City of Night Birds: A Reese's Book Club Pick

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'A beautifully crafted must read' Jason Mott, author of Hell of a Book


A terrible accident forces Natalia to make a devastating choice about her future as a dancer, in this sweeping novel of love and redemption


Prima ballerina Natalia Leonova was once celebrated across the world, her signature bravura in demand on stages from St. Petersburg to Paris to New York. But at the top of her career, an accident forces her into sudden retirement. Injured and alone, she turns to pills and alcohol to numb the pain of her past, still haunted by her relationships with two gifted dancers, Dmitri and Alexander. These men were responsible for her soaring highs, her darkest hours and, ultimately, both played their part in her downfall.


So when Dmitri resurfaces with a tantalising offer for Natalia, she must decide what she is willing to sacrifice in order to dance again and for the chance to return to the great love of her life. Painting a vivid portrait of a world in which ruthless ambition, desire and sublime artistry collide, City of Night Birds unveils the making of a dancer with profound intimacy and breathtaking scope.


From the author of Beasts of a Little Land, winner of the Yasnaya Polyana Award

Reviews

'A rare jewel of a novelthat shimmers with beauty, wisdom, and artistry. Propelled by a devourable plot that kept me turning the pages long after I should have been asleep... I could not have loved it more.'CocoMellors,New York Times-bestselling authorofBlue Sisters

'Ambitious, elegant and deeply intellectual... Anovel of passion, pain, politics and art, which shows the full breadth of Kim's talent.' Pandora Sykes

'Juhea Kim'sescapistsecond novel takes you deep into the corps of the Mariinsky in St. Petersburg... [Kim] writeslush prose buttressed by vivid detail.'Vogue,'Best Books of 2024'

'Shimmering, seductive characters dance across the pages...Absorbing and passionate.'Meng Jin, author ofSelf-Portrait with Ghost

'A gorgeously written tale... Well-researched and immersive, the book is a testament to Kim's lifelong admiration of ballet.'Ms.Magazine

'Kim channels ballet's rigour and romantic intensity to depict a flawed heroine whose gift vaults her from an impoverished childhood to stardom and high-stakes rivalries.' Mail on Sunday

'Meticulously researched, brutally frank, and deliciously glamorous,City of Night Birdsenraptures as thoroughly as the ballerina at its beating heart.'Rachel Lyon, author ofFruit of the Dead

'A beautifully crafted must read.City of Night Birdsis a book that lingers long after the final pages have come and gone.'Jason Mott, author ofHell of a Book

'Riveting... Kim weaves in plot threads involving the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the tabloid press, and celebrity parties, as well as complications related to various expressions of sexual desire to show that no form of art can exist separately from the complexity of life... Another brilliant page-turner from Kim... Written in sumptuous prose, Kims novel is a feast for the senses.' Kirkus (starred review)

'A sweeping portrait of an artist-as-a-young-dancer rich in all the intricacies of perfecting art and performance against relentless odds, physical, emotional, and so deeply personal.' Booklist

'Kim delivers all the juicy drama readers have come to expect from a ballerinas tale... The results will likely keep dance fans ravenously turning pages... A welcome addition to the literary dance canon.' Los Angeles Times

'City of Night Birdsis a deeply emotional portrayal of a dancer past the peak of her abilities, trying desperately to regain her sense of self after her body, her loved ones and her lifes work have let her down... Utterly immersive... For anyone who has ever been transfixed by the stage,City of Night Birdsis not one to miss.' BookPage

'Kim's lyrical, cinematic writing kidnaps the senses from the moment they meet protagonist Natalia Leonova... The greatness of City of Night Birds made this reader lament its ending, and hope for another Juhea Kim novel, and another.' Washington Post

'Impressive With painterly prose, Kim takes readers to St. Petersburg, Russia, following a hot-blooded, ambitious ballerina as she pursues greatness and redemption on the stage.' San Francisco Chronicle,'Best Books of 2024'

'City of Night Birds has occupied my imagination because she does what the old Russian stalwarts do, but in this lyrical, beautiful way.' BBC Arts Hour

Author Bio

Juhea Kimis the author of the internationally bestselling novelBeasts of a Little Land(Oneworld 2021), which has been published around the world. It won the Yasnaya Polyana Award and was a finalist for the Dayton Literary Peace Prize, and is currently being adapted into a television series. Kim earned her BA in Art and Archaeology from Princeton University. Her writing has been published inGranta,Times Literary Supplement, TheIndependent,Zyzzyva, Guernicaand elsewhere. Born in South Korea and raised in Portland, Oregon, Kim now lives in London.