You know when I see "circus meets fairy-tale retelling" I'm picking that book up immediately.

However, this was just okay. I really enjoyed the circus atmosphere and the love between the sisters, but outside of those elements, the world-building was a bit slim. There are hints of some really cool ideas here, such as the lore & magic of the Faeries, airships and steampunk technology, and the cult-like church, but none of it is super fleshed out. The plot also really accelerates and is resolved within the last 20 pages. It all just seemed like more of a sketch than a full-on book.

One thing that also took me out each time is Cornwell's invention of new pronouns. I of course don't care that Tam and the Fey are non-binary, but the constant switching between "fe" and "fer" honestly made things more confusing than if Cornwell just stuck to "they." Wondering if other people felt differently, though.

Once I read about this book I could not wait to read it. I liked the writing style. It was beautiful and with the alternating styles of the chapters. One character's POV is written in poetry, which i found interesting. Yet, this book did not work for me. The plot seemed to wander and nothing seemed to happen for most of the book. It's the writing style and interesting location that causes me to give it the rating that I have given it.

A progressive retelling of the Snow White and Rose Red fairy tale, this updated version has the two sisters living their lives under the Big Top: Rose, the performer, a highwire acrobat, and her sister Ivory, a back stage jack of all trades.
The story is told in alternating chapters between the two girls, Ivory’s a traditional narrative while Rose is written in poetic stanzas.
Writer Betsy Cornwell has taken the typical archetypes of the circus: the bearded lady, the acrobats, and added a mythical element with a character known as a fey, a magical creature who is in modern terms non binary, and here uses pronouns, fe and fer. When the circus arrives to the village the girls were born in, it’s presided over by the The Brethren, a religious order who lashes out at anything that doesn’t fit their conservative worldview. And when a destructive act threatens to destroy not only the physical circus, but the lives of its members, the girls must band together to fight back and reclaim what’s theirs.
Cornwell has written a sweet retelling that gets credit for presenting both gender and same sex attraction as just part of the fabric of the story and not the issue of it.
To me it’s solidly aimed at the middle schoolers ages twelve to fourteen, or sophisticated elementary school kids in fifth or sixth grade.

I really wished I would have loved this book, but unfortunately it wasn’t for me. I loved how diverse and inclusive it was, but I felt some magic missing, and the poetry parts didn’t feel like poetry, but like broken sentences, which made it hard to connect to Rosie.

This was unfortunately a DNF for me. The writing was lovely, but I just couldn't ground myself in the story and world, and I knew by the 50-page mark that this book just wasn't going to work for me.

I loved the concept of this story! The writing was beautiful and atmospheric. The setting was compelling and mysterious. It’s told from alternating POV - Ivory and Rosie. I had a really hard time connecting with Rosie’s POV as it was told in poetry. The poetry didn’t really seem to flow... it felt more like thought fragments and sentences chopped in half. Ivory’s perspective was easier to connect to and is where most of the story is told but, I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again, I *need* dialogue. The vast majority of this was narrative and description, which was beautifully written, but made it hard for me to focus. ⁣
I loved the openness and exploration of the characters in regards to their sexuality and relationships. I did feel that the world building was a bit lacking, making it hard to understand where some people where coming from and how things worked in their world. Finally, the ending felt a bit rushed.⁣
Personally, I felt major The Night Circus vibes from this book. I didn’t dislike it by any means, it just wasn’t for me. ⁣

First things first, this book was a wild ride. Upon reading the description, I did not expect so many things to be happening all at once. Other than the main setting being the Circus, I was a little confused on the setting and had a tough time visualizing what the scene should look like. With mention of airships and aerograms, with the mixture of the circus life, I thought maybe I should be thinking steampunk, but I'm not entirely convinced of that. The point of views of both Ivory and Rosie are by far, my favorite part of this book. It sheds light on the personalities of both girls. You have Ivory, the serious and intellectual twin, retelling the events at face value. Then, Rosie, with a performers heart, it's only natural that her point of view be told in the form of poetry. Speaking of the poetry, it was absolutely beautiful to read. I enjoyed reading Ivory's tales, but I couldn't wait to soak in the poetry in just about every other chapter. Bravo to the writer for making me feel with Rosie, every time I read her chapters. The writer also found a unique way of conveying love and it's many forms. The character of Tam, the Fey magician is portrayed as neither a male or female, and pronouns such as fe, fer are used. Tam's character was written perfectly. Overall, I enjoyed this book and I am happy to have been along for the adventure of The Circus Rose and it's troupe, and family.

Twins Ivory and Rosie grew up traveling in their ringmaster mother's circus, and although Rosie adapted to the spotlight, Ivory much prefers the stagehand way of life, unseen in the shadows. After years on the road in the distant faerie lands, the Circus Rose is back home in Port's End, where many things have changed. The fundamentalist Brotherhood, although removed from their place in the government, continues to grow on the streets. With hatred for all that is different and magical brewing, Rosie and her androgynous fae partner Tam struggle to find their place in a new society that condemns them. When disaster strikes and the circus and everything else seems to be falling apart, Rosie is forced to take charge, even if it’s all an act. After all, she grew up watching her peers perform.

I really loved the themes of social equality and justice in this novel, as well as the amazing romance between Ivory and Tam. Tam (fe/fer pronouns, because they're fae) is such an interesting character in that fe is so used to being loud and proud with fer relationships back in Faerie, only to come across the sea to a totally unwelcoming community of religious monks who tout holiness while operating an entire underground agenda. Ivory on the other hand is shocked by the change in her home, all the while she is trying to get to know her father who is now back in the picture. Polyamory is another aspect of this novel, as Mama had Rosie and Ivory from two different men, and when the fathers come back into the picture, it poses an odd dynamic for Ivory and Rosie, although the prevailing theme is that love wins out in the end.

On the other hand, the beginning 3/4's of the book were very slow for me, and the actual climax didn't come till very late in the book. I would have liked some more buildup to the action, but the perspective shift from Ivory's prose to Rosie's poetry kept it interesting enough to keep me reading. Other than pacing, I really loved all of the themes of family, love, and community in this novel as well as how it touched on severe anxiety/depression through Rosie's poetry. It's definitely worth the read, especially if you like Circuses, steampunk themes, and emotional support Bears!

Unfortunately I struggled to get hooked on this book, so I ended up not finishing it very early into the book. For that reason, I will not be posting a review on my blog or social media.

I read the blurb of the novel and I found it interesting and, at the beginning, it really was, but as I went on I found myself losing interest in the story and the characters. The story is told from two points of views, two sisters, twin step sisters to be precise. While Ivory’s story is well-written and flows easily, I couldn’t engage with Rosie’s perspective that it is told in poetry form and, sometimes, it is not very clear. I liked the circus and magic atmosphere and the ending was satisfying. It was not what I expected or I hoped for, but, all in all, this was a nice read.

If there's one thing I love more than a retelling it's a queer retelling - and having had some misses with queer fiction in the recent months I was trepidatious going into this book. I was expecting there to be a background F/F relationship and not much else. 

Boy was I wrong. 

I'm going to start with the one thing that really bothered me about this book  - and yes it is the fae. Now those who've been around for a while know I tend to not enjoy the fae in books - in this instance it wasn't the presentation of the Fae that bothered me. In this case, it was the fact that it took a good amount of the book for it to become apparent that the fae existed, were an understood aspect of society and had real magic. I was reminded of how I felt about Sanctuary and how it takes a while to get the point across that magic is real and understood in normal life. It's a small worldbuilding detail in the grand scheme of things - but I feel it's something you should know from right at the start of the book - not something you should suddenly discover several chapters in. It's possible that is on me - maybe I missed a reference earlier in the book but that was the one little 'hm' moment I had. 

Other than that I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's worth saying, I can't speak to the representation of Rose as neuro-atypical - it didn't hit any red flags for me but it'll be interesting to hear some own voices reviews of this book. Rose's perspectives in the book are written in verse, which I found an interesting way of representing the character, it also moves the plot along in a surprisingly effective way. 

I won't lie, this book made me cry. And not just once. This book went to emotional places I genuinely wouldn't have expected - the ending is beautiful and I would say maybe just read it for the ending alone?

But the rest of the book is good too! I liked that the book explored the Fae as non-binary, using Fe, Fae, Fem pronouns - which is consistent throughout the book. It felt like this book was written with intersectional intent and I appreciated that. 

This isn't just the simple circus book I had thought it would be - there's a lot of nuance and....I don't have the words - there's a lot more to this book than I ever would have thought and I'd wholeheartedly recommend it (waiting on ownvoices reviews obviously). 

My rating: 4/5 stars

I received a free digital advanced review copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions are my own. 

The Circus Rose publishes June 16th

For a book I read in a single sitting, I’m not sure how to feel about The Circus Rose. I wasn’t really sure what to expect going in, and I’m largely familiar with Red Rose and Snow White fairy tale from Anna-Marie McLemore’s Blanco y Roja, but this was definitely an interesting tale. I liked how Rosie’s chapters were poems and Ivory told her chapters in prose, and the ways their two perspectives wove together. I don’t think the mystery of what was happening was surprising, but I do think it was well woven into the story. My favorite part of this book is probably how utterly queer it all is. Rosie is a lesbian, and there’s no stress around it because she is who she is. Ivory is used to only being attracted to guys, but meeting Tam who is neither man nor woman she can’t deny fers beauty or appeal. Their mother loved two men and couldn’t choose, and between the time they tried to make her choose to today they’d developed a relationship and proposed to Angela. This book is mostly just…odd, I think. I liked some aspects and it was an easy read, but it was also almost lackluster?

I fell in love with the first few chapters of this one. My goodness that packed a punch that I will not soon forget. But after those first few chapters this one started losing steam and momentum. I have to say that I actually fell asleep while reading this one. I feel that this book needed some kind of twist or something to keep it going through the almost 300 pages. I slogged through them since I don't DNF and I am not happier for it.

The cover of this is so beautiful and I was immediately intrigued because of it. But it was really disappointing. The plot just meandered and I was so lost. There was both nothing and too much going on that nothing was fleshed out. I didn’t care about the characters and what was going on. The writing was lyrical, but I was lost.

If you loved The Night Circus you will probably enjoy this book. It creates a compelling world with interesting characters and a fast paced plot. Definitely a YA that older readers can enjoy. .

The Circus Rose, a queer reimagining of "Snow White and Rose Red," focuses on Ivory and Rosie, daughters of the Circus Rose's ring mistress. After years on the road, they return to their birthplace, Port End, where fundamentalist preachers have taken over. Rosie is attracted to women, but is in love with the circus's trained bear, whom she insists is a girl. Ivory falls for Tam, a dark-skinned fey, neither male nor female, who has been hired as a magician. The circus stages a spectacular homecoming show, but disaster strikes during Rosie's tightrope act and the circus tent burns down. As they try to rebuild, performers are disappearing, as has their mother. Ivory takes over as ring mistress and enlists Tam's help in getting to the bottom of the mysterious disappearances. The present-tense, first-person narrative alternates between Rosie's pithy verse and Ivory's looping prose. This blend of fantasy and classic fiction will be available June 12th.

Told from alternating viewpoints (Rosie and Ivory) and in alternating styles (free-verse poetry and prose), The Circus Rose is a marvelous reimagining of the fairy tale Snow White and Rose Red. Rosie and Ivory are twins. Rosie is the start of the Circus Rose and Ivory is a stagehand who loves the magic created backstage. In this story, they confront bigotry, find love, as well as come into their own identities as individuals. While The Circus Rose is a fascinating and well-paced story, it also provides insightful commentary on issues relevant to our context, including religious extremism, gender identification, and gender. This book is highly recommended to fans of fantasy and folklore.

Reading this was like reading the first draft of a story. There were a lot of potential elements, but none of them meshed well. The world-building was confusing and never fully explained. When I started the story, I thought it was set in our world during a time when circuses were a high point of entertainment, but then the book mentioned the fey and a king and countries I’d never heard of. None of it was explained so I felt like I was missing something.

I never connected with either sister because Ivory’s chapters in prose were basically her just telling the reader everything that happened and Rose’s chapters in verse did nothing to add to the story except repeat what Ivory said or include confusing ideas.

As for the plot, nothing happens for the first half of the story and then too much happens in the latter half. Too much unnecessary plot that was resolved much too quickly and felt forced to make some kind of social justice or political statement. Really, the church is the bad guy? Because that’s never been a plot line before.

Also, the resolution of this story was laughable. The main character does absolutely nothing to solve the problem. She has no agency except when she’s kissing and sleeping with her perfect fey partner. And I’m still not over what actually happened to the missing people. It’s ridiculous.

I also couldn’t get over some of the story points. Like the whole Bear thing being a princess? Or that Ivory’s and Rose’s dads wanted to both marry their mom and were okay with sharing her? Or that the genderless fey use made up pronouns like “fe” and “fer” that look more like typos than trying to be diverse? Nobody who edited or promoted this book thought those were bad ideas?

I gave this book a chance because I love the idea of a fairytale retelling set in a circus setting. But I just cannot believe that this book is going to be published without some serious changes to the story line and character arcs.

Came for the steampunk circus, stayed for the alternating prose and verse. I've never read a book like this before. It was definitely an experience. I appreciate the author doing something against the grain. The decision to alternate between prose chapters and verse chapters was *chef's kiss*. It truly elevated Ivory and Rose's characterizations. I believe the world-building was top-notch. I relished all the yummy diverse rep! The Circus Rose had the ingredients to be a four or five star read for me, however, the flat plot and uneven pacing hindered that. There was a lot going on, but no true investment to these plot elements for the reader to care. The conflicts didn't feel like conflicts as they were resolved quickly. There was no build-up, sense of immediate danger, or consistent action.

It's a 3.5 stars rating for me.

I can entirely see how this book would be up some people's alley, but unfortunately it didn't mesh well with me. I think the world building was too tricky for me to read about right now, so I may return to this at another time.