Splendors and Glooms

There's a lot to recommend Splendors & Glooms by Laura Amy Schlitz: characters, atmosphere, setting, style . . . but be ready for a book that does not rush, that you sink into and enjoy slowly.

Clara is a daughter of privilege, the only living child of her wealthy and doting parents. Lizzie Rose and Parsefall are ragged urchins, apprentices to Grisini, a street performer. Grisini has an almost magical skill with puppets, and a dark past that hints of real black magic. When Grisini is hired to perform a puppet show at Clara's birthday party, little do the three children know that their lives are about to become inexplicably intertwined.

I very much enjoyed this book, with its Dickensian setting and characters, the subtle touches of magic, show more the hints of pathos behind each child's story. It's an oddly compelling and somewhat demanding story, and from the reviews I've read, it's a love-it-or-hate-it kind of book. I loved it. show less

I'd recommend this book to kids looking for something challenging, spooky, and full of mystery and magic. The length (400 pages) and font size (too small) were, at first, daunting and put me off starting the book, but by the end of the first chapter I was hooked.

Splendors and Glooms begins with a witch, a rich girl, and puppets. It's set in the Victorian era, when London was a dirty, frightening place, especially for an orphan. Our heroes, Lizzie Rose and Parsefall, are two orphans with the same guardian--the freaky, villainous Gaspare Grisini, a master puppeteer with magical abilities. Lizzie Rose and Parsefall are basically Grisini's slaves, dragging his puppet cart around London and helping him perform shows to earn a meager living. show more

Our rich girl, Clara Wintermute, happens upon one of Grisini's puppet shows, and thus launches the action of the book. Grisini, Lizzie Rose, and Parsefall, are invited to visit Clara's home on her birthday to put on a show and the results are disastrous.

Author Laura Amy Schlitz did so many excellent things with this book. First, she made her villains human, but none the less frightening for their humanity. She made her heroes likable and distinct. The readers can see into the heads of Lizzie Rose, Parsefall, and Clara, and so we understand that Lizzie Rose is always striving to be good (I particularly loved it when Lizzie Rose consciously chose to make decisions as if she were the youngest sister in a fairy tale--always the most noble one). We understand that Parsefall is dirty, sneaky, and often frightened, but in possession of a strong conscience when it comes to Lizzie Rose. And we see that Clara, though pampered, has suffered almost as much Parsefall.

This book makes no mistakes, except that its dark, intimidating appearance may scare away potential readers. Some have said that it's overlong, but I enjoyed every word. For the dedicated reader, this will be a treasure. show less

I loved this book! I was already a little spooked by puppets and magicians, and now this book has cemented those feelings forever! It's a great spooky read in a dramatic setting, full of villains and orphans and secrets. I couldn't put it down. If you like scary stories that are thrilling, but also fairytale-ish enough to keep it from being TOO scary, this is perfect.

I could not put this book down. [a:Laura Amy Schlitz|116504|Laura Amy Schlitz|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1273771970p2/116504.jpg] has created a rich, evocative Victorian gothic that has wonderful characters with just the right mix of magic and spookiness. When wealthy Clara sees master puppeteer Gaspare Grisini performing in the park, she is so taken with the puppets that she convinces her parents that the puppets must be the entertainment for her birthday party. Grisini arrives at the household accompanied by the two orphans in his care, Lizzie Rose and Parsefall. The lives of the children collide in unexpected ways, and when Clara is kidnapped, it is up to Lizzie Rose and Parsefall to save her. In their journey, they discover show more just how dark Grisini really is, and must face a witch who possesses a terrible jewel that is the only thing that can save Clara. Definite Newbery potential here. A beautifully-written story. show less

Gaspare Grisini is a master puppeteer — so good, in fact that it appears as if the puppets move of their own accord. When Clara invites Grisini to perform at her birthday party, Clara disappears. At first it appears that she just run away, but when Lizzie and Parsefall (the puppeteers wards) notice that one of Grisini’s new puppets looks almost exactly like Clara, they decide to investigate.

Their investigation leads them deep into the past of their caretaker/employer, eventually leading them to a witch whom Grisini used to work with. She may have the answers they seek, but they may find themselves in the same situation as Clara if they’re not careful.

I’m really torn on this one. I thought the writing was great, and Ms. Schlitz show more does a wonderful job of capturing Victorian England. The settings and descriptions are very rich and vivid. I also really liked the overall storyline (a puppeteer who turns children into puppets? hello awesome and original), but I felt that there was a disconnect.

First of all, I felt like the adult characters (especially Cassandra, the witch), were more defined than the children. Secondly, I felt as if I read two different books, but with the same characters. While the overall story bled from the first half, into the second half, the setting and tone shifted from the mystery surrounding Clara to the mystery surrounding Cassandra. In the end, I almost wish they had separated this into two books and done a little more fleshing out of a few things in each book. I just think it would have given the overall story a little more depth.

Splendors and Glooms is definitely an original concept, and it has an honest, gothic richness to it. In the end, I enjoyed it, I just wish it had been a little more fleshed out in places. show less

This one is dark, dark, dark. It has all the elements of a truly macabre tale: fire, fog, ice, blood, and, of course, orphans.

Gaspare Grisini does marionette shows with his two charges, Parsefall and Lizzie Rose. He has taken them in, but he is certainly not fatherly. The day after performing in the Wintermute home for Clara Wintermute’s birthday party, the children discover that Clara has gone missing and suspect Grisini. But what has he done with her?

Their problems are compounded when Grisini hurts himself in a fall and disappears. The children intercept a letter addressed to him and decide to find its author, a rich and lonely old woman named Cassandra, in hopes that they might inherit her fortune when she dies. It is in show more Cassandra’s home that the children begin to uncover the mystery of Clara, Grisini, and the deadly stone known as the fire opal.

Full of black magic, mind possession, and creepy marionettes, Splendors and Glooms is plenty dark to satisfy readers who ate up A Tale Dark and Grimm and A Series of Unfortunate Events. show less

This was ~almost~ a perfect book. The conclusion was just a little anti-climactic given the brilliance of the rest of the book, but that's my only negative comment.
Lizzie Rose and Parsefall are apprentices to Grisini, a master puppetteer in 19th century London. He is a harsh man, and took in the two orphans more because he could use them than because they needed help. Grisini is called upon to give a show at the home of the wealthy Wintermute's, whose sole living daughter, Clara, saw the puppets in the park one day and has wanted nothing else since. Clara tries to befriend Lizzie Rose and Parsefall, but when all is done, she is cornered by Grisini, who turns out not merely to be a bad man, but a truly wicked one, with a bit of show more witchcraft in him.
This is only the first few chapters of the book, but I won't say more, lest I give away things that are better discovered on reading the book. The cast of characters is fairly small, and each one well developed. Though a little longer than the average YA novel, there is nothing wasted. Everything is part of the overall tale. There are no pointless subplots.
Deliciously creepy and Neil Gaiman-esque. show less