Black Swan meets Killing Eve – the brilliant new novel from Erin Kelly
Swan Lake is divided into the black acts and the white acts. The Prince is on stage for most of the ballet, but it’s the swans audiences flock to see. In early productions, Odette and Odile were performed by two different dancers. These days, it is usual for the same dancer to play both roles. Because of the faultless ballet technique required to master the steps, and the emotional range needed to perform both the virginal Odette and the dark, seductive Odile, this challenging dual role is one of the most coveted in all ballet. Dancers would kill for the part.
Ava Kirilova has reached the very top of her profession. After years and years of hard graft, pain and sacrifice as part of the London Russian Ballet Company, allowing nothing else to distract her, she is finally the poster girl for Swan Lake. Even Mr K – her father, and the intense, terrifying director of the company – can find no fault. Ava has pushed herself ahead of countless other talented, hardworking girls, and they are all watching her now.
But there is someone who really wants to see Ava fall …
(P)2021 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Swan Lake is divided into the black acts and the white acts. The Prince is on stage for most of the ballet, but it’s the swans audiences flock to see. In early productions, Odette and Odile were performed by two different dancers. These days, it is usual for the same dancer to play both roles. Because of the faultless ballet technique required to master the steps, and the emotional range needed to perform both the virginal Odette and the dark, seductive Odile, this challenging dual role is one of the most coveted in all ballet. Dancers would kill for the part.
Ava Kirilova has reached the very top of her profession. After years and years of hard graft, pain and sacrifice as part of the London Russian Ballet Company, allowing nothing else to distract her, she is finally the poster girl for Swan Lake. Even Mr K – her father, and the intense, terrifying director of the company – can find no fault. Ava has pushed herself ahead of countless other talented, hardworking girls, and they are all watching her now.
But there is someone who really wants to see Ava fall …
(P)2021 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Newsletter Signup
By clicking ‘Sign Up,’ I acknowledge that I have read and agree to Hachette Book Group’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Use
Reviews
Watch Her Fall is a triumph of storytelling, full of swooping passion and explosive twists that will take your breath away. I was entranced from the first page, losing my heart to the characters and swept up in their stories which were seamlessly intertwined in the way only a writer at the height of her powers can achieve. An absolute joy of a book
In what I believe is her best book to date, Erin Kelly leaps into the dark and enchanting world of Russian ballet with a dancer's precision. The mesmeric tale of Ava Kirilova unfolds like the darkest and most delicious fairytale. I read it in two sittings and found myself enraptured, transported, spun around and left dizzy by the final page
An immersive, addictive thriller set in the high-stakes world of ballet, with a jolting twist you absolutely won't see coming
Just finished Watch Her Fall - an elegant thriller set around the secretive world of elite Russian ballet. Powerful, ingenious and EXCITING. Loved peeking behind the curtain and learning about Swan Lake. Memorable characters and gasp-out-loud twists. SUPERB!
Kelly's characters could walk into a room and take a seat next to you and you'd know who they were, and her plots are the smartest in the industry, but with this one she somehow captured the intense, constrained, sinister world of ballet. I absolutely loved it
A captivating hall of mirrors of a novel, where nothing and no one is as they seem
I would read a shopping list from Erin Kelly, if it were set in the same rarified, cut-throat world in which she has set her latest novel. Watch Her Fall is not only a cleverly plotted, beautifully written thriller; it is also a mesmerising glimpse behind the curtain into a world few of us will ever see
Think Black Swan meets Killing Eve, with the most brilliant twist
Superbly dark, gloriously twisted and utterly seductive - this is Erin Kelly at her mind-bending best
Kelly's pirouetting plot is up there with her best
Erin Kelly plunges readers into the highly competitive world of ballet in Watch Her Fall
Thriller queen Kelly is back with a new novel about a dancer at the London Ballet Company . . . Think Black Swan but in book form
Bestselling crime novelist Kelly returns with a dark tale of obsession and ambition set in a prestigious ballet company and based around the story of Swan Lake
Immerse yourself in the claustrophobic, competitive world of ballet. Beautifully dark and complex. So good!
The new addictive thriller of 2021 . . . Gripping with a devilish twist
This was a wild ride! Erin Kelly's new book Watch Her Fall is a thrilling high-wire of twists and switchbacks! Brilliant
Watch Her Fall is a terrifically absorbing novel, rich in atmosphere, style and surprises - Erin Kelly once again leads her readers on a dark and merry dance, and they'll love her for it
Glitters with dark brilliance and portrays the complex, painful world of ballet with great authenticity. I loved it!
This thriller is being described as Killing Eve meets Black Swan - how amazing does that sound? Set in the world of ballet, it's about two rival dancers and the lengths they go to to get to the top
Watch Her Fall is an absolute masterclass in misdirection, the kind of book that you finish and then turn straight back to the beginning to see how on earth she did it . . . A central twist so ingenious that this reader gasped out loud . . . The pressured, high-stakes world of professional ballet is brilliantly evoked . . . The brilliant Watch Her Fall will take some beating
Watch Her Fall dances with artistic passion and intrigue, beauty and pain; the plot pirouettes in ways that leave you breathless. More than an exciting read - it is a dazzling performance. Brava, Erin Kelly!
Twisty and brilliant and completely absorbing - not only a masterclass of a thriller but also sneakily profound about identity, ambition and greed
Watch Her Fall is Erin Kelly's most ambitious and captivating book to date, an absolutely enthralling look at the dark underbelly of the ballet world, built into a shifting narrative of time and place that was so thrilling and unexpected that it made my head spin
It's awfully gripping and beautifully written
set in the cut-throat world of ballet - the perfect backdrop for a twisty thriller that's sure to leave you breathless
With its compelling arena, this dark thriller executes a fouetté turn half way through that will leave you breathless
This multi-layered, deftly written thriller set in the cut-throat world of ballet has all the ingredients of a must-read . . . Expect deceit and duplicity and one hell of a twist!
With major Black Swan vibes, this thriller is one of the best books we've read this year
Full of intrigue and secrets, this is set in the dazzling and claustrophobic ballet world
Kelly offers a nuanced account of the lengths to which dancers will go - or are driven to - when ambition is transmuted into obsession . . . Ava is a fascinating blend of control, power, and precision in the public sphere, but who is privately plagued by neuroses . . . A noir pas-de-deux that overflows with femmes fetales, but one written with a compassionate understanding of the intolerable pressures ballerinas must learn to live with
I was utterly immersed in this rarefied but cut-throat world. From the first page I was wrapped up in Ava's swooping, all-consuming passion and totally gripped by the explosive twists which held me to the very last page
A clever and brilliant thriller
Kelly's best yet . . . Genius twists and turns
A dark, brilliant read with the most amazing twist
Twist follows twist, like The Red Shoes rewritten by Patricia Highsmith
It seems so effortless . . . it's brilliant and you really do not guess what's coming
This dark and enticing thriller transports you on a journey filled with ingenious twists and turns at every corner. Just when you think you know what's happening, you realise everything is perhaps not quite as it seems, and you really won't predict what's coming. Packed with secrets, lies and mistaken identities, Watch Her Fall is a real crowd-pleaser that keeps you on your toes
The dark side of Swan Lake has inspired many books and films but this one will probably rate as one of the most original . . . Kelly's depiction of this claustrophobic and ambitious world is brutally convincing and her silky prose makes this an easy read. You don't have to be a dance expert to enjoy it
The author is known for her twisty, turny tales and this one showcases her great storytelling brilliantly
Set in a world of ambition and rivalry where someone is watching from the wings, the most shocking twists and secrets are revealed
Kelly's shapeshifting novel is by turns a social comedy, heist caper and whodunnit while remaining a dazzling psychological thriller
This is a twisty, emotional, intriguing account of minds and bodies under supreme stress
Watch Her Fall is Kelly's most ambitious novel yet, with one of her trademark clever, twisty plots, rendered twistier than ever
A new psychological thriller by Erin Kelly is always cause for celebration. And thankfully her trademarks - murky domestic setups, morally ambiguous protagonists on the verge of cracking, and a strong sense of place - are all present and correct in Watch Her Fall
Kelly paints a picture of a claustrophobic, rarefied, piercingly lonely world . . . Deliciously sinister and obsessive . . . with one hell of a twist
Cleverly constructed . . . a curtain call and bouquets all round
A whipsmart novel set in the world of top-flight ballet . . . The plot twists are abundant, the prose eloquent and vivid, but it's the relationship between Juliet and Max that gives the novel its beating heart. Your hope that the pair can find some form of happiness will keep you glued to this classy thriller
Psychological crime is the speciality of British writer Erin Kelly, and Watch Her Fall is a prime example of her work . . . this is bravura fare, with the ballet company depicted as a toxic world akin to that in the 2010 film Black Swan
Another chilling read from best-selling writer Erin Kelly
Impressive and beguiling psychological thriller
Told from several viewpoints in acts and interludes, the plot cleverly mirrors the story of the ballet. With some surprising twists and unexpected turns, it's a good psychological thriller
Erin Kelly brings the claustrophobic atmosphere of a ballet company brilliantly to life in a well-paced thriller with a killer twist
A stunner of a twist that's so unexpected that it will change the whole way you view the plot and its damaged characters . . . With suspense and intensity, Kelly explores the dark internal battles that ballerinas go through behind the curtain, but don't be fooled into thinking this is your typical Black Swan copycat rivalry-thriller. Watch Her Fall has hidden layers and a surprising emotional depth too . . . It is without doubt Erin Kelly's best novel yet
Addictive . . . switches skilfully between perspectives, and there's a clever twist that'll make you gasp
A shout from the rooftops type of book, and this is so special, I may be there for some time!
A brilliant character study as a young woman's ambition gradually transforms into a lethal obsession
A twisty psychological thriller set at a ballet company; shades of Black Swan