A review by srivalli
The Conjurer's Wife by Sarah Penner

mysterious reflective fast-paced

4.0

 4 Stars 

One Liner: Nice!

1821, Italy 

Olivia Van Hoff is the wife and assistant of famous conjurer and illusionist Oscar Van Hoff. The crowd goes crazy to attend his shows, and Olivia wonders about his magic acts. Her routine job of smiling and reciting the same lines for every show bores her. When a random act leads her to a secret, Olivia decides to take control of the situation. 

The story comes in Olivia’s third-person POV. 

My Thoughts:

This 40-page short story uses the craze for illusionists and ‘spiritual stuff’ in the 19th century as the backdrop to talk about the identity crisis, the role of women, the art of magic, etc. 

Though people flock to see professional illusionists and are proud that they don’t encourage fraudsters, they also have a generational hatred for witches (pagan magic and women).  

For a short piece, this establishes both characters, provides intrigue, reveals a few secrets, and leads the finale to an open ending. In a way, the end suits the character arc and lets readers come to their own conclusions. 

The atmosphere and setting are well done despite the word limit. It is easy to visualize the scenes and characters, especially Marmalade (read to find out who/ what it is). 

Though the story has a slightly heavier vibe, there’s a sense of lightness too. The balance is quite good and makes the story engaging. It’s a quick read as well. 

To summarize, The Conjurer's Wife is an interesting and entertaining short story that touches on a few important themes. 

Thank you, NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories, for eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book. 

#NetGalley #TheConjurersWife