Published by Picador on May 13, 2021
Format: Audiobook, eBook
Source: Library, Bought
Pages: 304
Amazon UK
Goodreads
Set in a spectacular circus in the pleasure gardens of Victorian London, this is an addictive novel about power, fame, and a love that is threatened by a terrible secret.
1866.In a coastal village in southern England, Nell lives set apart by her community because of the birthmarks that speckle her skin.
But when Jasper Jupiter’s Circus of Wonders arrives in the village, Nell 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 her fame grows, and she finds friendship with the other performers and Jasper’s gentle brother Toby, she begins to wonder if joining the show is the best thing that has ever happened to her.
In London, newspapers describe Nell as the eighth wonder of the world.
Figurines are cast in her image, and crowds rush to watch her soar through the air.
But what happens when her fame eclipses Jasper's own?
And as she falls in love with Toby, can he detach himself from his past and the terrible secret that binds him to his brother?
OH MY DAYS! What a friggin book!
I have to make this sort of book is not my normal type. I saw the cover when I was looking in the library and I read the blurb and I just left it open on my page as I was looking at other books to listen to. And I had a list of four or five books open but there was something about this book that just called to me and I knew I had to listen to find out about Nell’s story.
I just adored it.
I absolutely must be living under a rock because I do not know how I did not know about this story before. That’s the only way I can explain it. This was such a beautiful story in terms of women looking out for themselves, looking out for other people.
It had the height of the circus because it can mention PT Barnum and his circus and about being the Greatest Showman and I did have a little smile to myself when I read that bit. It just had everything the camaraderie of the circus acts, the story of Nell. The jealousy from Jasper, and love from Toby. And all the while we have this underlying secret that Toby and Jasper are keeping and you see this secret completely and utterly eat away at Toby. He can’t cope. It’s consumed him and it broke my heart to see how this secret was destroying him.
I had a massive soft spot for Toby, the lumbering man, as he was described. He kind of, in a way, reminded me of Lenny from Of Mice and Men, the way that Jasper and his friend Dash would portray him, the way they treated him as a Big Friendly Giant, but the bullying they did was cruel.
I just thought this book was magical.
It was what I definitely needed. I blitzed the audiobook and literally in two and a half days. I couldn’t stop thinking about the book and just the era, the circus. It’s my cup of tea.
I can’t believe I never knew about this book. I have the authors other book, The Doll Factory on my to-be-read list, and I just haven’t had that chance to sit down and read it. I’m kicking myself that I have only just discovered Elizabeth and her writing. I feel like I’ve missed out on so much.
Her writing is just beautiful. You can completely envisage the circus, you can smell the smells, the animals and when they were in the tent you can feel the darkness, you can feel the electric atmosphere, the anticipation of everyone waiting, for Nell and her first evening. You can feel the love and adoration from everybody with Nell.
On the flip side, you’ve got the dark side of Jasper, who cannot fathom this popularity that Nell has and it turns slightly darker with the chapters from his point of view. It kind of feels desperate on Jasper’s part, because he is THE man in his eyes, it’s his invention, and it’s his circus. He made these people and he feels he shouldn’t be eclipsed by anybody.
So you do worry when he goes to see people he shouldn’t be seeing, when he’s frivolously spending, when things get out of hand. You do worry, not necessarily for Jasper, because I felt like in the end he got his just desserts, but I felt for everybody else that was in the circus. All these people whose lives he was messing around with. It was just horrible to read. Then the bitterness with him and the showdown that happens, just shows you how far one man will go to get that dream where it revolves around him.
The ending was bittersweet. It’s not the ending I thought it would be and I think my heart completely broke for one character because they did not get a good end of the stick. However, it was also really lovely to see two other characters flourish in the way that I was hoping they would. They got it. They completely got it. They’ve empowered themselves and they’ve made a family and that was really lovely to see.
Like I say I’m kicking myself that I haven’t read anything by Elizabeth before and that I will be looking to read or listen to The Doll Factory very soon. I will however be waiting very very impatiently for Elizabeth’s next book because I am now a huge fan. The writing was just gripping for this genre. It wasn’t an edge-of-your-seat kind of book, but it was one that kept you turning the pages as you needed to know what was going to happen to Nell. From the very first moment you meet Nell, you feel protective and that’s all down to Elizabeth’s writing. The way she composes the characters, the way she sets the scene. You are there with Nell from the beginning, you were there with Toby from the beginning and you’re there, maybe not happily, but you’re there from the beginning with Jasper.
It was just beautiful. I have no words to say it was magical. It was a book I needed right now.
Until next time xxx
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
- 2022 Backlist Challenge
- 2022 Reading
- Published before 2022
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