My initial rating for this book was 3.5 stars, rounded down to 3. There were many things I liked about this book, and a few things I had issues with that kept me from rating it 4 stars.

Things I loved:

I have a fine arts degree, and spent four years in the same building as the ballet majors. I got glimpses into their world of dance, and it was always fascinating to me. The Ballerinas gives an even closer look at that world and all the anxieties, stress, body issues, and sheer grit that goes along with it. The added element of being set in Paris, at a premiere (though fictional) ballet school and then company gave the story more atmosphere, and made it more intriguing to see that side of the profession. Being able to see the fierce dedication and even fiercer competition between not only Delphine, Margaux, and Lindsay and the company, but also amongst the three girls themselves heightened the stakes and really allowed the reader to sit and lean into the characters and their motivations.

The first 1/3 of the book moved incredibly slowly, which I was ok with. It gave me time to figure out the characters and the world they inhabit and gave important backstory for Delphine. There was a feeling of foreboding the entire time, leaving me wondering when we would find out the horrible thing that Delphine did. The pace picked up at about the halfway point and barreled toward the conclusion. I felt swept up in the story and couldn't put it down until I finished it.

However, that breakneck speed made me feel somewhat let down with the big reveal as to the secret Delphine had been keeping. It felt so anti-climactic and like it was tacked in as an afterthought after the OTHER big reveal.

The characters of Delphine, Margaux, and Lindsay are not without their faults. Their faults and shortcomings feel true to life, if abbreviated and condensed for the sake of the narrative. In a book that centers around the friendship of the three women, none of them struck me as a particularly good friend. I did have a slight issue with the male characters throughout the book. Aside from possibly Claude, none of the men had any redeeming qualities whatsoever. It felt odd that in the entire world of the POB, the dance world in Paris, and the dance world internationally, that there wasn't a single male who wasn't a monster. I understand that the story is about strong women who are fending for themselves in an inherently sexist industry, but I felt it could have added a little depth if there had been just one male - even a minor side character - who had some integrity or was even passably "nice".

The ending tied everything into a messy bow. I felt that because so much lead up went into the "What did Delphine do?" arc of the story, that the payout was lacking. As I said before, it felt tacked in as an after thought after the big reveal. I wasn't thrilled with the BIG reveal, or the fallout from it. It felt stilted and, again, tacked on. For a book that was so deeply character driven the entire time, the hurried pace and the questionable responses to the event were slightly disappointing.

That being said, I think this book was completely enjoyable. It would be a good read for someone who was on the periphery of the dance world/industry and wanted a fictionalized look further into it. However, I don't feel that it fully fits the "thriller" descriptor. It would be more fitting for those who enjoy a character driven narrative than someone looking for a high stakes thriller!

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

An incredibly strong solo debut for Rachel Kapelke-Dale. She gives the reader a perspective on the challenging life of performance especially for women. The book is a statement on women’s rights and feminism and how we sometimes accept our “role” in the scheme of life. And although she portrays men in a negative and rather stereotypical manner, she rescues that framework by providing a glimpse at the ending of a younger generation policeman with a more egalitarian outlook.

The Ballerinas quietly develops three themes by using three key women who are ballerinas. By drawing the curtain back on the world of ballet, we learn about relationships between women,
the masculine/feminine sides of the ballet and how betrayal and forgiveness go hand-in-hand.

Interestingly, the author also has creatively included a book within a book by using A Lifelong Passion--the book of love letters between Nicholas and Alexandra as the structure for one of the ballets. And her skill at making Paris a central character is outstanding.

If you have any interest in ballet, in women, in Paris or justice, you will enjoy this book.

This was far more of a character development/growth novel to me than a mystery thriller. I appreciated seeing how Delphine developed over time and how the three women closest to her developed as well. I feel the author did a good job of showing how to grow and change and how to accept the growth and change of others that we love. There was a good representation of women's friendships and how we need one another throughout different phases of our lives. There was a lot of "thinking aloud" development that I didn't necessarily mind, but the book wasn't what I thought it was going to be. It got a little long in parts, but I resonated with the characters and loved the ballet setting.

The build-up to what happened between the girls was not as interesting as I expected it to be, and the event at the end seemed unbelievable - it just seemed like a bit too much thrown into the story. There was a very graphic sex scene, which I know seems to be commonplace now, but I just don't like reading that level of detail. I also didn't find that level of detail necessary for the storyline.

All in all, this book was okay, but I didn't love it. I appreciate the ARC from NetGalley!

I really enjoyed this book. It was written well, and the characters held my attention. I am a big fan of ballet, and this book really described what it is like to be a dancer. It was a great story.

What a gripping book, about three ballerinas during their teenage and then adult years set at the Paris Ballet Company. The book is a fascinating look into the destructive life of ballet, how it impacts the ballerinas' bodies, and their emotions. It also alternates between the stories of the three friends as teenagers and adults, how their friendship endures despite the intense, competitive ballet life, their love lives, their mistakes and their successes.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC from Net Galley I exchange for my honest review. This is my first review and I am taking the “honest” aspect to heart. First, I echo some other reviewers in saying that this should not be advertised as a thriller. There were some surprises but this was far from an edge-of-your seat kind of plot. I didn’t mind the time jumps so much and I found it interesting that one timeline moved forward more quickly than the other. But the plot was very slow-building and for me, did not have the pay-off that I was anticipating. I also found that the promised plot twist was almost a bait-and-switch. Again, a potentially promising approach but not quite as advertised. Overall, I found the depiction of the female relationships reasonably well done and enjoyed the inside view of professional ballet as well as the feminist themes in some of the plot lines, but it did not quite live up to expectations.

Although not trained in ballet, I absolutely love to read about dance and this book appeared to embody what life as a ballerina entails quite realistically. The book did start slow for me and I wasn't enamored with Delphine's character, "the nice one" but it does get better and I quite enjoyed the writing.

This book was classified as a mystery and thriller but I would definitely not have described it as such. However, I did think this book touched on some really impactful themes; the friendships that are forged in the competitive and ambitious world of professional ballet, the pain, injury and underlying "ugliness" associated with physical perfection, as well as betrayal and revenge, both in love and career-wise, to mention just a few. Despite the difficulty I had relating to Delphine, I thought she really made an effort to evaluate her behavior and its effects on those around her, experiencing character growth and self-realization to some degree.

Thanks for St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC. I definitely would be interested in reading more books by Rachel Kapelke-Dale!

I'm going to write something and title it "Crone." I'm going to set it at the precise resonance and frequency of the dull pulse of the universe, and I'm going to loose it at the world as an unfettered howl.

I want to thank NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for sending me an ARC of The Ballerinas by Rachel Kapelka-Dale.
“Lindsay’s hot
Margaux’s a bitch
Delphine’s nice”
Delphine narrates the story of these three females, alternating chapters over two decades beginning in 2000. They live mostly in Paris, all wanting to be the lead ballerina, the best ever. Their friendship has it’s high and lows and is severely tested over the years.
We learn about abuse, scandal and male superiority.
The author brings Lindsey, Margaux and Delphine to life, complete with blisters, many injuries and aging.
Can they survive the pressures and attain their dreams?
Does the need to be the best destroy their friendship?
Are the secrets revealed?
The Ballerinas publishes 12/07/2021.

This was a challenging book for me to read. The plot enticed me, but it was very slow, with a lot of terminology that I did not understand. I'm glad I read this on my Kindle, because it made looking up these words easier. It's a fault of my own that I couldn't get into this book. I'm not a fan of reading about something as in depth as ballet, for example. It's like I almost want to read about it, but not truly understand the intricacies of it. The writing was stellar, and the second half did pick up, but this was not the book for me. I won't dock it any stars, because this was not my preference for reading.

I really need to quit reading stories where the description has it that this novel is "Story X meets Story Y," where X and Y are well-known novels or movies. Rather than represent the best of the referenced stories they're supposed to mash-up, such books as this always seem to exemplify the worst of them.

Unfortunately this one is in first person which is worst person for the most part. I do not like first person stories because they're far too "me me me." If you get a good author and a decent main character narrating, it can work, but this main character, Delphine, was not a nice person and she was completely unlikeable. It became ever harder to listen to her whiny voice and endless self-absorption which is only one reason why I DNF'd this.

The fact that Delphine smoked didn't help. I have an aversion to characters who smoke, and it seems like a bad idea to have your character be a ballet dancer and smoke. That's not to say that no ballet dancer ever smoked (or had any other bad habits), but I think an author needs to ask questions like: "what are we promoting here?" and "do I really want my readers to detest her?" I'm not sure the author considered those questions in imbuing Delphine with the traits she has, while simultaneously trying to have it that she was who she was.

Quite honestly, I don't really like to watch ballet performances, but I do appreciate the work the dancers do and the sacrifices they make, so maybe that's why I like a good ballet story, or documentary of which I have read and seen many. This one isn't such a story.

On a point of order (or maybe en pointe of order!) let's take that term - dancers - for example. Despite the novel's title, the term 'ballerina' is traditionally one that is reserved, in ballet, for exceptional performers, and the title étoile for a real star. None of the three main characters in this novel, Delphine, Lindsay, and Margaux (who may as well not be in it for all she contributes) is a ballerina much less an étoile. They are danseuses, which admittedly would not make for such an appealing title.

These three dancers are at the Paris Opera Ballet School, although for all that counts in the story, they could be ballet dancers anywhere, really. This never really felt like a French novel, and I was kicked out of suspension of disbelief more than once, for example when at one point the author tells us "There's no real word for creepy in French" (try glauque).

This kind of thing wasn't helped by the body-shaming employed at least at one place (I DNF'd this novel so I can't speak for all of it) when I read, "A ballerina is a perfect woman. Thin. Beautiful. Invisibly strong." I agree with the third item, but thin and beautiful are abusive and were completely unnecessary. Again, this story is in first person, so this was Delphine making this observation, but it spoke badly of her as a person and turned me off her even more than I already was. Yes, there are thin ballet dancers, but how they get that way is a whole other story that's barely touched on here, where all danseuses seem to be cookie-cutter clones of one another with no room for personality or individuality.

There was also a confused section which read "This one looked like it was from the early 19'60s:" where it seems like the author had written '60's and then added the century and forgot to remove the apostrophe. A minute problem, but still one more problem. Maybe that will be fixed in the final copy.

On top of all of this were the endless flashbacks in the story. I'm not a fan of flashbacks, especially not extensive ones, and even more especially not when these diversions didn't really have divisions from the current story - certainly not by chapter - nor were they truly separate as entities since the flashbacks were imbued with the present day perspective, and the present day sometimes had Delphine recalling significant things from the past. It became, at times, hard to remember where we were in time, and this only served to dissolve the story into an ungodly and tiresome mess.

It's one thing to tease a mystery from the past, but when it's teased out over scores of muddled pages of sometimes tedious text, that's just irritating to a reader. I made it through fifty percent of this and we were no nearer at all to getting even an inkling of what this big faux pas was. That's when I gave up, during yet another uninformative story-halting flashback, and I said the hell with it! At that point, I was so frustrated with the story that I really didn't care anymore what happened or who it happened to, or how much it hurt. I'm done with this! It was that bad.

If this novel had been more concise, had focused more on ballet and less on trivial drama, and had told a better story instead of mindlessly meandering and holding up a tease that was probably only going to be a disappointing letdown anyway, I would have been onboard with it, but as it is, I can't commend it as a worthy read. It was time to jeté-son it and move allongé to something more divertissement.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
This is my first book by this author. I was drawn in by the cover & I really wanted to love the story, it had such potential.
However, it fell quite short of my expectations & left me feeling rather unsatisfied.
It begins out slow & lifeless, then becomes hectic & unbelievable.
I pushed through to the end hoping for some kind of payoff, but it all just fell flat.

For once, I was able to be absorbed in a book on NetGalley. I adored the flowing writing, the setting, and the beautiful language. One of the things I look for in a book besides that, is the ability to be educated somehow, and this book achieved that, among a number of other things. I’ve never wanted to go to a Paris more, or watch ballet for that matter. I believe I will have a greater appreciation for it BECAUSE of this book.
It had plenty of drama, al-most too much. I expected it at every turn. My only complaint would be that the author glossed over a particular death a little too easily, and although the book pretty much explains why since it is geared toward female empowerment, it seemed a little...I don’t know...inhumane. It didn’t bother me so much but it might be a point of contention among other readers.
I felt honored to pre-read it, and definitely recommend.

I want to thank NetGalley and St Martin’s Press for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I will start this review by saying that as young ballet student I have always love the ballet. This book is listed as a Mystery & Thriller/Woman’s fiction and that confuses me because I really do not see it as a mystery/thriller. I just did not get the mystery/thriller classification. This is a modern day story of a group of young girls who bond as students of ballet and move through life struggling to achieve and progress as professional dancers in a very difficult field of work. The attention to detail of the life on a student, the difficulties and relationship problems they discover and the competition between both male and female artists is given in such a clear and wonderful way. The choices they make will impact their future successes. The settings are mostly Paris and St Petersburg. Delphine, Lindsay and Margaux begin as friends and mature as professionals. The hardships of the dance routines and the injuries they endure are accurately explained.

I could not put the book down and absolutely do recommend it to anyone who wants to understand the hardships of dancers. I felt it was personal to me and know any little girl who studied ballet and dreamed of becoming a star ballerina will love it.

I hate giving bad reviews, but for me reading this book was valuable time wasted. I am sorry for being so cruel about it because I mean I have never written a book myself and I am sure it was a lot of hard work poured into "The Ballerinas" by the author......... But this is my opinion and hopefully I may be able to stop someone from believing the unimaginable hype surrounding this book. Besides the very unlikeable main characters of Delphine, Margaux, and Lindsey-- the story itself is so lifeless. I forced myself to finish this one hoping for some kind of payoff but there was none. I just did not care.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for a chance to read and give an honest review.

I think I’ve mentioned this before but I am such a sucker for pretty covers. This one reminded me of a Degas painting and I was intrigued. Thanks to @netgalley and @stmartinspress for an advanced copy of this book! It will be released in December.
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The book is about three women who grew up in the Paris Opera Ballet. Two of them, Margaux and Lindsay, are currently under contract with the company and the other, Delphine, has moved on to become a choreographer.
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As the book gets going it’s mainly about the hierarchy and structure of the ballet and how that effected these women as they grew up. It influenced every aspect of their lives and molded their relationships. Up to that point I was really interested. Then about halfway it got a little crazy. It felt like the author threw in as many plot twists as possible. It gave a me whiplash bouncing between catastrophes. Aaaaddddnd...the ending was not my favorite. **Spoiler Alert** At the last minute Lindsay’s husband who seemed to be an amazing guy turns evil, injures Lindsay badly, and is pushed out a window to his death by Delphine. At which point all three ladies are like, No big deal. He was a jerk. Then the investigating police officer who is questioning Delphine pretends not to hear her confession and lets her go. 😒
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At first I thought the book was about the dedication of these woman to their craft and the behind-the-scenes look at the ballet world. It ended up being about men trying to control women. It seemed like a huge leap from one to the other and not a natural storyline arc. Overall, while I was engaged the whole time it just ended up being too much.

3.5 stars, rounded down to three. I had mixed feelings about this book. There were things I really loved and things I didn’t.

What I loved: I love when a book transports me into a different lifestyle. I enjoyed a glimpse in the life of a professional Paris ballerina. I found the parts detailing what it was like growing up and working in the field of dance very interesting. The physical pain, the fierce competition, the close friendships, the rivalry, the sacrifices, the devotion... It was my favorite part of the novel.

The first half of the book moved slowly. I enjoyed it, but it was a slower read. Not too much action, but a lot of the behind the scenes in the world of dance that I loved. The two timelines didn’t bother me as it often does. It was done well, flowed well, and didn’t pull me out of the story. I actually really liked that the timeline switches were within the same chapters instead of each being a separate chapter.

As you read, there was always this impending sense of doom; the reader knows something horrible in the past happened and something horrible is going to happen in the future, we just don’t know what right away.

The second half picked up the pace. I couldn’t put it down and couldn’t wait to see what would happen next. But...I felt that the big secret, what Margaux and Delphine did to Lindsay, was anticlimactic. The whole scene played out seemed a bit ridiculous, in my opinion.

. This book has feminism tones, but it came across to me more as man hating. Besides a handful of male dancers that weren’t even side characters but just occasional names mentioned, all the main men characters were despicable and only saw women as objects. None of the characters were very likable, but the woman were written in what was meant to be a positive light. I’m ok with not liking characters. I don’t believe a reader has to like the protagonist in order to like the story.

The ending had an event that I didn’t see coming, but I didn’t like the characters’ response to it.

One other thing I didn’t personally care for was the language. A LOT of f-bombs. That just isn’t my thing and I felt like it distracted me from the story.

Overall though, I did enjoy the book and I loved learning more about ballet life. I could actually see the choreography in my head. The author did an amazing job at using only her words to show the dances. I want to watch the Ballets that Delphine created. If you love ballet, you probably will really enjoy this book.

Thank you to Net Galley and St. Martin’s Press for this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

#NetGalley #TheBallerina

“Don’t they realize,” I’d hissed to Margeaux during a curtain call after a particularly grisly performance of Swan Lake fifteen years ago, “that we’re all covered in the most disgusting sores under our shoes?” . . .

“Of course they know,” she said between her teeth. “That’s why they like to watch.”

—from “The Ballerinas”

This is a very interesting character-driven book that will appeal to all lovers and survivors of the ballet life. It focuses on three women - main character Delphine, and her two friends Margeaux and Lindsay, who grew up training in the Paris Opera Ballet.

This book has a different tone and story than Black Swan, which it’s being compared to, but both that movie and this book do an excellent job analyzing the destruction and damage women in the ballet face in their quest to be dancers. The horrible sores beneath the beauty. This book is also interesting and a bit different from Black Swan because in it we also meet male dancers, and we see how they rarely suffer the same difficult choices and fates as the female ballerinas.

I would not classify this as a thriller, particularly, though it is emotionally intense, but more of a character study and a high drama about destructiveness and female relationships. Delphine is a very interesting and complex character. We see her in a series of different timelines - from her teen years as a dancer whose sexuality is awakening (and simultaneously being repressed by her training) to her adult years as a choreographer, reuniting her old friends and lovers to dance in a ballet of her own.

I really appreciated the way this book used the ballet as an exaggerated metaphor for the painful things all women face in society as they age - the desire to be beautiful, the limited amount of time allotted to a woman to succeed or be an “ingenue” compared to a man, the complicated and sometimes destructive nature of female friendship and jealousy.

I did have a few issues with the book - sometimes the many alternating timelines jumped around too quickly for me, and other times I was frustrated with Delphine’s naïveté. The story felt a little disjointed at times and even though I like alternate timelines, I think this one might have benefited by telling the story a little more in order. I also thought the transition from the events in the middle to the dramatic end was a bit abrupt.

Nevertheless, I found this an emotional, compelling, and always interesting read. Rachel Kapelke-Dale has a whole lot of talent, and has painted a truthful (in my experience as a young ballet dancer), interesting and painful tale that is hard to put down, particularly if you love the ballet. Lovers of the ballet and fans of female-driven character studies will really enjoy this. I’m really looking forward to seeing what this author does next as she continues to grow. She’s one to watch.

Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and the author for the ARC.

I really tried to get into this book but it’s just not holding my attention or drawing me in. This unfortunately will be a do not finish book for me at this moment. I’m not sure if it’s the switching through different time frames or if it’s just not a good match of a book for me. I appreciate being able to review this book and hopefully one day I can finish it but right now it’s currently not for me.

This book had such potential: a hidden-from-the-reader mystery, the competitive backdrop of professional ballet in Paris, and feminist themes. Unfortunately, the execution was subpar for me. The mystery didn't feel impactful or loom large enough to hook me, the characters were all insufferable and clueless, poor pacing (the first half of the book was set-up), and the number of side plots were distracting. I think focusing the story on the feminist themes could've made this more compelling for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.