Genevieve Valentine

Loosely based upon the fairy tale 'Twelve Dancing Princesses.' Eldest sister Jo is the closest thing her eleven sisters have to a mother in a household run by a distant, controlling father. She teaches them to dance and herds them to and from the dance clubs to keep them safe and secret, until one day her father decides it's time to for them to marry -- to his benefit -- and not only that, but he suspects that they have not been keeping to their attic abode, but instead sneaking out to show more dance.

I listened to this as an audio book.

I don't really have much to say about The Girls at the Kingfisher Club except that it was a jazz age glory, and it both broke my heart and kept me up all evening -- and then all night -- finishing the book. I staggered into work the next day running on three hours of sleep with red eyes and exhausted, and then had a hard time reading anything else for more than a month. Do you hear that, Valentine? You wrecked my reading goal for the year, thanks a lot.

I don't tend to push books at my friends, mostly because I never know if they share my interests enough to enjoy my reading habits, but I've been singing this one to anyone who will listen to me for thirty seconds. The audio book is great. The story is great. It ended just where I think it ought to have, and no, I do not want a sequel, just more like it. Hosannah, hosannah, The Girls of the Kingfisher Club rocks, hosannah. show less

Brilliant

THE MECHANICAL CIRCUS TRESAULTI
FINEST SPECTACTLE ANYWHERE
MECHANICAL MEN beyond IMAGINATION
Astounding feats of ACROBATICS
The Finest HUMAN CURIOSITIES
The World has ever SEEN
STRONGMEN, DANCING GIRLS
& LIVING ENGINES
FLYING GIRLS, LIGHTER than AIR
MUSIC from the HUMAN ORCHESTRA
BARGAIN ENTERTAINMENT for ONE and ALL

Our story opens with a second person introduction of you visiting the circus and continues with several changes of POV and tense which could be jarring but is very much at the show more service of the story and the beautifully drawn world building. This is an achingly good story, told with an expert voice. We follow several characters and grow to live and love with the circus which is like a large dysfunctional family. This is a steampunkeqsque world, set post collapse, where the circus travels the country but tries never to revisit places, or at least not within living memory. As we progress with the circus we are embroiled in the petty politics of the performers and gradually learn more about the world, getting back stories of the performers. I read this is in one sitting, picking it up in the morning and not able to put it down until it was finished, and what a read it was! Highly recommended.

Some parts of the past cannot be reclaimed, he knows. Better not to raise ghosts.

Overall – Beautiful, painful, joyous, adventurous tapestry to be savoured and devoured and thrust into the hands of all those who share your reading tastes… show less

This short story has been on my to-read list for a while. I was wondering what audiobook I’d listen to next when I remembered I'd seen something about an “audio version” for this story.

It was the perfect length for listening to while I cooked a risotto. And it was close to being a perfect short story -- gripping and twisting and sharply written. It asks interesting questions about society and technology, and made me care about the characters.

The water here is never going to make good show more bread. If I’d known, I would have requested sturdier flour -- we’ll be waiting six years for the next transport pod. Agosti told me today my bread’s good for massaging the gums, like he was trying to focus on the positives. Woods threatened to arrest him anyway, which was nice of him. show less

Twelve sisters in 1920s New York go dancing at night without their father's knowledge. It's their only escape from their stifling home life, and it's only possible because of Jo, the oldest sister, known as The General to her younger siblings. Jo's the one who decides when and where they will go, and who keeps a watchful eye on the group when they're out and makes sure they all get home safely. But Jo, even more than the rest of them, knows that their current situation can't last forever. show more When their father starts trying to arrange marriages for them, it's obvious that the sisters will have to make other plans, or face lives of captivity with husbands who will treat them no better than their father has done.

This is an extremely engaging read. I listened to the audiobook, and found it hard to tear myself away from the story when I had to be doing other things. I'm a big fan of fairy tale retellings, and The Dancing Princesses has always been one of my favorites. And, while I don't always love stories set in the Roaring '20s, it worked so perfectly for this particular retelling. If this sounds like something you might enjoy, I highly recommend it. show less