Book Review: dancergirl by Carol M. Tanzman

Title: dancergirl
Author: Carol M. Tanzman
256 pages, Published by Harlequin Teen
Genre: YA Contemporary Thriller
Carol’s Info: Website | Twitter | Facebook
Buy The Book: Amazon

From The Back Of The Book:

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. (Provided by Harlequin Teen.)

My Thoughts:

Dancergirl, a contemporary YA thriller by Carol M. Tanzman, is about a teenage girl named Ali. Ali is passionate about dance and hopes to study dance when she enters college. When a classmate of Ali’s films her dancing and the video goes viral, Ali becomes the target of an obsessed fan. As the threats continue and the stalker posts footage of Ali on the internet, she finds that fame comes with a price.

I have been dying for a great YA thriller and with dancergirl, Tanzman serves up the goods! The pacing throughout the novel is pitch perfect. Dancergirl will keep both adult and teen readers entertained and on the edge of their seats. The feeling of paranoia builds with each chapter as Ali tries to figure out who is stalking her. I loved the usage of a viral video as a plot element. It was a nice modern touch and a reminder that high school is very different from when I attended in the nineties.

The characters are all very believable. With Ali and her friends, Tanzman does an excellent job of capturing the carefree attitudes and behavior teens tend to posses during their high school years. I heard that this book is going to be part of a series called the WiHi books. WiHi is short for Washington Irving High, the school Ali and her friends attend. I think that is a catchy abbreviation, and it It sounds like WiFi to me which further modernizes the book in my opinion. Dancergirl is a fun, suspenseful thrill ride, and I am already looking forward to the next book in the series, Circle of Silence (Aug. 2012).

Please Note: Parents may want to know that there is some mild drug usage and drinking in a couple of scenes in the book. In my opinion it’s all pretty realistic to the high school experience, and I would have no problem letting my teen read it. With that said, parents should preview books before their children read them if they are worried about content.

Stop by tomorrow for a guest post from Carol M. Tanzman!

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