This book had me at Black Swan! I was a dancer, and was so excited to read this book and be emerged in the dancing world again. And yes you do get that, but I was too distracted with foul language.

This book started off as a slow burn, but in the second half really picked up with so many added layers and deeper, more complex relationships. It was such a real, gritty look into the ballet world and the characters were flawed and beautiful, each in their own right. I appreciated how this book explored the friendship between Margaux, Delphine and Lindsay as it started, grew and changed, while also delving into their individual stories and struggles and those of dancers in general. The Ballerinas took me by surprise and stole my heart in the end and I would definitely recommend, particularly to those who love dance.

Delphine returns home to Paris from St Petersburg after a thirteen year absence. She hopes to reunited and reestablish her friendships with Lindsay and Margaux, who she grew up with at the prestigious Paris Ballet Academy. Delphine learns that it might not be as easy to assimilate as she had wished, and the secret she is carrying may come by out and ruin everything.

The Ballerinas shines a light on the difficulty of women’s choices about their bodies, motherhood and careers, along with the pressure society places on these decisions. The story is told while transitioning between the adolescent years of the three friends and their current age of thirty six. Overall, the novel had a suspenseful, creepy feel, with a fabulous, unforeseen twist. I enjoyed it very much.

“The Ballerinas” by Rachel Kapelke-Dale is the story of three friends in the high stakes world of the Paris Opera Ballet. As the narrative shifts between adolescence and adulthood, the women explore the complexities of female friendship, trust, and ambition.

As far as characters go, I really enjoyed Delphine. She’s driven and smart, but has a hard time making connections. Her childhood creates a competitive spirit mixed with a need for safe places, but in that Delphine loses some of her heart and compassion. She is definitely a character that I wanted to root for.

In the end, it fell flat for me though. I was captivated by the unique POB world, but the complexities of the relationships didn’t play out the way I thought they would. The surprise twist was more of a shock than anything and it felt a little out of character. Mix that with some trigger warning events, it just wasn’t the right read for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

An interesting dive into the sometimes cut-throat world of ballet. Set in Paris, the book follows Delphine, Lindsay and Margaux as they make their way through the prestigious Paris Ballet Company, and then into their subsequent forays, as dancers and choreographers. The story weaves through the past, as the trio of dancers develop friendships and struggle through the rigors of a competitive dance school, alternating with the present timelines, with Delphine working as a choreographer and facing the realities of the deception and deceit that adversely affected her friends so many years ago. This is a slow-burn character drama, with messy, unlikeable characters, and it worked for me on many levels. My main criticism would be that the slow-burn of the first half almost lost me, and it took me a while to re-engage later in the story.

Many thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

A highly intelligent and suspenseful look at the elite world of professional ballet. I enjoyed the behind the scenes view, the shifting, yet constant friendships, and the women embracing their rage to turn it into power.

I have always been intrigued by the dance world. I took ballet when I was younger but knew almost immediately that I wasn’t cut out for the dedication that it would take to be even halfway decent. Dancers amaze me. All of the time, hard work and personal sacrifice is awe inspiring.

The Ballerinas follows three dancers who grew up together in the same ballet company. We mainly follow, Delphine, who is a dancer turned choreographer for the fictional Paris Opera Ballet where her two formerly close friends, Lindsay and Margaux, are still striving to rise through the ranks.

This novel bounces around through the past and the present. It is a rich, character study that explores ambition, friendship, failure, and feminism within a male driven culture. I really appreciated the how each of these characters grew throughout this tale. I loved the commentary on the things that are toxic when it comes to the ballet world. The author is gifted at describing an undying love for ballet but also calls out how women are often seen as objects instead of whole beings as dancers and in the world at large. The plot isn’t fast moving but it is delicately laid out in a way that kept me intrigued. I’m so glad I finally got around to reading this book. I will definitely be in the lookout for more by this author in the future.

This was an okay read. Just okay because it didn't exactly live up to my expectations. I usually don't mind reading about unlikeable characters, however, that wasn't the case in this book. Moreover, the mystery and suspense aspects of this book were poorly executed in my opinion.

I was intrigued by the premise of The Ballerinas, but unfortunately the pacing of the book was a little too slow for my liking.

Having very little knowledge of the world of ballet, I found this novel to be very interesting. And the development of the main character was very well done, as the author takes us from the age of 13 to 36, and moves back and forth in the timeline. I recommend this book!

I had high expectations for this book, but it ended feeling pretty lackluster. There were times when I very interested in the story, but most of the time I felt bored and like the book was dragging on.

Likeable characters are not a make it or break it thing for me when it comes to enjoying a book, and it is a good thing, otherwise this book would have been rated negative stars. The characters, every dang single one of them, were completely and utterly selfish and despicable. They were so self-absorbed that I often found myself groaning out loud at their comments and actions. It was hard for me to care about any of the characters for this reason, so take that into consideration along with my comment about the book dragging on. The two likely go hand in hand.

I will say that I was somewhat shocked by the twist at the end. While the book often foreshadowed something terrible that the girls had done, it didn't really leave many clues as to what it was. While I had an idea of what it might be, I was still pretty off. And, honestly, the last few chapters of the book were the best in my opinion. I was most interested in the ending, approximately the last 20% of the book. All of the secrets started coming out and the true colors of the main characters did as well.

Overall, this was just an okay book for me. The last 20% really made up for the other 80% of the book, so 3 redeeming stars from me.

The book explores the friendship of three young girls: Delphine, Lindsay, and Margox. They are dedicated to training for the ballet above all else. The book provides an honest depiction of the life, sacrifice, and competitiveness of ballet dancers. I enjoyed the two timelines exploring the characters while in ballet school and years later as adults. A secret they share runs throughout the book and the reader is not aware of it until the end. The cover of the book is absolutely beautiful. Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for a honest review.

Life at the Paris Opera Ballet School is all encompassing for three ballerinas who met as young girls. All decisions made and actions taken position the ballerinas within the school and eventually the company. Can they all live with their decisions? Do they have regrets? What are their dark secrets? This debut novel is well-written introducing only as much information as we need to know in order to keep us turning the pages.

I am surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I’ve never been into ballet or dancing, but I was hooked from the very first page. The characters were all fantastic - so flawed and human. It was nice to read something where the main characters aren’t perfect. The story itself was incredible. I was not expecting it to be so suspenseful, and that plot twist at the end left me speechless.

Ballet and ballerinas have interested me for a long time. The athleticism combined with the grace it takes to be a dancer is not given the recognition it deserves. I have also been drawn to the darker side of competition and body image. This book deals with all of that in an interesting and realistic way. The Ballerinas focuses on three women: Margaux, Lindsay, and Delphine, three dancers who have grown up together. They are all good dancers who are vying for spots in the Paris ballet. The problem is there are only two spots. When Delphine falls for a Russian choreographer, she leaves for Russia, leaving her best friends behind. After an extended absence, Delphine returns to Paris to choreograph a ballet, giving her an opportunity to reconnect with her besties and make amends.

The story is told in alternating chapters, between the past and present. The ladies are now 36 years old, so there is not much time to make it big in the ballet world. Getting to know the main characters was not easy, as they seemed superficial and all seemed to have secrets, but eventually, I could see their true selves. There was also a protectionist attitude toward Lindsay and I wasn't sure why for most of the story. The first half of this novel, was very slow, but beautifully written. We learned about ballet, the competitive world, the ups and downs, the way the various dancers of different skill are treated and the toll on physical and mental health. I found this fascinating, but many did not. The pace picks up significantly in the second half with scandal and secrets revealed. This is a book that not only deals with the world of ballet, but is about female friendships and how some endure hardships over years. If you are interested in the world of ballet and/or the intricacies of female friendships, I recommend this book.

This book is a slow burn. It starts slow and never really picked up for me. It was hard to really keep going as I didn't care about the character and none of them were not likeable in a way that was likeable.

The first half of the book, the main characters were catty with each other. I never would have thought that they were friends with one another. Then, there is a sudden 180 in the second half of the book that just doesn't make sense with the rest of a story.

There was so much potential here and I feel like this book was trying to be too many things and it ended up a little messy with nothing really hitting the way it felt like it could.

I love ballet and this book kept me intrigued all along the way. I love the alternate POV/timeline and background of each characters before life and current life. Will recommend to others!

Very cool look at ballet in France and Russia. I feel like the main character never got a break. Everything was always going poorly for her, so it was difficult to root for her success. An amazing shocking ending that really stuck with me.

Drama-filled. This read like a soap opera to me. Some parts were too overdone and melodramatic. There were times I had to force myself to read on and finish.