris Opera Ballet. The book alternates between stories of these young girls coming up together in the world of ballet and the women they’ve become decades later, still striving for perfection in their craft and fighting all of the forces trying to break them. As the book chronicles the ways these women pull apart and then come back together over the years, it also examines female desire, power, and rage. It’s a compelling read that totally sucked me into this fascinating world of ballet. This is the dark ballet story I was hoping for when I read THE TURNOUT. If that one also disappointed you because of how disturbing it was, this one will redeem ballet stories for you! I enjoyed it!

I think I went into it with this whole "Black Swan" mantra, and soon realized it wouldn't live up to those expectations. It's a slow burn, a bit too slow for what I wanted. I think the author did an amazing job delving into the art and world of dance. I honestly haven't read a book that did so well in putting the reader in some ballet shoes of their own. I didn't really get a mystery-vibe from this book. I think this author has extreme potential and I am ready and willing for her next read. I think this book would be appreciated more by those who have a background in dance, but it's not something I would pick up again.

The Ballerinas was a surprising feminist awaking. Returning to the Paris Opera Ballet after a decade in St. Petersburg, Delphine digs into her new role as a choreographer for her piece, Tsarina. Eerily mirroring her own self-imposed exile to St. Petersburg, Delphine tries to choreograph the tale of a lonely princess in a foreign land. However as she reminisces about her past, her glory years in the ballet, her friends and her loves, Delphine's ballet begins to mirror her past infatuations and we realize that she hasn't actually grown up at all. Frustratingly, she's in her late 30's, but still acts selfishly as if she were the young ballet starlet of her youth. The novel felt like there were two distinct parts, with different plots and climaxes, but I really enjoyed it. It was quite enthralling and hard to put down. There were surprising, yet natural - if not rushed- feminist tones and growth in the second half of the book that made Delphine a great and well developed character.

I really wanted to like this book (it has a GORGEOUS, stunning cover), but I ended up DNFing it about 40% in. I just wasn't as engaged as I wanted to be, but I think that may have had to do with the topic of dancing being relatively boring to me. I would recommend this to others, however.

Started a bit slow for me, but once it got going- this book was so wonderful. I haven't read much about dancing, but the lyric beauty and haunting qualities of ballet were really interesting to me. A compelling story of competition and friendship.

I have always been fascinated with the world of ballet; the cover drew me in. Delphine and her friends have a long-drawn-out story, secrets, betrayals from teens to adult life. The story was ok for me, maybe a little shorter or faster getting to the point of the actual story within the story.

A book that begins with “Paris is always a good idea”, is definitely a book that will entice me to read on.

As the book opens, the reader is introduced the prestigious Paris Opera Ballet (school), and three adolescent ballerinas, Delphine, Lindsay and Margaux. The timeline skips ahead 22 years, and Delphine returns to the Paris Opera Ballet after an absence of 14 years, not as a dancer, ready to kickstart her new career, as a choreographer, and, to reconnect with fellow ballerinas Lindsay and Margaux.

As the story alternates between the two timelines, the #ballerinas backstories are uncovered, and Delphine (of the “present”), learns that a lot has changed for her friends in the 14 years she has been away.

While reading Kapelke Dale’s, The Ballerinas, I literally felt like a fly on the wall, getting an inside view of the international world of ballet. The story covers the gamut of all the #struggles and competition, endured by these young girls, in order to #makeit in the Paris Opera Ballet. In fact, these struggles are really the same struggles all women face (at one time or another in their lifetimes), be it, on a much higher, and, much more competitive level.

I have to comment both on the cover design by @bookcoverbyoj, (it is beautiful), and the audiobook narration (fantastic) by @potterell.

Thank you to #netgalley, @stmartinspress and @macmillan.audio for the advanced ebook and audiobook in return for my honest review. #5⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!