Mini Reviews: Pantomime by Laura Lam and Bruised by Sarah Skilton

From Goodreads: R. H. Ragona’s Circus of Magic is the greatest circus of Ellada. Nestled among the glowing blue Penglass- remnants of a mysterious civilization long gone - are wonders beyond the wildest imagination. It’s a place where anything seems possible, where if you close your eyes you can believe that the magic and knowledge of the vanished Chimaera is still there. It’s a place where anyone can hide. Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist’s apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star. But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada. 

My Rating: 3.5 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Laura Lam’s Pantomime wasn’t at all like what I was expecting based off the synopsis! I thought I’d be reading about two characters slowly falling love at a circus a la The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Instead, the main characters in Pantomime have a surprising secret that leads the reader to think about gender identity and sexual orientation. I was also expecting Pantomime to be a standalone and so wasn’t prepared for the cliffhanger ending. Overall, although I really enjoyed the circus setting and the world of Ellada, I always felt somewhat disconnected from the characters and found the flashbacks in the latter half of the story to be distracting.                                

Pantomime was released in February 2013 by Strange Chemistry. 

In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (Angry Robot) for free via NetGalley. 

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From Goodreads: When Imogen, a sixteen-year-old black belt in Tae Kwon Do, freezes during a holdup at a local diner, the gunman is shot and killed by the police, and she blames herself for his death. Before the shooting, she believed that her black belt made her stronger than everyone else - more responsible, more capable. But now her sense of self has been challenged and she must rebuild her life, a process that includes redefining her relationship with her family and navigating first love with the boy who was at the diner with her during the shootout.  

My Rating: 3 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Bruised by Sarah Skilton was a book I struggled to finish. It’s not that I didn’t like it, but I just couldn’t care about Imogen for some reason. By extension therefore, I didn’t care about Imogen’s family problems, the fact that she was suffering from PTSD, or her bland romance. While reading Bruised, I couldn’t understand why Imogen felt guilty about freezing up and hiding when someone came in the local diner with a gun. I don’t think there’s any shame in that kind of reaction – even if you know tae kwan do. 

Bruised was released by Amulet on March 5, 2013.

In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (ABRAMS) for free via NetGalley.