Search This Blog








2022 Literary Escapes Challenge
- Alabama (1)
- Alaska (1)
- Arizona (1)
- Arkansas
- California (5)
- Colorado (1)
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia (1)
- Hawaii (1)
- Idaho
- Illinois (1)
- Indiana (1)
- Iowa (1)
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine (1)
- Maryland (2)
- Massachusetts (4)
- Michigan (2)
- Minnesota (1)
- Mississippi (1)
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska (1)
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York (7)
- North Carolina (4)
- North Dakota
- Ohio (1)
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania (2)
- Rhode Island (1)
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee (1)
- Texas (2)
- Utah (2)
- Vermont (2)
- Virginia (1)
- Washington (4)
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin (1)
- Wyoming
- Washington, D.C.* (1)
International:
Antarctica (1)
Australia (2)
Egypt (2)
England (12)
Greece (1)
Italy (1)
Nepal (1)
Romania (1)
Scotland (3)
Sweden (1)
Wales (1)








The 52 Book Club's Reading Challenge 2022

2022 Build Your Library Reading Challenge

Friday, October 02, 2015
Dark, Brooding Circus Tale Absorbing and Memorable
8:04 AM
(Image from Barnes & Noble)
Simon Watson spends his days trying to keep his job as a librarian while his family home slowly crumbles into the Long Island Sound. Built in the 1700s, the house has been witness to plenty of history, including the drowning of Simon's mother and the subsequent grief that tormented his father until he, too, passed away. All 29-year-old Simon has left is his younger sister, Enola. Following in the footsteps of their mother, who once earned her living as a circus mermaid, Enola works as a fortune teller for a traveling carnival. She hasn't been home in six years. Until a series of disturbing tarot card readings send her back in a panic.
The librarian is already unnerved by the surprise arrival of an old book on his doorstep. Sent by a stranger who bought it on speculation, the tome is a log kept by Hermelius Peabody, troupe master of the once great Peabody's Portable Magic and Miracles Show. Peabody's mention of a mysterious mermaid, who drowned on July 24 just like Simon's mother, convinces Simon that his family history is somehow tangled up in that of Peabody's strange circus. Worried about the disturbing pattern of women in his family dying by intentional drowning, Simon can't help but fret for his unstable sister. Has Enola come home only to throw herself in the sea? Can Simon stop her before she does something terrible? With his job gone, his house falling into the Sound, and his sister unraveling before his eyes, Simon becomes obsessed with the circus log. Can he pull himself out of his own manic study long enough to save Enola? Himself? Or will the ruined house watch more Watsons die in the churning sea below?
The Book of Speculation, a broody, atmospheric debut by Erika Swyler, tells an intricately woven story about the dark history of Simon's family. Moving between the present and the past, it offers a compelling then and now tale that gets increasingly tense as July 24th approaches for Simon and Enola. With vivid portrayals of circus life, the novel exudes a strange, potent magic. The author's evocative illustrations only make it more intriguing. While The Book of Speculation isn't exactly a page turner, it is utterly absorbing. And memorable. Overall, I found myself quite mesmerized by it. If you enjoyed The Night Circus (which I did) or Water for Elephants (which I actually didn't care for that much), give this one a shot. Chances are, it will bespell you just as thoroughly as it did me.
(Readalikes: The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern; Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen; That Time I Joined the Circus by J.J. Howard)
Grade:
If this were a movie, it would be rated:
for language, violence, and sexual content
To the FTC, with love: Another library fine find
Subscribe to:
Posts
(Atom)




Reading
Farm to Trouble by Amanda Flower

Listening
The Lost and Found Bookshop by Susan Wiggs



Followin' with Bloglovin'



-
-
#ThrowbackThursday. Holes3 hours ago
-
June 2022 Reading Wrap Up4 hours ago
-
Death at the Dinner Party by Emma Davies4 hours ago
-
Tiny Tidbits4 hours ago
-
-
The New Neighbour by Miranda Rijks4 hours ago
-
2022 Reading Goals Check-In5 hours ago
-
-
-
-
The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea9 hours ago
-
Mid-Year Freak Out Tag: 2022 Edition10 hours ago
-
-
You'll Think of Me12 hours ago
-
The Assault: Harry Mulisch16 hours ago
-
Cloning- Yea or Nay20 hours ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Fear No Evil by James Patterson2 days ago
-
-
Review: Scrubbed by Dr. Nikki Stamp1 week ago
-
-
-
-
-
-
May Reading: Highlights & Disappointments3 weeks ago
-
-
An Honest Lie by Tarryn Fisher2 months ago
-
Left Neglected by Lisa Genova3 months ago
-
-
Cybils Awards 2021: The End4 months ago
-
Back to the Classics 20225 months ago
-
-
-

Grab my Button!



Blog Archive
- ► 2021 (159)
- ► 2020 (205)
- ► 2019 (197)
- ► 2018 (223)
- ► 2017 (157)
- ► 2016 (157)
- ▼ 2015 (188)
- ► 2014 (133)