Hi there!
Welcome back to the Friday edition of Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.
Today, we're playing hosting to a blog tour courtesy of Meryl L. Moss Media, starring Thriller filled with murder (or suicide?) and mystery. It's fit for the YA crowd yet more than enjoyable for those outside the teen spectrum an keeps you turning paging with its likable characters...or even the dis-likable ones. So if you're ready to move En Avant, please join me in welcoming today's guest and book of choice...
by
Cate Holahan
9781629531939
Crooked Lane Books
About the book...
Nia Washington is an incredibly talented ballerina. She fought her way up from the streets and was nearing the pinnacle of her profession when an injury and a broken heart derailed her career. Taking a temporary job at an elite boarding school was supposed to give her time to nurse both body and soul. It was supposed to be a safe place to launch a triumphant comeback. It is anything but.
Shortly after she arrives at the beautiful lakeside campus, she discovers the body of a murdered student, and her life takes a truly dark turn. It’s not long before she is drawn into a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with a ruthless killer. And Nia isn’t the only target. She must use all of her street smarts to protect her dancers, save a wrongfully accused student, and rescue the man she loves.
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If the setting seems familiar, it should...classic boarding school where the kids are a mix of privileged and non, with teachers who MOSTLY care about them, trying to pass some morsel of wisdom into their teenage brains. The characters are more along the lines of a more recent trend in YA Fiction; the one, the only....ballerinas in training. There's been a mini-slew of this type of story floating around but this one certainly stands on its own pointe shoes without an assist.
The death at the center of things comes at you full force. From the first chapter, we are shown around the campus and immediately find ourselves in a spotlight we never intended to be in. Potential suspects emerge only to whither in the bright light of day with things finally coming to a head...leaving the guilty to face the final curtain. Who was responsible for ending Lauren's life so soon? Was it self-inflicted, a jealous ex perhaps, or something far more gruesome and shady? Only one way to find out because I'll never tell....
From the start, we come to know Nia as a kind soul with an unforgiving past, belabored by injuries that just won't go away, but a determination to succeed that would shame many less driven. I immediately liked her character and felt deeply for her having to hide things about her life, suffer the appraisal of teens who believe they know everything, and be bossed within an inch of the stage's edge by her superiors. I loved how she was quick to defend the image of the deceased young lady when it seemed everyone else was placing the blame squarely on her cold shoulders. The fact that her heart was moved by love's potential in spite of her past experience, just proves furthermore that she's a good soul. It was great to see a young-ish adult figure portrayed in such a good yet realistic light. Her life wasn't perfect by any means, but she made do and strives for more. Though many others try to steal the spotlight, for me, Nia was truly the prima ballerina of them all.
Recommended read for Young Adult and Fiction fans that like a bit of darkness with their light. This one drives you forward with the character connections forged but keeps you guessing as to where it will all land.
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About the author...
Cate Holahan is an award-winning journalist and a former television producer. Her short fiction won first place in the 19th Annual Calliope competition. Cate currently lives in New Jersey with her husband and two children. This is her debut novel.
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Special thanks to Amanda at Meryl Moss Media for the book for review and the chance to bring ithos tour to you. (THANKS!) For more information on this title, the author, the publisher, or those tours on the horizon, feel free to click through the links provided above. This title is available now via Crooked Lane, an imprint of The Quick Brown Fox & Company LLC, so be on the lookout for it on a bookstore shelf or virtual retailer of your choosing.
Until next time...happy reading!
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