Conjured by Sarah Beth Durst

Conjured
by Sarah Beth Durst
368p.
Publisher: Walker Childrens
Published: Sept. 3, 2013
Source: NetGalley and author for review

Eve has a new home, a new face, and a new name—but no memories of her past. She’s been told that she's in a witness protection program. That she escaped a dangerous magic-wielding serial killer who still hunts her. The only thing she knows for sure is that there is something horrifying in her memories the people hiding her want to access—and there is nothing they won’t say—or do—to her to get her to remember. 

At night she dreams of a tattered carnival tent and buttons being sewn into her skin. But during the day, she shelves books at the local library, trying to not let anyone know that she can do things—things like change the color of her eyes or walk through walls. When she does use her strange powers, she blacks out and is drawn into terrifying visions, returning to find that days or weeks have passed—and she’s lost all short-term memories. Eve must find out who and what she really is before the killer finds her—but the truth may be more dangerous than anyone could have ever imagined.

 My thoughts:
This book is frustrating. Now before I go further, let me explain that it is a good thing. :) You are supposed to be frustrated and a bit confused. You are following the protagonist, Eve and she is frustrated and confused. She has memory loss and is trying to feel her way, trying to figure out who she really is and why she is being protected by the witness protection program. Yes, those answers come, but it is only revealed when it is revealed to Eve.

There is also a surreal dreamlike quality to most of the book. Eve slips into dreams or visions and we aren't quite sure if it is real and pieces to a puzzle or just her fantasy. It does provide clues, but you are just uncertain as to exactly what those clues are.

In the end you are rewarded with answers and a clear understanding as to what is going on within this universe. Even a twist I didn't expect. It is odd, strange, and a bit convoluted as a paranormal carnival might be. It's dreamlike in it's ability and if you like these things, you won't be disappointed in this book. I give it 4 stars.

The Transformation of Bartholomew Fortuno by Ellen Bryson

From Goodreads: Water for Elephants meets Geek Love in this riveting first novel, an enchanting love story set in P. T. Barnum's American Museum in 1865 New York City

Bartholomew Fortuno, the World's Thinnest Man, believes that his unusual body is a gift. Hired by none other than P. T. Barnum to work at his spectacular American Museum—a modern marvel of macabre displays, breathtaking theatrical performances, and live shows by Barnum's cast of freaks and oddities—Fortuno has reached the pinnacle of his career. But after a decade of constant work, he finds his sense of self, and his contentment within the walls of the museum, flagging. When a carriage pulls up outside the museum in the dead of night, bearing Barnum and a mysterious veiled woman—rumored to be a new performer—Fortuno's curiosity is piqued. And when Barnum asks Fortuno to follow her and report back on her whereabouts, his world is turned upside down. Why is Barnum so obsessed with this woman? Who is she, really? And why has she taken such a hold on the hearts of those around her?

Set in the New York of 1865, a time when carriages rattled down cobblestone streets, raucous bordellos near the docks thrived, and the country was mourning the death of President Lincoln, The Transformation of Bartholomew Fortuno is a moving novel about human appetites and longings. With pitch-perfect prose, Ellen Bryson explores what it means to be profoundly unique—and how the power of love can transcend even the greatest divisions.

This book had me interested in what was going on right up to the end of the book. The main character and narrator, Bartholomew Fortuno believes that his extreme thinness as a gift, one that elevates him above the masses of "normal" people. His sense of who he is and how he has become so thin is a sense of pride for Bartholomew and it is reinforced by the reactions of the audience. When he meets another fellow performer, a new act in Barnum's museum, he finds his world changing. He starts to question things he never thought he'd ever question. So certain as he was to his world and the world around him. As he starts to venture outside his comfort zone, his perceptions start to change. As his perceptions change, his world starts to transform. Instead of gifts he sees the world is really of our own making. He also sees that the world changes no matter how hard we try to make our own world stagnant.

The mysteries of the self of each of the players in this book have you guessing as to who is hiding what and who is loyal to whom all set in a place that is at once open to the "normal" as it is closed. The climax of the book is not without it's surprises and it is quite shocking. The book in itself is a show and one that is well done and deserves it's own applause. The transformation is not of just one character, but of many. I recommend this book and give it 4 stars. This is one show you are invited to really know the characters.

I'd like to thank the Henry Holt and Company for providing me with the ARC.