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luey03's review against another edition
2.0
Alidoro is the MVP
But did you know that Cricket has pale gray eyes? My God, the amount of times she mentioned that. Lady, we know now. We get it. I only wish I had started counting each time the author felt the need to share that detail with us again.
Tatiana was the second MVP. They literally just dump everyone on her and expect her to care for everyone and keep them fed.
But did you know that Cricket has pale gray eyes? My God, the amount of times she mentioned that. Lady, we know now. We get it. I only wish I had started counting each time the author felt the need to share that detail with us again.
Tatiana was the second MVP. They literally just dump everyone on her and expect her to care for everyone and keep them fed.
grilledcheetah's review against another edition
1.0
I never explained why I rated this one star so here we go.
First off this was definitely a cover buy. I had recently gotten obsessed with ballet and dance in general so when I walked by this gorgeous cover I obviously snatched it up. That was mistake #1
Mistake #2 was me assuming this was a fantastical story? I don’t know why but I got the vibe that this was going to have some magical element to it. Which I suppose it did, but in the most boring way possible. I did like that boy though he was kinda sweet (couldn’t tell you his name).
There were just so many things wrong.
- the pacing
- the plot that wasn’t even a plot?
- bland characters
- dumb main character who thinks she knows everything
- insta love
- the weird master situation (I kept waiting for there to be a reveal saying that he was raping them all and they had stockholm syndrome) wasn’t he like 30 years old and they were like 15??
Idk there were more I just can’t remember it all. Anyway it’s such a shame because this author has a release next year that I was interested in but after reading this I don’t know if I want to chance it.
If I hadn’t had this book in my bag while I was waiting for classes to start, I probably have dnfed this after like 50 pages.
First off this was definitely a cover buy. I had recently gotten obsessed with ballet and dance in general so when I walked by this gorgeous cover I obviously snatched it up. That was mistake #1
Mistake #2 was me assuming this was a fantastical story? I don’t know why but I got the vibe that this was going to have some magical element to it. Which I suppose it did, but in the most boring way possible. I did like that boy though he was kinda sweet (couldn’t tell you his name).
There were just so many things wrong.
- the pacing
- the plot that wasn’t even a plot?
- bland characters
- dumb main character who thinks she knows everything
- insta love
Spoiler
- why did that ‘plot twist’ with the sister reveal even happen- the weird master situation (I kept waiting for there to be a reveal saying that he was raping them all and they had stockholm syndrome) wasn’t he like 30 years old and they were like 15??
Idk there were more I just can’t remember it all. Anyway it’s such a shame because this author has a release next year that I was interested in but after reading this I don’t know if I want to chance it.
If I hadn’t had this book in my bag while I was waiting for classes to start, I probably have dnfed this after like 50 pages.
abumblebeee's review against another edition
2.0
Penelope is at a prestigious dance academy with 11 other young women. She dances day and night to prepare for performances that the Master deems appropriate and everything seems perfect. Who wouldn't want to be the lead dancer in a prestigious academy with a charming and attractive Master? That is Penny's thought process until her mind starts playing tricks on her, and secrets start to come out of the dark threatening everything she ever thought she knew.
This book was so meh. The characters definitely fell flat, I honestly didn't care about any of them and the motivations of Penny throughout the book didn't grab me or seem real in the slightest. The major plot twist could have been interesting, but it just fell flat as well, by the end of the book I honestly didn't care about what would happen or if everything would work out okay. This book just felt very childish to me and I could not connect with any of it.
This book just felt very childish to me. The "villains" in this book are villains due to petty reasons that aren't developed in the slightest. Penny is quite possibly the worst sleuth in the world, if she was under as strict control as this book states she is, she would have been caught right from the start. There also wasn't enough depth. the author would explain things in the book, but I never felt like I could feel the fear that should have been emanating from the character.
Unfortunately, this is a book with a gorgeous cover, but the inside just didn't live up to it.
This book was so meh. The characters definitely fell flat, I honestly didn't care about any of them and the motivations of Penny throughout the book didn't grab me or seem real in the slightest. The major plot twist could have been interesting, but it just fell flat as well, by the end of the book I honestly didn't care about what would happen or if everything would work out okay. This book just felt very childish to me and I could not connect with any of it.
This book just felt very childish to me. The "villains" in this book are villains due to petty reasons that aren't developed in the slightest. Penny is quite possibly the worst sleuth in the world, if she was under as strict control as this book states she is, she would have been caught right from the start. There also wasn't enough depth. the author would explain things in the book, but I never felt like I could feel the fear that should have been emanating from the character.
Unfortunately, this is a book with a gorgeous cover, but the inside just didn't live up to it.
jenna_rae13's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
saeverra's review against another edition
3.0
Solid 3.5 for me. I enjoyed the premise of the novel, but would have liked to see more background of the Master and the reasoning behind his experiments. Penny was a rather plain protagonist and I found her rather daft. Things seemed to come together a bit too conviently for her.
The Master was the best part and I wish he had more development. I read another review that said he had a Darkling vibe and totally agree. The plot is cool and kept me interested, but I was often asking why? Plot points, character motivations, convient doorways, the experiments, etc. More clarification and detail really would have extended my reading experience.
This would be a cooler story to see on screen I think? The mystery and setting would do well on screen.
The Master was the best part and I wish he had more development. I read another review that said he had a Darkling vibe and totally agree. The plot is cool and kept me interested, but I was often asking why? Plot points, character motivations, convient doorways, the experiments, etc. More clarification and detail really would have extended my reading experience.
This would be a cooler story to see on screen I think? The mystery and setting would do well on screen.
laurenjayres's review
2.0
I was excited to pick this up as I had heard it was a historical-fiction book inspired by the 12 dancing princesses.
I liked the idea of this book being a thriller and enjoyed the aspect of self-discovery throughout, but nothing made sense. I found myself finishing the book and having even more questions than when I started it.
Nothing was explained or elaborated on and I feel like more focus on the context or even more explanations would have really improved the book. This was even more frustrating as there are chapters from Master’s perspective but no actual insight into his motives or rationale ???
The relationships between the characters seemed light and superficial leading to me not feeling any chemistry between any of them. Also, apart from the development of the memories returning, I don’t feel like there was much character development either.
I liked the idea of this book being a thriller and enjoyed the aspect of self-discovery throughout, but nothing made sense. I found myself finishing the book and having even more questions than when I started it.
Nothing was explained or elaborated on and I feel like more focus on the context or even more explanations would have really improved the book. This was even more frustrating as there are chapters from Master’s perspective but no actual insight into his motives or rationale ???
The relationships between the characters seemed light and superficial leading to me not feeling any chemistry between any of them. Also, apart from the development of the memories returning, I don’t feel like there was much character development either.
justanothernerdling's review against another edition
3.0
I honestly had no idea what to expect when I started this book - this was purely a cover-buy for me, on every level! I was instantly intrigued when the premise promised memories, the 1800s, and Italy. Other than that, I didn't know anything about this book!
Let's start off with the positive, shall we?
It certainly wasn't bad. In fact, I really loved the idea that Katz put forward in this book! The Midnight Dance was an awesome story of mind control, mixed in with a bit of steampunk and a unique boarding school-like idea. Mind-control books are really not that common, and I really loved how Italy in the 1800s was portrayed!
I also really liked the character relations. The main character, Penny, is in a facility with her sorelle (sisters), and they all get along so well! It was lovely to read about! Cricket is also absolutely adorable in every way! The Master is the right amount of creepy and charming, giving this really odd character you loved to hate.
There was a lot going on, and I was there for it!
However, the book itself felt a bit too condensed. You guys know by now that I'm a sucker for quick standalones. (I say as I'm re-reading Throne of Glass, fully knowing that Kingdom of Ash is almost 1000 pages long... help me)
My problem with this book is that everything deserved more pages - longer paragraphs, shorter chapters, and a more fleshed-out world development. The ideas were incredible! But with so many events happening, most of which are a new concept, it's difficult to make it all make sense in 300 pages.
I'm not the best reader (is there even such thing?). I openly admit to skipping words and/or sentences when descriptions get too long - my eyes and mind wander a lot. Even so, I can usually grasp almost every detail in a story: maybe not a character's hairstyle or the fact that their sword was peeking over their left shoulder, but I can still hold onto the plot and characters enough to know things that, according to Buzzfeed, 'only a real fan would know'.
The Midnight Dance could have easily been a book I would have latched on to if not every sentence was so packed-full of details that missing a word made the rest of the paragraph confusing. For instance - the end of the book spans over about 30 pages, in which our main character, Penny, does an incredible amount of traveling, dancing, convincing, discovering, traveling back, trapping, healing, and reuniting. Out of nowhere, Cricket appears and giant revelations are given about the antagonist.
In 30 pages.
This structure made the book a little tiring to read, so I had to take it bit by bit.
But seriously, Nikki, if you're reading this, I hope you don't take it badly! Stories like yours, that are so creative, deserve so many more pages! That's only a compliment :)
For me, this book gets 3/5 feathers! Keep going with the writing, Nikki, but give your ideas more words!
willowshelter's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0