Twisted and evil characters are absorbed into a world of beauty and romantic ballet dancing.
Dates Read: 13/03/2023 to 13/04/2023
Star rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Word to describe: Broken
Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Thriller.
TW: eating disorder, drug abuse, harassment, bodily harm, parental abuse, teacher-student relationship, homophobia, alcohol abuse.
I don't even know how to describe how brilliantly evil this book is. Centred on three characters Bette, June and Gigi, Tiny Pretty Things gives us ballerinas with a cutthroat approach. Get rid of the imagery of delicate girls in leotards and fanned-out tutus and bring forward brutality and deliberately butchering a girl's foot so she can no longer dance. These dancers are vicious and ready to destroy anything in their path to success.
Bette is the younger sister of an already successful ballet dancer. With an overbearing mother watching her every step, judging her figure, her lifestyle, and her love life, Bette has to work twice as hard as every other dancer to earn the attention of her tutors. Living in her sister's shadow has left expectations for the life Bette wants. She must have the lead role, the perfect boyfriend, and the perfect face. And that means she will be ruthless when a threat to her career enters ballet school. Throughout the book, Bette is viewed as this perfect porcelain doll. Still, a difficult home life with a deceased father, and an abusive alcoholic mother leaves Bette a second away from breaking with every step. I really liked Bette's character she is far from being a typical Queen B and has multiple layers which are easily incorporated into this ice queen of a character. From failed relationships to attempted seductions, Bette's character falls outside of every cliché and is wrapped in a shell of herself willing to crack with each failure.
Gigi, on the other hand, is a new student one of the only black girls at the academy and struggling to fit in. She is immediately handed a lead role in The Nutcracker to the dismay of many other dancers and finds herself forefront of a battle to the best. With a giant target on her back, Gigi struggles to make friends and keep her heart condition a secret. This does not last long when her medical records, photos of her with secret late-night dancing with the male dancers, and rumours of an affair with a teacher soon start circling. She finds herself to be the centre of cruel pranks and even crueller acts of violence which left her hospitalised.
June's character is a great commentary on the racism faced by modern-day dancers. Rather than being placed into stereotypical roles, she is pushed into the spotlight and is eager to impress regardless of her colour. As the understudy to Gigi's star roles, June is viewed as a shy background character. But her meek personality has snarky undertones when she is faced with the betrayal of a former best friend and starts a secret affair. Separate from the rest of the Asian Cliques, June is an outsider who prides herself in her unspoken beauty. Unfortunately, the pressure of dancing has pushed June into an eating disorder which is the centre of her character. A vicious impersonation of the reality of body image June starves her body to stay under one-hundred pounds making her the perfect slim dancer - but in reality, her health is declining and she is faced with the knowledge that she will always be one pound away from losing it all.
The lives of these three dancers are carefully intertwined with evil acts of violence, pranks, and general bitchiness. Gigi falls victim to the majority of these pranks and they act as a foreshadowing of the events that occurred prior to her arrival. A previous dancer also fell victim to bullying and mysterious events led her to be removed from the dance programme. It is hinted throughout the book that the ordeal Gigi goes through is a direct mirror image of that of Cassie's life.
The story drew me in from the first second the audiobook began. A blend of Pretty Little Liars and Gossip Girl, Tiny Pretty Things is a sickening approach to how cruel teenage girls can be. A ballet dancer is graceful and slender with perfectly poised feet; the girls in this book are callous and pretty things with hidden weapons for all who may ruin their future.
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