This just wasn’t for me, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the writing personally. I also found the characters to be incredibly boring, I almost dnf but I didn’t and the way it ended. Ugh. 😑

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I absolutely loved First Position so I was super excited to read this one! Suspicions, intrigue, backstabbing, drugs, sex? - yep all here! Welcome back to the cutthroat world of ballet. Once again, it's Center State meets Black Swan. I enjoyed diving into the world again. I can't wait to read what Hamrick writes next.

✨The Unraveling by Melanie Hamrick✨

Genre: Fiction
Pages: 352
Pub Date: August 13th

📚Jocelyn Banks has always felt like an outsider in the ballet world. She was raised in rural Louisiana, taught to scrap and hustle for the life she wanted. And ever since Jocelyn found ballet, she has been able to take her life into her own hands. After years of success at the North American Ballet, she is now on a hiatus to enjoy life in London.

But in an instant, Jocelyn’s world is turned upside down and she’s forced find a way back into the ballet world. But the ballet scene in London is completely different from the one in America. It’s not just talent and drive that will move you forward; if you don’t secure a sponsor to pay your salary, you will go nowhere. Jocelyn manages to score a donor, which is crucial at the Royal National Ballet—but the hardest part is yet to come.

Jocelyn is unable to break through her emotions, afraid that if she does, she’ll be flooded with feelings she can’t afford to have. But something about her sponsor, the charismatic Alastair Cavendish, sets a fire in her. What she feels when she’s with him is raw and real. If she goes down this precarious path, she knows she’s doomed to fall into an intoxicating spiral of self-sabotage. But the lust and magnetizing lure of power and prestige keep clawing at her, ultimately forcing her to choose between desire and duty.

📝The synopsis makes it seem that the book offers insightful commentary regarding the dark side of ballet. It does to a certain extent but it definitely left me wanting.

The entire cast of characters were unlikeable and a few were quite toxic. I found myself struggling to care about their storylines. The only redeemable person was Jordan and yet the ending was not what I’d expect.

💫Thank you to @netgalley @berkleypub for my egalley 💫

Lots of drama, betrayal, passion and sex - The Unraveling has it all! A steamy, intense look at the world of ballet - off-stage and on.

Thanks to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I feel this will appeal to some people however I found the main character annoying and triggering. Not for me.

Reminiscent of older Megan Abbott in the best possible way. A thrilling look at the darker world of ballet and beautiful things, as well as the power imbalances between classes, genders, and even ballet companies. Also, a great exploration of falling in to a trap of taking for granted what you already have after getting caught up in what might be better out there.

This book for sure gave me a very Black Swan kind of vibes. a dancer is sucked into the dark world of ballet.
If for sure, wasn’t what I was expecting in terms of all the sexual content.
Overall, this wasn’t a bad book, but I also wasn’t a good book. For me it fell kind of in the middle. It was engaging and solidly wrote. But overall, it’s kind of a story that for me kind of fade after a week or so and I probably won’t really remember this book.
Would I recommend it?
I don’t think that I would. if you’re interested in a dark sexual kind of mind game kind of book then sure. But if you want booked that really stands out and will stay with you long after finishing it. This book probably wouldn’t be for you.
Thanks to the folks at NetGalley for a copy of this book. My review is a honest reflection of my feelings towards this book.

The writing is accessible and easy to follow. I didn’t find myself engaged with the plot/happenings and stopped after chapter 1 (7%). I think this will be a 3-4 stars for the target audience.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for the ARC.

This book is the perfect combination of being intense with high stakes to being soft and calm. I highly enjoyed read it.

Melanie Hamrick can build a drama! Melanie introduces us to Jocelyn Banks, a wildcard North American Ballerina has quit her job for love. She's in Europe trying to forget about her ballet past and just supporting her emerging artist boyfriend and his friends. It's not long before she misses her ballet shoes and is sucked right back into the dramatic world.

Hamrick introduces us to the European style of sponsors and the lifestyle of the women. She provides us with Jocelyn's backstory in pieces. As Jocelyn makes decisions, we are introduced to other ballet staff and starts. There is a lot of sex in this story - no two ways about it. Not my thing. But I did love the luxury and the thrills of Jocelyn's new life. If you are interested in ballet, Europe or luxurious lifestyles this is a book for you! #berkleypublishing #theunraveling #melaniehamrick

Basically ballerina smut book, but I like how it went into the darker side of ballet. But parts were a little outlandish (even for ballet) and seemed to wrap up very quickly. Some of the phrasing also took me out. Overall, bit of a miss for me unfortunately.

Recieved a copy of this book from net galley. Plot premise sounded interesting but a lot of jumping around in the book. Had no idea what was going on. Book started out good then quickly got confusing