Gillian Kincade is a rising New York ballet star. When Jacob Ferrar—artistic director of a small, regional company—casts Gilly in his compelling ballet, it seems like a match made in heaven. But unexpected challenges and career conflicts soon have the couple questioning whether they’re truly following God’s direction – or their own.
Average Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars(4.5 out of 5 stars)
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4.5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by AJH (Modesto, CA), November 17, 2009
I really liked this book. It had such a great story line and side stories too. How lives can intertwine and also how important it is to be a witness. Made me either want to be a ballerina or meet a artistic director!! Great read!!
4 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Novel Teen Book Reviews (Oregon), October 14, 2009
Review by Gretchen Hoffman
I love ballet. Although I never got past intermediate ballet class as a kid, I love going to see dance performances, and if there’s a book about dancers, you bet it’ll pique my interest.
Gillian Kincade is an upcoming ballet star in the New York dance scene. Jacob Ferrar left the glitz of performing to become an artistic director, focusing on dance that glorifies God. When Jacob offers Gilly the lead in his play, she has to decide where she’s supposed to be. But after an accident, the dancing future for both becomes uncertain, and they must learn to trust where God leads.
This book was just as fantastic as I expected it to be. (The cover alone made me want to read this! Especially since I love ballet.) The main characters were so fun, and the secondary characters were just as intriguing and well written as the main ones. I especially liked how real everyone was. Gillian and Jacob were not perfect by any means—they struggled with how to express their Christianity in everyday life and where the line is between tolerance of others’ lifestyles and still sticking up for morality and truth. Sometimes it seems like the characters in books have it all figured out, but Gilly and Jacob didn’t, and the book didn’t end with them suddenly being able to perfectly balance their ideals with non-Christians around them. Life doesn’t always have simple answers, and this book showed that. Plus, Ms. White did an excellent job of showing God’s miracles. Although miracles seem rare nowadays, God is always faithful, and miracles today are just as real as they ever were. An excellent read. I will be getting more of Elizabeth White’s books for sure.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by chandra lynn (PA), September 30, 2009
This love story was a pleasure to read. The characters were creative and endearing. I loved both Gillian and Jacob; two people with faith and flaws. From the first page of the book the reader is drawn into a story that becomes both a journey and a dance. Gillian and Jacob have their own personal issues, weaknesses to resolve, as well as professional and relational. The settings of the New York ballet and a regional dance company in Alabama were both new and refreshing. I enjoyed every page, every conflict and resolution, and the sweet romance touched my heart. Clear your weekend, for once you begin this novel you will not want to stop until the dance is complete. Enjoy!
4 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Linda H (Sumrall, MS), September 15, 2009
Fans of Elizabeth White won't be disappointed with this one. She shows us how God can use Christians as a shining light no matter what their occupation...even the world of ballet. Gilly's faith shown through even when she was faced with adversity. What a role model for all of us!
4 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Amydeanne (Canada), September 11, 2009
Every little girls dream is to be a ballerina, isn’t it? I remember dancing for many years imagining what it would be like to be one. Unfortunately I have elephant feet and didn’t get far (only took me 11 years to figure that out hehe)
So when Gillian (Gilly as her friends call her) get the opportunity to dance as a soloist there is no looking back – a whole new world opens up. But even more important to Gillian is her faith in Christ and how she displays it to her dance friends and family. To complicate her world she finds there may be more to life than dancing…
Tour de Force by Elizabeth White is definitely modern and thought provoking work of fiction. I was surprised by some of the topics and characters in her book (ie. her dance partner is gay, and her friend has an abortion) but in all honestly I do think it is a realistic look at the dance world and the characteristics of our fallen world.
I enjoyed White’s heroine and her strong characteristics, yet innocence still in tact. I like that she presented the struggles right out and didn’t side-step them but dealt with them.
A possible stumble for some people maybe that there are a lot of ballet terms in it. I like that White gives you the list of terms if your unfamiliar with them (it shows she knows her stuff), but it is easier if you actually know what they are or you’ll be flipping a lot.
The only thing that bothered me was the minor detail of a minor character Graham the six year old nephew of the leading man Jacob(his sister died and he was the guardian). He reminded me more of my three year old instead of an actual six year old. He could have been cast as a three year old with the same effect. Anyhow, like I said minor detail lol
If you like raw emotion, a bit of romance, and some definite “issues” to be dealt with you’ll enjoy this coming of age book a lot!
4 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Jennifer @ Quiverfullfamily.com (Canada), July 30, 2009
When I was growing up, you had to look hard to find a little girl who didn’t harbor dreams of becoming a ballerina one day. While mine may have been more low-key than that of most girls, I did have pretty wallpaper with chubby ballerinas on it in multi-coloured costumes in a plethora of positions. When a belief that I was clumsy put the binders on my ballerina dreams, my love for dance went undercover. I devoured any movie prominently featuring dance and lived vicariously through Ballet Shoes. It’s no wonder I couldn’t resist reading Elizabeth White’s Christian ballerina romance Tour de Force.
White drops her Christian ballerina smack-dab in the center of a profession well known for it’s cut-throat competitiveness, sexual immorality and the fanatical dedication of its dancers (even to the point of self-harm). Gillian Kincade (Gilly) is a talented young dancer who has just made soloist with Ballet New York. When Jacob Ferrar, the artistic director of the Birmingham Ballet Theatre sees her dance, the seed of an entirely new Christian ballet is formed in his mind.
As Gilly and Jacob brainstorm the new project at a distance, a tender romance begins to bloom between them. When a disastrous first performance of a scene from the new ballet for Jacob’s board of directors casts everything into doubt, both Gilly’s career and the growing feelings between the pair reach an impasse.
Tour de Force is a fairly straightforward, sweet romance that remains rather straight-laced despite the risqué profession it portrays. The moral pitfalls of the ballet world are clearly presented while never becoming explicit. Jacob’s own sin-filled past as an unbeliever are present in guardedness and caution in his character and Gilly’s interactions with her unbelieving fellow dancers are both gentle and grace-filled while standing uncompromisingly for God’s standards.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Deborah (Reston, VA), July 29, 2009
This was one of the most wonderful stories I have read in a while. It's been a while since I've been to see a ballet live and I really miss it. There's nothing like watching the beauty, grace and elegance of the dancers on stage and seeing the wonderful performance right before your eyes. This book made me feel like I was watching a carefully choreographed dance with words. Gilly and Jonathan had wonderful chemistry together and I could picture both of them dancing together on both stage and in real life. They were characters that grew throughout the book and their transformations were intriguing to read. I enjoyed learning about the ballet and how hard it is to be a dancer and the struggles one has to go through to make it to the top.
While the book has a strong faith based message, it is not preachy. It handles topics such as abortion and homosexuality with grace and tactfulness and does condemn those that choose those lifestyles. I really enjoyed seeing how the situation with Alexandra was handled. Too often in Christian fiction, there's always a cop-out ending with people getting away with things wrongfully. However, this time I was delightfully pleased with how everything played out, there was enough to satisfy mysnarky side with forgiveness and mercy being displayed as well. It's always nice to see authors putting in recurring characters in their books for their long time fans. I enjoyed seeing Laurel and Cole make appearances in this book. It's like seeing long lost friends again. This is another wonderful book from Elizabeth White and I'm looking forward to reading her next book.
5 out of 5 stars
Reviewed by Mona Walker (Los Angeles, CA), July 08, 2009
I read "Tour de Force" when school finished for me in mid-June. It was great! I couldn’t put it down! I’m sure my husband didn’t like it when dinner wasn’t ready because I was reading and couldn’t stop! It really was a great book. I passed it on to my daughter-in-law and she just finished it. She is going to pass it on to my other son's girlfriend in Seattle when they go visit them this week. Then I’ll get it back from her and pass it around some more here in LA.
Thanks for writing and using your gifts to inspire and challenge people to walk with God daily!
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