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johnnyharker's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Murder, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, and Stalking
Minor: Death of parent
nugat's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Graphic: Kidnapping, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Racism and Sexism
archcon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death of parent, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Murder, Kidnapping, Bullying, Abandonment, Death, Sexism, and Racism
Minor: Homophobia, Misogyny, Fire/Fire injury, and Lesbophobia
lastblossom's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
A beautiful queer romance front and center against a historical backdrop that sparks the imagination.
About
Jack Devin's great at sleight of hand, which is a good skill to have when your boss is a stage magician. He's also got flexible morals, which is a good mindset to have when your boss is ALSO a con artist. When Jack and his employer, the Enchantress, find themselves with a show at the Alaska Yukon Pacific World's Fair, it looks like the money's going to start flowing in. At least, until rival magician Laszlo appears with tricks that even Jack can't figure out. But Jack soon discovers he's much more interested in Laszlo's assistant, the quiet and enigmatic Wilhelm.
What I Liked
Stories about stage magicians are great. Even more when the author seems to respect the craft and the work that goes into it. Very little is spent on the actual magic, but all the tricks seem grounded and researched. Huuuge plus in my book. The setting - a World's Fair in Seattle - is full of potential and enthusiasm for the future, and the author does a great job of carrying the reader into that hopeful space. Both POVs are likable, and written with distinct voices, making the narrative easy to follow. The supporting cast are painted clearly with their own lives, dreams, and motivations. I've seen some descriptions liken this to The Prestige. It definitely had some similarities to the film (not the book, though), but it's a lot less dire of an ending, so I think I prefer this.
What Wasn't For Me
For a story about people who are also con artists, there was very little time spent on cons. The one we do get wasn't quite as twisty as I had hoped. But that feels like a very minor complaint overall.
Graphic: Confinement and Stalking
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Racism, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Child abuse, Death, Torture, and Sexism
Minor: Colonisation
hckilgour's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This is what The Night Circus was hoping to be!
Slow burn romance, “enemies to lovers”, magic and more!
The slow burn between Jack and Wil was well done. You feel they hit friendship first before going into lovers.
I wish I knew the stagecraft behind the acts, but alas, magicians never reveal their secrets.
As far as the the lesbian and gay romances went, the fact they were so open didn’t seem to fit the time period. Nor did the interracial romance and attraction. But, they worked for the story and that’s what really matters.
I was sad that there really wasn’t closure for Wil’s family. And I also have questions about Lucia’s disability because all that’s mentioned is that she uses a cane.
Also, both Jack and Wil definitely has some Stockholm syndrome going on.
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Cursing
meliroo's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Chronic illness, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Death, Misogyny, Torture, Racism, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Sexism, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, and Homophobia
Moderate: Torture, Vomit, and Murder
angelareads's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Kidnapping, Confinement, and Physical abuse
pvbobrien's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Moderate: Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Racism, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse
mals_library's review against another edition
1.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Misogyny, Classism, Homophobia, Sexism, and Racism
doylee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.5
I needed someone cute & queer & I got exactly that! Love that for myself. I love these fantastical historical fiction stories that allow the past to be a little better than it actually was. I was invested in this story fairly quickly & I was able to get to know & love (or hate) all the characters pretty quickly too which I love.
Sometimes I was confused a bit by the writing. And I almost never notice writing faults. Some scenes were very rushed & not descriptive enough for my taste & then sometimes the descriptions just didn’t really make sense in my mind.
Apart from that, this is a fun story that I really enjoyed after being in such a reading slump for all of February. It was quite sad at times but the overall emotion is pretty happy & I loved that.
Graphic: Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, and Torture
Moderate: Racism and Kidnapping
Minor: Gun violence, Homophobia, and Death of parent