The Traveling Triple-C Incorporeal Circus

This is a charming journey! Chelsea, a ghost, walks (because ghosts can't fly or drive, obviously) from New York City to San Fransisco with her ghost friend Carmen and human mime friend Cyndricka (hence the triple-C) to attend her brother's wedding. Along the way the travelling companions have adventures (and misadventures) and bond as they meet others on the road. The writing is very accessible and light (despite the subject matter), and this reads a bit like a cozy road trip novel, punctuated with heartwarming moments, slight tension, and humour.

The characters are detailed and diverse, and the paranormal elements make sense (but don't examine those too closely). I listened to the audiobook, and thought the narrator did a good job portraying all the characters, including using a different voice for the sign language parts of the dialogue. This is first and foremost a story about friendship, as well as love and loss, and I enjoyed following our characters across the country.

Thank you to Netgalley and Atthis Arts for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"The Traveling Triple C Incorporeal Circus" by Alanna McFall is a fiction paranormal book. It's really great!! 5 stars for this one!

The book is interesting and exciting all the way through! The characters are well developed. The plot is fairly simple, but there are many adventures along the way. I loved it and highly recommend it!

Chelsea Shoe is the main character. She needs to get to her brother's wedding in San Francisco. Unfortunately, she is in New York City, and she is a ghost, so she can only get there by walking. She has a mentor named Carmen who offers to go with her. Then there is Cyndrika. She's a mute mime who can communicate effectively with ghosts. She decides to go with them. The book is character driven but has plenty of interesting things happen on their journey.

Characters - 5/5
Writing - 5/5
Plot - 3/5
Pacing - 5/5
Unputdownability - 5/5
Enjoyment - 5/5
Narration - 5/5
Cover - 4/5
Overall - 37/8 = 4 5/8 -> 5 stars

Thank you to Netgalley, Atthis Arts, and Alanna McFall for providing this audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

I think stories from the ghost perspective are the exception and not the rule, and these are not evil or malevolent ghosts. They're just people who have died, floating around in the afterlife and trying to get by. I thought the entire concept of this book was beautiful.

It takes you on both a physical and an emotional journey where two ghosts and a mute mime make the trek from New York to California. Along the way, they meet both beautiful souls (living and dead) and awful ones (again, living and dead).

But, really this is a book about self-discovery and unfinished business. I loved it.

I loved this one! What an utterly and absolutely original tale it was... McFall does an incredible job creating characters that are immensely human and relatable, full of foibles and quirks and blind-spots aplenty, and placed them in a universe that is magical realism at its finest. There is so much going on here, and all of it is managed with heart and dignity and an underlying recognition of the importance of family - found and genetic. There is humor and poignancy, desolation and opportunity - and it's all packaged in crisp clever writing that engages while it moves you. The narrator did a phenomenal job capturing all of these disparate elements and presenting them in a three-dimensional way that added to my enjoyment of the story. Alanna McFall is definitely on my to-watch list going forward!

I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of this book. While reading, I could not remember the name and kept trying to get others to read “The Ghost Road Trip Book”. It is as intriguing as it sounds. Three women going on a cross country trip, entirely on foot. But the interesting part of their stories is who these women are. There is the main character (Chelsea), who is two years dead and trying to discover what to do when she cannot connect to or influence her loved ones. The second traveler (Carmen) is a much more experienced ghost with a sharp wit, fierce drive to protect those she loves, and a secret. Our third traveler (Cendrika [sp?]) was probably my favorite. A BIPOC, nonspeaking woman who is experiencing houselessness. She slows the pace down because unlike her friends, she needs to eat, sleep, and avoid severe weather. But her mime performances and ability to connect with ghosts along the way really bring the story to life (pun intended).

The tryptic works so well, and I appreciated the grudging start. What speaks to me about this book, and puts it into the ‘read again’ category for me is how well the author encapsulated being homeless. At least in my experience as a white young person. I know for Black homeless individuals the prejudice and pressure to move on is much, much worse. Combine that with a disability and our poor Cendrika is on a struggle bus, but faces it admirably.

I loved the representation in this book! Many of the characters come from cultural backgrounds, and Carmen’s learning of many languages is put to good use. The characters are brilliant, and there are many LGBT+ characters to keep the audience feeling seen. The biggest triggers and themes in this book are loss, grief, isolation, giving into anger, racism, and anti-homeless sentiment. There are depictions of physical violence, references to violent crimes (resulting in death). An animal is injured and the follow out is dealt with extensively.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a fun read that touches on deeper social issues. If you like to read books for the characters, this is the one for you. If you like the concept of ghosts just hanging out and being ghosts, this one is for you. If you want to just read a chill book about characters exploring a landscape they are not welcome in, this book is also for you. This book is going on my elite “to read again” list.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for a nonbiased review.

I had so much fun with this book. It’s told with such earnestness and humanity while occasionally descending into outright farce — it can go from the characters’ exploring what it means to retain their sense of self and purpose after death while losing their connection to their bodies and still-living loved ones, to a diversionary rendition of Modern Major General or kisses bestowed to the mangled neck stump of a lovely but decapitated ghost.

I finished it over a week ago and I’m still thinking about it. It was just so, I don’t know, lovely. The friendship between the main characters. The balance of macabre and silly, heartwarming and sad. The casual but thoughtful inclusion of queerness and sign language use. If I had it in physical form I would have clutched it to my chest on multiple occations.

The narrator was C. S. E. Cooney who did an absolutely fantastic job as usual.