Morgan Richter's The Understudy delves into the cutthroat world of New York City's opera scene, weaving a tale of ambition, rivalry, and intrigue. The story centers on Kit Margolis, an opera singer who, after years of dedication, secures the lead role in a new production based on the 1960s cult classic film Barbarella. Her ascent, however, is threatened by her understudy, Yolanda, whose allure and ambition cast a shadow over Kit's hard-earned success.

Richter masterfully captures the nuances of the opera world, from the intense rehearsals to the backstage politics that often remain hidden from the public eye. The tension between Kit and Yolanda escalates when a murder disrupts the production, forcing Kit to confront not only the external challenges posed by her understudy but also her own insecurities and past traumas.

The setting is extremely interesting, providing readers with an often unseen view of opera and immersing them into a high stakes environment. Despite this interesting setting, the emotional depth of the characters often did not go beyond rivalry and the mystery concludes a bit too quickly for my taste.

However, The Understudy remains a compelling read, especially for those intrigued by the performing arts. Richter's portrayal of the opera world, combined with the suspense of a murder mystery, offers a unique narrative that keeps readers invested until the final curtain call.

I'll give it more of a hard 3.75. It's very detail oriented and that its fault in some cases. However, the overall plot and twists were really fun to read and encounter. It doesn't hook you that quickly, but it's for sure a page turner that you keep wanting to read the next chapter. Overall, a solid mystery read.

This one was ok. I enjoyed the first part of this book way more. I enjoyed Kit and Yolanda being enemies. But the second half felt super dragged out. IT picked up again towards the end, but this just wasn't for me.

Truth be told, heading into this I had reservations that a story involving players in an opera would be a bit boring but I was happy to find this assumption to be very wrong. The opera at the heart of the story is Barbarella (yes, it is based on the campy movie of the same name) so that made it much more relatable to this no-nothing-about-opera-thus-intimidated-by-it reader.

The story follow Kit, the lead of the opera, and as the title indicates, the troubles she encounters with her understudy. No spoilers, but will say this was a pretty intriguing murder mystery and once I started reading, I didn't stop until the end because I needed to know all the answers. I was deep into the book before I put the pieces together and while I usually like to be surprised, I was still very satisfied even though I solved the mystery before the reveal.

Disclosure: Received an uncorrected ARC of this book from NetGalley and Alfred A. Knopf/Penguin Random House LLC (Thank you!) in exchange for an honest review.

Kit has finally fulfilled her dream of being an opera singer in the leading role. She is overwhelmed and overjoyed that her talent had finally been discovered. But her insecurities begin to arise when she meets her understudy. A lady with a plan to take Kit's role and makes it very well known. Soon Kit finds that she is not only struggling to save her role but also her life.
A good mystery based around the world of opera and the dedication of those who perform. The plot line starts out with the threats to Kit's life and with a sudden twist takes the reader into another story. Some parts were a little slow and dragged for me, but the ending was a good climax.

Thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for a chance to read an advanced copy of this book.

I read about half of this book and couldn't plod onward to finish. The writing was pretty elementary, but perhaps that's because I am an opera singer and was not impressed by the minimal amount of research the author did. I have highlighted sections in the portion I read and I will share the inconsistencies/errors I found while attempting to read this book below.

Location 95 in the galley 1 Giddy Uncertainty: "As understudies rarely get a chance to perform, requiring them to show up to early rehearsals serves no useful purpose and bloats the budget"
What I consider the fundamental issue with this book is the fact that the whole story is based off of an "understudy" (including the title). That term is used in theatre and musical theatre, not opera. In opera understudies are called covers, and they absolutely attend every rehearsal. Morgan portrayed "understudies" as people who slide in only when needed who are not paid to attend any rehearsals ahead of time, which is fundamentally incorrect. If the covers don't attend the rehearsal process, they don't know the role and cannot step in to perform it. Occasionally, a person may fall ill in a production which necessitates an emergency cover to be flown in from somewhere else, but that person would be a professional artist who had already performed the role elsewhere, most likely multiple times. It made it hard to continue to read the book knowing that this is the theme of the book and it was not researched at all by the author.

Location 171 in 1. Giddy Uncertainty "to hit every note clearly"
"Hitting" notes is a term we do not use in the classical world as having sound vocal technique involves a lot more than "hitting the note", which is a colloquialism from popular culture. Again- a basic lack of research which could have been alleviated by having an advisor or reading group composed of opera professionals.

Location 118 in 1. Giddy Uncertainty "[Carlo was] sidestepping the expected path of playing Don Jose as a lovesick fool in favor of excavating the character's cruel and manipulative undertones" Again- I feel the author has never seen Carmen or any other opera. This statement is just so wrong it's hard to unpack it quickly- Don Jose in Carmen in a womanizer, abuser, and sweet talker who is NEVER played as anything but the heel. When I read this passage I threw my Kindle because it was so offensively incorrect. All Morgan needed to do was really read the Wiki synopsis of Carmen to get this right and she didn't take the time to. Sloppy.

Location 213 in 1 Giddy Uncertainty "Worse, she slid up and down between her notes on the trill instead of hitting each one dead on. Sliding around is fine, even encouraged, for many styles of singing- pop music careers have been built on well-deployed vocal scoops- but unless an artist really knows what she's doing, it's considered a bad move in opera."
A lot to unpack here:
1. It's legitimately not possible to slide to notes in a trill- a vocal trill is done by singing two notes which are either a half step or whole step apart. This means the notes are neighbors with nearly no space between them for a slide. I could go on theoretically about how wrong this explanation is but I think I've made my point on this.
2. "Sliding" in opera is called performing a porta mento. It is used for emotional affect or because of a direction in the score by the composer specifically wanting it for a passage. It was very popular during the bel canto period, which is the "golden age" of opera. So yes- opera singers do slide between notes purposefully quite often.

Location 639 4. Peace Offerings "Sugar causes mucus to collect on the vocal cords, so I preferred to avoid sweets while preparing for a production"
1. Vocal cords is not the correct term if you're talking about the opera world, which is anatomically informed and specific. The word we would use is "vocal folds".
2. Although this is technically true, this statement reeks of Googling for information. In my 12+ years as a professional in the opera world, I have never heard anyone say they avoid sugar because of this. What singers do avoid often which has a much more instantaneous effect on the folds is lactose/dairy.

I'd be glad to discuss this via email because if you all want to publish this and have it be respectable, there's a lot of revising that needs to happen,.

Wow, what a story. I have never thought much about the back biting in the opera theater. But I guess every business has some personnel issues. In this book the understudy takes nasty to a whole new level. She is not likable in any way. But men thinks she is eye candy. The opera is a new one and the director what's to give up the singing ability to get some sex appeal. The whole story is a page turner. Why did the opera singer decide to look for answers? Made for interesting reading.

Having enjoyed The Divide, I was looking forward to reading Morgan Richter's new book. I'm pleased to say that The Understudy is just as good, maybe even better! The first half was excellent and almost impossible to put down. The second half was still good, but Kit made so many stupid decisions I couldn't relate to, that it was a little annoying at times. Also, what she was investigating wasn't her business and I couldn't understand why she cared so much. The plot was interesting though and there were some twists I never saw coming. I don't know that I've ever read a book set in the world of opera before, but it works really well and is a great setting for a murder mystery. I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoys a light, fun, fast-paced mystery. 4.5 stars!

Thank you NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage and Anchor for the ARC.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.
This absorbing book about the competitive NYC opera world features Kit, who has the lead in an upcoming opera and her understudy, Yolanda. The stunning and competitive Yolanda becomes a huge thorn in Kit's eye, dangerously so.
I liked Kit, who is devoted to her craft, but lacks self confidence; she's overwhelmed by Yolanda and even becomes afraid for her life.
It's a good book, but I had to suspend my belief at times, especially towards the end. But it was riveting and definitely worth reading. 4 stars rounded up to4.5.

good pacing of the story. there was constantly something happening but it didn’t feel too outlandish or gimmicky. i was surprised by how quickly the story picked up speed and never really let off the brakes again. this book is like the experience when you begin a rollercoaster and it’s slow increasing up up up and then you’re having fun because you’re anticipating the impending stomach drops and tunnels of screams but it’s an internal feeling and then suddenly you start going down down down and you just can’t stop. that’s what this book felt like.

the characters annoyed me but in a good way (occasionally found kit to be insufferable but also i couldn’t stop thinking about her).

bravo for richter’s description of opal.

i was genuinely surprised at how much i enjoyed this book.

thank you NetGalley for this ARC!

4.75/5 stars

The Understudy had a cool premise, and I really enjoyed learning about opera singing—it’s such a fascinating world. The story follows a young opera singer navigating the intense and competitive world of professional performance. As she struggles to prove herself, rivalries, ambition, and personal drama start to take center stage, blurring the lines between passion and obsession.

That said, the book didn’t really work for me. The writing felt a bit clunky, and the characters didn’t seem believable, which made it hard to stay invested in the story. Some of their choices just didn’t make much sense. If you’re into opera, there are some interesting details, but overall, it wasn’t the most engaging read.

The "Understudy" looks at the vicious world of opera - with a talented leading lady feeling a bit threatened by her gorgeous, unfriendly understudy. I will admit - I love over the top, campy stories, especially if they involve opera or performing. With the introduction of Barbarella as an opera I was ready and buckled in. However, I lost interest about halfway - the antics felt too performative and over the top, the characters just a tad extreme and unlikeable to seem realistic yet not so over the top that it amplified the camp.

While I enjoyed the twists and turns in the story, especially in the 2nd half, I struggled with almost every decision Kit made. Sometimes she was too forthcoming and other times too timid, and sometimes she took ridiculous risks while other times she did nothing. I couldn't figure out her personality at all. That being said, I didn't exactly dislike her- it made for good reading, albeit with some frustration on my part.

A fun read and a very interesting peek into a world I hadn’t yet read about in a thriller. I enjoyed the All About Eve-ness in the first half of the story and the intrigue continued through to the end. While the main character certainly made some choices that were a bit hard to justify, it was an entertaining read overall!

Kit finally gets the lead role in the newest opera, Barbarella. Kit shouldn't have anything to worry about on opening night until her understudy, Yolanda, shows how much she's willing to put Kit through to get the lead role. When events turn dire, Kit must figure out if she has what it takes to play in Barbarella or if Yolanda ruined any chance of Kit making it in the opera world.

"The Understudy" blew my expectations away when I started reading. My eyes became glued to the pages from the moment the police became involved till curtain call. As someone who has never listened to opera, much less sang in public, Ritcher ensured that her characters' singing was unique to the characters and easy to follow. The author did a great job listing the sequence of events. The 'big reveal' wasn't even the biggest surprise in the story, and for me, that shows how talented Ritcher is.

I'm excited to see all the reviews praising Ritcher's work in August, it's well deserved.

Have you ever been in a writing workshop or class where one common critique is "but why would the character do this?" Or in a rehearsal when an actor goes to a director and asks "What's my motivation here?" Well, if you're looking for a few creative answers to those questions, you'll find them in this novel. The central character makes so many insane choices throughout, and yet ALL of them have a very clear explanation from deep in her past or present trauma. That being said, this book was fun!! I like opera well enough, have been to see many in NYC, and love backstage intrigue. It's a little long, pretty insane, but you know what? I dug it.

Thank you to Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and NetGalley for the early reader copy, in exchange for an honest review.

Sadly, I am the odd man out that didn’t enjoy this. I found the story to be long and unrealistic.

The main character was getting herself into way too many situations she just didn’t need to be involved in. I couldn’t understand why she kept involving herself when she really didn’t need to. She trusted way too easily, when there were so many signs to turn back.

I also found that the characters were not likable. There was nobody I really liked, besides the side characters who had 1-5 page appearances.

I think it had more potential with the understudy sabotaging the main character. I wish we would have had more of that, because I do think the author did that best.

This one just wasn’t for me. I think new readers to the thriller genre might enjoy this.

This book combines a psychological thriller with a "Nancy Drew" style mystery which kept me glued to the page. The first 45% of the book was a solid psychological thriller. Kit is an opera singer who has finally earned a role in the spotlight. The problem is, her understudy really wants the role and will do ANYTHING to get it. I loved how she had to keep questioning everything her understudy did. I was always wondering when the understudy would try to kill Kit next. Yes, this is a format that has been done before, but it felt unique when set in the world of opera. I know nothing about opera, but this gave insight into the training and experience required to become an opera singer. Then, at almost the midpoint of the book, it completely changed style and became a mystery. At that point, we follow an amateur detective to try to figure out who killed the victim. I felt the first 45% was much stronger than the second half, but thrillers are my favorite genre. Readers who love mysteries will be sucked into the mysterious and seedy background of the victim. It's a little unbelievable that the "amateur detective" would be so involved in solving this case, since there didn't seem to be a good motivation for the person to be involved, but if you don't question that too much, it is a fun mystery.

It’s loathing at first sight when trained opera singer Kit (stage name Katerina) Margolis meets her understudy, the sexually alluring Yolanda Archambeau, on the first day of rehearsals for Barbarella, a new opera based on the 1968 film. Kit, struggling to prove she is right for the titular role, her first leading part, is taken aback when her director introduces Yolanda to the cast, something not done until later in the rehearsal process. “I felt a flash of irritation, uncharitable yet valid. She didn’t need to be there. She shouldn’t be there.” Kit’s unease rises when Yolanda yawns during Kit’s big aria and later confesses her operatic ambitions, despite her lack of training. Regarding underhanded scheming, Eve Harrington (of the film All About Eve) has nothing on the ruthless Yolanda, whose weapons against Kit include poisoned tea and dead rats. But before her plotting can escalate to a deadlier level, Yolanda is fatally stabbed in her apartment. Kit, who briefly falls under suspicion because of a violent incident in her past, turns sleuth to uncover her late rival’s dark secrets and identify her killer. Offering an entertaining look at the backstage world of New York City opera, Richter’s second novel (after The Divide) skillfully mixes the tropes of a psychological thriller with the conventions of an amateur sleuth mystery. Especially compelling is Kit’s growing self-confidence as a singer and a woman as she pursues the truth.

Thank you to NetGalley for a chance to review this book. I will now share my honest opinion.

The story about a young opera singer challenging herself on the brink of a new role captivated me from the very beginning. Kit, our FMC, resonated with me on a deep level because I’m no stranger to being told you're good but that “something is missing.” We meet her during rehearsals for a new opera, Barbarella, at the up-and-coming opera house in New York City. In addition to all the nerves Kit has to deal with to deliver a stellar performance, she is also in for a crazy ride when her understudy, Yolanda, tries to poison her and later push her in front of a subway car.

In the first half of the book, things escalated quickly, and the story progressed, building up to a satisfying release. However, somewhere in the midst of all the drama, the plot switched and became something entirely different. The whole story started to feel disjointed, rushed, and confusing. A whole bunch of new characters were introduced, seemingly only to move Kit’s quest along.

The climax of the story felt underwhelming and wasn’t at all what I was expecting. If there was a plot twist in this book, I missed it for sure. Everything seemed out of place by the end.

Overall, it was a fun read, but it lost its plot toward the end.