The Dance of the Dolls

by Lucy Ashe

Overview

Caroline Kepnes’s You meets Black Swan in this psychological thriller 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. Fans of historical fiction books with strong female characters and suspense-driven thrillers will be enthralled!
 
“[As a] former ballerina, Ashe’s insights into the world of professional dance elevate this unsettling debut thriller about identical twin sisters and the toxic male attention they attract.”—Publishers Weekly, Starred Review
 
The Dance of the Dolls tells the story of identical twin ballerinas rehearsing for the ballet Coppélia at the recently opened Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London. Superficially, even their differences are complementary: Olivia aspires to be the perfect ballerina while Clara is rebellious and independent. Clara has been seeing a pianist at the theater, the passionate Nathan, while Olivia is unaware that she’s cast a spell on Samuel, a bashful apprentice ballet shoemaker who steals into Sadler’s Wells as often as he can to watch her dance. But as the sisters rehearse, danger lurks. The story of Coppélia—about a young man who becomes obsessed with a life-size doll—threatens to become a dark and sinister reality. Samuel dreams of being recognized by Olivia and wonders how far he’d 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 . . .
 
Ashe has penned one of the most unputdownable books of 2023, perfect for anyone who found themselves captivated by the suspense-driven series and films Dare Me, Black Swan, and Luckiest Girl Alive. The Dance of the Dolls mesmerizes and will fulfill your sister books wish list and penchant for psychological suspense thrillers such as If We Were Villains, by M. L. Rio.
 

 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781454951230
Publisher:	Union Square & Co.
Publication date:	09/05/2023
Pages:	352
Sales rank:	29,198
Product dimensions:	9.00(w) x 6.20(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Lucy Ashe is an English teacher. After training at the Royal Ballet School, she decided to change career plans and go to university. She studied English literature at St. Hugh’s College, Oxford, before receiving her teaching qualification. Ashe's 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 lives in New York City.

Read an Excerpt

PROLOGUE

He wheels her out into the road. He should stay hidden, but part of him wants to be seen: he deserves her. He has waited long enough, worked hard enough. She belongs to him, dressed forever in the same red skirt with the same pink shoes tied around her ankles. Lace and net graze against her motionless thighs. Her skin is smooth porcelain and her lips are pink. Never has there been a lovelier figure, unchanging, unbroken by the pace of time. Her sightless eyes will not fade. A beautiful statue, preserved forever. He has watched her for so long, holding her in his gaze, locking her into position like a photograph.

He imagines dancing with her, the two of them arm in arm under the stars. Silent, of course, but that is no matter. It is better that way. She is a dancing doll, his Coppélia, created at last. He can finally believe it, now that he has her in the wheelchair. Pausing at the end of the street, he reaches down to her wrist and lifts her arm above her as if she is waving to a crowd. Ice-cold. He drops her arm in fright. Life lingers, like a promise; but he is afraid of what will happen when she wakes.

He needs to move quickly.

Editorial Reviews

★ 07/03/2023

Former ballerina Ashe’s insights into the world of professional dance elevate this unsettling debut thriller about identical twin sisters and the toxic male attention they attract. In prewar 1930s London, Olivia and Clara Marionetta are both dedicated to their budding ballet careers, though their goals are different. Studious Olivia wants to be a star ballerina, diligently saves her paltry salary for a rainy day, and prefers rest to late nights out. Clara, on the other hand, just wants to dance, spend money, and party. Clara is dating the bohemian Nathan, a former child prodigy who plays piano at the newly opened Sadler’s Wells Theater, where the sisters are rehearsing Coppélia, a ballet about a dancing doll that begins comically before taking a sinister turn. Shy Samuel, an apprentice ballet shoemaker, is infatuated with Olivia, but afraid to even talk to her, and expresses his love instead through a series of exquisite handmade slippers. As the sisters’ suitors start to treat them with more than innocent infatuation, their lives begin to imitate art a little too closely. Ashe’s persuasive behind-the-scenes ballet sections lend heft and authenticity to what could otherwise be mere window dressing, and she transitions her narrative from charming slice of historical fiction to pulse-pounding suspense at an expert pace. It’s a fiercely memorable debut from a writer to watch. (Sept.)

Publishers Weekly

Ashe’s persuasive behind-the-scenes ballet sections lend heft and authenticity to what could otherwise be mere window dressing, and she transitions her narrative from charming slice of historical fiction to pulse-pounding suspense at an expert pace. It’s a fiercely memorable debut from a writer to watch.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“Historical-novel fans as well as those who enjoy a bit of gothic intrigue will appreciate this story.”—Booklist

“Based on the real ballet scene in prewar London, this immersive tale will be a delight for historical-fiction fans who like a touch of suspense.”—Library Journal

“Ashe trained with the Royal Ballet School, and she is fascinating on the detail of the girls’ lives; on the pain and the bloodied feet that underpin the perfection of the dance, on, as Samuel says, ‘this mad life you all live, always on the edge of pain and exhaustion.’ A wonderful, eye-opening debut.”—London Times
 
“Dances with historical details, with unease and atmosphere. You can feel the mist of the London canals, hear the ballet shoes touching the stage.”—Abigail Dean, bestselling author of Girl A

“Haunting and richly evocative, The Dance of the Dolls takes the reader on a spellbinding journey through the 1930s London ballet scene, in which the beauty and elegance of the participants is the flip side of a destructive drive for perfection and darkly murderous obsessions. Lucy Ashe’s debut is absolutely en pointe.—Lexie Elliott, author of The French Girl
 
“A clever thriller . . . the characters are compelling. Take a bow, Ms. Ashe.”—Historical Novel Review
 
“[An] unsettling tale. . . . As the story follows the rehearsals for the ballet Coppélia, we receive a quick-fire education on how the ballet works and why it inspires obsession. . . . An original thriller with a crafty plot.”—Daily Mail

“This original and exquisitely written novel is a highly accomplished debut.”—Plays to See

“The ballet world sets the stage for this terrifying psychological thriller that takes place in pre-war London.”—Entertainment Weekly

“[T]his novel promises a chilling and captivating story.”—NBC Champaign, IL (WCIA)

From the Publisher

09/01/2023

DEBUT Ashe, a former ballet dancer, eloquently describes the world of ballet and presents memorable, well-rounded characters in her first novel. Identical twins Olivia and Clara Marionetta are ballerinas for the Vic-Wells Ballet in London, 1933. They are rehearsing for a performance of Coppélia, a story in which a young man becomes obsessed with a life-sized dancing doll. Olivia, the more serious of the sisters, has caught the eye of shy ballet shoe-maker Samuel, who attempts to connect with her by leaving anonymous gifts and notes. Olivia's affections, however, are turned toward pianist Nathan, Clara's beau and a former child prodigy who seeks to reclaim his former fame and prestige with Clara at his side. But free-spirited Clara feels stifled by Nathan's quest for perfection, and she longs to live a life of adventure and change. With the performance drawing nearer, life begins to imitate art, as each person's obsession reveals underlying tensions. VERDICT Based on the real ballet scene in prewar London, this immersive tale will be a delight for historical-fiction fans who like a touch of suspense.—Anitra Gates

Library Journal