by Strange ChemistryARC from Netgalley
Summary from Goodreads:
R. H. Ragona’s Circus of Magic is the greatest circus of Ellada. Nestled among the glowing blue Penglass—remnants of a mysterious civilisation long gone—are wonders beyond the wildest imagination. It’s a place where anything seems possible, where if you close your eyes you can believe that the magic and knowledge of the vanished Chimaera is still there. It’s a place where anyone can hide.
Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist’s apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star.
But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada.
Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist’s apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star.
But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada.
Thoughts:
This is a really hard review to write because after finishing the book, I thought long and hard what was I going to say about it and honestly my mind just goes completely blank.
I really wanted to like this book and was eagerly waiting for its release since last year. In all honesty, I was expecting a magical journey filled with extraordinary antics of the circus performers but the magical elements fell short. Instead I got a deeply confused child trying to find a place where he actually belongs.
It's not truly a bad book and there are some wonderful secondary characters in the mix, notably the two aerialist; Arik and Aenea who took Micah under their wings and Drystan the serious clown with a secret past.
But the issues surrounding Micah is quite a controversial one and I'm left wondering if younger readers will understand the underlying message that the author try to convey. I do think that she deserves a credit for trying to touch such a taboo subject. However, some elements are confusing. For example, it might be good to have a map of all the places surrounding Ellada. There are mentions of Byssia, Michada and other far reaching places but no further explanations regarding it. A map would be really helpful. And I'm still trying to figure out what the whole chimaera thing and why does Micah the only who can see it? Hopefully such questions will be answered in the next installment. I'm also so curious on how the writer will address the whole Micah/Gene issue. If this was a contemporary YA dealing with such topic, I'm sure quite a few eyebrows will be raised.
Verdict: 3 stars.
In my Debut Author & Fantasy Reading Challenge
Available on: Amazon
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