★★★½

A crime novel told from multiple POVs usually helps keep the pace going but I found this pretty slow going for more than the first half. I don't think it helped that none of the characters were particularly likeable.

The last quarter was good and made me glad I'd persevered but I've definitely read more engrossing books by Brant.

I love books that keep you guessing, and that's exactly what this book did. I could relate to Janie because I myself struggle with anxiety. It's hard to deal with, especially when you're going through a tragic situation. I really enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more from this author.

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy!

Two families deal with aftermath from the disappearance of their teenage daughters. One girl missing for 7 years and one recently missing, with a serial killer on the loose. The narration alternates between members of the missing girls' family members and the agent assigned to the case.

While the story itself is very well-written, I found that the often changing narrator made it harder for me to fully delve into any one person's grief and torment. It was an enjoyable read but something just felt a tiny bit off for me

Pretty Girls Dancing was one of the most compelling thrillers I have ever read. I was completely enthralled from beginning to end. Though it may only come in a 370-page package, this book packs so much. It is a haunting representation of the dark and ugly things that happen in the world. The ripple effect of a tragedy that threads and weaves its way forever into the lives its victims.

Author, Kylie Brant, will capture your attention from the very first page and will keep you in her grips until the very end. She crafted a heartbreaking tale that is told from the perspectives of various different characters. Each character is struggling with their own skeletons and heartache. I loved the subplots of their own stories interwoven with the main storyline. It really made it a dynamic read! The author also delivered the story in such a way where each character breakaway ended with a little bit of a cliffhanger. Leaving you craving more from each one. I don't think I've ever enjoyed each character perspective as much as I did in the Pretty Girls Dancing. I truly loved what each character had to offer!

Pretty Girls Dancing is an enthralling reading experience that will keep you engrossed the whole way through. You will be taken down a dark road that will keep you guessing until the very last minute!

Originally posted on www.crazy-bookworm.com on Feb 7, 2018

The underlying family dynamics of missing children wrapped within a compelling police procedural.

Pretty Girls Dancing tells the stories of two families that share the tragedy of a missing teenaged daughter. When Kelsey disappeared seven years ago her family was distraught. Now Kelsey’s father has moved on but her mother, Claire, has not. When another teenaged girl is reported missing from a nearby town, the police begin to see similarities between the two crimes. Both had recently stopped their dance lessons. There is an active serial killer leaving his victims in a nearby woods dressed in ballet clothes. Is there a true connection? Or is it just a fiction dreamed up by the local press to boost their ratings? As a new detective looks into the two cases, he realizes that everyone has secrets that may or may not relate to the kidnappings.

Pretty Girls Dancing was an enjoyable read. The family dynamics were the best part. All the characters and dialog were very authentic and believable. The mystery was not very difficult to solve. However, the police procedures seemed realistic.

Thanks to the publisher, Thomas & Mercer, and NetGalley for a review copy.

Gripping serial killer novel! Very creepy, and plenty of people are clearly hiding things, so it wasn't obvious to me who the killer was. The author did a very good job of parceling out information so we don't know the fate of Kelsey or Whitney too soon. Hoping to read another one by Kylie Brant soon!

The thriler/crime genre is stacked with many great books, but lately is suffering from a lot of unoriginality and archetypical tropes. This book DEFIES the stereotype of books with "Girl", "Wife", "Woman" in the title.

This book is unique because of the author's skill in utilizing different point of views of the characters. Often when authors use this device, the depth of characterization suffers or it becomes confusing. This book managed to make even the make the more unsympathetic characters' motivations understandable and provided a depth and breadth of characters most thrillers cannot provide without slowing down the plot. The author writes beautifully and accurately about the nature of grief and living with psychological disorders.

If you're looking for a thriller that isn't like the rest of the pack that contains relatable descriptions of grief, anxiety, and addiction, I can whole-heartedly recommend this book.

It's actually 3.5 stars.

Pretty Girls Dancing was actually quite engrossing, and I pretty much read it in one sitting. It had an interesting plot line, some intriguing characters, and the writing was well done. I think the only issue I really had with it was the ending as it just felt...wrong. No other way to explain it.

First of all, I liked the alternate POV as you got to see the events unwind from a variety of different angles, and it allowed the author to try and develop some characters. From the beginning, I couldn't wait to get to either Janie's, Mark's, and especially, Whitney's point of view as they were the more interesting and developed characters. I especially developed a liking for Whitney's story as you got a great sense of her strength and power as well as the horrible things her captor was willing to do to get her to submit to him; it's pretty scary actually, and I seriously doubt I would have handled it as well as she did. I rooted for her throughout the book and really hoped her ending would be a good one.

Janie was another interesting character, suffering from selective mutism and extreme social anxiety most of her life, and I really thought her story was fascinating, especially with the focus on mental health out there today. Dealing with students who have severe social anxiety, it gave me an insight as to what those students are dealing with any moment of the day and I appreciated that insight. I thought Janie was an incredibly powerful character and I was thrilled with her development throughout, without seeming like her anxiety was gone, something I would have been disappointed over as I know it's something you have to live with all your life. I wasn't particularly fond of Janie's mother Claire, and although I was sympathetic with the crushing blows with which she was dealing, I did find her somewhat selfish at times, as if she was the only one going through anything. I won't pretend to even understand what she was going through, but it was always about her and her issues, kind of neglecting her husband and her child, which is why I understand some of her husband's actions. The book tried to make Claire more sympathetic in the end, but for me it failed, and I was rooting for Janie's dad, despite his obvious flaws. And I find it weird that I'd be thinking this way, but the author tried to make Claire so weak and vulnerable that it just turned me off her character.

The plot, except for the ending, I enjoyed tremendously. I liked Mark as a detective and hope to see more of him in the future in other books. I thought the mystery was quite compelling and I have to admit that I didn't see the ending coming the way it did. I want to stress that I liked the ending, but it also felt contrived and too pat at the same time. Does that make sense? Probably not. I just felt the author was looking for a major, major plot twist and tried a bit too hard. However, it did leave a bad taste in my mouth and I can't stop thinking about it even now. Unfortunately, you will just have to read the book to know what I am talking about.

Pretty Girls Dancing was definitely not what I was expecting, and that's a good thing. With some interesting plot twists, some intriguing characters, the overall story was good; even though I had a problem with the ending and thought the perp was the least interesting character, I think this is one book that you will just have to decide for yourself if you want to read it or not. Like I said, while I found it engrossing, the ending turned me right off and spoiled the overall book for me.

3.5 Are They Tied Together Stars
This had all the makings of a thriller with parents who kept information away from the investigation... ruining the chance to save their daughter... Secrets will do that... Pit safety for ones self over the love of a child....Now there is another girl missing and the detective must get all the secrets out in order to same this new girl...
It will be a challenge.

I really enjoyed Pretty Girls Dancing. As thrillers go, it did not keep my at the edge of my seat, however, I was still intrigued and had to find out who was responsible. I appreciate novels written from multiple perspectives, and they never seem to disappoint.

Great read, well written. I enjoyed this book, it kept me guessing, who did it, why?

I really, really like Kylie Brant's books and this is no exception.

Following the story through a past kidnap victims family and a current victim it's a non-stop thriller with enough twists and turns to keep you entertained. I read it in one sitting!

Highly recommended

For a moment, at the beginning, I was afraid I'd be disappointed with the story. Nothing concrete, it was just a feeling. I'm glad I continued reading because I got hooked after just a few chapters. I confess it kept me awake until very late on a Sunday night, accepting the fate of tiredness on Monday. I couldn't wait until the next day to read how the story unfolded.

Written in five different character perspectives, two stories unfold. Whitney DeVries disappears without leaving a trace in a small Ohio town. In conditions similar to the disappearance of Kelsey Willard 7 years ago, Detective Mark Foster takes on the investigation. Two families are linked by grief in a club they never asked to belong.

The characters are well developed and multidimensional. There's one character I didn't like at all, but I won't tell you who or why. I don't wish to plant my biases in your mind. Reading this character's perspective was my least favorite part. Repetitive behaviors and I couldn't find empathy in this person. That may just be me, so I won't ruin it for others. I will say that my favorite character was Janie Willard. She's the character with the most growth in the story. I enjoyed her character arc the most. The bad guy is as weird as I like them (in books, let's be clear). A weirdo with strange rituals.

As the story unfolds, the characters' introspective journey give the reader more details about their current and past behaviors. Not only the book makes a good serial killer thriller, but it also provides an insight of grief, and how it affects different people and families. That was certainly a plus for me. A thriller with substance.

Even though I had my own theory of how the story would unfold, I was happily surprised not to have guessed the end. I didn't see it coming. I'm always happy when the writer is able to fool me throwing effective red herrings. It's a quick read, and better enjoyed if read in one or two sittings.

I received a copy of the book through NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer Publishers in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much!

Pretty Girls Dancing is an excellent thriller written by author Kylie Brant. Try it, you'll like it. Thanks to NetGalley and Thomas and Mercer for the advance copy.

This was a very good book. It's hard to say I enjoyed a book with subject matter like this one has, but it certainly deserves 5 stars, in my opinion.

This story was fast paced, the characters were flawed, as we all are, but also ones that I could empathize with and the detective(s) were also multi-faceted.

This story is told from various viewpoints and that really serves to let us "see" the story from different angles.

I'd almost call this a detective story but it's also a thriller. The twist is not one I saw coming and it worked very well.

Thanks to Kylie Brant, the publishers and Netgalley for the ARC.

I loved this book from the beginning till the last page. It never slowed down and had enough twists and turns to keep you guessing. Never saw the ending coming which is great.. Thanks to Netgalley and publisher for the chance to read and review this book. Thoroughly recommend it. Five Star performance

Years after Kelsey Willard disappears her family is still trying to pick up the pieces and move on with their lives. That is until Whitney Devries is discovered missing. Whitney's disappearance reopens Kelsey's case ripping open all the slowly healing wounds her family is so desperately trying to close. Mark Foster with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation hopes that solving Kelsey's case will bring Whitney home.

This novel is written with 5 different point of views:
1. Whitney DeVries, the second kidnapped girl. I really liked Whitney. She was determined, smart, and courageous. She made me want to root for her.
2. Janie Willard, The sister of Kelsey Willard. I liked Janie, but not as much as I liked Whitney. Janie has selective mutism that was exacerbated by Kelsey's disappearance. I liked seeing Janie come into her own and find who she is outside of Kelsey's disappearance.
3:Claire Willard, Kelsey's Mother. Ugh, Where do I start on the cliches. Claire is a raging alcoholic who takes too many prescription pain pills and sleep walks through her days. Yet she always manages to be dressed to the nines (as the book mentions multiple times). OK then.
4:David Willard, Kelsey's Father. Again it's almost like the author was playing how cliched can I make the parents. David is a workaholic who takes a lot of business trips out of town. *Wink wink nudge nudge* I'd be amazed if you didn't see that one coming. What I would have loved to have seen happen is for David to have killed Kelsey. Now there would have been a shock.
5:Special Agent Mark Foster, The detective covering Whitney's disappearance. Oo Mark, I wanted to like you but I couldn't. Mark was hey you guessed it a total cliche. A cop pained by his own family troubles (that I would like to point out he made all by himself) hoping to reconnect a family. He manages to solve the crime because only he would remember a face from long ago *insert eye roll*

Even with all the cliched characters I found myself rooting for Whitney to escape, for Janie to find the killer and her sister, and for Claire to find herself and her purpose again. I admit I was engrossed. I would have given this book 4 maybe even 5 stars. Until that is I got to the reveal of the kidnapper. I was hoping for a "omg I didn't see that coming" or even a "Ahh I KNEW IT!" reveal. What I got was a "huh how does that even make sense" The kidnapper was in no way related to the victims.He would have had to stalk them to learn their routines, family dynamics, and so on. BUT even if he did how did no one notice this random character stalking these girls? Was this supposed to be a play on how oblivious we are as a society?

Overall I was really engaged with this book until the reveal which left me extremely disappointed.

Thank you so much to Netgalley, the author Kylie Brant, and the publisher Thomas & Mercer for a free copy in exchange for a fair and honest review.

WOW! What a thrill ride this book takes you on so much suspense.. Loved the back and forth between all the main characters . This book definitely kept you reading into the night you HAD to find out who took Whitney . Was it the TMK serial killer or a copy cat? The best part of the book is I had no idea who the kidnapper /killer was at all. Very impressed by the writing and I look forward to reading the next book this author writes!

A great mystery with lots of suspects. the characters seem real and their reactions are believable. Avery disturbing content but I could not put it down!

A young teenaged girl goes missing in the beginning pages of Pretty Girls Dancing, the newest book by Kylie Brant, and that starts a series of events that circle back to a similar disappearance seven years ago and a cold case killer know as TMK..

The parallels between the newest missing girl, Whitney, and Kelsey Williard’s disappearance are too similar to be ignored. The Williard family, mom Claire, father David and younger daughter Janie, has been stuck in limbo for those 7 years, Claire getting thru the days with pills and booze, David through his being a workaholic, and Janie isolating herself due to an affliction with severe social anxiety. With Whitney’s disappearance, Kelsey’s name is once again on everyone’s lips and the Williard family is thrown into the public melee.

FBI Agent Mark Foster must dive into and filter through the alibis, dark secrets, and pasts of all those concerned, parents siblings, and acquaintances alike as he races against a ticking clock to find Whitney, hopefully, alive.

Told in revolving Points of view, this book is a master class is how to write the secrets of a small town and the people who hold them. Where was Kelsey’s father when she went missing? Why is Whitney’s father, a policeman, unwilling to cooperate with the FBI? What do a school janitor, a pastor and the former lead on the case all have in common.

I read this book in 2 days because I couldn’t put it down.
5 well deserved stars for a superbly crafted and devious story.
Thank you to Netgalley for an arc of this book for my honest opinion.