Blood and Circuses

When one of Phryne’s intimate acquaintances, a carousel operator in a carnival attached to a circus, asks her to go undercover to investigate a series of mishaps at the circus, culminating in the death of a performer, Phryne is happy to give it a try. Her maid Dot wonders when Phryne has ever had to do anything entirely on her own, but that question just spurs her on to test her mettle, both as an investigator and in the role of a trick rider in the circus. But even with the aid of a juggler, a dwarf, a clown, a strong man and a bear, Phryne may just find that she has bitten off more than she can chew….This is the sixth entry in the Phryne Fisher series, and one of the more engrossing. The worlds of the circus, carnival and attached show more gypsy camp are separate and unequal, but all thrive with the inclusion of each other, and that symbiotic relationship is nicely portrayed. Phryne is indeed tested rather more sternly than has been the case up to now, which I enjoyed as she had been becoming rather too ensconced in her very privileged world. I would point out to watchers of the television show that this story bears almost no resemblance to the episode of the same name; some characters and the circus setting are the same, but that’s about it, making this an entirely new story which is a good thing! Recommended. show less

Too many miserable characters who are hanky wringing in this instalment. I really liked sweary Lizard Elsie who has a strong personality and a big heart, but most everyone else was miserable. I didn’t overly like the end of the book, around chapter 16, by memory.
Interesting to add the gang related content as that’s obviously based on actual gang crime that historically happened in Melbourne.
I think to be honest I like bright and confident Phryne, not meek and helpless Phryne.

In Blood and Circuses, the sixth novel to feature the intrepid Phryne Fisher, she undertakes an investigation that lives out the fantasy of every 19th century boy: running away to join the circus. A former lover who is a circus carny and his friends alert Phryne to a series of "accidents" that are consistently befalling the Farrell's Circus and Wild Beast Show. Clearly, these are no real accidents. Phryne goes undercover as a trick rider to find out who and why. In this novel, cut off from both her maid and ally Dot Williams and her policeman friend Detective Inspector Jack Robinson, Phryne finds herself in the most terrifying situation she's ever been in. You'll be on the edge of your seat! I devoured the novel in just a day.

The show more description of early 20th century circuses truly add to the novel; however, as always, the main attraction is the quick-thinking and beautiful Phryne. As befits a girl who runs off to join the circus, Phryne has to give up her chic clothes, which makes her appreciate her good fortune all the more. And the same goes for the reader: The hard-scrabble life of the circus makes a welcome break from Phryne's usual exalted milieu. However, like Phryne, we're glad when we see her return home in the Hispano-Suiza, having tied up all of the loose ends.

Phryne also makes quite a few friends -- including a black bear named Bruno -- amongst the circus folk. I truly hope we'll be seeing some of them again in future novels.

Kerry Greenwood's novels featuring the Honorable Phryne Fisher are an excellent window into Australia's early years as a nation and into the exciting 1920s. However, the truth is that the real attraction of these novels is Phryne herself, clever, generous, sensuous, and gifted. show less

This is the sixth book in the Phryne Fisher Mystery series, and probably my favourite one so far. In essence, our feminist, intrepid sleuth is bored, and goes undercover at the Farrell's Circus, where she has friends, to try and find out who is trying to sabotage the circus, and who murdered Mr Christopher, one of the acts. Phryne, so usually able to hold her own in almost any situation, finds herself out of her depth and lacking in friendship. Not to mention that she is not able to easily call on her friends and Detective Inspector Jack Robinson (although Jack does take a bigger role in this book than in previous adventures). Without her usual back-up she has to rely on her own wits, but anyone who is familiar with the series knows show more that she has plenty of those!

Interestingly, having read other reviews of this book, it seems that people who have enjoyed previous novels in the series have been somewhat disappointed in this one. For me it is the other way around; the last few novels have been underwhelming for me, but this one was much more enjoyable. The mystery itself was not as enjoyable as Phryne's experience of circus life. Here we meet a different Phryne - going by the name Fern, she is vulnerable, unhappy and an outsider among the circus folk, and I did enjoy reading about that. The mystery itself was an intriguing one although I felt that the solving of it was rushed and somewhat unsatisfactory - interestingly I remember thinking the same about the television adaptation of this particular book. I liked the colour, flamboyance and excitement of the circus atmosphere though, and the story whipped by quickly enough I also loved the young policeman Tommy Harris - I wish he had been a character in the television series.

Overall, if you are a fan of this series, for my money this is one of the best so far. show less

While Greenwood could still use a more stringent editor (point of view changes randomly mid-scene; we're told that certain relationships are long-established and important without ever seeing that), Blood and Circuses is perhaps an improvement on the earlier books in the series. The mystery isn't quite so melodramatic and easy to figure it out, though that's not to say that Greenwood doesn't pack in everything bar the kitchen sink into this novel—pools of blood dripping into teacups! gang warfare! profanity spewing alcoholics! biscuit-eating bears! sex with clowns! Something for all tastes. I did also greatly like that this was an installment in which Phryne struggled with loneliness, fear, and being out of her depth—she didn't show more automatically have the skills and knowledge to fit in when she went undercover, and that felt refreshingly realistic.

There are even characters, sympathetically dealt with, one of whom is intersex and another who is perhaps transgender/gender dysphoric/lesbian—that even the characters themselves are not necessarily certain of how they identify is probably realistic to Australia of the 1920s, though there were other aspects of their depiction that made me uneasy. There are also non-graphic depictions of attempted sexual assault here which some may wish to avoid. show less

Phryne Fisher is a likeable, charming and vibrant individual. She's kind and generous to those she meets, smart and logical when faced with problems or obstacles and adventurous in her dislike of boredom. She is brave and tenacious and brutal when faced with injustice.

A few deaths of distant relatives were all that stood between her life of poverty and her ascent into luxury at the age of 12 and she never takes her wealth and social standing for granted. The result of which is a kind and generous soul who is always willing to speak up for the victims, the downtrodden or the underdogs and one who relishes fine food, fine clothes and the myriad of pursuits open to her. Her open mindedness leads to an unique and vibrant cast pulled from show more all walks of life.

Being an Aussie and a proud Melbournian - the Melbourne setting was a highlight. Recognising the street names and places was fun. And Melbournians will understand the delight in recognising how strange our weather is to outsiders.

As far as the genre goes, I don't know if I'd really say it was crime or historical. I mean it is a historical period but it felt kind of modern. The crime was good but it was interspersed with character relationships. There was romance but none of it was meaningful or relevant. It was too lowbrow to be literary and too much reality to be chick lit. It's an odd mix that was an enjoyable read but likely not for everyone.

It's also fairly different from the tv show (and she's a lot younger in the books) but the main elements are present - like Phryne's love of clothes, her humour, confidence and loveable charming personality.

Character wise, I love them all! Phryne, Dot, Dr Elizabeth MacMillan, WPC Jones, Inspector Robinson, Bert and Cec, Mr and Mrs. Butler, they were all fantastic and had me giggling throughout. And I adore the way women are portrayed in this series. I love that all the female characters are strong willed and fierce and able to look after themselves - even when it doesn't always seem like it. I also really like how the cops aren't written as useless or inept - but rather unable to significantly help without someone willing to speak up and testify.

I wasn't sure about this book at first. I like circuses - I just wasn't sure how keen I was on Phryne being in one. But as with the rest of the series I found myself flying through pages and was 40% in before I blinked.

I mean I still didn't really like the circus setting but I did enjoy it. I was disappointed though that we didn't get to see as much of Dot or the Butlers or Bert and Cec. Jack Robinson did appear a bit though and I liked Constable Tommy Harris - he was such a sweetie.

Plot wise the mystery was good. I loved the ending. Definitely thought Phryne was a gonner there but I loved how she managed to turn it all around. Particularly with the lion that wasn't a lion but a bear. I was pretty terrified myself at that point. The idea of the lion in the cage with her...shivers. A terrible way to die. I loved how she fought back against Jones though and her spirit.

A surge of strength went through her like an electric current. They might rape her. But she would not be a victim.

Greenwood, Kerry. Blood and Circuses: 6 (Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries) (p. 178). Sourcebooks. Kindle Edition.

It was admirable. Overall it was an enjoyable read. Not as good as the other books but pretty good. 3 stars. show less

Full disclosure: I got this from NetGalley in return for an honest review

I like a cosy mystery but this just wasn't good enough. The plot was slack; the protagonist spends much of the book wandering around and observing an awful lot of not much in particular. Eventually she puts it all together in the space of a paragraph without it feeling like a logical conclusion of all that's come before.

Perhaps the structure is better than I'm giving it credit for but if so I can only assume the fact I wasn't able to appreciate it was because of the prose. 'Rules of writing' can be prescriptive but Greenway could do more to show and not tell; characters regularly read out chunks of their own or each other's bios as if from some concordance. Very show more few people understand their motivations as well as the characters in this book and fewer still soliloquise to almost complete strangers about them.

I wanted to like this a lot more than I did – I'm a sucker for mystery novels, a bigger sucker still for mystery novels with a posh bird getting her stocking tops out on the cover – but it just wouldn't let me. It was so clumsy and demonstrative it constantly pushed me away. I shan't be reading any more Phryne Fisher. show less