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Pretending to Dance
- Narrated by: Susan Bennett
- Length: 12 hrs and 45 mins
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Pretending to Dance
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Summary
When the pretending ends, the lying begins....
It's the summer of 1990, and 14-year-old Molly Arnette lives with her extended family on 100 acres in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The summer seems idyllic at first. The mountains are Molly's playground, and she's well loved by her father, a therapist famous for books he's written about a method called 'Pretend Therapy'; her adoptive mother, who has raised Molly as her own; and Amalia, her birth mother who also lives on the family land. The adults in Molly's life have created a safe and secure world for her to grow up in.
But Molly's security begins to crumble as she becomes aware of a plan taking shape in her extended family - a plan she can't stop and that threatens to turn her idyllic summer into a nightmare.
Pretending to Dance by Diane Chamberlain, the best-selling author of The Silent Sister, is a fascinating and deftly woven novel that reveals the devastating power of secrets.
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Critic reviews
"Tightly written with a great plot, this book will keep you hooked." ( Fabulous Magazine)
What listeners say about Pretending to Dance
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- anasta
- 22-01-22
Good story
A satisfying listen with a well moulded plot. The characters are believable and it is must have been quite a job for the author Diane Chamberlain to work out what it must have been like to be 14 again [with all that entails from the angst a teenager has to go through] and write the main protagonist from this age! The theme and plot do work because it is based on learning through repetition of circumstance.
I liked it and it is another of Diane Chamberlain's good stories.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Lou
- 04-11-15
Beautiful performance.
I guessed the twist. And I thought the main character was selfish. But by design. Neither of these things made the book any less enthralling. Loved it.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- elfisher
- 23-10-15
Beautiful story, heart felt and captivating
This is a beautiful story of personal development and really tough choices. I loved the honesty of the characters and the easily imagined back drop. Susan was a perfect narrator with an age appropriate voice. I have personally and professionally related to this book as I am a Therapist and a girl who also grew up loving New Kids On The Block! It reminds me of Judy Blume and Freya North. Love them both.
Easy to read (listen to) yet fulfilling.
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Atheana
- 03-05-20
Another good read but perhaps not the best
I have mixed feelings about this book, primarily because of the lack of clarity on various points throughout the book and also because I wasn’t really crazy about the main character, Molly.
I too have MS and can totally relate to where the father and therefore the story is coming from. Also been there, done it and got a few of those T-shirts when it comes to the question of wanting to stop the merry go round and get off. However, it was unclear how exactly “everybody” got in on the act of assisting with the father’s exit. I don’t know if it was me and I just didn’t “get it” or there were other loose ends throughout the book which didn’t really tie up.
Aside from the lack of clarity on the family’s involvement en masse in the fathers exit, the story was also vague on the father’s relationship with Almalia and how it resulted in a child.
Also I found the young Mollie to be totally self absorbed and quite frankly immature. Her obsession with Chris was irritating. As for the older Mollie, as she aged and grew out of her teenage tantrums, she continued to display the same degree of self absorption in that she couldn’t understand and appreciate her fathers need to leave his miserable life.
All in all, it was a fairly good book but perhaps not the best.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Fee
- 20-12-20
Just an easy listen
It’s just a book about lives and most will probably be able to relate to parts of it. I don’t know what genre it is but it’s not my usual choice.
As I said, just an easy listen. What we all need while the world around us is crazy.
I’m going to listen to a murder and mayhem book next because this, if it is possible, has made me miss my family even more. Christmas 2020!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Sue
- 15-03-17
A new take on coming of age teenage angst. A good story, well told
This American family drama has it all: family secrets, teenage rebellion and its outcome, and terminal illness. It deals with some very difficult subject matter and still delivers a satisfying story with a good ending. Ultimately a heartwarming story which is well told. I enjoyed it very much.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
- Christineb
- 17-04-20
Can't deny living Diane Chamberlain
This is not one of my favourites I considered Molly's actions to be self-indulgent causing years of estrangement and pain Narrated well
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Diane H. Smith
- 13-02-17
Absorbing and involving
I thoroughly enjoyed this thought provoking and involving book. As with most modern fiction there were areas which stretched credulity but overall it was a lovely, true read. Well narrated and well crafted. I shall look to read more by Diane Chamberlain.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Linda Hopkins
- 02-12-22
Family secrets
I liked the way Diane Chamberlain, told the story of the young Molly and the older Molly. The tape would appeal to women of any age. I gave the story line 4, I enjoyed the plot but it could have been condensed, but worthy of four stars.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Hazel
- 07-02-17
Started great but sickly sweet unbearable ending
I loved the adventures of the young Molly but the present Molly came across as pathetically hard done by with a constant 'woe is me' attitude. The subject matter of euthanasia could have been so great and gritty but it wasn't It was disappointingly dull. The ending was also a real let down, all lose ends are tied up in a cheesy big pink sickly bow. 1...2...3..group hug!!!
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1 person found this helpful