Many thanks to NetGalley and GP Putnam's Sons for gifting me a digital ARC of the latest novel by Megan Abbott - always a must-read author for me. 4 stars for a slow burn book you won't be able to look away from!
Dara and Marie are now the owners/operators of a prestigious dance studio, following in the footsteps of their mother. The sisters inherited the studio and the family home after their parents were killed in a car accident on their anniversary. The story unfolds along with the preparations for the biggest event of the dance year, The Nutcracker. Dara, married to former dancer, Charlie, who does the business end of the studio, and Marie are well versed with their roles in life as well as preparing their dance students. When Marie leaves the family home and starts living in the attic of the studio, she inadvertently starts a chain of events that will affect all of them. A fire brings a contractor into their lives and into Marie's heart threatening the delicate balance of their lives.
This is a wonderfully-written character study with so much tension just dripping off the pages. There is the relationship between Dara, Marie and Charlie now upset with the onset of Derek, the contractor. There is the tension between the dancers, all vying for the key roles in the ballet. There is the sexual tension and secrets seeping through every page. There are the feminine tensions between power and submission, light and dark. A bit of a different book from this author but once again a winner!
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