Even though I read Shiny Broken Pieces two years after Tiny Pretty Things, I enjoyed this sequel. It was surprisingly easy to recall the major events of the first book and immerse myself in this elegant, cutthroat world once more.

Charaipotra and Clayton did very well balancing the development of the three protagonists, Gigi, June, and Bette. Gigi struggles through the aftermath of her horrific accident while trying to be the best ballerina she can be. Bette is determined to clear her name, but her success is soon tainted when a vengeful rival returns. June wants to succeed in the industry and keep her boyfriend, though everything is up in the air when her eating disorder spirals. All three of them felt deeply flawed, and realistic because of that. Some especially prominent side characters could be described the same way.

If I had to describe this novel in one word, it would be intense. There’s never a dull moment with these ballerinas. It’s impressive enough to me that people actually have the stamina for such a strenuous activity, as I’m not much more than a gay potato myself. And then here are these girls, eager to fit in some sabotage before their warmup stretches. I’m not sure if I should be alarmed or impressed, or maybe some combination of the two.

My primary issue — my only issue, really — is that so much of the story felt pointless. There’s so much drama and pettiness, so many instances of sabotage gone too far, and for what? I understand that the stakes are high, that these girls will do anything to achieve their dreams, but there’s no need to get the police or EMTs involved. That’s taking it too far, and sometimes I felt that the scheming overshadowed the dancing. The performance they trained, auditioned, and trained more for lasted just a few pages toward the very end of the book.

To be quite honest, I nearly rated this two stars, but I bumped it up to three purely because it was fun. Now, I don’t support any of the antics in this story, but I do, without a doubt, support stories that I can devour half of in a matter of hours. I support stories that rile me the way this one did — I was so salty about the way I thought the book was going to end, and then the authors pulled the rug from under my feet. It isn’t the emotional reaction I usually have when reading, but in most cases, causing an emotional reaction in readers is a good thing, an indication of skill.

I might not remember much about Shiny Broken Pieces in six months, and overall, it wasn’t my favorite. But Charaipotra and Clayton wrote an intense, intriguing conclusion to their duology, and it did have a few redeeming qualities. I look forward to reading more from them in the future, individually and together.

Representation:
• Gigi is black.
• June is Korean and has an eating disorder.
• There are a couple of queer side characters, though no labels are mentioned that I can recall.
• There are many side characters of color — some Korean girls and a Japanese girl immediately come to mind.

CW: racism, disordered eating/purging, bullying and harassment, attempted suicide, teacher/student relationship