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michelecisneros's review against another edition
1.0
This review is based on an ARC I received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts on this book are my own.
I was intrigued by the cover and the premise of the book but the actual book itself was kind of disappointing. I didn’t really grow to care about any of the characters in the book which was a shame as I then didn’t really care if they got out of their predicament or not. I also felt like this story progressed very slowly and it took me a while to get through. I left the book being just as confused as I started this book as a lot of things didn’t really make sense to me.
I was intrigued by the cover and the premise of the book but the actual book itself was kind of disappointing. I didn’t really grow to care about any of the characters in the book which was a shame as I then didn’t really care if they got out of their predicament or not. I also felt like this story progressed very slowly and it took me a while to get through. I left the book being just as confused as I started this book as a lot of things didn’t really make sense to me.
hollowspine's review against another edition
2.0
The Midnight Dance is a creepy sci-fi/historical fiction romantic thriller. For fans of gothic stories such as A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray.
Penny has spent most of her life at a prestigious dance school under the care of The Master. Sometimes she wonders what life outside the grand estate where she and her 10 fellow students live, but that just leads to headaches. Instead she should focus on the thing she loves, dance! Right?
Wrong. The more Penny thinks about it, the more she feels something is wrong. She doesn't understand her love of dancing, she sometimes can't even remember how she takes her coffee or her favorite color or... her own mother. Sometimes the other girls forget things too. And the headaches always seem to come when she questions. Is it coincidence, or something more disturbing?
Review: The premise is good, I loved the idea of this gothic estate where young women are kept like dancers in a music box, spinning beautifully to music, but ultimately trapped. However, the plot veers around without allowing readers to breath, let alone get to know the characters or the world.
The creepiness of the story was ruined by the complete ineptitude of Penny, who was unable to do a single thing without needing to be rescued. The details of the world, the backdrop of ballet, did not add to the book, but seemed just stage dressing.
For the first few chapters of the book I was fascinated. I knew some kind of mind control was going on and I wanted to find out why - what's the point and see what Penny would be able to do about it. But, the reason behind the mind control...was just because? And it seemed that throughout the narrative what Penny could do about it was basically run around like a chicken with it's head cut off. First she runs away from the estate, then she runs back to the estate, then away, then back. She hides from the Master, he finds her. She tries to lie and seduce the Master, he sees through her. She tries to sneak into the estate in disguise, she immediately rips her dress and gives up. She tries again to trick the Master. He basically rolls his eyes.
For the first part of the narrative we also get a glimpse into the Master's past. He grew up being teased and abused by his step mother and step sister because he had an impaired leg. His best friend is a stable boy/scientist who is able to basically give him a metal leg to replace it that works perfectly. They also start experimenting mind control (for unknown reasons). Eventually this falls off as more time is focused on Penny's budding romance with the dashing kitchen boy.
There was so much back and forth, it really made the book disjointed and ruined the flow of the narrative. I wish that Penny would have stayed in place more, instead of dashing from one source of help to another. I just wish she'd been a more successful person, instead she just seemed to blunder around and somehow everything worked out okay in the end and she was named a hero.
For better paranormal historical fiction, similar in tone and style to this, try The Cure For Dreaming by Cat Winters. It also features a man trying to control a young girls mind and make choices for her, has elements of romance and a great ending. It also is much more successful in portraying the time period it is set in, 1900's Oregon.
For creepier historical fiction, try The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. It is beautifully written, extremely creepy, but with a dash of romance as well. The characters are also realistic and the settings are amazing!
Penny has spent most of her life at a prestigious dance school under the care of The Master. Sometimes she wonders what life outside the grand estate where she and her 10 fellow students live, but that just leads to headaches. Instead she should focus on the thing she loves, dance! Right?
Wrong. The more Penny thinks about it, the more she feels something is wrong. She doesn't understand her love of dancing, she sometimes can't even remember how she takes her coffee or her favorite color or... her own mother. Sometimes the other girls forget things too. And the headaches always seem to come when she questions. Is it coincidence, or something more disturbing?
Review: The premise is good, I loved the idea of this gothic estate where young women are kept like dancers in a music box, spinning beautifully to music, but ultimately trapped. However, the plot veers around without allowing readers to breath, let alone get to know the characters or the world.
The creepiness of the story was ruined by the complete ineptitude of Penny, who was unable to do a single thing without needing to be rescued. The details of the world, the backdrop of ballet, did not add to the book, but seemed just stage dressing.
For the first few chapters of the book I was fascinated. I knew some kind of mind control was going on and I wanted to find out why - what's the point and see what Penny would be able to do about it. But, the reason behind the mind control...was just because? And it seemed that throughout the narrative what Penny could do about it was basically run around like a chicken with it's head cut off. First she runs away from the estate, then she runs back to the estate, then away, then back. She hides from the Master, he finds her. She tries to lie and seduce the Master, he sees through her. She tries to sneak into the estate in disguise, she immediately rips her dress and gives up. She tries again to trick the Master. He basically rolls his eyes.
For the first part of the narrative we also get a glimpse into the Master's past. He grew up being teased and abused by his step mother and step sister because he had an impaired leg. His best friend is a stable boy/scientist who is able to basically give him a metal leg to replace it that works perfectly. They also start experimenting mind control (for unknown reasons). Eventually this falls off as more time is focused on Penny's budding romance with the dashing kitchen boy.
There was so much back and forth, it really made the book disjointed and ruined the flow of the narrative. I wish that Penny would have stayed in place more, instead of dashing from one source of help to another. I just wish she'd been a more successful person, instead she just seemed to blunder around and somehow everything worked out okay in the end and she was named a hero.
For better paranormal historical fiction, similar in tone and style to this, try The Cure For Dreaming by Cat Winters. It also features a man trying to control a young girls mind and make choices for her, has elements of romance and a great ending. It also is much more successful in portraying the time period it is set in, 1900's Oregon.
For creepier historical fiction, try The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafon. It is beautifully written, extremely creepy, but with a dash of romance as well. The characters are also realistic and the settings are amazing!
krista7's review against another edition
3.0
Note: Unbiased review provided in exchange for an ARC from NetGalley.
I'm between a 3 and a 3.5 on this one.
"Midnight Dance" is a YA-and-up level book that owes more than a bit to Gregory Maguire, who has dedicated decades to rewriting fairytales. I just can't decide *what* fairytale, classic or new, is being reworked here, as I can see so many of them in the bones of the story--the 12 Dancing Princesses, the Phantom of the Opera, the kitchen boy story (of Tsarevich Alexei), Coppelia, the Night Circus, and so on.
So what is this book? It's a vaguely historical thriller dosed with a lot of magical realism and a spot of steampunk thrown in. At the end of the 1800s, a man runs a ballet boarding school in Italy. All of the girls in the school are orphans or impoverished by family background (that is, far lower in power than him). One of the girls, Penny, begins to see a discrepancy between the world around her and her memories (and often, lack thereof). What if the world she knows is built on a lie?
What's good about the book is that it is fun, atmospheric, and it sells the scary in the form of the Master. It certainly makes the reader believe Penny's confusion, as we're often left confused, too.
What's in need of help is the back half of the book. The ending is rushed and the need for the famous midnight dance isn't made clear for the reader--it just seems like a flourish thrown in by the author for a fun time. And the framing of the dance world needs more meat to it; for a "ballet book," the dancing seems to do little beyond giving us tutus and first position.
All in all, it was a fast read and one I enjoyed--I just wish there'd been more in this world to explore.
I'm between a 3 and a 3.5 on this one.
"Midnight Dance" is a YA-and-up level book that owes more than a bit to Gregory Maguire, who has dedicated decades to rewriting fairytales. I just can't decide *what* fairytale, classic or new, is being reworked here, as I can see so many of them in the bones of the story--the 12 Dancing Princesses, the Phantom of the Opera, the kitchen boy story (of Tsarevich Alexei), Coppelia, the Night Circus, and so on.
So what is this book? It's a vaguely historical thriller dosed with a lot of magical realism and a spot of steampunk thrown in. At the end of the 1800s, a man runs a ballet boarding school in Italy. All of the girls in the school are orphans or impoverished by family background (that is, far lower in power than him). One of the girls, Penny, begins to see a discrepancy between the world around her and her memories (and often, lack thereof). What if the world she knows is built on a lie?
What's good about the book is that it is fun, atmospheric, and it sells the scary in the form of the Master. It certainly makes the reader believe Penny's confusion, as we're often left confused, too.
What's in need of help is the back half of the book. The ending is rushed and the need for the famous midnight dance isn't made clear for the reader--it just seems like a flourish thrown in by the author for a fun time. And the framing of the dance world needs more meat to it; for a "ballet book," the dancing seems to do little beyond giving us tutus and first position.
All in all, it was a fast read and one I enjoyed--I just wish there'd been more in this world to explore.
chymerra's review against another edition
2.0
I am going to take a moment to admire this cover. That is the main reason I requested The Midnight Dance from NetGalley. Because of the cover. I mean, just look at it!!! It is unbelievable. Too bad the story within didn’t live up to the cover.
While I felt bad for Penny, I felt that her character was flat. Her interactions with the other girls seemed forced and the dialogue stilted. Even her interactions with Cricket seemed forced. While I see her potential as a heroine, I couldn’t connect with her. I also thought that she acted too modern. Seeing that this book was set in 1879, Penny didn’t give off that Victorian vibe.
I also couldn’t get into the storyline. Again, it felt very flat and very one-dimensional. I did like that the story was set in Italy but I wish more details were given. If it hadn’t been stated in the blurb that this book was set there, I would have thought it someplace else. Nothing screamed Italy too me. The names of the characters, yes. But nothing else. For all I know, it could have been set in England.
There wasn’t a romance aspect of the book. I mean, Cricket and Penny had feelings for each other and they did kiss. But again, it felt forced and flat. The Master’s obsession with Penny was stalkerish and very creepy. But again, it didn’t scream “head over heels in love“. Instead, I got a bad taste in my mouth and the creeps after reading those scenes.
Penny suddenly recovering her memories because Cricket touched her didn’t ring true to me. Why? Because he had touched her before in the book and she didn’t recover them then. So why then? I didn’t buy the explanation that Beppe gave when questioned. Drove me nuts and at that point, I wanted to DNF. But I have a resolve not to DNF a book, so I set myself to finish the book.
I did like the steampunk elements that were in the book. That did make the book interesting to read. I wish that the book had focused more on that element. It would have been a better read if it did.
The end of the book was the best part of the book. It is also the reason I gave the book a 2-star review. If the rest of the book had been written like the ending, I would have given The Midnight Dance a 4 or 5 review.
The Midnight Dance was almost a DNF for me. While the storyline was interesting, I felt that the characters were dull and flat. If I had not read that the book had been set in Italy, I wouldn’t have guessed it. Other than the names and Cricket occasionally speaking Italian, I would have thought the book was set elsewhere. I did love the cover, though, and I thought the ending was fantastic. But this is a book that I will not read again.
Will I reread: No
Will I recommend to family and friends: No
Age range: Older Teen
Why: Mild violence. Other than that, a relatively clean book.
I would like to thank Nikki Katz, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, Swoon Reads, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Midnight Dance
All opinions stated in this review of The Midnight Dance are mine.
**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**
While I felt bad for Penny, I felt that her character was flat. Her interactions with the other girls seemed forced and the dialogue stilted. Even her interactions with Cricket seemed forced. While I see her potential as a heroine, I couldn’t connect with her. I also thought that she acted too modern. Seeing that this book was set in 1879, Penny didn’t give off that Victorian vibe.
I also couldn’t get into the storyline. Again, it felt very flat and very one-dimensional. I did like that the story was set in Italy but I wish more details were given. If it hadn’t been stated in the blurb that this book was set there, I would have thought it someplace else. Nothing screamed Italy too me. The names of the characters, yes. But nothing else. For all I know, it could have been set in England.
There wasn’t a romance aspect of the book. I mean, Cricket and Penny had feelings for each other and they did kiss. But again, it felt forced and flat. The Master’s obsession with Penny was stalkerish and very creepy. But again, it didn’t scream “head over heels in love“. Instead, I got a bad taste in my mouth and the creeps after reading those scenes.
Penny suddenly recovering her memories because Cricket touched her didn’t ring true to me. Why? Because he had touched her before in the book and she didn’t recover them then. So why then? I didn’t buy the explanation that Beppe gave when questioned. Drove me nuts and at that point, I wanted to DNF. But I have a resolve not to DNF a book, so I set myself to finish the book.
I did like the steampunk elements that were in the book. That did make the book interesting to read. I wish that the book had focused more on that element. It would have been a better read if it did.
The end of the book was the best part of the book. It is also the reason I gave the book a 2-star review. If the rest of the book had been written like the ending, I would have given The Midnight Dance a 4 or 5 review.
The Midnight Dance was almost a DNF for me. While the storyline was interesting, I felt that the characters were dull and flat. If I had not read that the book had been set in Italy, I wouldn’t have guessed it. Other than the names and Cricket occasionally speaking Italian, I would have thought the book was set elsewhere. I did love the cover, though, and I thought the ending was fantastic. But this is a book that I will not read again.
Will I reread: No
Will I recommend to family and friends: No
Age range: Older Teen
Why: Mild violence. Other than that, a relatively clean book.
I would like to thank Nikki Katz, Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group, Swoon Reads, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review The Midnight Dance
All opinions stated in this review of The Midnight Dance are mine.
**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**
shymr's review against another edition
2.0
The plot has potential. Story telling and characterization could still be improved.
inejgayfa's review against another edition
1.0
dnf @ 30%
this book was... not good. the romance was weird and forced, the plot has been done too many times, and the characters. what were they doing,, ?
nothing. they were doing nothing for me. i love books involving ballet and dance but this was horrible and i didn't even finish a third of it.
this book was... not good. the romance was weird and forced, the plot has been done too many times, and the characters. what were they doing,, ?
nothing. they were doing nothing for me. i love books involving ballet and dance but this was horrible and i didn't even finish a third of it.
swayzedaisy's review against another edition
3.0
i actually ended up enjoying this a lot more than i thought i would bc i went into it almost completely blind as to what it was about since it was 100% a cover buy. was i disappointed to learn that it’s not a retelling of 12 dancing princesses and/or swan lake like i originally thought? yes. but it’s actually a retelling of pinocchio with some ballet, so i can’t complain too much. it’s one of those books where you kind of sort of don’t really know what’s going on until you know exactly what’s going on and then everything makes total sense. penny and cricket were adorable and i kind of liked that we saw small glimpses into master’s head, but not so many that we can sympathize with him.
nothing really happens until about 60% into the book, so it’s a little slow going but at the same time it’s engaging enough to keep you reading until you reach that 60%. would i rec? probably not unless it’s your niche. it was a quick and fun read but nothing that was too memorable.
nothing really happens until about 60% into the book, so it’s a little slow going but at the same time it’s engaging enough to keep you reading until you reach that 60%. would i rec? probably not unless it’s your niche. it was a quick and fun read but nothing that was too memorable.
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