A review by susublb
Last Dance on the Starlight Pier by Sarah Bird

3.0

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, St. Martin's Press, for the opportunity to read an advance copy of Last Dance on the Starlight Pier. I love the premise of this book. It's about Depression-era Dance Marathons that were all the rage in the 20s and 30s and much of the book is centered in Galveston, a place I haven't read a lot about up until now. I enjoyed the story. That said, I wouldn't count this as great literature or a complex, thought provoking story. It's lightweight and would make a good beach read. It begins with an event that happens much later in the book - to the point that I had to go back and read the first couple of chapters at the end to remember what was described. The story deals with some heavy themes and sometimes meanders. As I got to know the main characters and got a peek into the Dance Marathon scene, the heavy issues - like the Evie's early life as a vaudevillian child performer - reminded me that you don't know what another person is going through, or what they have gone through; you can't tell what a person's life is like at first glance. Several of the characters in the book deal with life challenges that others may not understand or see. Sometimes you have to dig a little, below the surface to understand the decisions people make and to have compassion and empathy for others. When Evie Grace (the main character) first meets Sophie, her hardships are exposed fairly quickly. Sophie doesn't judge Evie, but tries to do anything she can to help her and in the process, becomes a best friend, confidant and someone Evie can truly rely on. Evie hasn't grown up privileged as Sophie has and throughout nursing school and even after, Evie is cut down by various characters for her social standing, her religion (because she's not Catholic) and even because of her past as a child performer. There are heart-warming connections made throughout the book - and there are cringe-worthy moments (like when she encounters her mother and new boyfriend). The ending left me wanting - it was mostly predictable and without giving away too much, seems an unlikely outcome. Evie finally has some semblance of the family she's always wanted and everything seems to get resolved in one way or another. The book is on the long side and although the story could have been told in a much shorter fashion, it was entertaining and almost like a soap opera at times. Some of the storylines seemed to go nowhere and others seemed really interesting. The book was enjoyable without being deep and although it's not among the best books I've read, I was engaged and looked forward to reading the book throughout.