Rockstar Book Tours presents... THE DANCE OF THE DOLLS by Lucy Ashe - REVIEW + GIVEAWAY!

Today, I'm thrilled to be hosting a spot on the THE DANCE OF THE DOLLS by Lucy Ashe Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. This book danced into my TBR, but really hit the mark! So KEEP READING to check out my review plus a special guest post, make sure to enter the giveaway, and then visit the other sites participating for more bookish fun!

 

Title: THE DANCE OF THE DOLLS

Author: Lucy Ashe

Pub. Date: September 5, 2023

Publisher: Union Square & Co.

Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Pages: 352

Find it: Goodreads, https://books2read.com/THE-DANCE-OF-THE-DOLLS 

A novel about obsessive love featuring two ballet dancers—identical twin sisters Olivia and Clara Marionetta—with a terrifying climax set in the world of ballet in pre-war London.

The Dance of the Dolls tells the story of identical twin ballerinas rehearsing for Coppélia at the recently opened Sadler’s Wells Theatre. Superficially, even their differences are complementary: Olivia aspires to be the perfect ballerina while Clara is rebellious and independent. Clara takes up a relationship with the bohemian and passionate Nathan, a pianist at the theater. Meanwhile, Olivia is unaware that she has cast a spell on another frequent visitor to Sadler’s Wells: Samuel, a bashful apprentice ballet shoemaker who steals into the building as often as he can to watch her dance. But as the sisters rehearse, danger lurks. The story of Coppélia and the dancing doll threatens to become a dark and sinister reality. Olivia becomes jealous of Nathan’s adoration of Clara, while Clara discovers that being adored can feel suffocating. Samuel dreams of being recognized by Olivia and wonders how far he would go to achieve his goal, while Nathan, a musical child prodigy, struggles to adapt to adulthood and begins to blur the lines between reality and his dark fantasy world . . .

 

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OMG 😲 

This was not the story I thought I was getting into, but it kept me turning pages just the same!

For some reason, my brain said Historical Fiction taking place around the beginning of a war was a chapter I've read before and enjoyed. This took place slight pre war, but wasn't so much about the environment in the community as it was about the darker sides of human nature, and what we can truly achieve under pressure. 

The twin dancers may have looked the same, but were most certainly their own persons. Olivia was more dedicated to ballet, and had an interest in Nathan, but he wasn't hers to have, though she did have an admirer. Clara loved ballet, though not to the point of it being life, and had Nathan, but was truly over whatever might have been there. They both needed a new direction in life, and that was their choice to make, until it wasn't. Until someone decided they needn't have the choice any more because THEY knew better. Until having one of them was more about owning than companionship. Until the darker side of humanity reared its ugly head, stealing any control that was assumed, and placing it in the hands of others.

I admit the twist that came, I guessed.... IN GENERAL...but the specifics were certainly not easy to spot, nor the final outcome. Did it fit the story? Absolutely...because it was both edge-of-your-seat and memorable. You'll be holding your breath straight through to the final page when all is finally revealed in a satisfying final act. 

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GUEST POST with Author Lucy Ashe 

'A day in my writing life'

 

 

For the past eighteen months, I have lived in two cities – London at an all-boys’ boarding school in term time; New York City with my husband in the holidays. Life at a boarding school is intense, early starts and very late finishes, as well as teaching on Saturdays and supervising activities on Sundays. Writing for me, therefore, has taken place in intense bursts during my school holidays. Until this summer! I have moved to New York City and am loving this opportunity to carve out a new routine in a new home.

 

The first words I write each day are last night’s dreams, a sleepy scribble in my dream journal before my night time explorations fade from memory. I write at home in the morning - I am most productive first thing, as long as I have a large coffee at my side. I take a break to do some exercise mid-morning, mostly running around Central Park, or I go to a ballet class. Exercise is an essential part of my day – I can’t function without it: a symptom of many years of ballet training I suppose.

 

I like to work away from home in the afternoons, to keep me focused. Libraries are my favourite (no need to buy expensive coffee and everyone is quiet, mostly). The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts is a wonderful place to work, especially for a historical fiction writer researching ballet and theatre. They have every reference book I need! I do sometimes treat myself to trips to my favourite coffee shops, especially when I find the isolation of the writing life starting to get to me.

 

I rarely work in the evenings. I’ll go for a walk, or cook dinner with my husband, or meet friends in the city. Or, I’ll sit down with a novel at 6pm and not look up until food or sleep remind me that real life exists outside the pages of the book.

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About the author...

LUCY ASHE is the author of CLARA & OLIVIA (Magpie, Oneworld publications).

She trained at the Royal Ballet School for eight years, first as a Junior Associate and then at White Lodge. She has a diploma in dance teaching with the British Ballet Organisation.

She studied English Literature at St Hugh’s College, Oxford, while continuing to dance and perform. She then took a PGCE teaching qualification and became an English teacher.

Her poetry and short stories have been published in a number of literary journals and she was shortlisted for the 2020 Impress Prize for New Writers. She also reviews theatre, in particular ballet, writing for the website Playstosee.com.

 

Website | Twitter | Instagram | Goodreads | Amazon | BookBub

 

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Giveaway Details:

1 winner will receive a finished copy of THE DANCE OF THE DOLLS, US Only.

Ends September 12th, midnight EST.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Special thanks to Rockstar Book Tours for the chance to bring this tour to you and to the publisher for the copy for review. (THANKS!) For more information on this title, the author, the publisher, this tour, or those on this horizon, feel free to click through the links provided above. Be sure to check out the rest of the tour for more...

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

8/28/2023	Ohyouread	IG Post
8/29/2023	OneMoreExclamation	Review/IG Post
8/30/2023	jlreadstoperpetuity	IG Review/TikTok Post
8/31/2023	bookgirlbrown_reviews	Review/IG Post
9/1/2023	@froggyreadteach	IG Review

Week Two:

9/4/2023	Country Mamas With Kids	Review/IG Post
9/5/2023	A Blue Box Full of Books	IG Review/LFL Drop PIc/TikTok Post
9/6/2023	Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers	Review/IG Post
9/7/2023	Paws.Read.Repeat	Review/IG Post
9/8/2023	Breysreviews	IG Review

Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!

RABT BOOK BLITZ: South Pointe by Dianna Wilkes

South Pointe
by
Dianna Wilkes
Mystery & Suspense
Date Published: February 6, 2018

Publisher: RedBird Books

Paige Carson never expected that both a handsome sheriff and a charismatic newcomer would be vying for her affections. The choice isn’t an easy one, as she’s now responsible for raising her orphaned goddaughter, Jess.

Sheriff Sam Wallace didn’t lose at love. He got kicked to the curb. Hopeful that courting the feisty Paige will end differently, he can't help but feel suspicious about his romantic rival. Is Ben Hampshire the man he seems—or is Sam’s jealousy clouding his perspective?

Sam’s determined to win Paige’s and Jess’s love, but he also has to keep Providence Island safe. More than just Sam’s heart is at risk if he fails to find the killer who walks the streets of PI—a killer with more than one agenda.

Amazon  |Barnes and Noble  |  Kobo  |  iBooks

Excerpt

Dana locked the door after Ben departed and set the Closed. Please call again sign in place.

She’d lied to Ben about the reason for her fainting. Yes, she’d skipped breakfast. Yes, it was hot, and yes, she’d become dizzy. But the truth was she’d panicked when Ben had passed by the front windows.

A shadow fell across the front windows, and she caught a glimpse of blonde hair. The front door opened, spilling sunlight into the lobby.

Maisie was right when she’d described the young man as “a charmer.” His kind humor and gracious manners had put Dana at ease, despite her embarrassment.

One thing was certain. She had to break this cycle of panic every time she came to the office. Her gaze shifted to the area where Kyle Lansing had stood.

She grabbed the cast-iron hummingbird from the side table and swung the metal statue in a sharp arc. The blow slammed against Lansing’s upraised arm. He howled, and the gun fell from his hand. She swung again, this time catching the detective in the chest. Lansing stumbled backward. She dropped the sculpture and snatched up the gun.

That’s when the shadow had swept past the windows. The glimpse of blonde hair had frightened her that it was Jamie returning to the building, and she wouldn’t be able to protect the both of them.

The entry wall blocked the newcomer from her sight. She stepped back. There wasn’t much room to retreat, but each inch might make a difference in saving her life.

Lansing cast a glance over one shoulder. “What are you doing here, Ham—”

The first two shots hit Lansing in the torso. A third shot struck his head. Blood sprayed as he dropped to the floor. She gripped the gun, waiting for the stranger to step forward. Sunlight spilled once more in the lobby entrance. A rush of air and sounds from outside drifted inward as the shadow of the shooter moved away. The door closed, cutting off the sunlight.

Dana gripped the edge of Jamie’s desk as Lansing’s final words echoed in her ears.

“What are you doing here, Ham—”

Hampshire.

A chill rushed through her body, and she closed her hands into fists to keep them from shaking. She dared a glance at the front door as if expecting a face to be staring back at her. “Was it you, Ben?”

And if the shooter had been Ben Hampshire, how long was he willing to keep her and her loved ones safe?

About the Author

Dianna Wilkes is an award-winning contemporary romance author, known for the Providence Island mystery series.

Reading has always been an important part of her life. “I learned to read when I was four years old,” she said. “Writing my own stories seemed a natural progression.”

Dianna holds a B.A. in Visual Communication and a M.Ed. in Instructional Technology. She worked as an Education Consultant for a medical technology company before leaving the corporate world to write full time. Despite all that nerdy stuff, she loves creating stories of romance and mystery with touches of humor.

When she isn’t writing, Dianna is deep in researching various twigs and branches on her family tree or fulfilling entries on her travel bucket list.

Website  |  Facebook  |  Twitter

The Rushing of the Brook by Kansas Bradbury

Hi there!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

Today, we're adding another book to your SPOOKY CREEPY SCARY Halloween reading list, and the truly scary part is it COULD happen.  *-*  Yes, my friends, they say truth is more frightening than fiction but OH MY GOODNESS am I glad this is not based on a true story.  ~shudders~  You'll see why in a few.  Warning to readers, though it says "coming of age" it is in reference to the main characters for the first part of the book...I would not recommend this one to anyone not considered an adult (or at the earliest LATE LATE teens) due to content, and we're not talking steamy here folks.  So, draw the blinds and turn on your bedside lamp, you're gonna need the extra assurance that all is well as today's book of choice sneaks out of the shadows...

The Rushing of the Brook

by

Kansas Bradbury

9781525501951

FriesenPress

About the book....

It’s 1987, and a dark shadow is about to fall upon the city of Sifton and its residents. Hayward Barry and his best friends—Joe, Davey, and Pete—are typical fifth- and sixth-grade boys, hanging out after school and getting into trouble. However, powerful urges and deep feelings have begun to grow in the boys as they approach young adulthood; for Hayward, this is his affection for Beth, a girl in his class who he fears will be swept away by another boy named Daniel. For Pete, it is a volatile temper and the desire to always get his way. When Davey is given something that Pete wants, it sets off a disastrous chain of events that strips them all of their childhood, drowning their innocence to the sound of a rushing brook—a sound none of them will forget.

As misery and happenstance would have it, the day tragedy strikes Hayward and his friends, a murderous monster awakes from hibernation in a town miles away. Getting into a stolen vehicle with bloody clothes and an unspeakable lust for violence, the nameless man drives towards Sifton, wreaking destruction and horror along the way. While his story won’t collide with the boys’ lives until seventeen years later—when they have all grown up—this man will reopen old wounds and awaken the trauma that has never healed. Hayward, now a failed artist and reluctant police officer, is left to pick up the pieces of a shattered community and solve the mystery of the event that has come to dominate his life.

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My initial reaction upon finishing the book...

Holy cow. That was intense, twisted, dark, heinous, disturbing... shall I go on? 😮 Much more than I thought it would be as far as story depth, but man oh man, I was not prepared for all the ways it would show man's decline to less than beast.

My further thoughts now that I've ruminated a bit...

Yeah, still the same.  That was some SERIOUSLY twisted work there.  

The story initially starts with the tale of four fifth friends boys who call each other friend, for the most part, and their general dynamic with each other and those that attempt to break up their self-imposed circle.  It's a boys will be boys situation showing early obsessions, power struggles, and how things can get drastically out of hand in no time flat.  At the same time these four lads are going through their growing pains (and losses), another wounded (or should I say, wounding) soul comes to their sleepy town, and while initially intending to stay for just a moment, makes itself a home that will darken their community and the surrounding for many years to come in horrific ways.  

It's a tale that shows monsters come in all shapes, and sizes.  It's a story that while fiction could have sadly been ripped from the headlines.  It's a path of darkness to follow, but only just, in order to have a better appreciation for all the light that surrounds...no matter how small or dim it may seem.  Though you won't want to continue in Kelch's shoes, you won't have a choice once you've begun...and the same can be said of the lads as we get to know them 17 years later when the lives they've built from their shadowed pasts come crashing down around them.  

Recommended read for ADULTS ONLY due to content...again talking about the darkness of a soul, violence, and the human condition at its worst.

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About the author...

Kansas Bradbury was born and raised in North Sydney, Nova Scotia. He graduated from Saint Mary’s University with a Bachelor of Commerce and subsequently became a drug store manager. In 2008, he moved from the retail business and began working as a heavy equipment operator in Alberta’s oil sands. He started creative writing as a hobby, composing film scripts and short stories for fun. After receiving encouragement from his family and friends, he wrote  The Rushing of the Brook, his first full-length novel. He currently resides in Fort McMurray with his wife Colleen and their two children.

SITE  |  TWITTER  |  GOODREADS

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Special thanks to Lauren at Smith Publicity for the copy for review.  (THANKS!)  For more information on this title, the author, or the publisher, feel free to click through the links provided above.  This title is available now, so click over to your favorite online retailer to snag your copy today.

Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!

What's in a zip code?: THE ADDRESS by Fiona Davis

Hi there!

Welcome back to Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

Today, we're taking the world by storm with a Historical Fiction release that needs to be on your radar.  It hit bookstore and virtual shelves this past August via Dutton, and while there was certainly buzz about it, it didn't do it nearly enough justice.  So, put on your finest attire and meet me at the door as we prepare to walk into history and change the path of our stars with today's book of choice...

The Address

by

Fiona Davis

9781524741990

Dutton

About the book...

Fiona Davis, author of The Dollhouse, returns with a compelling novel about the thin lines between love and loss, success and ruin, passion and madness, all hidden behind the walls of The Dakota—New York City’s most famous residence.

After a failed apprenticeship, working her way up to head housekeeper of a posh London hotel is more than Sara Smythe ever thought she’d make of herself. But when a chance encounter with Theodore Camden, one of the architects of the grand New York apartment house The Dakota, leads to a job offer, her world is suddenly awash in possibility—no mean feat for a servant in 1884. The opportunity to move to America, where a person can rise above one’s station. The opportunity to be the female manager of The Dakota, which promises to be the greatest apartment house in the world. And the opportunity to see more of Theo, who understands Sara like no one else…and is living in The Dakota with his wife and three young children.

In 1985, Bailey Camden is desperate for new opportunities. Fresh out of rehab, the former party girl and interior designer is homeless, jobless, and penniless. Two generations ago, Bailey’s grandfather was the ward of famed architect Theodore Camden. But the absence of a genetic connection means Bailey won’t see a dime of the Camden family’s substantial estate. Instead, her “cousin” Melinda—Camden’s biological great-granddaughter—will inherit almost everything. So when Melinda offers to let Bailey oversee the renovation of her lavish Dakota apartment, Bailey jumps at the chance, despite her dislike of Melinda’s vision. The renovation will take away all the character and history of the apartment Theodore Camden himself lived in…and died in, after suffering multiple stab wounds by a madwoman named Sara Smythe, a former Dakota employee who had previously spent seven months in an insane asylum on Blackwell’s Island.

One hundred years apart, Sara and Bailey are both tempted by and struggle against the golden excess of their respective ages—for Sara, the opulence of a world ruled by the Astors and Vanderbilts; for Bailey, the free-flowing drinks and cocaine in the nightclubs of New York City—and take refuge and solace in the Upper West Side’s gilded fortress. But a building with a history as rich—and often tragic—as The Dakota’s can’t hold its secrets forever, and what Bailey discovers in its basement could turn everything she thought she knew about Theodore Camden—and the woman who killed him—on its head.

With rich historical detail, nuanced characters, and gorgeous prose, Fiona Davis once again delivers a compulsively readable novel that peels back the layers of not only a famed institution, but the lives—and lies—of the beating hearts within.

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The Dakota THEN

A perfectly balanced tale, from both past and present, combining elements of mystery, madness, and romance...after all, they are all different sides of the same emotion. 

Often times I find stories written in both past and present hard to keep sorted, making it easy to mis-remember details, characters, and events, but the author tamed any potential issues with the deft stroke of her pen, allowing readers the simple pleasure of getting lost in a wonderful book. Diving into the past with Sara, and Theo, while witnessing the Dakota in its prime, simultaneously seeing its decline in the present as well as the evolution of the inhabitants over time, was enveloping...I really felt I was there in the given time period, experiencing the world as they did.  The mysteries, deceptions, and misconceptions that unfold along the way took your emotions into overdrive. I mean, how can you NOT be outraged when a man acts as though he deserves anything and everything he desires regardless of the other party's needs, or when someone is hoodwinked by another due to their kind heart and generous spirit, or even when a lifelong friend betrays that bond when it matters most?  By book's end, I was as fired up as the characters themselves who were mistreated, misdirected, and otherwise led astray....but also filled with an unexpected understanding of what might drive one to certain spontaneous actions, giving you results you hadn't even dreamed of.  *gulp*

The Dakota NOW

Overall, it was a great read!  You'll be in wonder at the twists fate delivers to the unsuspecting soul.  You'll delight in the sheer pleasure Sara finds in the everyday.  You'll despair over Bailey's fight with not only her inner demons but her potential family history.  You'll be in shock at how easily one can go from stable, upstanding citizen to questionable mental status all with the right (or rather wrong) accusation...especially back then!  Recommended for Historical and general Fiction fans alike...as well as those who simply love a grand story to wile away an afternoon that takes place at THE place to be, past or present.  

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About the author...

Photo: © Kristen Jensen

Fiona Davis lives in New York City and is a graduate of the College of William & Mary in Virginia and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. The Dollhouse was her first novel.

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Special thanks to Becky at Penguin Random House for the ARC for review.  (THANKS!)  For more information on this title, the author, or the publisher, feel free to click through the links provided above.  This title is available now via Dutton, an imprint of Penguin Random House, so be on the lookout for it on a bookstores shelf or virtual retailer of your choosing.

Until next time, remember...if it looks good, READ IT!