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3.45 AVERAGE
3.45 AVERAGE
“We are all stuck in our own stories. And it is so easy to see someone through only one lens: the role they play in yours.”
4.5 stars! My god is this marketed wrong, but I loved it more than I expected to.
Delphine is returning to the Paris Opera Ballet after more than a decade away, now as a 36 year old choreographer rather than a dancer. She left her two best friends behind to move to St. Petersburg, to learn under a famous choreographer - and also to be his lover. Now, she is forced to face everything she left behind for a relationship that changed her (and not for the best) and has to decide how best to pick up the pieces...and how much of her dark past she should reveal.
This one is told in dual timelines, with one consistent one happening through 2018 and the other giving us snippets of Delphine's life at the ballet school and beyond. I find this kind of structure addictive; there are things happening in the future that you just know will click at some point when you learn about the past, and it's so so satisfying when that does happen. That is the case here, though I found I wanted...more. Some of the scenes in the past are so short and jarring, and I just wanted to dig deeper into who Delphine was as she grew up.
The world of ballet is brutal. I knew this going in, but it is so hardcore here, and boy, it made me glad that I didn't grow up as a dancer. The competition these girls go through, against each other and themselves, and all the pressure that they experience is so anxiety-inducing, and I felt like I lived at the POB by the end of this one.
This is absolutely not a thriller. It's got some aspects of a mystery, some suspense, but I would say it's much better classified as straight-up fiction, or historical fic. It's focused on women's experiences and the friendship between Lindsay, Margaux, and Delphine, and truly, it's the development of Delphine as a person at its heart. There are some good twists, but I didn't go in expecting it to be whiplash-fast-paced, and I enjoyed it more for it.
I always love a book that's focused on self-discovery. This one is fueled by rage, by women realizing their worth, but not without some massive fuck-ups along the way. Sure, there are some shocking moments, but at the heart of it, that rage is so ultimately relatable that I felt...satisifed...at the darker elements at play. Basically, I enjoyed listening to the audiobook of this one so much, and I want more stories like this: stories of women standing up for themselves and realizing they can be flawed human beings and still be worthy of their own love and respect.
4.5 stars! My god is this marketed wrong, but I loved it more than I expected to.
Delphine is returning to the Paris Opera Ballet after more than a decade away, now as a 36 year old choreographer rather than a dancer. She left her two best friends behind to move to St. Petersburg, to learn under a famous choreographer - and also to be his lover. Now, she is forced to face everything she left behind for a relationship that changed her (and not for the best) and has to decide how best to pick up the pieces...and how much of her dark past she should reveal.
This one is told in dual timelines, with one consistent one happening through 2018 and the other giving us snippets of Delphine's life at the ballet school and beyond. I find this kind of structure addictive; there are things happening in the future that you just know will click at some point when you learn about the past, and it's so so satisfying when that does happen. That is the case here, though I found I wanted...more. Some of the scenes in the past are so short and jarring, and I just wanted to dig deeper into who Delphine was as she grew up.
The world of ballet is brutal. I knew this going in, but it is so hardcore here, and boy, it made me glad that I didn't grow up as a dancer. The competition these girls go through, against each other and themselves, and all the pressure that they experience is so anxiety-inducing, and I felt like I lived at the POB by the end of this one.
This is absolutely not a thriller. It's got some aspects of a mystery, some suspense, but I would say it's much better classified as straight-up fiction, or historical fic. It's focused on women's experiences and the friendship between Lindsay, Margaux, and Delphine, and truly, it's the development of Delphine as a person at its heart. There are some good twists, but I didn't go in expecting it to be whiplash-fast-paced, and I enjoyed it more for it.
I always love a book that's focused on self-discovery. This one is fueled by rage, by women realizing their worth, but not without some massive fuck-ups along the way. Sure, there are some shocking moments, but at the heart of it, that rage is so ultimately relatable that I felt...satisifed...at the darker elements at play. Basically, I enjoyed listening to the audiobook of this one so much, and I want more stories like this: stories of women standing up for themselves and realizing they can be flawed human beings and still be worthy of their own love and respect.
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Recommended for readers who wanted to experience the drive necessary to excel in a competitive, cutthroat field.
Ballet has always been one of my favorite things and I love reading about it. Ballet is so beautiful and so ugly. From foot deformities to eating disorders, the world of ballet is fascinating.
This book follows three dancers (Delphine and her best friends Lindsay and Margaux) as we alternate between their teenage years and their present day lives. (This gets confusing at times, as the gap between then and now begins to close.) Now in their late thirties they are close to aging out of dancing. They are all unlikeable, but reading about them was still enjoyable.
This books biggest flaw is that it can’t decide what it wants its big moment to be. There’s way too much going on. There’s a “mystery” around what happened to Lindsay years before and when it’s revealed, it’s anticlimactic and honestly a little silly. There’s the situation with Delphine’s adolescent crush Jacques, a male dancer with a horrible secret. And finally, there’s the terrible ending, which really seems to come out of nowhere.
If the story connected a little better and had a better ending, I would have rated it higher.
This book follows three dancers (Delphine and her best friends Lindsay and Margaux) as we alternate between their teenage years and their present day lives. (This gets confusing at times, as the gap between then and now begins to close.) Now in their late thirties they are close to aging out of dancing. They are all unlikeable, but reading about them was still enjoyable.
This books biggest flaw is that it can’t decide what it wants its big moment to be. There’s way too much going on. There’s a “mystery” around what happened to Lindsay years before and when it’s revealed, it’s anticlimactic and honestly a little silly. There’s the situation with Delphine’s adolescent crush Jacques, a male dancer with a horrible secret. And finally, there’s the terrible ending, which really seems to come out of nowhere.
If the story connected a little better and had a better ending, I would have rated it higher.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
[2 stars]
“A feeling that everyone you’ve ever loved has found a place at the grown-up table and here you are, still searching. Still grasping, still alone.”
I know a ton of other reviews have already said this, but I have to point it out as well: How the heck is this book supposed to be a mystery/thriller ??? Where was the thrill ??? The only mystery I encountered was how I was supposed to be motivated to keep reading.
First: The framing. I understand why authors use the flashback chapters sprinkled into the present-day style of narration, and sometimes it really works (like in Where the Crawdads Sing) but here it just... did not. Some of the scenes felt oddly placed or just unimportant. We jumped from Delphine and Margeaux disliking Lindsay to them all suddenly being best friends a few years later. I would have rather seen their dynamic grow than just trust the fact that they were friends now.
Second: The repetitive descriptions. If I had to read about how Russian ballerinas express individuality whereas French ones focus on precision one more time, I would have gone bananas. One time is enough. We get it. I felt like I was constantly hearing about the differences between St. Petersburg and Paris as well. A few times would have been fine, but done so often, it got old quickly.
Third: I couldn't figure out who I was supposed to be rooting for, and in a novel marketed as a thriller/mystery, that's a pretty important feature to have. You're supposed to care about at least one character. The only one that came close for me was Stella, but she felt too flat, like her only purpose was to tell Delphine motivational quotes.
Fourth: Pacing. Some scenes felt like they dragged on while others went too quickly. Like one where Delphine wakes up late and has to leave for the studio like now, but proceeds to have a lengthy conversation with Stella about butterflies. Like girl... I thought you were in a rush?
I thought this book would be way more interesting than it actually was. I found myself skimming the last 40%.
“A feeling that everyone you’ve ever loved has found a place at the grown-up table and here you are, still searching. Still grasping, still alone.”
I know a ton of other reviews have already said this, but I have to point it out as well: How the heck is this book supposed to be a mystery/thriller ??? Where was the thrill ??? The only mystery I encountered was how I was supposed to be motivated to keep reading.
First: The framing. I understand why authors use the flashback chapters sprinkled into the present-day style of narration, and sometimes it really works (like in Where the Crawdads Sing) but here it just... did not. Some of the scenes felt oddly placed or just unimportant. We jumped from Delphine and Margeaux disliking Lindsay to them all suddenly being best friends a few years later. I would have rather seen their dynamic grow than just trust the fact that they were friends now.
Second: The repetitive descriptions. If I had to read about how Russian ballerinas express individuality whereas French ones focus on precision one more time, I would have gone bananas. One time is enough. We get it. I felt like I was constantly hearing about the differences between St. Petersburg and Paris as well. A few times would have been fine, but done so often, it got old quickly.
Third: I couldn't figure out who I was supposed to be rooting for, and in a novel marketed as a thriller/mystery, that's a pretty important feature to have. You're supposed to care about at least one character. The only one that came close for me was Stella, but she felt too flat, like her only purpose was to tell Delphine motivational quotes.
Fourth: Pacing. Some scenes felt like they dragged on while others went too quickly. Like one where Delphine wakes up late and has to leave for the studio like now, but proceeds to have a lengthy conversation with Stella about butterflies. Like girl... I thought you were in a rush?
I thought this book would be way more interesting than it actually was. I found myself skimming the last 40%.
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Not the type of book I usually real at all, but it was a real page turner
Delphine’s mother was a prima ballerina. And that’s hard to live up to. Still, she tried. And she was mostly successful except for that may 5% more she needed to be her mom. She needed 5% more grace, 5% more beauty, 5% more talent. She seems to just fall short. Still, she’s one of the top ballerinas in school growing up. And she has two friends, Lindsay and Margaux who she shares everything with.
Fast forward to present day and she’s been hired to choreograph the newest show at her former opera house. And all her friends are there. Should be a good time, right? Except there are a lot of things that we, the reader, find out as we flip back and forth from present day to the past. And while there are good times, there are also times when best friends are secretly enemy rivals, boyfriends are deceitful and intentions are anything but pure.
The Ballerinas is a satisfying tale of female friendship, competition and sometimes revenge. It’s also a cautionary tale to always be careful who you trust, especially when all your friends and lovers, are out for what they want.
Special thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is out December 7, 2021.
Fast forward to present day and she’s been hired to choreograph the newest show at her former opera house. And all her friends are there. Should be a good time, right? Except there are a lot of things that we, the reader, find out as we flip back and forth from present day to the past. And while there are good times, there are also times when best friends are secretly enemy rivals, boyfriends are deceitful and intentions are anything but pure.
The Ballerinas is a satisfying tale of female friendship, competition and sometimes revenge. It’s also a cautionary tale to always be careful who you trust, especially when all your friends and lovers, are out for what they want.
Special thanks to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for an advanced e-galley in exchange for my honest review. This one is out December 7, 2021.