1800’s ballet with a touch of mystery? A second mystery book about a concert pianist? 

Joanna Davidson Politano had been on my radar for a while, but I’d never read one of her books. When I heard about her concert pianist book, I decided to try it, but Goodreads said it was book 2 in a collection, so… I had to read A Midnight Dance first.

Craven Theater suffered a tragic fire years ago that claimed the life of its star ballerina, Delphine Bessette. Now her ghost is said to haunt the theater. Years later, Ella Blythe, a promising young ballerina, joins the Craven troupe on a scholarship. However, she knows a secret. Delphine Bessette never died in that fire. And Delphine Bessette was her mother. 

Cons: There are tons of ballet terms I don’t know and I wasn’t about to put the book down to look it all up. I just assumed it was cool ballet stuff and the author did her research. The first quarter of the book wasn’t bad, but I was complaining that it didn’t have enough mystery and suspense to keep me hooked…

Pros: … but after that first quarter, I couldn’t put the book down. Nothing was as it seems, everything you thought you knew was a lie, and then there was the enigma of Jack Dorian. All the characters, (especially the hero and heroine) were excellent. There were some deep, tragic themes dealing with unwanted children that I didn’t see coming, and the spiritual element was thought-provoking, yet not in-your-face. In conclusion, the book ended way too soon and I may have found a new favorite author.

Bonus Pro: If you like The Phantom of the Opera and The Greatest Showman, you’ll LOVE this book!