Circus of Wonders
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Circus of Wonders
Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?
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See moreThe spellbinding novel from Elizabeth Macneal, author of the Sunday Times bestselling The Doll Factory.
The spellbinding new novel from Elizabeth Macneal, author of the Sunday Times bestselling The Doll Factory.
It is 1865 and in a coastal village in southern England, Nell picks violets for a living. Set apart from her community because of the birthmarks that pepper her skin, Nell keeps her head down and her sights small: her world is her beloved brother and devotion to the sea.
Then, Jasper Jupiter's Circus of Wonders arrives on the outskirts of the village. Nell keeps her distance, but the night after the circus has apparently left, she is kidnapped. Her father has sold her, promising Jasper Jupiter his very own leopard girl. It is the greatest betrayal of Nell's life, but as she comes to know the other performers and Jasper's quieter, gentler brother Toby, Nell begins to wonder if becoming part of the Circus of Wonders is the best thing that has ever happened to her.
Toby has always stuck to his brother's side: the shadow to his brother's luminous light. When Jasper served in the Crimean War, Toby followed with his camera, and they share a secret - hidden amongst the carnage of those battlefields - which binds them together.
But Toby is captivated by Nell. She has become Nellie Moon, the star of Jasper's show. In London she is written up in the papers as the eighth wonder of the world, figurines are cast in her image, and crowds rush to watch her soar through the air.
But who gets to tell Nell's story? And as she falls in love with Toby, can they plot their escape? As the world Jasper has created threatens to crash to the ground around him, Toby must decide where - finally - his loyalty lies.
This is a novel with a vivid, brilliant cast of characters and themes of creativity and ownership, beauty and power, success and crashing failure, and the Victorian obsession with spectacle.
Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
Elizabeth Macneal crafts a glittering and beautifully written novel that cements her reputation as a rising talent. Praised for its subtlety and originality by the Guardian and hailed as marvellous and captivating by critics, this utterly beguiling story shines with the sights and sounds of Victorian England. Reviews celebrate it as a brilliantly involving and exquisitely written triumph that is difficult to put down.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781529002553
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 09 June 2022
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Picador
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 24.0mm
Width: 130.0mm
Height: 197.0mm
Weight: 271g
Pages: 384
About the Author
Elizabeth Macneal was born in Scotland and now lives in East London. She is a writer and potter and works from a small studio at the bottom of her garden. The Doll Factory, Elizabeth's debut novel, was a Sunday Times bestseller, has been translated into twenty-nine languages and has been optioned for a major television series. Circus of Wonders is her second novel.
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