A Mysterious Tale of Circuses and Love

A story reminiscent of The Greatest Showman and Alice in Wonderland, this novel was quite a spellbinder. I have to admit that it certainly is not my favorite novel and dragged a bit at times. To focus on the negative first: there is a major lack of character development; I didn't really connect with any of the characters at all. There was a sense that the plot line was going to increase in action and interest, but it never really did. I kept waiting for it to get more interesting, and while it did in some areas, it remained kind of dry on the whole. There are also a lot of different time jumps in different places between different characters that began to get not only slightly annoying but confusing. But to focus more on positives, this author is highly gifted in her prose and use of description, adjectives, and metaphors. Every line is beautifully written and her settings can be vividly imagined by an reader. I also enjoyed the late 19th century setting and feel of the novel, what with description of high-society and dress. Overall, I would give this book 3 out of 5 stars. It was certainly an interesting if not fully-developed story.

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