A circus is always a good setting for glamour and intrigue. More than any other show-business career, it has the reputation of wild and dangerous glamour, a group of misfits and outcasts from society living together in close contact and in competition for attention with one another. As much as they resort to more colourful and glittering costumes and pile on the make-up to enhance the illusion, there's always a sense of disillusionment underneath, a sense that they still regard themselves as freak show exhibits, relying on their otherness to make a living. It would not be surprising then that occasionally professional competitiveness, personal weaknesses and romantic inclinations come together to spark off tensions, and even murder.

Megan Rose Gedris's graphic novel series Spectacle has all of the colourful drama and seedy glamour that you associate with circus life, but she also has a few other more unusual elements to throw into the mix that promises to keep the series entertaining and surprising. There is a timeless quality to the tradition of circus life, so it's not until the wagon train arrives at their first destination that you realise that Spectacle is set in the late 1800s in the American west. So there's the Western side of things to add to an already colourful setting, but Gedris also introduces a supernatural element to the story that really shakes things up and gives Spectacle an entertaining and unusual feature of its own.

It doesn't take long either to establish the nature of the drama that occurs within the Samson Brothers Travelling Circus. It centres around two sisters, Kat, who is a knife thrower, and Anna, who is a fortune teller who goes under the circus name of Madame Strange. Anna feels a bit of a fraud compared to her talented sister but she has been working on a device she calls a conjecture engine that can statistically predict events with what Anna claims is 78% accuracy. For all Anna's claims to be able to see into the future however Anna fails to see the death of her sister who is brutally murdered with her own throwing knives.

As tense as relations can get in a circus, there has never been anything like a murder in the Samson Brothers Circus and owner Jebadiah Tetanus wants to keep it under wraps, passing Kat's death off as an accident while Anna searches for the murderer. While Anna's fortune-telling doesn't usually entail any kind of mystical powers, she discovers now that she suddenly has the ability to see the ghost of her sister. The ghost Kat is unable to help her shed any light on the mystery of the identity of her killer however, and residing inside her body, she may prove to be more of a hindrance than a help. Anna however finds that it's not just her sister's ghost she can see, and she seems to have gained a sixth sense awareness. All of which suggests that there's a sinister supernatural element to her sister's death.

Written and drawn by Megan Rose Gedris, the painted artwork of Spectacle takes on a free-flowing life of its own that isn't constrained by rigid panel grids. It may look boldly cartoony, with thick lines and bold colours, but the painted artwork has a lovely flow of its own and has a surprising amount of character and feel for situation. It helps that the circus is filled with the usual colourful cast of characters - and in this period even has a freak show element with Siamese twins, a bearded lady and a mermaid - but Gedris enriches each of them with strong features and behaviours that bring them to life and lift them off the page. With a story that has plenty of other elements to expand upon, including demons and supernatural experiences that haunt Anna's nightmares, Spectacle, Book One sets up the story well, and promises to have a lot more yet to offer.

Spectacle is by Megan Rose Gedris, though it isn’t her first graphic novel by any means. Yu+Me is probably her most famous work, but she’s also done works such as I Was Kidnapped by Lesbian Pirates from Outer Space (try saying that ten times fast), and Small Town Blues.
What originally drew my attention to Spectacle was the cover; the rich colors and circus theme immediately captivated me, and I knew I had to give this new series a try. Spectacle is about two twin sisters whom are part of a travelling circus. One is whimsical and flighty, while the other is pragmatic and down to earth. It’s ironic then that the pragmatic sister, Anna, is the one that can predict the future and see ghosts. Not exactly traits one would expect from a realistic person, no?
The story of Anna and Kat is oddly compelling – they’re both so different from one other, but their ties are unbreakable. Seeing them try to solve this mystery together against all odds…it was wonderful. Though I do wish it hadn’t ended on a cliffhanger (mostly because I’m not a fan of them).
The artwork for this series is outstanding. I expected rich colors based on the cover, but I wasn’t expecting the level of details or other subtle details that were included. I love the way Gedris portrayed the circus as well as the more supernatural events that occurred.
I’m probably going to have to continue reading this series, because I’m officially hooked. I hope the wait for volume two isn’t too long…

I was definitely intrigued by the circus/murder mystery combination. It was relatively easy to follow even though it took a little bit to get into it. I found myself really connecting with the main character after her statement about escaping the party to go read a book instead. As it continued it took some time to get the characters straight. That is one thing I hope improves is getting to know the characters for in detail. Being a graphic novel, it was slightly easier seeing their faces; however, I found character introduction to be lacking. Overall the art style really grew on me as I continued to read it. The color palette was very nice and easy on the eyes as well. Although it was a strange combination, it was a quick read and I would read future installments as well.

Spectacle is an interesting novel in that so much of it feels unique and fresh. From a nuanced and distinct art style, wide array of surprising characters, and a main protagonist who almost comes off more as a moody antihero rather than heroine. Not a lot happens and yet a lot happens within this old world circus as we're drawn into a murder mystery with many suspects.

Two sisters, Anna and Kat, work in a traveling circus. Kat is the talented one - a knife throwing extrovert who always draws attention. Anna, meanwhile, has always been considered the untalented one - withdrawn, quiet, and despising that she has to resort to chicanery and fake fortune telling in order to be a part of the circus. Everything is fine, though, until Kat is found murdered by her own knives. Anna is given no time to grieve as Kat's ghost haunts her, begging Anna to find out who murdered her. But in the world of a circus, everyone stands out and could have been the person who murdered Kat.

The cover art is very representative of what you will find within - and very synergistic with the story. Anna spends most of the time being moody and hating on everything - each panel showing her isolation and lack of inclusion in the cosy circus world. A lot of the book is Anna's interactions with the various circus members - from the freaks to the ringleader. It's quite an interesting group and the author has a good time with them.

As Anna reluctantly tries to track down her sister's murderer, things begin to fall apart at the circus as supernatural elements become more and more prevalent. The book ends on a cliffhanger as things start to get very, very, weird in Anna's world. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

Okay, I started reading this book did not expect much because somehow books with circus or carnaval theme never really made me in love. Same with this book, I did not love it, but I do enjoyed this graphic novel, but whyyyy it ended there?
I feel like it would be much better if they actually did not leave me hanging like that.

Overall, 3 stars.

I was intrigued by this graphic novel after reading the synopsis, so I decided to check it out. I immediately noticed the amazing artwork which of course helped me to enjoy the story even more. Plotwise, I think this first volume was quite strong, though I do wish there had been more. The cliffhanger at the end left me wanting more, but it also got me confused - like 'does this really end here? Am I not missing a couple of pages? What the heck?' and I am now kind of sad the second volume is nowhere near being released because I. NEED. IT.

★★★½⭐

"I was born at a sunrise, thirty years ago. My sister made her entrance to the world at dusk. The trend continued throughout our lives."

Kat and Anna are twin sisters but couldn't be more different. Kat is a social butterfly and a knife thrower and Anna is Madame Strange - not good with pepole unless giving them false propercies. One night Kat gets murdered and Anna has to deal with the loss, find out who killed her sister, and figure out what's going on with Kat's ghost.

Considering that it's a story about the death of the sister I thought the tone is going to be more serious but it was a really funny read. Kat's a hilarious ghost and I laughed a lot while reading this book so I'm glad it kept the melancholy at bay.

I liked the interactions between Kat and Anna. It's nice to read something about a bond between siblings for once and I haven't read that in a while.

At the beginning I didn't really like the art (especially how the faces are drawn) but I got used to it and I have to admit that it suits the atmosphere of a circus. Also, the colours used looked interesting.

The comic ended in a strange place? I'm not sure whether I haven't received the full thing (I've only got 115 pages) but it seemed cut too suddenly.

All in all, I would like to read more of that.

This was an interesting concept with some interesting characters, although it seemed to end rather abruptly and is 20 pages shorter than the page count here. I think my ARC copy might be missing some pages at the end because otherwise it was just a really abrupt cliffhanger. Still, the characters and world are interesting enough so I would like to read volume two when it comes out. The art style takes a little while to get used to but I liked it pretty well by the end of the volume.

I found this title be rather dark. Not my cup of tea.

Anna is a psychic who works for a travelling circus with her twin sister Kat. When Kat is suddenly murdered, Kat's ghost begins to haunt Anna. The two of them try to work together to solve the mystery of Kat's murder, and now everyone in the circus is a suspect.
The character building was decent. Anna is quiet and skeptic of all things supernatural in spite of being a psychic. Her sister Kat is the life of the party and a bit of a drama queen. Although I loved the idea of a murder mystery occurring at a circus, I found Spectacle just okay. The cliff hanger at the end made the story feel incomplete somehow.

*Actual rating was a 3.5*

This was a fun, fast read. Maybe "fun" isn't the right word for a story about murder, hauntings, and a circus but <i>Spectacle</i> has a sense of whimsy to it that captivated me from the beginning.

Anna cracked me up with her muttered comments and but really won me over as I watched her try to come to grips with Kat's murder. I wish the side characters in this novel had been developed a bit more. Many of them showed a glimpse of an interesting story of their own and I hope the reader learns more about them in Volume 2.

The only thing I didn't like about <i>Spectacle</i> was the ending. The story seemed cut off in the middle of a scene in a way that was incredibly unsatisfying. The good thing about the ending is it will definitely encourage me to keep an eye out for the release of Volume 2.

If you're looking for an unusual, delightfully strange graphic novel, I definitely recommend giving <i>Spectacle</i> a try.

Thanks NetGalley for giving me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Liked the story and LOVED the artwork but was frustrated that I have to wait until part 2 for a resolution! It took awhile for me to get into the story but once I did, I really couldn't stop reading. I wish I had the physical book because I think I would have been able to appreciate the artwork better if I could examine it more closely. I found myself flipping back and forth between pages to look at the art. The story has really great elements and interesting characters and I hope that part 2 doesn't disappoint!

3.25 stars

I am not big on comic books and the only reason I picked this up was because of that gorgeous cover and the fact that I have a weakness for circus stories. The art style took some getting used to, tbh but I think it was just the right about of beautiful and colorfully whimsical for the story. The story itself was extremely intriguing - containing a riot of vastly different characters and themes of murder mystery with the mystical.

I definitely think the story has potential, I especially liked the bond between the twins, Anna and Katy. The only issue I had was the ending which happened out of nowhere and did not leave me feeling thrilled or excited but on the contrary it felt unsatisfactory. It wasn't that it was a cliff-hanger but the way it was executed.

If it had not been for the ending, I would have rated this 4 stars.

At first, I wasn’t a fan of the drawings in Spectacle but I grew to like them as I read. Interesting premise, Anna’s twin sister is murdered and she tries to find the murderer. The ending was weird because it felt like it was shortly. I enjoyed it enough.

This book is a new genre for me, I don't generally read books which are graphic or comic in nature. However for some reason, this one drew me in. I think it was the cover, the bright colours and just the different-ness of the book.

I am not one to judge a book by its cover but I must say that the cover was what drew me in. No matter how I started reading, I continued to read because of its plot and characters. It was set in rural America mid 1800s and it was a supernatural murder mystery, what's not to be tempted? Right?

I loved the setting, and the characters were lively. The art was what drew me in and continued to keep me engaged. The characters are pretty good, I loved the dilemma Anna faces when Kat is murdered. The circus also boasts of some odd and sort of interesting characters, too! The supernatural and scientific wonders of the circus were good, it's a quick and fun read and I would like to read more stories set in this universe.

Its pace was a bit odd for me, at times, I felt it fast enough but then it would slow down and I would feel like it's dragging a bit. However one of the best things about this book are its diverse characters, I can't name them all here but they sure are interesting in their own ways and if any of the fun art doesn't tempt you then you should definitely give it a go for the characters. The end of the first volume left a lot to be desired but I am guessing that the next volume will clear the doubts.

Spectacle follows twin sisters: one an engineer and fake mystic at a Circus, the other skilled at knife throwing and one of the main performers at the Circus. One of them ends up dead, murdered during the night, so it's up to the other to find out who is responsible.

I really enjoyed this. I loved how the supernatural elements were weaved in with this murder mystery subplot, and that there's small dramas within the Circus aside from the death, so it truly feels like a vibrant, alive community of people. I thought the art was brilliant, and suits the content well- there's a certain whimsy to it that just fits the tone of the comic. There's a lot of backstory for the twins being hinted at, and you can tell there's a strain on their relationship relating to their history, as well as secrets Kat has kept from Anna.

Overall, a really enjoyable graphic novel, and I am absolutely buzzing for the sequel, even though I have to wait a YEAR for it.

Hmm. I honestly don't know how I feel about this one. Gorgeous art, and I loved the premise, with the fragile community of carnies disrupted by the presence of a murderer in their midst. But the volume ends on a massive cliff-hanger and I feel no closer to figuring out what's going on with Anna, or who the murderer is. This definitely felt like the prelude to a much longer story. Would probably need to read the entire arc to work out how I feel about it.

I really enjoyed this book. It's a story about two sisters in the circus, one dies and the other has to find out who murdered her with the little clues left behind. The main character believes in science so you can guess how confused she is when she starts seeing ghosts.
This book boasts a rich cast of characters and gives a sneak peek into what life is like In the circus, leaving you in suspense as to what happened to her sister and what dark magic is in the circus. The art is unique as well. I would love to read the next book in this series.

Interesting story and striking art style. Was difficult to read physically, there was some stickiness when trying to swipe through the pages but was enjoyable otherwise