Dance of Shadows by Yelena Black

 

Published by Bloomsbury in February 2013

Book kindly sent by publisher for review.

Pages: 389

In the harsh glare of the lights, Chloe's shadow stretched across the stage. Her toes pointed and taut, her arms fluttering like wings, she arched her neck and watched as her own silhouette seemed to move without her...

Goodreads Summary

Dancing with someone is an act of trust. Elegant and intimate; you're close enough to kiss, close enough to feel your partner's heartbeat. But for Vanessa, dance is deadly – and she must be very careful who she trusts . . .
Vanessa Adler attends an elite ballet school – the same one her older sister, Margaret, attended before she disappeared. Vanessa feels she can never live up to her sister's shining reputation. But Vanessa, with her glorious red hair and fair skin, has a kind of power when she dances – she loses herself in the music, breathes different air, and the world around her turns to flames . . .
Soon she attracts the attention of three men: gorgeous Zep, mysterious Justin, and the great, enigmatic choreographer Josef Zhalkovsky. When Josef asks Vanessa to dance the lead in the Firebird, she has little idea of the danger that lies ahead – and the burning forces about to be unleashed .

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I feel like I ‘m in a minority with this book because I really enjoyed it. From the first few pages I was sucked into the excitement and anticipation at the prospect of studying in New York. Yet as I progressed with the story it was obvious that darkness was enveloping the new students and my stomach began to get squeamish. I could feel myself being drawn into this compelling tale.

I loved the fact it centred on ballet. I haven’t read any other dance orientated books before so that was quite refreshing.  The author obviously knows a lot about ballet, because her descriptions were very detailed and believable.

I loved the paranormal element to it, though I was surprised it didn’t appear earlier in the story. The beginning of the book portrays a contemporary thriller when really it is more paranormal as the story progresses. The author adds lots of unexpected twists and turns to the story which kept me on the edge of my seat. It was quite obvious by the end that another book would be following to finish the story.

Most of the characters were believable. I only struggled with Zep, who I found annoying. The quick change from aloof popular boy to quiet, contemplative new girl’s boyfriend was difficult to believe at times. Out of all my characters Blaine was my favourite. The conversations that occurred between the girls and him were hilarious at times.  I was a bit concerned how quickly friendships were made. Some characters were talking as though they had known each other longer than they really had and the relationship between Zep and Vanessa seemed a little instantaneous. However I did read an ARC copy so these things may have been picked up before the final copy was printed.

On the whole I really enjoyed this book and I was completely gripped by the story. I read the book in two days as I just had to find out what happened!