Cover Image: Pretty Girls Dancing

Pretty Girls Dancing

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When Kelsey Willard disappeared seven years ago, she left behind a mother who could never recover from the loss, a father battling his guilt, and a sister who almost slipped through the cracks. Some say that Kelsey was a victim of the Ten Mile Killer who terrorized the state years ago, but the family has never got the closure they desperately seek. Now young Whitney DeVries is missing and Detective Mike Foster, who unearths striking similarities in the lives of the two girls before they disappeared, has to solve the case quickly or it might be too late for Whitney.

Pretty Girls Dancing is not a fast-paced thriller. Rather it moves at a slow but steady pace as Detective Foster delves into the secrets of the families the two girls left behind. You may work out the identity of the killer halfway through the book as I did, but it will not take you away from the story. There is one point I’m still confused about though….how did Kelsey come into the thousand dollars she hid under the bed with her pictures? I think I missed it. I’m hoping the writer would take the main characters forward into a new series. I would love to read more about Detective Foster.

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I received a free e-copy of Pretty Girls Dancing by Kylie Brant from NetGalley for my honest review. This is an A++ Suspense novel. This book hooks you in from the first couple pages. This is a story of a young girl, Whitney, who was kidnapped 7 years ago and her body has still not been found. Now 7 years later, another girl, Kelsey is missing. The police believe both girls were taken by the Ten Mile Killer. This is a very tragic story that will pull on your heart strings, especially if you have children yourself. This novel was written with great characters and I thoroughly enjoyed how each character had their own version of what happened, truths, lies, secrets, etc. You get to hear how each character was affected by the kidnappings. Everyone has secrets!
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Thank you NetGalley for the copy of Pretty Girls Dancing by Kylie Brant that I read and reviewed.
All I can say about this book is WOW. It is one of those books that you don't want to put down because you are not sure where it is going to go and it is being told by so many people you just want to know what everyone has to say about their side of the story. I am usually not a big fan of books that are told by so many people but I really loved how Brant had so many people telling their side of this thriller it added so much to the story and it was like you knew so much more then you usually do.
I really had no idea who the kidnapper was until the end and I loved that fact. Brant was brilliant with how she wrote this book and kept the reader on the edge until the very end. This is a great read and I highly recommend it.
I am giving Pretty Girls Dancing five out of five stars!

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This book grabbed me from page one and I could not put it down. It tells not only the story of a kidnapped girl but delved into how this affects the whole family and the town. It had a lot of twists and I was surprised to find out who did it

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Kelsey Willard disappeared from Saxon Falls years ago. No one knows where she is, but everyone assumes she’s dead; the lack of answers destroyed her family. Now, all these years later, another girl has disappeared. Could there be a link between the two cases? BCI agent Mark Foster believes there is and he’s sure the commonalities will unmask a killer, but in order to do so, he’ll have to find out once and for all, what really happened to Kelsey, even if destroys the heart of this small town. Brant mixes things up in this thriller by adding a large number of perspectives in her story, letting readers peek inside the lives of the ordinary and not so ordinary residents of Saxon Falls

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This was a great book. The mystery is complex, and the killer not obvious. I was not expecting the reveal at all, and only once it was revealed, I saw the clues leading up to it. The killer was suitably creepy, though I did wonder a little about how he had such access to the girls and pulled off some of the stuff that was hidden in plain sight. The various narrators each bring something to the story, and reveal a little bit more each time we meet them. This really highlights the destruction kidnapping and murder can bring to a family and a community, and details several red herrings that slow the investigation. I sympathized with the investigators who were trying their hardest but had to sift through lies, misdirection, false leads and hard work that pays off with nothing. We see enough of the investigation into the missing girls from so many viewpoints that the crimes feel real and the difficult duty of solving them, or of being sure only one killer is to blame is frustratingly genuine. I got sucked into hoping Kelsey and Whitney would both return to their families, and could only imagine the suffering of their families dealing with that hope themselves. I highly recommend this and will look out for the author's future works.

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A very heart-breaking psychological thriller. I liked the way the chapters were written so each of the major characters had their own voice. The reader is able to see their inner thoughts and reasoning. Janie was such an intriguing character and my favorite. I definitely did not guess the outcome of the story which is always a plus. Highly recommended!

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Many years ago a young girl disappeared and even though a body was never found, she was presumed dead. Now another young girl has gone missing and the way to solve this case may be to take another look at the first case, opening up old wounds ... and finding secrets that have never been revealed.

Told in various voices of a broken mother, a guilt-ridden father, the sister who has never stopped hoping, the victim, and the detective who must expose the secrets and lies inn order to find a killer.

Kylie Brant is a well-known author who has never failed in well-written stories with convincible, engaging characters. This crime fiction's story line is crisp and riveting.

Many thanks to the author / Thomas & Mercer / Netgalley for the digital copy. Opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.

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Pretty Girls Dancing was an engrossing mystery/suspense. It caught my attention right away, and held my interest all the way through. Most of the characters were flawed, but I really liked a few of them. Others, not so much. I throughly enjoyed the book and would love to see it turn into a series with Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation agent Mark Foster as the lead character.

This book opens with the abduction of a teenager, Whitney DeVries. Mark Foster is sent in to work the case of Whitney DeVries. In order to be thorough, he re-examines evidence and witnesses in the abduction of Kelsey Willard seven years earlier from a nearby town. Before long, he finds some commonalities in their cases and possible links to others that make him question whether the two kidnappings could be the work of a longtime serial killer. Kelsey's parents, Claire and David, are keeping secrets that could have hampered the investigation into her disappearance, and it looks like Whitney's father may have his own secrets. Kelsey's teenaged sister, Janie, who has long suffered from selective mutism due to social anxiety, becomes interested in the abduction of Whitney and gathers information that starts to break the case open for Mark. As the investigation deepens and secrets begin to come to light, Mark must figure out the ties between the two cases if he has a chance to save Whitney before it's too late.

This was a great suspense! I really liked the investigator, Mark Foster, kidnap victim Whitney DeVries, and the sister of another victim, Janie Willard. The storyline was fast paced and had plenty of action. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a copy of the book in return for an honest review.

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Pretty Girls Dancing – Kylie Brant
Kylie Brant’s newest thriller takes place in small town Ohio, where a young teenage girl has just been kidnapped. The story is told from a multitude of points of view – You are with the kidnap victim, Whitney, as she sneaks out of her home late at night to meet the teen that she’s become close to via social media, and then experience her kidnapping and subsequent treatment through her eyes. You meet the parents and sister of Kelsey, who vanished under similar circumstances many years before, never to be found, and you meet the various faces of the law enforcement team that’s called into investigate Whitney’s disappearance. Each chapter focuses on a different character, and the secrets each persona holds close to the vest as investigators race to find Whitney’s abductor and safely rescue her before it’s too late.
I must admit, while I was initially put off by the way the story was told from the purview of each character, I got over than very quickly. As the story progresses, and events are revealed, it all comes together quite nicely. And while some readers always claim to be able to see the protagonist well before he/she is revealed, this book had me guessing until the very end – and I was still wrong! If you like great mystery/police procedurals, then this novel is for you!! Looking forward to many more from Kylie Brant!

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This psychological murder mystery is not your typical trope. This storyline takes you through the lives of, not only the victims but, the family members and, how they all deal with this heartbreaking loss, devastating change in how they look at the world and how they have to manage their lives and daily decisions.
Kelsey Willard disappeared 7 years ago and now, Whitney DeVries has also disappeared. These two girls are only a few of the many disappearances related to a certain serial killer. The local police and sheriffs and the state FBI are all in these cases constantly, with little to go on.
I was utterly fascinated by this story and, would never have guessed who the killer ended up being!
If I could give this book 8 STARS, I would!!!

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Pretty Girls Dancing, by Kylie Brant, is everything you want in a straight suspense novel, including ripped from the headlines action. The different points of view are well marked and serve as chapter headings; I really liked the instant recognition of which character’s head I was going to be in. Each POV adds another subtle layer to the overall story. Taken in whole it is a multifaceted, deeply layered, suspense thriller. Though many of the clues were present, I really didn’t figure out who the villain was until the investigators did. The resolution was well executed and fitting to the characters and the story.

This is the first title by Brant that I’ve read, but it won’t be the last. Her style drew me in immediately and I look forward to devouring her backlist as I eagerly await the next release.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this novel.

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This was her best yet the story line and e charcters come together i had to stay up.late ao i could finish this loved it .

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I have read a lot of dark thrillers. I couldn't put this book down. I was sad and riveted. I needed to know who was this horrible killer. This book was different because...there was no light for me at the end of this tunnel, well there was a survivor.

But what a tough look at the families of a victim. The utter nightmare that engulfs their lives. This book was very well written. This author is a talented voice in this genre. This is a book that will stay with me.

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This is a psychological look into the lives of 5 people effected by a serial killer.

When an already imperfect family suffers a devastating loss it shatters their foundation and causes irreparable damage. The mother Claire Willard who has been a mental mess since her daughter Kelsey was taken 7 years ago. The younger sister Janie who before her sister was taken suffered from a social anxiety and has struggled to keep her head above water even more since she went missing. The father David Willard who is rife with guilt over something from the past.

Mark Foster the Special Agent with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations investigating the latest disappearance who is also a father and husband whose dedication to his job with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigations puts his marriage on the line.

Whitney DeVries, latest victim taken by the Ten Mile Killer. She struggles to stay alive through his sick twisted games and gains strength from personal notes she is finding in her prison from the last girl that was there – Kelsey Willard.

This was not a pretty story and for the most part is depressing. The human mind is such a fragile thing and once a crack forms it can bring even the toughest to their knees. And if they dont have the will to fight can destoy them.

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