Church of Marvels by Leslie Parry

Title: Church of Marvels
Author: Leslie Parry
Genre: Historical Fiction, Mystery
Series: N/A

Hardcover, 320 pages
Publication: May 5, 2015 by Ecco

Source: I received a review copy from the publisher in exchange for a honest review.

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New York, 1895. Sylvan Threadgill, a night soiler cleaning out the privies behind the tenement houses, finds an abandoned newborn baby in the muck. An orphan himself, Sylvan rescues the child, determined to find where she belongs. 

Odile Church and her beautiful sister, Belle, were raised amid the applause and magical pageantry of The Church of Marvels, their mother’s spectacular Coney Island sideshow. But the Church has burnt to the ground, their mother dead in its ashes. Now Belle, the family’s star, has vanished into the bowels of Manhattan, leaving Odile alone and desperate to find her.

A young woman named Alphie awakens to find herself trapped across the river in Blackwell’s Lunatic Asylum—sure that her imprisonment is a ruse by her husband’s vile, overbearing mother. On the ward she meets another young woman of ethereal beauty who does not speak, a girl with an extraordinary talent that might save them both.

As these strangers’ lives become increasingly connected, their stories and secrets unfold. Moving from the Coney Island seashore to the tenement-studded streets of the Lower East Side, a spectacular human circus to a brutal, terrifying asylum, Church of Marvels takes readers back to turn-of-the-century New York—a city of hardship and dreams, love and loneliness, hope and danger.

I’m not one to usually read historical fiction, if you follow my blog you’d know. But when I was pitched this book for review I was intrigued by its cover, but there was something else… my gut was telling me I must read this book. That beyond the beautiful cover is a story that needed to be discovered. Even the synopsis (not the one above) didn’t prepare me for what I was about to read. Church of Marvels, is unlike anything I've read before. For real this time. The writing was flawless and lyrical; the characters so realistic, it's like you've known them forever and you feel all their emotions right alongside them. And the setting of Manhattan/Coney Island 1895 so vividly and painstakingly detailed that you can imagine yourself walking the streets of Manhattan with Odile searching for her sister, breaking out the asylum with Alphie and cheering in an abandoned building as Sylvan fights to make another coin for another day.

Church of Marvels is centered on four different individuals; the Church sisters, Alphie and Slyvan. The book is narrated in third person; alternating between the three main characters every other chapter (Belle has only two parts). Within the chapters itself the story jumps back and forth to the past and present to give readers an in-depth look at the characters and their background, which adds another intricate layer to the already complex characters/plot. I’m not a fan of ‘flashbacks’ but they were well-done and are essential to the story (or stories) being told.

I love character driven novels, and Church of Marvels is a perfect example of how it’s done! For most books, it takes a good chunk-while to introduce and establish believable characters. Parry did it in less than 35 pages! The prologue and first three chapters introduced us to the main characters, and though it was only the beginning I learned so much about the characters, and connected to them immediately. I don’t want to go into too much detail about the characters or plot because it's something you’d want to savor and discover yourself. The book starts out slow as readers will no doubt have questions upon questions about what is going on, and how can these people’ lives be entwined? But I loved every moment of it. All I can say is that once the characters' secrets are revealed and the characters’ separate story line converge toward the end it will all be worth it! So, so worth it! Just when I thought Parry unload all the characters’ secrets and I was done being shocked; Parry threw me for another loop when she expertly ties everything up in the epilogue that was so explosive and jaw-dropping it knocked me off my seat!

If you can only read one book this year, let it be Church of Marvels. No, it HAS to be Church of Marvels. I knew before I even read it that it was going to be a good book, but instead I was blown away at how utterly amazing it was. I highly, highly recommend Church of Marvels. This is Parry’s first book and yet it felt like a seasoned author wrote it. Parry’s writing will have you rapt from the first page to the very last. She wasted no time or words developing 1895 New York and her characters. And if this is any indication of what we can expect from Parry’s future work, signed me up now for all her books! If I can give it more than five stars I would…this book is like10 stars. If you’re looking for a unique, unforgettable, unpredictable, and un-put-down-able book, Church of Marvels is the book for you. Read it now, you won’t be disappointed!

Rooms by Lauren Oliver

Title: Rooms
Author: Lauren Oliver
Genre: Paranormal Fiction
Series: N/A

Hardcover, 320 pages
Publication: September 23, 2014 by Ecco

Source: I received a review copy from the publisher in exchange for a honest review.

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Wealthy Richard Walker has just died, leaving behind his country house full of rooms packed with the detritus of a lifetime. His estranged family—bitter ex-wife Caroline, troubled teenage son Trenton, and unforgiving daughter Minna—have arrived for their inheritance.

But the Walkers are not alone. Prim Alice and the cynical Sandra, long dead former residents bound to the house, linger within its claustrophobic walls. Jostling for space, memory, and supremacy, they observe the family, trading barbs and reminiscences about their past lives. Though their voices cannot be heard, Alice and Sandra speak through the house itself—in the hiss of the radiator, a creak in the stairs, the dimming of a light bulb.

The living and dead are each haunted by painful truths that will soon surface with explosive force. When a new ghost appears, and Trenton begins to communicate with her, the spirit and human worlds collide—with cataclysmic results.

Rooms is the most unusual yet fascinating ghost story I’ve ever read. I have never read any of Ms. Oliver’s books, but I can see why she’s a bestseller; her writing is impeccable drawing me into the story right from the first page.
Rooms is a story about the Walker family returning to their father’s estate after his death to go over his belongings, the will, and his funeral and the two ghosts that still resides within the walls. Sandra and Alice are previous occupants of the house, but now in death they are trapped within the house bickering amongst themselves. The book explores the family’s past, their ups and down and how they’re coping with the lost of their father.

Rooms may be a ghost story but not in the sense of what most people refer to as ‘ghost stories’. It’s not scary, gruesome, nor spine-chilling. It’s a story about the living and the dead but mostly the living, exploring the lives of the Walker family. Rooms is narrated by six characters; The Walkers: Caroline (Mother, Ex-Wife), Minna (Daughter, Single mother), Trenton (Son) and Amy (Minna’s six-year-old daughter) and two ghosts: Alice and Sandra. The book alternates between all six characters, narrated in third-person with the Walkers and first-person with the ghosts.

I’m not usually a big fan of multiple narrations. Usually with this many narratives, authors sometimes lose some of the characters’ individuality/ uniqueness in trying to balance everything out. However, Oliver made it work and exceeded this challenge. She created a distinct voice for each of her characters. All of the characters were very realistic, beyond flawed but it was what made them and the story that much more riveting. It was very easy to follow each of the character’s story/narrative, even the two ghosts who at first seemed similar but as I got into the story it was easier to see that Sandra is more cynical and vulgar while Alice is laid back and conservative.

Rooms is a pretty dark and bleak book. The characters are all troubled, guilt-ridden and full of despair. And while these types of characters can usually be off-putting, Oliver writes tragic characters well…making readers want to get to know the characters and their history/past. I loved the ending, it was very bitter-sweet and Oliver wrapped up all the loose ends perfectly.

There are many negative reviews of this book. Many of them from readers following the author from her YA series to her new adult book…and while I haven’t read her YA series/book this is definitely not YA. Rooms deals with a lot of adult issues and has a lot of adult content that isn’t suitable for anyone under seventeen. With that being said, I really enjoyed Rooms and highly recommend it. Don’t let all the negative reviews dissuade you from reading this one; there is a lot to like. I’m really glad I read this book. Rooms is a beautifully written novel with unique and distinct characters and an engaging plot that will be with me long after I read it. Read it, you won’t be disappointed!