Blog Tour and Review – Ballet Orphans by Terez Mertes Rose

I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the BALLET ORPHANS by Terez Mertes Rose Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!

About
The Book:

Title: BALLET ORPHANS : A Prequel (Ballet Theatre Chronicles Book 3)

Author: Terez Mertes Rose

Pub. Date: January 2, 2021

Publisher: Classical Girl Press

Formats: Paperback, eBook

Pages: 372

Find it:  Goodreads, Amazon, Kindle, B&N, TBD, Bookshop.org

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It’s 1990, and New York soloist April Manning is trying to rebalance her world in the aftermath of her parents’ deaths. An offer to join the struggling West Coast Ballet Theatre as a principal dancer seems like the perfect opportunity for a fresh start—a new life in San Francisco, an exciting step up in her career, and the hope of a redefined sense of family. But the other dancers are wary, clannish and tight-lipped, particularly about an incident that hastened the departure of their beloved artistic director, leading to the arrival of his replacement, the young, inexperienced Anders Gunst. And no one wants to talk about Jana, a former company member who defiantly walked out rather than work under Anders. It is Jana herself who offers April hints, and even friendship, where she reveals a loneliness and hunger to belong that newly orphaned April well understands. But there is something troubling about Jana, and what April doesn’t know could prove deadly.

A prequel to the Ballet Theatre Chronicles, BALLET ORPHANS explores the work and sacrifices required to arrive at the highest tiers of the professional ballet world, coupled with the primal, universal desire to belong, to love and be loved, and the lengths we’ll go to protect those we call family.

“A stimulating and entertaining tale in which
passion and art intermingle.” — Kirkus Reviews

MY THOUGHTS 

This was quite different than what I’m used to reading. But don’t misunderstand that statement. Different in no way means bad. It means I don’t ever remember reading a book with the focus on ballet. But I can now say that I’ve learned so much about a subject that I knew so little about.

Though part of a series, I felt no need to have read earlier books. What was happening to April Manning was completely clear. We followed her from New York, where she lost a prestigious dance spot and a boyfriend, to the West Coast where she attempts to fit into a new troupe.

This story was both enlightening and enjoyable. The descriptions were, of course, new to me, but those who enjoy dance and especially ballet will no doubt fall in love with this book.

The author did a wonderful job of blending the dance career and terminology with the story.  And she didn’t forget about those of us not familiar with ballet and the terms. There is a nice Glossary of Ballet Terms included at the back of the book.   

Rating: ☆☆☆☆

My thanks to Rockstar Book Tours for a copy of this book. This has not influenced the content of my review, which is my honest and unbiased opinion

About Terez: 

Terez Mertes Rose is a writer
and former ballet dancer whose work has appeared in the Crab Orchard
Review, Literary Mama, Women Who Eat (Seal Press), A Woman’s
Europe (Travelers’ Tales), the Philadelphia Inquirer and
the San Jose Mercury News. She reviews dance performances for
Bachtrack.com and blogs about ballet and classical music at The Classical Girl.
The author of the Ballet Theatre Chronicles and A Dancer’s Guide to
Africa, she makes her home with family in the Santa Cruz Mountains. She
loves good food, good wine, great books, and a good (but not too hard) adult
ballet class. She’s proud to announce that Outside the Limelight, Book
2 of the Ballet Theatre Chronicles, was named a Best Book of 2017 by Kirkus
Reviews.

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