Circus of Wonders

January 3, 2022
Macneal (The Doll Factory) returns with a colorful historical brimming with action and psychological conflict. Nell, 19, is ridiculed and feared in her village in 1860s England due to the birthmarks covering half her face and dappling her body. When Jasper Jupiter’s Circus of Wonders pitches its tent in their tiny settlement, Nell’s father drunkenly sells Nell to the megalomaniacal showman for £20. Jasper’s sensitive and bearlike brother Toby, haunted by guilt over an incident in the Crimean War that keeps him under Jasper’s thumb, becomes Nell’s champion and eventually her lover. Jasper, meanwhile, bills Nell as “The Queen of the Moon and Stars,” who, fitted with mechanical wings, flies on ropes above the heads of awestruck spectators. With performances in London, including one for Queen Victoria, Nell’s fame starts to surpass Jasper’s, leading to explosive confrontations between the two. Macneal successfully balances thrilling action sequences with poignant passages, particularly the tender descriptions of Toby and Nell’s relationship. The author brings her fully developed characters to life, highlighting the exploitation of people with visible differences during Victorian times. This makes for a worthy spectacle of its own. Agent: Madeleine Milburn, Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency.

January 1, 2022
The circus gives a young woman with a unique condition a chance to reinvent her story. Nell, who was born with a unique skin condition, feels "the familiar burn of eyes on her" as villagers react to the news that the circus is coming to their small town. She's used to being treated as if she was a "living curiosity," the marks on her skin separating her from the rest of the world except for her brother, Charlie. Nell's worst fears are realized when her father sells her to Jasper Jupiter's Circus of Wonders, helping the showman capture her the night before the circus travels on. While at first Nell feels like a caged animal, fighting to be free again, Jasper's vision of elevating Nell into a superstar--the amazing Nellie Moon, her skin speckled like the stars in the night sky--begins to change her perspective. "The dull reality of her life--the flower farm and the sea and Charlie--has begun to fog and vanish." Macneal develops an intimate tale of passion, longing, and self-preservation set amid a bustling Victorian-era London, where oddities draw an eager crowd and P.T. Barnum's performers are household names. This story is a slow burn, almost like a circus building toward its grand finale. Overburdened at first by overly descriptive language, the narrative becomes more captivating as Nell develops into a freethinking, inspired character. Jasper, the showman, thinks of the circus as "life, desire, amplified," and it's this desire reflected in the individual characters that will keep readers invested. Macneal does a solid job of weaving comparisons to Shelley's Frankenstein throughout; the performers are diminished to monsters at times and at others they are at risk of growing more powerful than the man who invented them. The complex characters, their backstories and satisfying trajectories, make up for flowery prose and plotlines spun and quickly unraveled. Don't be tricked; the circus is not the star of this show. Instead, larger-than-life characters draw a captive audience.

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January 1, 2022
Ostracized by her small village because of her skin condition, Nell longs for a life beyond the backbreaking work in the fields and the villagers' stares. Sold to Jasper Jupiter's Circus of Wonders by her father, Nell is afraid and intrigued. Performing, not as a sideshow attraction, but instead as the Queen of the Moon and Stars, Nell wears mechanical wings and dives from higher and higher platforms. Her fame grows as does her love for Toby, Jasper's brother, and Nell finally finds the acceptance she has been longing for her whole life. But Jasper's jealousy and his bad business deals threaten to take away everything Nell has worked hard for. With references to Frankenstein, "The Little Mermaid," and other tales, Macneal has written a soaring novel. The historical details are finely wrought, and hidden underneath the Victorian trappings is a wholly modern discourse on the manipulation of images to create a false narrative. A great pick for book clubs and all those seeking a wondrous story awash in atmospheric details and fully lived characters. Highly recommended for all libraries.

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Starred review from February 1, 2022

In a small coastal village in England, circa 1895, Nell lives a solitary life with her father and brother, picking flowers for a living. She faces a dim future because her skin is covered with birthmarks, which sets her apart from others. But then Jasper Jupiter's Circus of Wonders arrives. Jasper's brother Toby crosses paths with Nell, and is fascinated by her, but his efforts to save her from Jasper's clutches fail. Nell's father agrees to sell her to Jasper, sealing Nell's fate. Despite this, Nell soon realizes that the circus, full of wonders and oddities, is a place she could prosper, and prosper she does, going from "Leopard Girl" to "the Queen of the Moon and Stars." But when her fame becomes unprecedented, Jasper's jealousy threatens the circus's very livelihood. Macneal's (The Doll Factory) absorbing, atmospheric, and multilayered historical drama mesmerizes and dazzles. There is a steadily unfolding sense of foreboding as Jasper's bitterness threatens Nell's future and traps Toby between loyalty to his brother and love for Nell. VERDICT Macneal's lavish descriptions and vivid characterizations enrich the themes of exploitation, freedom, self-love, and redemption. A must for fans of historical fiction.--Julie Whiteley

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