Nocturne
A fantasy romance fairy tale retelling of Beauty and the Beast and Phantom of the Opera
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- 10,99 €
Beschreibung des Verlags
In this gorgeous and haunting fantasy set in 1930s Chicago, a talented ballerina finds herself torn between her dreams and her desires when she's pursued by a secretive patron who may be more than he seems.
Grace has always wanted to be a ballerina, ever since she first peered through the windows of the Near North Ballet company. The elegance of the dance seemed transcendent to an immigrant child of the working poor, and so, when she is orphaned, it is to the ballet that she flees.
Years later, Grace is on the verge of becoming the company's new prima ballerina - though she is beginning to realise that achieving her long-held dream may not be the triumph she once envisioned. Then Grace attracts the attention of the enigmatic Master La Rosa, and realises that the world may not be as small or constricted as she had come to fear.
But who is her mysterious patron, and what does he want from her? As Grace begins to unlock the Master's secrets, she discovers that there may be another way entirely to achieve the transcendence she has always sought.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A dancer in Depression-era Chicago slowly becomes aware of dark secrets surrounding her ballet company's newest patron in Wees's enchanting if slow-burning adult debut (after YA The Waking Forest). Grace Dragotta, 20, has spent the last seven years focused solely on her dancing with the Near North Ballet. When she is promoted to prima ballerina, she believes her hard work and perseverance through family tragedies have finally paid off—until she learns that her promotion came at the behest of Near North's mysterious new patron, Master La Rosa. Grace is increasingly unsettled by the Master's behavior, especially when he uses his influence to compel her to move into his house with him. When he finally reveals his mystical secret, Grace learns there's much more at stake in this performance season than just the success of the ballet. Wees cleverly evokes Beauty and the Beast folklore, drawing especially on the eerie beauty of Jean Cocteau's 1946 film adaptation. Despite the elegant prose, however, it takes so long to reach the Master's home that readers less interested in the more mundane dramas of Grace's life may lose interest. Luckily, the magical elements, once they are revealed, are enthralling. Patient readers will be rewarded with a lush, impressive fantasy from a promising new voice.
