evergreensandbookishthings 's review for:

The Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn

3.5

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This novel started off quite compelling, but I felt like it petered out into some predictable World War II fare. I enjoyed the main characters as unruly feral children, growing up in a grand Gothic estate and coming into their own as they move their playtime dramas from the attic to a real theater they build on the property. Those scenes were magical and fraught, as the adults with their many problems weave back into the narrative. But as the war approaches and scatter the three children into different roles within the conflict, the plot becomes dense and slow.
On paper, it’s totally in my wheelhouse: chonky book that spans a large swath of time, feminist themes, family drama and a deep dive on complex characters. I liked it, but I did not love it. It reminded me in so many ways of Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead. So if you love that novel, which I know so many people do, you must pick up The Whalebone Theater!