Smashbomb

I've read John Grisham's books before and found them a little dry or heavy so when I got this for Christmas I was a bit unsure. I immediately feel in love with Cullen Post, he's a really believable character and I found his dialogue much quicker/easier than other Grisham works.

All the characters were really good and fit together well. I liked that the suspects are given early on so yoy start to build your own hatred for them.

I did find the story heavy and I generally red it a bit slower than other books as I got bogged down in the feelings. It was immersive.

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Melanie Caldicott (6 KP) rated Circus of Wonders in Books

Apr 29, 2021

Circus of Wonders

Elizabeth Macneal | 2021 | Fiction & Poetry, History & Politics, Romance

7.0

(2 Ratings)

Book Rating

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for the ARe-copy in exchange for this honest review. You can also read my review at my blog - roamingthroughbooks@wordpress.com" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://roamingthroughbooks@wordpress.com
I was keen to read this having enjoyed Macneal's first novel, The Doll Factory. However, I just did not connect with this storyline. I found the characters opaque and did not relate to their motives or actions. The relationships were shallow and left me unmoved. I found the secret contrived and lacking in any real revelation. Having said this I enjoyed the historical exploration of circuses and the trend of the Victorian fascination with "oddities". The themes surrounding identity and uniqueness were well delivered.

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Zoe Bell recommended Stand by Me (1986) in Movies (curated)

"I know everyone’s expecting me to list off all these action movies, but Stand By Me. There’s something about the relationships and the performances in that movie that I found really inspirational. And this is before I was even considering being an actor. I just found it to be one of the more true, real, honest sort of movies that really had an effect on me. I watched it a week ago and got goose bumps. Especially with the whole River Phoenix thing and how he disappears at the end. How genius is he in the movie? There’s something about a movie like that that can be so effective with no gimmicks."

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