The Haunting At Bonaventure Circus by Jaime Jo Wright
1928
The Bonaventure Circus is a refuge for many, but Pippa Ripley was rejected from its inner circle as a baby. When she receives mysterious messages from someone called the "Watchman," she is determined to find him and the connection to her birth. As Pippa's search leads her to a man seeking justice for his murdered sister and evidence that a serial killer has been haunting the circus train, she must decide if uncovering her roots is worth putting herself directly in the path of the killer.
Present Day
The old circus train depot will either be torn down or preserved for historical importance, and its future rests on real estate project manager Chandler Faulk's shoulders. As she dives deep into the depot's history, she's also balancing a newly diagnosed autoimmune disease and the pressures of single motherhood. When she discovers clues to the unsolved murders of the past, Chandler is pulled into a story far darker and more haunting than even an abandoned train depot could portend.
Author Bio:
Jaime Jo Wright is the author of five novels, including Christy Award winner The House on Foster Hill and Carol Award winner The Reckoning at Gossamer Pond. She's also the Publishers Weekly and ECPA bestselling author of two novellas. Jaime lives in Wisconsin with her cat named Foo, her husband Cap'n Hook, and their littles, Peter Pan, and CoCo. To learn more, visit www.jaimewrightbooks.com.
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Review
I really enjoyed this novel, it was intriguing, fast paced, had great social commentary and I loved the dual time line aspect. If you love the circus it’s a great opportunity to see behind the scenes and what life was really like.
The story is told through the eyes of two protagonists, Pippa Ripley in 1928 and Chandler Faulk in the present day. Pippa is the daughter of the owners of the circus which is based at Bonaventure but feels trapped in her life. She is aware that she is adopted but knows nothing about her real parents and to top it off she is receiving letters from someone called The Watchman. How is this all tied up with the murder of a woman??
Chandler is behind the development of the old circus ground but her realtor keeps suggesting that there is a ghost on site. This leads Chandler into the mysterious events that surrounded Pippa back in 1928.
I honestly loved the story - it’s basically saying that good will triumph evil at all times. It’s a hopeful kind of book. I loved the scenes between Pippa and a certain animal! They were so tender and sweet. I loved Pippa as a character, you see so much growth over the course of the book. Chandler’s character really resonated with me due to her health issues as it really is struggle when first diagnosed as you try to control a disease.
I really really enjoyed this book, devoured over the course of 24 hours it’s that captivating. I hope you will read it - if you do let me know what you think of it!
