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chasingsilhouettes 's review for:
The Conjurer's Wife: A Short Story
by Sarah Penner
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
If you've ever watched The Twilight Zone or Creepshow, not in the sense of the horror or terrifying type of tale or short story, but science fiction/fantasy story where there is a warped sense of reality and things are not what they seem. That's what comes to mind when I read this short story.
Set in Venice, Italy, in the 1800s, Olivia is the wife and assistant to a magician. Night after sold-out night, standing onstage, life on repeat, she looks at her husband and his feats of mesmerizing magic and illusions, and the audience's awed reactions... and longs for something more.
"To this day, even as his wife and stage assistant, she still does not understand the secret to Oscar’s work."
One day, she happens upon something that piques her curiosity, and it sets her down a perplexingly twisted path.
She discovers her husband's secret... a secret that he has kept hidden and locked away from her. It is intriguing, yet startling and life -- as-she-knows-it -- altering. And with a new-found resolve, at the show's finale, she'll help him put on a show that is unforgettable.
What would I do in her place? How would I react and live out the rest of my life? 🤔 I like books, like this one, that provoke further thought and contemplation.
There is a reference to elements in the author's next book, The Amalfi Curse, which is a book I'm in anticipation to read, but plan to hold off on until her book tour locally in May.
Set in Venice, Italy, in the 1800s, Olivia is the wife and assistant to a magician. Night after sold-out night, standing onstage, life on repeat, she looks at her husband and his feats of mesmerizing magic and illusions, and the audience's awed reactions... and longs for something more.
"To this day, even as his wife and stage assistant, she still does not understand the secret to Oscar’s work."
One day, she happens upon something that piques her curiosity, and it sets her down a perplexingly twisted path.
She discovers her husband's secret... a secret that he has kept hidden and locked away from her. It is intriguing, yet startling and life -- as-she-knows-it -- altering. And with a new-found resolve, at the show's finale, she'll help him put on a show that is unforgettable.
What would I do in her place? How would I react and live out the rest of my life? 🤔 I like books, like this one, that provoke further thought and contemplation.
There is a reference to elements in the author's next book, The Amalfi Curse, which is a book I'm in anticipation to read, but plan to hold off on until her book tour locally in May.
Content Warnings
Minor: Emotional abuse