shellybomelly's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
orionoconnell's review against another edition
4.0
Please know before you go to pick this book up that it is chock full of drama and a lot of common triggers including but not limited to: suicide mentions, eating disorders, body horror, animal death, bullying, abuse (physical, emotional, sexual, substance), gaslighting, sexual assault/rape, mental health.
This book is for those who are a fan of the mean girls & high school drama trope. A fast paced, very action sequenced tale told from three alternating POVs of high-school aged girls training to become prima ballerinas. It is VERY different from the Netflix show, although the vibe is pretty similar. Be mindful when/if you choose to read this that it deals with A LOT of heavy themes. Happy reading.
This book is for those who are a fan of the mean girls & high school drama trope. A fast paced, very action sequenced tale told from three alternating POVs of high-school aged girls training to become prima ballerinas. It is VERY different from the Netflix show, although the vibe is pretty similar. Be mindful when/if you choose to read this that it deals with A LOT of heavy themes. Happy reading.
squish_reader893's review against another edition
4.0
This was so much better than I thought it would be. There were plenty of ups and downs and tons of twists. I look forward to the next in the series.
pitayacactus's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Bullying
Minor: Homophobia
camilacadibe's review against another edition
4.0
Men, those girls are ruthless.
And the boys too, in a different way.
But yeah, mostly the girls. The beautiful, bloodthirsty, amazing, fucked up girls.
Their messed up brains and single-minded focus on being the best ballerina on the school is what made this book so interesting. I had no idea I would become this addicted to all the drama.
I have my ships, I have my faves, I have my hopes for redemption arcs. I am READY for the next book.
Bette, June, and Gigi are all deliciously full of drama, flaws (man, so many issues there), and strengths. I can't wait to see how their story progresses!
And the boys too, in a different way.
But yeah, mostly the girls. The beautiful, bloodthirsty, amazing, fucked up girls.
Their messed up brains and single-minded focus on being the best ballerina on the school is what made this book so interesting. I had no idea I would become this addicted to all the drama.
I have my ships, I have my faves, I have my hopes for redemption arcs. I am READY for the next book.
Bette, June, and Gigi are all deliciously full of drama, flaws (man, so many issues there), and strengths. I can't wait to see how their story progresses!
vivianne's review against another edition
4.0
Spoiler free mini review!
I’ve always been mesmerized by ballet and I love to go to plays and to watch movies around this topic. Nevertheless I have never read a book about it and now I wondered why because this was amazing.
I loved that there was SO MUCH going on, all the time. It made me super invested in the story and made me finish this book in a few days because I could not put it down. The plot was super-fast paced and it kept me on the edge of my seat the whole book. I found the mystery that was woven into this story and the way it ended so well done and it makes me want to jump into the next book right away. I loved the theme of ballet and to read about the hard cut throat world it displays and the dark corners behind the beautiful ballerina’s you see on stage. And I also can read forever about a similar plot line to mean girls and Pretty Little Liars.
I loved the main characters, they were so interesting. They were all so well developed and had completely different personalities. You want to hate them because of their actions, but their background and personal problems make you love them. I loved how flawed they were, how I could follow their train of thoughts and identify myself with them. The problems in this book were so relevant, not only to me but also to society nowadays. I LOVED the representation, which was really well handled in this book.
The writing was also pretty good. It completely sucked me in and I love the way they described the dance and I could see the dancers jump around on a stage in my mind.
A negative thing about this book was that this book was at times very frustrating to read. Though it’s probably meant to and the characters make choices that make this story so interesting. However, especially the boys and the topics surrounding the romance was just *face palm* sometimes. Besides this, this book didn’t blow me away or have any twists to surprise me enough to make this a 5 star read for me.
Can’t wait to read the next book or see the Netflix adaptation!
I’ve always been mesmerized by ballet and I love to go to plays and to watch movies around this topic. Nevertheless I have never read a book about it and now I wondered why because this was amazing.
I loved that there was SO MUCH going on, all the time. It made me super invested in the story and made me finish this book in a few days because I could not put it down. The plot was super-fast paced and it kept me on the edge of my seat the whole book. I found the mystery that was woven into this story and the way it ended so well done and it makes me want to jump into the next book right away. I loved the theme of ballet and to read about the hard cut throat world it displays and the dark corners behind the beautiful ballerina’s you see on stage. And I also can read forever about a similar plot line to mean girls and Pretty Little Liars.
I loved the main characters, they were so interesting. They were all so well developed and had completely different personalities. You want to hate them because of their actions, but their background and personal problems make you love them. I loved how flawed they were, how I could follow their train of thoughts and identify myself with them. The problems in this book were so relevant, not only to me but also to society nowadays. I LOVED the representation, which was really well handled in this book.
The writing was also pretty good. It completely sucked me in and I love the way they described the dance and I could see the dancers jump around on a stage in my mind.
A negative thing about this book was that this book was at times very frustrating to read. Though it’s probably meant to and the characters make choices that make this story so interesting. However, especially the boys and the topics surrounding the romance was just *face palm* sometimes. Besides this, this book didn’t blow me away or have any twists to surprise me enough to make this a 5 star read for me.
Can’t wait to read the next book or see the Netflix adaptation!
akacya's review
5.0
2023 reads: 309/350
2023 tbr: 74/100
this follows three girls, gigi, bette, and june, as they strive to be prima at their ballet school. gigi has recently learned that ballet could kill her, but that doesn’t stop her from doing it. bette wants to escape the shadow of her older sister, but this brings out a dangerous side of her. june needs to land the lead role or her controlling mother will withdraw her from this school.
this has been on my tbr for so long that i forgot it was about ballet. i don’t have much knowledge regarding ballet, nor have i read a book featuring it before, so it was really interesting seeing how ballet impacted each of the girls. the ugly parts of ballet, such as body shaming and lack of diversity, were discussed in addition to the pretty parts of ballet that everyone else sees. this was such an interesting book and i’m very excited to read the sequel.
laineydunne's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
maddynewman's review
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
georgiap101's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5