Carol M. Tanzman
Release date: November 15th, 2011
by Harlequin Teen
Goodreads / Purchase
Ever feel like someone's watching you? Me, too. But lately it's been happening in my room.
When I'm alone.
A friend posted a video of me dancing online, and now I'm no longer Alicia Ruffino. I'm dancergirl. And suddenly it's like me against the world—everyone's got opinions.
My admirers want more, the haters hate, my best friend Jacy—even he's acting weird. And some stalker isn't content to just watch anymore.
Ali. Dancergirl. Whatever you know me as, however you've seen me online, I've trained my whole life to be the best dancer I can be. But if someone watching has their way, I could lose way more than just my love of dancing. I could lose my life.
*A copy was provided by Harlequin for review purposes*
Oh wow!
For a book that I had no expectations, I ended up really enjoying it! I love when that
happens. The creepy premise is what made me want to read this. A girl
being stalked because of an online video - count me in!
dancergirl (very hard to not put a capital D *twitch*) starts off smoothly and brings us into the life of Alicia - Ali - who is just a regular girl with a passion for dancing. Ali is your average high school girl who thrives on popularity. Which is why she's fine with the video that's been posted online by a classmate, of her dancing at a concert. What she doesn't expect, is when another video is uploaded of her dancing… in her room, alone. I really enjoyed Ali's personality. She wasn't perfect and she makes some bad decisions, but that's what makes her real. I did have a problem with her having no qualms about the first video getting online, though. Sure it was taken from a classmate she knows, but he never asked if it was ok to post it online, and she just shrugs it off, then agrees to do more! See what I mean about her bad decisions? Videos online = stalker magnet! Everyone knows this. This was, however, the only issue I had with her character.
As I'm sure you guessed, there is a lot of dancing in this story. Ali has a deep love for dance; her life revolves around it. I was never as much into it as Ali, but I love dance as well. I've taken classes for a few years and performed at a couple of shows. So I could really relate to the dancing and the rush of performing. I got stage fright right along with Ali - I could feel it! Those part were a lot of fun for me and added some lighthearted moments to the otherwise anxious mood of the book.
Now on to the best part - the stalker plot. All throughout the book I felt chills for Ali and feared for her. It's so incredibly easy to imagine all of this happening, that it got me very unsettled. Not knowing when someone's watching or what part of your privacy is being taken from you - that's incredibly discomforting. I didn't find it hard to guess who the stalker was. I do read and watch a lot of suspense stories like this though so it's hard to surprise me anymore. Regardless, I still thought it was a fantastic thriller with a realistic setting and gripping suspense. I'm curious what the rest of the series will entail since this one ends like a stand alone. But I'm sure I won't be disappointed. Carol is a great author and I absolutely recommend you give dancergirl *twitch* a try.
dancergirl (very hard to not put a capital D *twitch*) starts off smoothly and brings us into the life of Alicia - Ali - who is just a regular girl with a passion for dancing. Ali is your average high school girl who thrives on popularity. Which is why she's fine with the video that's been posted online by a classmate, of her dancing at a concert. What she doesn't expect, is when another video is uploaded of her dancing… in her room, alone. I really enjoyed Ali's personality. She wasn't perfect and she makes some bad decisions, but that's what makes her real. I did have a problem with her having no qualms about the first video getting online, though. Sure it was taken from a classmate she knows, but he never asked if it was ok to post it online, and she just shrugs it off, then agrees to do more! See what I mean about her bad decisions? Videos online = stalker magnet! Everyone knows this. This was, however, the only issue I had with her character.
As I'm sure you guessed, there is a lot of dancing in this story. Ali has a deep love for dance; her life revolves around it. I was never as much into it as Ali, but I love dance as well. I've taken classes for a few years and performed at a couple of shows. So I could really relate to the dancing and the rush of performing. I got stage fright right along with Ali - I could feel it! Those part were a lot of fun for me and added some lighthearted moments to the otherwise anxious mood of the book.
Now on to the best part - the stalker plot. All throughout the book I felt chills for Ali and feared for her. It's so incredibly easy to imagine all of this happening, that it got me very unsettled. Not knowing when someone's watching or what part of your privacy is being taken from you - that's incredibly discomforting. I didn't find it hard to guess who the stalker was. I do read and watch a lot of suspense stories like this though so it's hard to surprise me anymore. Regardless, I still thought it was a fantastic thriller with a realistic setting and gripping suspense. I'm curious what the rest of the series will entail since this one ends like a stand alone. But I'm sure I won't be disappointed. Carol is a great author and I absolutely recommend you give dancergirl *twitch* a try.
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