Name: Sheila Goicea's review of The Redpoint Crux by Morgan Shamy
Item: The Redpoint Crux
Rating: 5
Author: Sheila Goicea

Morgan Shamy

"Dark and achingly beautiful, The Redpoint Crux will break your heart then make you whole again. Shamy is a true storyteller with a gift for weaving wounded characters with twisting plots and a gorgeous, haunting world." —Evelyn Skye, New York Times bestselling author of The Crown’s Game "An addictive mystery woven into a tapestry of lush theatre and ballet lore." —Wendy Higgins, New York Times Bestselling Author Fans of The Phantom of the Opera and Black Swan will enjoy this thrilling debut. When Megan Van Helsburg gets kicked off the U.S.A. Climbing Team, she has no choice but to return home and leave her climbing career behind. With no coach, no money, and no prospects, she joins the corps de ballet determined to improve her strength and agility. But the ballet theater is in dire straits. Not only does a series of murders break loose, but the ballerinas are becoming deathly thin and brain-dead. As Megan investigates, she meets Bellamy, a tortured young man who lives beneath the depths of the theater. Megan falls hard and fast for Bellamy, who becomes her mentor, but something is off about him. It isn't until the company announces they're doing Giselle for the fall performance that Megan realizes the parallels between the ghost story and the lives around her. Megan must find a way to not only save her climbing career, but balance her feelings for Bellamy, and stop the murders and dying girls before she, too, is numbered among the dead.

The Redpoint Crux

Sheila Goicea

I'm excited to be a part of the THE REDPOINT CRUX blog tour with The Fantastic Flying Book Club from June 3rd - June 9th, 2020!

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher, The Parliament Press, in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! In no way does this affect my rating or review.



All included quotes have been taken from an ARC and may not match the finished publication. 

Content Warning: Death, Murder, Human Experimentation, Mental illness
She was done with brothers who reminded her of her dead father. She was done with the dance world that reminded her of her failure. She was done with strange men who confused her, intrigued her, and threatened her.
And she was done with music boxes.
Written by the gorgeous ballerina Morgan Shamy, this The Phantom of the Opera/Black Swan retelling easily has made it to one of my top reads for 2020! This book is everything that I needed in a book right now. Can one ever go wrong with a The Phantom of the Opera retelling? I don’t think so. Replacing the iconic Christine Daae is Red, a driven rock-climbing/ex-ballerina. Set between both the United States and Halifax, Nova Scotia, the story pattern feels “split” in a way between the contemporary world, and one set in a dreamlike past. The main character’s story arch mirrors a similar feel, with her rock-climbing career in the present and her ballet with the theatre pulling her into the past. Megan (Red) struggles with the push-and-pull of her life as she tries to leave her past, and its hurts, behind.
She had left the ballet world because she was afraid--afraid of not being the best--and she had run to something that came easier to her, even though she had a gift. She always ran when something was hard. She didn’t know how to face something head-on--including her own emotions.
After being kicked off the U.S.A. Climbing Team, Red’s world takes a sudden nose-dive. Desperate to find her focus, she makes risky decisions that ultimately almost get her killed. After a rock-climbing accident, Red meets her “Angel of Music” who saves her. Thinking it was all a dream, she returns home to find that her coach and boyfriend is quitting, as their inappropriate relationship due to her being underaged was becoming noticed. With nowhere left to go and no sponsors, Red is forced to head back to Nova Scotia. 

Upon arriving, unwanted memories begin to surface. A botched ballet career, the horrific death of her father, and the mental break of her mother begin to haunt her. Despite being reunited with her brother Nathan, the theater and her past are too much. Doing what she does best, Red tries to pawn off her belongings to get enough money to head back to the States. When the mysterious bridegroom killer--the man that killed her father--begins another killing-spree, Red is diverted from her flight and onto a path to find the killer with the aid of her mysterious masked savior. 
She wanted to know why he wore that eye patch. She wanted to know his life story. Why he lived down here. What this...this feeling was between them when they danced. The feeling was warm. Comforting. Frightening. Intense. She liked it. She wanted this feeling to last forever.
As she becomes more familiar with Bellamy, the mysterious eyepatch-wearing young man living beneath the theater in her father’s secret lab, she slowly falls for his dark allure. Reluctant, yet caring beneath his threatening exterior, Bellamy helps Red confront issues in her past, and encourages her towards healing. Red ultimately must face her biggest hurdle--her mother--and come to forgive hurts that she has caused.

Overflowing with atmosphere, The Redpoint Crux will not disappoint, as the gruesome mystery ties in healing, but also devastating heartache. With a serial killer on the loose, a mysterious “phantom,” ghostly ballerinas, and so much more, this vivid tale won’t be one that’s forgotten soon. For anyone familiar with The Phantom of the Opera, the multitude of correlations won’t be easily missed and were retold in a delectable way. Get ready to have your heart broke.

Vulgarity: Minimal.
Sexual content: Minimal - Kissing.
Violence: Moderate.

My Rating: ★★★★1/2

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Aleena Korell

The Redpoint Crux is advertised for fans of the Night Circus and The Raven Boys. This intrigued me, having loved both of these books and their dark, dreamy magic. I was drawn in by The Redpoint Crux's intriguing description of a horror-tinged mystery full of murder and intrigue within a ballet theatre setting-- but after reading this one, the description and comparisons seem misleading, and it seems to me much more accurate to market this one as a non-fantasy (despite comparisons to the contrary) Phantom of the Opera retelling. 

I love the Phantom of the Opera, so once I saw the parallels in the narrative, I went into this optimistically. However, due to pacing, writing style, and no fantasy (outside of one moment of brief and unexplained something-that-might-be-magic), it ended up not being my cup of tea. 

If you love the Phantom of the Opera and are down for a retelling that, although told with ballerinas instead of opera singers, sticks rather closely to the source with a few extra twists-- I might recommend this one to you!

Thank you Netgalley for an ARC.

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher and netgalley. Thanks! All opinions are my own!

Book: The Redpoint Crux

Author: Morgan Shamy

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 3.5/5

Recommended For...: Phantom of the Opera retelling lovers and mystery readers

Publication Date: June 9, 2020

Genre: YA Mystery

Recommended Age: 16+ (violence, death, gore, verbal abuse TW, mental health)

Publisher: The Parliament House

Pages: 290

Synopsis: When Megan Van Helsburg gets kicked off the U.S.A. Climbing Team, she has no choice but to return home and leave her climbing career behind. With no coach, no money, and no prospects, she joins the corps de ballet determined to improve her strength and agility. But the ballet theater is in dire straits. Not only do a series of murders break loose, but the ballerinas are becoming deathly thin and brain-dead. As Megan investigates, she meets Bellamy, a tortured young man who lives beneath the depths of the theater. Megan falls hard and fast for Bellamy, who becomes her mentor, but something is off about him.

It isn't until the company announces they're doing Giselle for the fall performance that Megan realizes the parallels between the ghost story and the lives around her. Megan must find a way to not only save her climbing career, but balance her feelings for Bellamy, and stop the murders and dying girls before she, too, is numbered among the dead.

Review: For the most part this was a good book. The characters were well developed and world building was well done. The book did well to discuss the sensitive topics of mental health in my opinion and the murders definitely held my intrigue.

However, I thought that there was too much telling the reader what happens instead of showing it. The book also had funky writing. Like, some of the sad moments didn’t feel sad? It was kinda weird. The book also was a bit too fast for me. I also felt like there was a lot going on for this type of book and felt like it either neither to be expanded and slowed down or broke up into other books.

Verdict: It was a good book!

Jess Ostrander

Phantom of the Opera meets Black Swan in The Redpoint Crux. Thank you to the author for sending me an arc to review!
Megan "Red" Van Helsburg left her life behind to join the USA climbing team. But when she's kicked off, she has no choice but to return home to Halifax, and the theater that she grew up in. She rejoins the ballet corps, thinking she can rebuild her strength and get back to climbing. But the theater is struggling. A killer from the past seems to be striking again, and all the men in the company are terrified of being next. Then the dancers start to get sick, getting thinner and thinner and seeming brain dead. While investigating, Megan meets the mysterious Bellamy, who lives beneath the theater. Megan begins to fall hard for Bellamy as he trains her, but she can't shake the feeling that something is off about him. As things continue to spiral out of control, Megan must find a way to save everyone before it's too late.

Okay. So this book totally hooked me and kept me up way past my bedtime! You really can't go wrong with Phantom retellings! There's lots of parallels, but still enough unique elements to make this story its own! Red was a great character. She's haunted by her past, but learns that she can't keep running away from it. She grows as the book goes on, and I liked that. Also loved Bellamy from the start. He was a really interesting character. The mysteries of the book keep overlapping and growing together and it was fun to try to figure everything out. At least one of my predictions was wrong though, so it was nice that things weren't so predictable! I did feel like the ending was a bit rushed, but it wasn't that bothersome. Things tied together well, but still left me feeling heartbroken and wanting more. This book will definitely give you the feels, but I think it's worth it! 
It's hauntingly beautiful and will keep you on the edge of your seat!!

Sheila Goicea &
The Redpoint Crux by Morgan Shamy

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Sheila Goicea &The Redpoint Crux by Morgan Shamy

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Sheila Goicea &
The Redpoint Crux by Morgan Shamy