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

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.

Kit, a trained opera singer, lands the lead role in a new opera based on Barbarella. She meets her understudy, Yolanda, who is confident and embodies the physicality of Barbarella. Despite lacking formal training, Yolanda believes she deserves the role and is willing to do anything to get it. Yolanda's schemes become dangerous, and a murder within the company threatens Kit's role. Kit uncovers Yolanda's dark past and realizes the lengths Yolanda will go to achieve her goals.

I saw a lot of mixed opinions about this book, but for me, this was one of my favorite arc reads of all time! I think anything that has to do with being on stage or being in a production immediately reminds me of black swan, and The Understudy has the elements to become a screen adaptation. I think this book shows the lengths of how far some people will go to get what they deserve. Yolanda has the tell-tell signs to be a villain and the author does a really good job of painting her as such, but with that being said, I feel like Kit’s character fell flat when Yolanda was alive. If someone put eyedrops in my tea I would be filing a police report, also the dead rat thing, or the mouse thing, or any of it. I wouldn’t have let it get as far as it did for Kit. I think the murder mystery element plot was very interesting in this book because I just thought it was going to be Yolanda terrorizing Kit the whole book. I think Kit was the perfect character to hate but not hate enough to stop reading. I also felt like at some points the book had points where it was unrealistic. Overall, it was one of my favorite net galley reads so far!

I loved this as a opera singer and what you would do to get the part. The overall concept was tense and enjoyed the overall feel of this. The characters had that element that I was looking for and was engaged with what was happening with the opera. Morgan Richter has a strong grasp of the genre and the characters were perfectly written.

The Understudy will completely surprise you.
The story opens with Kit finally getting her chance to be the star of an opera. She has worked tirelessly, honing her craft and pushing herself to the limits, all for this defining moment. However, the showrunners of the opera are unsure if Kit truly has what it takes. Enter Yolanda—the understudy. She is everything Kit is not: voluptuous, confident, and drop-dead gorgeous. Yolanda exudes a magnetic charisma that makes it clear she will do whatever it takes to secure the lead role for herself.

As Kit prepares for her big moment, doubts from the producers loom over her like a storm cloud. It’s not just the pressure of performing; Kit begins to feel a real sense of danger. Her unease grows as she realizes that the stakes may be far higher than just the lead role in an opera. Yolanda, with her charm and determination, strangely starts to befriend Kit, drawing her into a complex and manipulative relationship. Against her better judgment, Kit allows herself to be swept along, and a fateful night out with Yolanda changes everything.

Morgan Richter paints a vivid and gripping portrait of the world of opera—a world full of beauty and artistry but also brimming with tension and hidden rivalries. The story doesn’t stop at the stage; it dives into the dark, seedy underbelly of New York City, where high-stakes drama takes on a whole new meaning. There are underground casinos, shady money-laundering operations, mysterious electrical fires, and skeptical cops who have their own doubts about what’s really happening behind the scenes. Kit finds herself caught up in a whirlwind of danger, deceit, and glamour, all while trying to hold onto her dreams of being a star.

Richter’s storytelling pulls you into the captivating and gritty world of high-stakes opera. The contrast between the professionalism of the opera house and the shadowy corners of New York's underground makes for a thrilling and atmospheric read. Kit's journey is one of resilience, ambition, and survival. The twists and turns in the narrative keep you guessing until the very end, with every chapter peeling back another layer of deception and intrigue.

This book is an absolute page-turner—so intriguing, so unique, and expertly paced. It takes readers on a journey that’s both glamorous and dangerous, blending the beauty of opera with the dark thrills of a mystery set in New York's hidden corners. The Understudy is a must-read for anyone who loves stories about ambition, rivalry, and scrappy underdogs.
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