The Traveling Triple-C Incorporeal Circus

4.25 Stars. This was really good! I have to admit that this book surprised me. I was hoping to enjoy this but I sure did not expect it to be so good. I knew nothing about the book ahead of time. From now until November I’m going to be reading as many paranormal type books as I can. I love this time of year. While I had no expectations about this book, it ended up being a real treat to read.

Chelsea wants to go to her brother’s wedding. She was excited about it when she was alive, and it’s even more important to her now that she is dead. Unfortunately, ghosts can’t ride in planes or cars so Chelsea has to make it from NYC to California by walking. Her ghostly mentor and her human friend (who can see ghosts) decide to make the long cross country trip with Chelsea. Can the three friends make it in time for the wedding?

The premise seems a little out there, and it is, but this story is so well done. The diverse cast includes a wonderful mix of LGBTQ and het characters. Each character is fully fleshed out, even the dead ones, and you feel such a connection to them all. The human friend who is a mime is also mute. This is the third book I have read in maybe 45 days that has used American Sign Language. It’s so nice to see in books and I hope this becomes more the norm.

This book was much more introspective that I expected. And I think the heart of the book is about the strong friendship of these three women. This book has all the feels. From scary moments with the dangers of being on the road, to exciting moments with other ghosts, to happy and sad moments that make you cry and laugh in equal measure. This book even had the cutest damn cat of all time.

This is not an easy book to explain because it is so different but it’s well written and just well done period. I have been complaining about not being wowed too much lately in books, this book wowed and absolutely impressed me. If you want a book that will make you think, will make you laugh and cry and want to go hug your loved ones, this is that book. I hope more people will give this read a chance; it’s too good not to.

A quirky and lovely book about friendship, grief, anger, and love. When Chelsea, a ghost, decides to travel from New York to San Francisco for her brother's wedding--which was delayed because of her death two years earlier--she's unexpectedly accompanied by Carmen, also a ghost, and Cyndricka, a mortal woman who is one of the few in the world able to see and hear ghosts, and who is a mime. Together they encounter other ghosts, some in need of help and others who are a threat; a kitten; helpful and malicious people; and, finally, some truths about themselves, their pasts, and their futures. The characters are diverse in race, sexuality, disability, and more; there's a lovely emphasis on the value of learning languages and on questioning cultural norms. This would be a great book club read, or a parent-and-kids read.

High heels, a patch of ice, a train… Chelsea’s life ended abruptly and not in a pretty way. But she won’t let death stop her from attending her brother’s wedding. Which means she needs to get from New York (an interesting place to be a ghost in, fyi) to San Francisco.

Being a spirit, she can’t take a plane nor a car, which go right through her, so she’ll have to walk (hover?) there. Two friends join her on her trip: Carmen, who died decades earlier and is sort of mentoring her into ghosthood, and Cyndricka, a homeless mute Black mime who, for some reason, can see and communicate with ghosts even though she’s not dead.

The relationship between the three travelers is both incredibly unusual and plausible. On their way to California, they also meet the cutest cat, other ghosts and living people, some good, some bad, or even dangerous. I loved Jamie, who sounds like the sweetest ghost ever even without a face. That’s one of the things I loved best about this novel, how the undead keep the appearance they had when they died and are not all ethereally perfect beings.

Despite the subject, there’s nothing heavy about the story, it’s more subtle and penetrating. I don’t think I can explain why I loved this book (yet another excellent debut) so much without giving too much away. It’s not about twists and surprises, it’s all about the way the feelings are built up, how they grow. Like most road trips (at least in books and movies), this one is both a journey cross-country and to themselves.

I took forever to get to this novel (dead people, anxiety, sadness…) and that was stupid of me since it’s made it straight to my favourite-books-of-the-year list. It’s one of the most poetic and charming novels I’ve read. It’s tender and bittersweet, it made me cry and smile at the same time.

The author mentions “the blessing of small miracles” at one point, and that’s exactly what this novel is.

I received a copy from the publisher and I am voluntarily leaving a review.