The Turnout: A Novel

"Sisters Dara and Marie Durant run their family ballet school, with Dara’s husband, Charlie, once a student there. When Marie accidentally burns one of their studios down, a “dance mom” recommends a contractor named Derek. The bulky, leering Derek transfixes them all so that renovations go far beyond necessary, just as ballet bodies turn out far past possibility. But what hold does Derek have on Marie, and what hold does Marie have on Dara and Charlie? As the annual clock ticks down to Nutcracker Week, all will be revealed, building up to a pain as exquisite as being en pointe."