Tour de Force

Reviewed by Cindy Loven Gilly Kincaide, is an up and coming ballet dancer, with a bright future in New York. A small town girl from Alabama, she is a devout Christian, who lives her life out loud, with a positive witness to her fellow ballet troupe. An accident to another dancer places her in a lead role, which in turn thrusts her into two prominent ballets with lead dance positions. I at first struggled getting into this book, becoming bogged down with the ballet terms, but I persevered and found a wonderful story. My personal tastes would have been fine, with subtle references to the ballet terms, instead of the in depth terms used. The story unfolds with a former dancer Jacob Ferrar, now an artistic director of a ballet company, "discovering" Gilly for a part in the Nutcracker and even more important, wanting her to dance a original ballet he was developing for her in particular. However an accident, during a presentation to the board, threatens to end Gilly's career, and thrusts her into a whirlwind of confusion and faith testing situations. This story will totally hold your interest as you follow along to see what develops between Gilly and Jacob. Your faith will grow as your see God work in each of their lives. This book is definitely worth reading. 326 pages [...]

I have waiting for Elizabeth White's new book for months. First because I love her writing, and secondly because it involves ballet! I have long been a fan of the ballet, the dancing, the music, and how it all comes together, beautiful. Tour De Force features a character we have met before if you have read Elizabeth's book Off the Record. Laurel's sister Gilly is the main character. She is a fun spitfire character with a heart for the Lord. We also get to meet Jacob, who is a handsome, Godly man who loves his family and the ballet. We also get to meet some great characters such as Victoria and Dimitri. The driving force behind this book is the characters. We get to know each of the characters, where they are in life and where they are in their relationship, or lack thereof, with the Lord. One of my favorite things about Elizabeth's books is her development of her characters. You get to know Gilly and Jacob, their struggles, their triumphs, and their growth. Tour De Force takes place in Alabama and New York. It was fun to see the differences in the culture between the two places, it is very distinctively different and Elizabeth does a fabulous job of showing the differences but keeping it realistic. It was also fun to get to know Gilly and Jacob's families and how they were important to them. If you like character driven books full of romance, emotions, stumbles, and triumphs you will love Tour De Force!

Using art to tell a story--that's what the characters did in this delightful book that takes us into the world of NY professional ballet and gives us a realistic look behind the scenes--the good, the bad and the ugly. For a few hours I was transported to the world of dance--the beauty, the grace, the pain, the backstabbing, the jealousy--and enjoyed every minute of it. You moms of ballerinas--this is the book for you. I could not put it down.

Elizabeth White's newest book "Tour de Force" was WONDERFUL. I loved learning about the world of professional ballet and how competative it is. What it takes to be a professional ballerina. Elizabeth provides a glossery of terms but it's not overwhelming to the story. Tour de Force centers around Gillian Kincade (Laural Kincade's little sister from Off the Record) and Jacob Ferrar. Gilly was a great character. Full of life, strong and loveable. She applied her Christian beliefs and love to those around her in a tangible way. Especially to her friend Victoria. Jacob Ferrar was a great torchered hero. A man with a past that he would like to forget. His is strong, kind and protective of those he loves. Both characters are well drawn and come to life off the pages of the book. The relationship between Jacob & Gilly was believeable and well paced. We also get to see Tucker McGaughan (Cole McGaughan's brother from Off the Record). He is vying for Gilly's attention as well. They have known each other for a long time. Who will she choose in the end? The story keeps you turning pages and there is some good romantic tension along the way. You'll also find some of that good old fashioned southern humor that you come to expect from an Elizabeth White book along with tackling some of life's tougher issues. I enjoyed Tour de Force, I think you will too.

We first met Gillian Kincade in Elizabeth White's book Off the Record. Tour de Force brings Gilly back into our lives. In Tour de Force Gilly has grown and matured and is living in New York City as a dancer. White does an excellent job of writing a captivating story about the life Gilly has chosen to live and the people that surround her. The book moves between light-hearted banter and serious dialogue about life, culture and faith as Gilly struggles to find her place as Christian and ballerina in the world of dance. It's a must read for all White fans both ones that have read her books in the past or for the first time reader.