Scan barcode
A review by rrickman33
The Ladies of the Secret Circus by Constance Sayers
5.0
OK WOW YES THIS BOOK! This is what I wanted Lost Apothecary to be, so why is it not more popular?!
We start on Lara's wedding day when her groom goes missing... and then his car is found but no him. Lara has a little secret though, she has magic. She comes from a long line of circus performers dating back to 1920s Paris and a very famous, very mysterious "Le Cirque Secret" or Secret Circus. We follow Lara and her magical mom, Aubrey, on a journey through America and Paris to solve an old family secret. It's related to her missing groom I promise!
In 1920s Paris we follow Lara and Aubrey's ancestor, Cecile, as a member of this secret circus. She frequents restaurants with famous authors and painters like Picasso and Hemingway. This era of the book was full of old timey Paris glamour and I was here for it.
This book is SMART. The first 100 pages I truly was wondering where this was going, not everything was making sense or seemed to matter but it does. Every character and every plot point comes together in the end, you just have to keep reading! The story really picks up in Part II when the Paris trip takes place so at least get to there before you judge this book.
There was a lot of French in this book and it made my French Minor heart so happy. It did explain the French if there was no direct translation, Sayers rarely left the reader scratching their head at the French used. There were a lot of info dumps in this book, if 50 pages of details had been taken out it would have really been stellar but I loved it all the same.
If you're looking for a book on a secret, dark magic, devil circus, in 1920s Paris AND a modern day true crime, rock and roll, family drama THEN LOOK NO FARTHER. This book had so much to love and was such a joy to read.
We start on Lara's wedding day when her groom goes missing... and then his car is found but no him. Lara has a little secret though, she has magic. She comes from a long line of circus performers dating back to 1920s Paris and a very famous, very mysterious "Le Cirque Secret" or Secret Circus. We follow Lara and her magical mom, Aubrey, on a journey through America and Paris to solve an old family secret. It's related to her missing groom I promise!
In 1920s Paris we follow Lara and Aubrey's ancestor, Cecile, as a member of this secret circus. She frequents restaurants with famous authors and painters like Picasso and Hemingway. This era of the book was full of old timey Paris glamour and I was here for it.
This book is SMART. The first 100 pages I truly was wondering where this was going, not everything was making sense or seemed to matter but it does. Every character and every plot point comes together in the end, you just have to keep reading! The story really picks up in Part II when the Paris trip takes place so at least get to there before you judge this book.
There was a lot of French in this book and it made my French Minor heart so happy. It did explain the French if there was no direct translation, Sayers rarely left the reader scratching their head at the French used. There were a lot of info dumps in this book, if 50 pages of details had been taken out it would have really been stellar but I loved it all the same.
If you're looking for a book on a secret, dark magic, devil circus, in 1920s Paris AND a modern day true crime, rock and roll, family drama THEN LOOK NO FARTHER. This book had so much to love and was such a joy to read.