"Freaks are big business, Zillah." and so they were in this captivating tale in all its literal meaning of Victorian theatre world and an underbelly of curiosities.
Zillah is a brilliant positive portrayal of a young half caste women, born in Britain and living in the slums of St Giles in London wo works in Marcus Grillick's Theatre. That her popular role is 'pretending' to be an even darker Amazonian woman in various scenes on stage draws large audiences and often admiring advances. But Zillah's roots in the East End also show the class differences. Her lover Viscount Vincent Woodward seems truly to care for her but he seems caught between love and a duty to a father whose plantation and slaves brings the spectre of how post the Abolition Act of William Wilberforce and Parliament that many landed white gentry sought 'compensation 'reparations' for their loss of vile human cargo and how treatment and prejudice still could not make many feel 'at home' in Britain.
The world of this part of London is described in detail and with consideration of how girls, women and some men still cowered on the edges of acceptance and poverty. Zillah's friend at the theatre Ellen from Galway, Ireland also shows the lengths both immigrants and women must accept to make their way in the world.
When Zillah meets Lucien Winters and his friend Elvira Masterson who are trying to raise funds for a scheme to send 'blacks' to Sierra Leone in Africa, where Freetown and their ability to start lives afresh maybe offered Zillah is drawn into an underworld beyond the open stage show.
The idea of freak shows and an Odditorium (still an event on some theatre fringes it seems) showed the worst of humanity. Zillah fears the involvement of Crillick and even her lover Vincent. Will she brave enough to pursue the rescue of desperate people now taken into 'theatrical captivity' for exploitation and experimentation.
Zillah's past and her need to see the best in all may be her downfall. Overall her courage amongst a small group of friends made this a marvellous novel with a plot that grew in tension right to the very end. There is more to be told from this tale - what did really happen to those captured/escaped from such shows? I think this author is just the person to explore these ideas again.
A great read. Entertaining, gothic and yet learning so much.

I didn't actually enjoy this book, I found the writing itself a bit flat and somehow immature for want of a better word. However I am grateful for what I've leared from it. The Sierra Leone scheme made me think of the shameful proposed policy of sending those who come here seeking refuge and security to another country, in this case Rwanda, saying it's for the best. Some things never change.

What a great read with interesting character! Zillah was a force to be reckoned with and I loved that she fought against what was expected of her and took her life and choices into her own hands. Barky was my favourite character of the book, I loved how he looked out for Zillah and tried to protect her, he was the truest friend she had. Filled with characters like no other, this read was riveting and captivating from start to finish.

Thank you for sending me a copy to read.

I really wanted to enjoy this book. It had a very interesting premise. Victorian London, with a black female protagonist, working in a theatre when one of her fellow performers goes missing. That ticked all my boxes. However, this plot of the other performer going missing wasn't established until around the halfway mark. The pacing felt off. At times, it crawled to get to key scenes and others, they flew by without you even realising.

This book isn't sure if it's YA or not. At times, it felt like it was, which was fine, but it wasn't consistent. I think that was another reason I struggled to engage with it. It did make it a relatively easy and quick read for me.

I thought Zillah was an okay protagonist. She was clearly passionate about helping this other performer and had lived through some difficult life events, but she never felt fully developed to me. Barky was one of the characters I would have liked to know more about. I found it odd that it was only later established that he was like a father to Zillah as I imagined them to be a similar age. I could have done without the love triangle between Zillah, Vincent and Lucien. It didn't really add much and came to a very abrupt end.

Overall, this was an okay debut novel. It shows potential for more in the future and personally, I feel a story like this would have worked better as a TV show. I can imagine the visuals of the stage set ups already. A solid three stars.

I wasn’t sure what to expect but I wasn’t disappointed. Set in Victorian England, the story tells us about Zillah who was born free whilst her mother was a slave to a white family. To give Zillah the best opportunity her mother had to leave her with a friend from an early age; something Zillah didn’t understand until later in the book.
Zillah becomes part of Crillick’s theatre, playing the part of an Amazon woman , whilst also being the companion of a member of the upper classes.
It’s an interesting tale of life in the theatre and also the differences in class and colour in Victorian England.

It is Victorian London & at Crillick’s Variety Theatre 'The Great Amazonia' is top of the bill. Zillah, a mixed race actress poses as the captured African Queen (who cares about Geography!) With nails as sharp as claws she pretends to eat live creatures. It is not a role she enjoys but it has meant she can escape the slums she grew up in & mix with the gentry & enjoys a relationship with a Viscount but begins to question things after meeting a black man who tries to connect her with her heritage. When Crillick's latest exhibit disappears Zillah vows to find out what has happened to the woman even if she risks the life she has worked for.

I hadn't realised this was a YA book although that maybe explains a bit of the style. It was an interesting read & I liked Zillah. I think I was expecting a bit more about the theatre & the acts as that was what drew me to read it. However I did enjoy it. Thanks yo Netgalley & the publisher for letting me read & review this book.

I enjoyed the premise of this book and it raised some interesting questions about identity and belonging, However I didn't really enjoy the writing style and found it a bit tedious and slightly repetitive at times. I think it's a debut novel though and would be happy to read further books by the author.
thank you to netgalley and Random House for an advance copy of this book

Great historical fiction and a great debut novel. This is a really good read set in Victorian England touching on parts of history that I knew nothing about. It is such a well written novel as it manages to bring history to life at the same time as having a really good storyline that keeps you invested right to the end. Zillah is a brilliant leading character, she is incredibly strong and prepared to stay true to herself no matter the personal consequences.

This is a lovely uplifting read about the perils and opportunities of a seedier side of Victorian London. As Zillah tries to build a life outside of the criminal slums she grew up, her options seem limited to pretend freak, a rich man's mistress, or a proud man's companion in exile.

Zillah is a spirited character who ultimately finds her own way and sets a course for life on her terms, despite the many threatening and sinister characters she finds on the way.

It's a thrilling read with all the characters and atmosphere of the Victorian theatre's underbelly you might expect and will not be disappointed.

Theatre of Marvels is an enjoyable, well written book with some great characters. I really liked Zillah and Barky especially. I was disappointed with the actions of a few of the other characters in the book but I suppose their behaviour and attitude were in keeping with the attitudes of people at the time of Victorian England.
I really wanted to know more of the Leopard Lady's story and hoped for more of that aspect. However, as this was Zillah's story, I understand why the Leopard Lady was merely a side character.
Ultimately I felt that it was a good book but forgettable. I'm sure it will be enjoyed by those who typically read this genre.
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Thank you to NetGalley, LM Dillsworth and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Theatre of Marvels is the story of Zillah a black, British orphan who has managed to make a living by performing a Zulu act on stage at a mediocre theatre until one night a stranger turns up and shames her for it. Zillah finds herself caught between cultures as she struggles with who she really is and what that means for her.
This book is apparently marketed as YA which I didn’t know when I read it but even for a YA it’s very simplistic. I found myself constantly annoyed with Zillah for being so wishy washy. She just agreed with whatever people told her at the time and seemed to have very little opinions that she had formed herself. Both of her men friends were awful in their own special way. This book could have been very interesting if Zillah was a stronger character but as it was the whole thing was very light and didn’t really get to grips with the issues it touched on.

With her tribal war dances and hints of savagery, the great Amazonia thrills punters at Crillick's Theatre of Marvels - but they can never discover Amazonia is Zillah, a young mixed-race woman determined to honour her promise to her slave-born mother never to go into service. But gradually she realises that with her performance she is betraying her roots, and allowing unscrupulous people to perpetuate the enslavement of black people in other ways. Can Zillah save herself and others from Crillick's clutches and discover her own sense of self before it is too late?
This was a great story, working on so many levels. It offers drama and excitement , and a real sense of life in Victorian London for rich and poor, but it also casts light on how abolition wasn't a complete panacea for previously enslaved black people who, in order to survive, often had to beg, turn to crime or allow themselves to be exploited in other ways.
The narrative explores Zillah's growth from a woman dependent on the men around her - like Crillick, her lover Viscount Vincent Woodward and even to some extent Lucien Winters, the black man who points out to her that she does not have to live life as a fraud - to independent woman as she learns she can make her own choices. She's so courageous and kind, you'll fall in love with her as easily as Vincent and Lucien did.
Without any preaching or overt signalling, the story left me reflecting on whether experience of black people in a predominantly white society is better or worse than it is today.

I didn’t enjoy this book very much. I found is disappointing I was hoping for better but, this wasn’t the case. My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in return for an honest review.

Victorian London, theatre, what's not to love? This was a thrilling read with Zillah at the centre. A page turner, I couldn't put it down

I liked the premise of this book. It sounded intriguing and different.

However I found the execution a little bit lacking. It was a fairly slow repetitive read with not much story progress.

However that's just my person opinion. I can see why others would love it!

Zillah was a great character and her identity issues made for emotional reading. However I think the Victorian theme slipped in and out a little throughout.

For a book with such strong themes I just found it a little watery. It would be a great book to teach in school. But entertainment wise not for me.

Set in Victorian London, the story centres around Zillah, a young woman of mixed race. It's a fantastic read, so beautifully written.
Thank you so much to NetGalley and to the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Sills is the main act at Crillick’s Variety Theatre but her act is a lie as she pretends to be an Amazonian princess. She is half cast but does not fit in as she dreams of a better life. Can this go on and will she find her place in life?
Well written and shows how people don’t always fit it or are used by others for their entertainment. Zella must accept her past to enjoy her future.

Wow that was incredible. I just want to say that the writing is amazing. Every page I turned, I was able to visualise what was happening, feel the emotions and get pulled into the story. The actual plot was also very good. Sort of Greatest Showman but with a very dark twist.

I found the main character so likeable. I wasn't sure whether I liked Vincent or not, even right to the end!! Every character was interesting, all hiding secrets.

I loved this, would recommend it!

Set in Victorian London, Theatre of Marvels is a wonderful read. Our lead character, Zillah, is mixed race and makes her living as an theatre performer. She ends up risking everything to help a fellow performer and a mystery element comes into play in the plot, which I really liked.

Theme wise, this book eloquently explores racism, classism and, in Zillah, gives us a strong, brave woman who has a moral backbone and is trying to do her best when society is set up for her to fail.

I found the book quite split in terms of its pacing - a slow start that really ramped up and packed a lot in to the last section - but I was invested in Zillah's story and enjoyed this read.

This was an interesting if uncomfortable read, dealing with issues of exoticism, segregation and inequality. Zillah works as an actress, playing Amazonia, an African ‘savage’, a role that events lead her to question.

The first half of this book was slow but intriguing, while for me the final quarter felt too rushed and crammed full of twists and turns.

Not a bad read, but not the best either. Thank to the publisher for giving me access to this advanced reading copy.