I read The Ballerinas as an audiobook when it first published, but have been very slow with writing my review, partly because while I generally enjoyed the overall story, it took a while for me to be invested in both the story and the characters. It didn't hook me in right away, and there were other moments where I completely zoned out.
Part of my struggle to connect with the story was because of how many technical ballet terms there were and my lack of understanding of the world of ballet. While I wanted to understand it more, I just ended up zoning out. As much as I love thrillers, and as much as this book did have elements that completely took me by surprise, I may not have been the ideal reader for it.

I will say, thought, one aspect of this book that I loved, and wasn't at all expecting, was how it was connected to the #MeToo movement, as well as the feminist elements of the story.

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martins Press, and Rachel Kapelke-Dale for the review copy.

3.5 stars, rounded down.

A book about ballet presented as a thriller? Sold! I was so excited for this one due to me being such a big ballet fan. However this just was a little hard to feet into at first. There definitely is some thriller aspects but I wouldn’t consider this a thriller or recommend it to someone looking for one. I feel like it focuses more on women’s fiction. Overall though it was a good read.

This was an entertaining read with the right dosage of character build-up, back stories, interesting characters you grow to love despite their many flaws, and I loved learning about the lives of ballets dancers trained at the Paris Opera Ballet. Delphine the main character and her two best friends Margaux and Lindsay, have a strong, long friendship despite some drama that happened in the past. What makes Delphine feeling like she owes Lindsay something? Why did she move to St. Petersburg at the age of 23 only to return 13 years later? Will she be able to pick upher friendship with Margaux and Lindsay where she left it 13 years earlier? I liked how the author made all the male characters be the evil, nasty, cruel, plain ol bad guys. What I didn't like was the zero usage of the French language. Delphine and Margaux are native French speakers, while LIndsay is American. During dialogues, the author would note that one of the characters would say something in French insteaf of writing the line in French; I have never seen that before and it was confusing. On the other hand, there was some Russian usage when going over Delphine's time in Russia with husband Dmitri.. that made absolutely no sense. Despite that I am giving this book 4 stars because I really enjoyed reading about those three ladies' friendship and drama.

Thank you Net Galley and St. Martins Press for this e-ARC in exchange of my honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for providing me an early copy of this novel.

The cover really drew me to this book. I am not a ballet dancer, but I find such beauty and grace in the artform.
This book is set in a fictional world of the Paris Opera Ballet and while it's considered a thriller, I found it to be more women's fiction than suspenseful, it's a very character driven novel.

Delphine is the narrator, she is French and the daughter of a prima ballerina, and the story centers around the friendships with Margeaux, also French and Lindsay and American ballet dancer since the age of 13. All the girls are flawed and kind of awful to each other.

Thanks to #NetGalley and the publisher.

I couldn't get into this book so did not finish sorry to say. I found it slow and it didn't interest me.

The Ballerinas, I honestly don't know what to say about this book. I had very high hopes for it. Even though it was a good book, It somehow missed the mark for me. the beginning started out really slow. I then restarted the book twice. At about the middle of the book it started to pick up, then about three-quarters of the way finished it just lost my interest. I DNF this tile at 73%.

This was a cute book, and it shows how strenuous the work is that these girls have to do to get to where they want to be. It was a little too slow for me and i wish it hadn’t been because i really liked it overall but it was just dragging.

I apprecitate the publisher allowing me to read this book. I found this a really interesting read and the characters are quite engaging. it kept me reading until the end. I highly recommend.

I thought this book was just okay.

It is more of a character driven drama than a thriller.

Just not my cup of tea.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book.

Thank you NetGalley and author Rachel Kapelke-Dale for the free E-Arc of this book in exchange for my thoughts and opinions. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
4 1/2 stars
This book was a roller coaster ride. The author did an amazing job bringing the readers behind the scenes of the ballet. The narrator had a great story telling voice. I enjoyed the mystery that slowly unfurled as the story progressed. The characters were intriguing and held my interest. The ending was so crazy yet satisfying. Overall, if the ballet has ever interested you, this book is for you. I can't wait to read another book by this author.

This was a beautifully written novel about friendships, family, secrets and the power passion has over the human race. It was very poetic and creatively written, so it's a story you need to pay close attention to. It's a little complicated to follow because of the flowery language but still an excellent read.

This debut novel was tension filled and the atmosphere was wickedly crafted. I was drawn to the darkness behind the dedication of the ballerinas and the drama that lingers just on the edge. Not having much experience in this world, I appreciated the details and how the world was built for the reader. It allowed for a smooth read. ☆☆☆

Though the narrative is slow-paced (Not A Thriller), it's the hook line that immediately pulled me into the story—the nagging question of who she killed and why is ever-present in mind throughout:

‘Before Nathalie emailed and offered to take me back before I killed anyone, I saw variations of the same quotation everywhere: Paris is always a good idea.’

THE BALLERINAS, by Rachel Kapelke-Dale, is very much a coming-of-story centered around the narrator, Delphine Léger, her fellow ballerinas and best friends Lindsay and Margaux.

The story is told by way of alternating timelines of past and present events, through Delphine's perspective, the reader bears witness to three young girls who grow up in the shadow of great ballerina dancers—like Isabelle Durand Étoile, Delphine’s mother—each striving to be the best at any cost.

‘Paris was my birthplace, my home for the first twenty-three years of my life. It was where I had my first kiss, where I met my two best friends, where I danced in sixty-four performances of Swan Lake, forty-three Nutcrackers, twenty-six La Sylphides. Where my mother wrenched my three-year-old hand and ground it, smarting, against the wood of the barre.’

Thank you, NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, for providing me with an eBook of THE BALLERINAS at the request of an honest review.

Thank you to St Martins Press and NetGalley for the #gifted copy of the book.

The Ballerinas by Rachel Kapelke-Dale is a story of friendship. Ballet is such a challenging profession and it can be cut throat. I have several friends who did this for years. It takes immense dedication. The characters in this book weren't very likable, but I enjoyed the feminism undertones. Overall, this is a solid read.

I am not sure what I expected from the book but I was left disappointed. The story follows 3 ballerinas as they try to make it to become stars. I was a dancer so I had heard all of the stories about ballerinas and how difficult their lives can be. This book was too predictable for me. I normally like when books go from present day to the past and back but this one jumped around too much for me. Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for making this available..

I struggled to try and understand this book, I didn’t know where the story had started and where it was taking me.

I had to read some of it over and over again to try and understand it but I just couldn’t. I didn’t finish it as I just kept losing what the story was supposed to be about.

I am not a dancer so I had a hard time getting into this story. I did appreciate the complexities and truths that were told about female friendship. Reminded me a bit of Black Swan at times.

This was such an intense read! I couldn't put it down and wanted to know more about Delphine's life. I found her particularly relatable and felt invested in what consequences her actions wrought for the entire book. The numerous twists kept me guessing and made this a speedy read. I've already found myself recommending this to several others with differing interests. It's a great read for fans of YA, mystery, dark academia, athletics, etc.

I would characterize this book as a drama and not a thriller. The story obviously had a lot of information about ballet, which I didn't connect with.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and Netgalley for an advanced reader's copy of this book for my honest review.

Told in alternating chapters set in the early 00's and 2018/2019, The Ballerinas tells the story of dancers Delphine, Lindsay and Margaux growing up in the world famous Paris Opera Ballet School.

I enjoyed the drama of this book and the genuinely gasped at the climatic event towards the end. These characters are hard to like and the neat bow this novel ended in didn't sit well with me.

Overall a good 3 star read for me.

Since receiving this ARC this book has been published and is available to read now!